Ben's story is perfect. :)

The way Norris broke the sections out was great ("Before She Knew Me", "When I Saved Her", and "After I Left Her") and having read book 2 before diving into this novella, it made sense as well as clarified some things for me.

There isn't really that much for me to say here other than I loved it. The fact that Ben basically calls himself out for being a stalker (but not the creepy kind) will tell you that he has a great sense of humor and completely judges himself. I love that about him. I was also able to get a better sense of just how much he holds himself accountable for the fact that he, Reid and Eli have been stuck here for 7 years and although she doesn't know it, Janelle is the one who has pretty much been the only person (other than Eli and Reid) that he cares about.

I'm normally not a huge fan of novellas just because but I did like this one since the other books didn't really give the reader anything concrete around Ben's life and relationships pre and post Unraveling and Unbreakable.

Well done and I definitely recommend this to anyone who has read the books in the Unraveling series.

I loved this book. It mixes historical aspects with the paranormal. I think this is the second book that I intended to read much earlier than I did and found myself wondering what took me so long.

Ember is a 16 year old girl that is looking for a way to get away from the life she was born into. Her father is looking to marry her off to expand his power/control and all she wants is to get away. I really liked this character. She is tough, scrappy and smart but she still doubts herself and shows some flaws. I found myself completely invested in who she was and what was happening with her.

Alistair...at first I supported him but man... he got on my nerves at the end. I am curious to see what happens with him as I don't trust him or Eira AT ALL. Things are not going to go well (even though I'm not sure what the heck is going to happen) but I have a feeling she is going to do something to stab him in the back. Based on my updates, you may see that I really disliked her...




But I went off track there.

Barrow...love him. It is clear he struggles with his feelings for Ember. In my opinion he is the perfect mix of strong and silent yet once he gets past his struggle, he is passionate and not afraid to tell her he loves her. Can you tell...I love the romance/happy ending.

So - the characters were great! There were a lot but they all play a critical part to the progression of the story. Kael, Agnes (what's going on with her??), Lukasz, Eira, Barrow.

Overall - great book and if you enjoy a story that has a bit of mystery, some paranormal aspects, a great main character and broody love interest..this is the book for you. This will stay on my favorites list and I will probably come back to this if I have to wait too long for book 2.

Having been a history major in college, this book was perfect for me. It is a wonderful mix of historical events, great characters, and a moving story. I really did like this book and if you enjoy a little bit of magic mixed in with real history, you may like this one too.

The book opens in 1628 and Elizabeth/Bess is the main character. In present time she is 384 years old but at this time she is the teenage daughter of a farmer and lives with her parents, her older brother, and younger sister. As with anyone during that time period, life isn’t really easy but Elizabeth/Bess and her family appear to live life as best they can. Anne is Elizabeth’s/Bess’s mother and shares her knowledge of herbs and caring for people with Elizabeth/Bess. During this time, the catalyst to a chain of events that will change life for Elizabeth/Bess forever happens. The plague invades their village and people are dying…including her father, brother and sister. When Elizabeth/Bess catches the sickness, Anne makes the decision to do whatever she feels is necessary to save her. What that means is she goes to Gideon Masters.

As a reader we are never really given the backstory of Gideon – only introduced to him through Elizabeth’s/Bess’s eyes and although she never really knows who he is, she knows that he gives her a bad feeling when she crosses paths with him. With that said, I have mixed feelings about Gideon. He is definitely the “bad guy” of the story and is all about the power that he and Elizabeth/Bess could have together. I would have liked to learn a bit more about him but understand why Brackston didn’t put a lot of him in. The book was truly from Elizabeth’s/Bess’s point of view.

Once Anne goes to Gideon for help, things move fairly quickly – at least in this portion of the story. Anne learns about the dark magic from Gideon and he helps her to save Elizabeth/Bess – unfortunately at the same time, the witch hunts begin and there is a lot of anger and fear in the village. Because Elizabeth/Bess survives the sickness and others do not, some of the women in the village accuse Anne of being a witch. The inevitable happens and Anne is put on “trial” (notice the quotes…not really a trial if you know anything about these witch hunts) and sentenced to die. With that proclamation, Anne directs Elizabeth/Bess to go to Gideon for help once she hangs as she knows that the church and hunters will come for her next. This was probably the most moving part of the story for me as I had a clear picture of who Elizabeth/Bess was before the plague and Brackston takes the reader through everything that happens up to the point that Elizabeth/Bess escapes gaol and runs from everyone. Over that time I had the nervous butterflies because this was in no way an easy part of the story to read. There is death, anger, sadness, and some other terrible things that happen eventually leading to Elizabeth/Bess taking the final step to immortality and living the long life of a witch.

Brackston does a wonderful job of weaving the story of Elizabeth/Bess into some real historical events – The plague, witch hunts, Jack the Ripper and WWI – all have an impact on Elizabeth/Bess and help to progress the story. The back story is presented to the reader via Tegan who happens to be a teenage girl in 2007 who has become enamored with Elizabeth when she moves into her village. Hidden as a story of her ancestors (at first) Elizabeth tells Tegan all about her life. She shares how things began, how she has spent the last few centuries hiding and/or escaping Gideon as well as everything that has happened in between. Love, loss, success, and ultimately determining she would like to share her power with Tegan and educate her on how to use it.

I feel like I haven’t even started talking about what this book is about – so much happens over such a long period of time but I don’t want to tell you everything. Know that I have only touched the surface of everything that happens but I don’t want to summarize the whole thing and take anything away – I know my review won’t do the full story much justice. If you enjoy history mixed in with a great story, I have a feeling you will enjoy this book.

Review to come.

I feel like my heart has been ripped out, stomped on and handed back to me after finishing this book. With that said, solid 4.5 stars to this one as it continues to keep me turning the pages and wondering what the heck else is going to happen.

This book (similar to the first in the series) is pretty much non-stop action. I kept thinking that MacKenzie needs a break...something to at least heal from all of the damage she has put her body through over the last months. Although Aren healing her doesn't seem to be a bad thing so maybe she doesn't need it. This book picks up essentially where the last one left off. The rebels have taken over the throne and are trying to put Lena in as Queen. Unfortunately, those that previously supported Atroth are now fighting against her taking the throne (remnants).

I really am enjoying this series and am glad I came across it - I'm still not sure what the sword has to do on this cover or the first book as MacKenzie freely admits she can't fight against the fae and hasn't ever really tried to do so with anything other than a dagger....Other than that and the fact that this second book has set me up for some heartache (both for the way this one ended as well as the fact that I don't even see book 3 listed here on Goodreads), I recommend this to anyone who likes a lot of action, some hunky fae guys, and a solid main character.

This is the start of another great series by Stiefvater. Both the characters and the story made this one an engaging read and a page turner for me. My review will not do this book justice so go read this one.

Starting with Blue, the story opens with a bit of background on her and her family. She has grown up surrounded by psychics but she has never had this special ability. Instead, she is an amplifier and helps out where she can. Because of this, she is at the church on St. Mark's Eve helping to identify the dead for the next year. As an added kink, Blue has been told by her mother and family that if she kisses her true love, he will die. This has encouraged her to stay away from boys and especially the Aglionby boys.

At the time that Blue is identifying the dead, we are introduced to Gansey. He is an Aglionby boy which in most cases means, rich and privileged. Gansey was an interesting character and I actually really liked him. He seemed a bit mad scientist like when it came to finding what he is looking for. Gansey has an interesting relationship with the people around him. He is surrounded by boys he goes to school with and regards almost as family (Adam, Ronan, Declan, and Noah). I loved the interactions between them all as well as 1:1. Some of my favorite moments happened between Adam and Gansey once Adam makes the decision to move into Monmouth Manufacturing.

All of the characters were great. They are not perfect and they each have their own issues/struggles they are dealing with. Gansey is the glue that seems to hold them together and as Adam put it, he likes to have all of his things in one place...including his friends. When Blue joins the ranks, it is almost like she was always a part of the group and fits right in.

I will say there was an unexpected surprise for me around the character Noah. I won't spoil it but I was not expecting his story to be what it is. As the book progresses, it fits and really links a secondary character in with the main group.

Overall, a great story with some paranormal and an underlying mystery. There is definitely an introduction to the potential relationship between Blue and one of the boys and through some of the visions it is interesting who that person is....

This sneak peek definitely drew me into the story and I can't wait to read the rest of the book.

Mackenzie is a keeper and has inherited this job from her Da. On top of the work she does tracking down histories and getting them back to where they need to be, her little brother has recently died. Her mother is struggling with Ben's death (they all are really) and Mac's mom and dad made the decision to move and open up a cafe.

Not only do we get a glimpse into the things Mac does as a Keeper but we see how her work/powers impact her daily life. She has to lie to everyone and she can't touch other people without it causing a painful "noise". It has created some tough situations with her parents.

Just as things were starting to get good, I hit the end. I will definitely read this story when it comes out. I am curious to understand what was going on with The Archive and also learn more about Wesley.

This was an interesting book. I avoided reading any reviews prior to opening this one as I didn’t want them to impact what I thought. I have heard from a number of people that they either really liked it or really disliked it. I have to say, I am more middle of the road on this one. The main reason for that is that I have to enjoy not only the story but the characters and I just didn’t get this here.
First, the story – I honestly liked it and it kept me turning the pages as I wanted to see what was going to happen to these characters…not so much because I liked them but because I was curious. The story itself is beautifully written and I was interested because with a blurb that included the words, love, loss, chaos, and murder in it I was intrigued.

Kiri is the main character. She is 17 years old and home alone for 6 weeks. She has a list of things to do but her main focus is practicing her piano for her showcase and also winning Battle of the Bands with her BFF Lukas. Kiri gets a phone call one night that throws everything off track and ultimately changes her plans for the next 6 weeks. That call is from a man named Doug who says he knew Kiri’s sister Sukey when she was alive and he tells her that if she wants Sukey’s things, she needs to come get them. The rest of the story is about Kiri coming to terms with what happened to her sister as her parents and brother never told her the truth about how she died as well as dealing with the impact of what she learns. I liked seeing the relationship and friendship develop between Kiri and Skunk but I honestly wasn’t invested. Here’s why….I thought Kiri was a bit annoying and made some really stupid decisions.

So the characters….First let me talk about Kiri. As I mentioned, Kiri made some (really) stupid decisions – which happens at 17 but seriously – who is going to make the decision late at night to ride their bike through a shady part of town to meet someone they don’t know??? Then, I understand Skunk was being nice, but based on the initial description of him, I would never go off with someone I don’t know in the middle of (again) a shady area of town because he says he will fix my bike tire.



As the story progressed, it was clear that Kiri was acting oddly and she had no support system in place to help address her issues. Her brother wasn’t consistently around and her parents are gone.

I did like Skunk and once his back story was revealed, I liked him more. He still struggled with everything going on in his head and clearly his aunt thought Kiri wasn’t the best thing for him. Despite that he was trying to get through each day the best he could. Ultimately I was happy to see Kiri come through despite her manic approach to getting him to face his fear.

Lukas was a douche and I was so glad that Kiri finally realized it. The only thing I wish would have happened between him and Kiri is that she had the opportunity to tell him off. He knew she had feelings for him (before the embarrassing movie night) and didn’t really do anything to discourage her….the “we should focus on the music” conversation was lame. Maybe it's me but I would most likely have taken the chance to let Lukas know exactly what I thought of him and his inability to do anything but focus on what he wanted.




I honestly have no words for the parents – other than I found it somewhat unbelievable that any parents would leave their teenage daughter home by herself for 6 weeks. Yes, Kiri may have given them the impression that she had it together but that timeframe is not realistic…Forget the fact that their eldest daughter was brutally murdered 4 years ago, she is 17. That is all I have to say about that.

Overall I can’t say that I loved this but I also didn’t hate it. I rate this between 2.5 – 3 stars as I enjoyed the story – just disliked most of the characters.

This was an intriguing book to read. I find myself using the descriptions “interesting” and “intriguing” when I’m not sure how I feel about something or how to react…this isn't an exception. I am torn because there were things I liked and there were things I found obvious/annoying. The subject is definitely a tough one to read about and the feelings that result are definitely mixed. I will say that yes, there were some somewhat unbelievable and perhaps unrealistic twists to this story but overall I found the book to be one that kept me engaged and curious as to what would come out or happen next.

The book actually grabbed me from the very beginning as we open with Angie at girl scout camp heading toward the trees. Angie is the main character and 13 years old. While out in the woods, she gets a weird feeling that someone is watching. Regardless, she heads out and the next thing we know, she is face to face with her captor and being led off. The next thing she knows, she is in her neighborhood and headed home. Oh, and it is 3 years later.

We come to find out that Angie has been missing for 3 years and the last thing she remembers is being at camp…somehow 3 years are missing from her memory and she doesn't know how to act or be around her family. This part of the story was a bit painful to read considering she doesn't remember a thing. She has the emotional maturity and experiences of a 13 year old while everyone is treating her like a 16 year old and on top of this, she has developed DID (Disassociative Identity Disorder) - multiple personalities - to deal with the trauma she has faced over the last 3 years in which she has been abused.

It is clear that there are going to be some challenges – Angie’s mom is pregnant with a new baby which Angie feels may be an attempt to replace her, her friends have moved on in school while she hasn't, and in addition to all of this, Angie begins to see a therapist to try to unlock what she can’t remember. Clearly there is a psychological aspect to this book and anyone who finds that interesting might also find the techniques and brain mapping experiments interesting. I have no connection to this type of work so I have no idea if any of it is really how it would work or be done….I still found it intriguing.

The multiple personalities that inhabit Angie are varied and serve their purpose. Where the story lost me were the pieces where it was obvious where Coley was headed…at least to me and those that didn't really fit or impact the overall story.

Spoiler

The bit with her uncle and Sam being her baby. I’m not sure what the deal was with the fire and the underwhelming response from Angie’s friends to her return.

At times the dialogue felt off and somewhat uncomfortable. Angie’s responses didn't really fit her age as well as the situation. I don’t claim to know how someone would react to all of the things that have happened but it just felt off to me.

I have to stick with my 3 star rating on this one and stick with the middle road. Please don’t consider that a negative review. I have to be completely invested in a character and although I felt for Angie, I didn't necessarily connect with her in a way that made me love her. Also, her “friends” annoyed the crap out of me.