3.5 stars.

The One Universe series is definitely one that got my attention. Two picks up where One left off but this time the story is told from Elias’ perspective. I enjoyed the continuation of the series and thought Kopans did a great job of wrapping up this series. There is definitely a lot of action and we get to learn a lot more about what Fisk’s plans were. On top of all of that, Merrin and Elias are trying to balance the differences in how they feel about their superpowers with their love for each other.

Elias and Merrin are officially on the run. They have escaped the Biotech Hub with the help of his sisters and ultimately end up at the Clandestine Services Hub. While at CS, they are able to not only explore more about who they are together but also who they are separated. Throughout the course of this book, it is clear that Merrin really wants to fly and be something more and Elias just wants to be normal. Getting Elias’ perspective made me a bit annoyed with Merrin – mostly because I could see how much it hurt him to see her struggle and at times make him feel like he wasn’t enough for her.

"She always wants to be more extraordinary, and I’m always content for us to be ourselves."

That line just said it all for me. Elias is still swoony and all he really needs to be happy is to be with Merrin but he knows what is important to her and what will make her happy. Because flying is everything to her, he does whatever he can to help her realize that goal.

As the story progresses, we find out more about what was really going on at the Biotech Hub and what truly happened to Elias’ sisters. Due to all of the testing he put them through, they are having some horrible side effects and creating a lot of issues as they are tearing around the world. Inadvertently they are creating an opening for Fisk to move forward with the plans he has been keeping under wraps.

Turns out Fisk has been plotting against all the other supers and he isn’t above using Merrin to test them out. When she decides to go on a mission with one of the new characters, Gallagher, and gets caught, he has the perfect chance to do it. I won’t give anything away here but what he does to Merrin has a major impact on her and what she sees as her future.
If you enjoyed book one of this series you will definitely want to check book two out to find out what happens to these characters and the hubs. If you haven’t started this series yet, go get it and start it…you won’t be disappointed.

Thank you to the author for providing a copy for review.

Review to come.

Pawn is a fast paced, dystopian that was one of those books I couldn't seem to put down. There is enough action that it kept me engaged and definitely enough intrigue to dig into. Add to this the politics and this makes for a solid book one in this series. I think I can review this without giving anything major away….apologies for anything super vague.

Kitty Doe is seventeen and has spent her life trying to prove herself. As an “Extra” or second child, she was given up by her parents and what she really wanted was to prove she was useful and not a mistake. See, at the age of seventeen, all citizens are required to take a test to see what their rank is I and II ranks are destined for an early death as they get the worst jobs and least amount of support from the government. III’s do menial labor but it isn't always desirable - the only benefit really is they have enough food and shelter to survive. IV's are considered average but they don't have such a rough life and V's and VI's are luckier - they get better jobs and more opportunity.

Kitty knew going into the test the cards were stacked against her but she knows she isn't an idiot and she hoped she would get a IV. Unfortunately Kitty can’t read (she suffers from dyslexia) and this is what held her back during the test. Once completed she finds that not only did she only rank a III, her new placement in sewer maintenance will be in Denver…far away from D.C., Benjy (her boyfriend), and everything she knows and loves.

Carter does a great job of building out the alternate world and presenting a society that because of overcrowding and economical issues has some pretty strict rules. America is now run by a Prime Minister and although they say they are elected officials, the truth is, no one has been on the ballot against the Hart family in a long time. The Hart family consists of the matriarch Augusta and she clearly is running things even though Daxton Hart is the figurehead. Celia Hart is Daxton’s sister and the mother of Lila. Greyson Hart just happens to be Daxton’s son and next in line to lead the country. Knox Creed is Lila’s fiancé.

As an act of rebellion after her test, on her way out of the market, Kitty steals an orange and this is the catalyst to the rest of the story. She knows oranges are for IV and above and her actions draw the attention of a shield…one of the guards that work for the government. What he notices about Kitty are that her eyes are exactly like those of Lila Hart, the niece of the Prime Minister and this is what creates problems for her. Kitty and Benjy run away but they already know her name and eventually hunt her down. Not just because she stole an orange but because they need her to take Lila’s place. Although no one outside the immediate family has been told, Lila apparently was killed and because she has been such an influence on the people, they would prefer to mask Kitty and have her become Lila. See, they need her speak against the rebellion that Lila created so that more problems don't occur.

Throughout the story it is clear that no one in the Hart family trusts anyone else. They all appear to be fighting for control of the country and willing to do whatever they think is necessary to get what they want. All the while that Kitty is attempting to navigate these dangerous waters, she is struggling with the fact that she is now Lila and needs to be convincing because if she isn't, things could end badly. She is also worried about Benjy and what will happen to him. Daxton and Augusta have made it perfectly clear that they are going to hurt whoever they need to in order to get Kitty to do what they want.

While the Hart’s continue to threaten Kitty she can’t seem to avoid trouble. Mostly in the form of supporting Knox and Celia. They definitely have their own agenda and secrets. I won’t disclose any of them here but they are revealed along the way and it is clear why there is such a disconnect between these family members. While Knox and Celia have their own reasons behind supporting the masking and Kitty taking Lila’s place, Knox is the one that started to grow on me.

Eventually, we find out just what has been going on with the Harts. It isn't just that they are fighting for control. They have conflicting views on how things should be run and because of this; Celia/Lila and Daxton/Augusta are a threat to each other. They all seem to have secrets from each other - no matter whose side they are on. Add into the mix the blackcoats and the dangers they pose to the family and things are even more dangerous.

I enjoyed the characters in this book and thought Carter did a great job building most of them up. I thought Kitty’s story was developed well and I was able to understand her motives. It is clear she loves Benjy and protective of those she loves. With that in mind, the group of people she is close to is pretty small so when things start to happen to them, she is affected. Although Kitty can’t read, she is clearly smart. I especially loved the times that she stood up for herself and when she wouldn't let everyone bully her around. She was the right mix of smart and sarcastic to make the character work for me.

I enjoyed Benjy in the beginning but he fell a bit flat for me at the middle/end of the book. He definitely cares about Kitty and over the years has fallen in love with her but he didn't really seem to have a purpose other than to be the thing that the Hart’s use to threaten/blackmail her with. I get that Carter was trying to show Kitty as doing whatever she could to protect him but the fact that he would just let her go with Tab….just….no way.

Knox was great. He definitely has a plan and I don’t think he counted on the fact that Kitty would have such an impact on him. It was almost like she was a surprise – in a good way. He is another one who will do what he can to protect those he cares about. That group now includes Kitty and I honestly don’t know what’s next for him. I’m feeling a potential love triangle here but we will have to wait and see.

The character I enjoyed reading about (outside of Kitty) was Greyson. He is clearly in a position that he doesn't want and part of a family that although he loves them, he doesn't trust them at all. As the next in line to lead the country, he is in a tough position and it will be interesting to see what happens with him in the next book.

With the events that happened at the end of Pawn, I can’t wait to see what happens in the next part of the story. Changes are coming – good and bad – for everyone and I’m not sure where Carter will go with it. There is definitely a lot of potential and if you enjoy the dystopian genre with solid characters as well as a good story, you should pick this one up.

Thank you to Harlequin TEEN and Netgalley for the advance copy.

Great peak into Daniel. He was one of my favorite characters in Hopeless and Losing Hope and I was happy to see Hoover focus this novella on him.

Not only do we get more Daniel, we get to see who his mystery girl is from the maintenance closet. It was great to see Holder, Sky, and Six back in this one and the introduction of Daniel's family is perfect.

If you enjoyed Losing Hope and Hopeless you will definitely want to check this one out!

3.5 stars - Review to come.

Witchstruck combines some of my favorite things in storytelling – history, political intrigue, romance and magic. Victoria Lamb has taken the story of Princess Elizabeth and inserted that of Meg Lytton. Meg is in service to the princess while she has been sent to the country under suspicion of treason by Queen Mary. Meg has always grown up around magic as her Aunt who raised her, has taught her everything she knows and although Meg is not the strongest witch, she definitely knows some stuff.

The characters are what really make this book for me because I have heard this story before. You know…the challenges of 16th century England – Catholic vs. Protestant, witch hunts….all of this exists but with Meg as the main character, we get to see all of this through her eyes and I really enjoyed it.

Meg struggles with trying to find her power as a witch and what that means with her role in Elizabeth’s household. At times I found myself annoyed with Meg – she would do some pretty silly things (like go off and practice her magic where and when she knew she shouldn't have) and got herself into some bad situations but the thing that redeemed her for me was the fact that she would use her brains to get out of the situations. She is young and hopefully as she becomes older and more experienced she will start thinking about the things she does.

Alejandro was a bit of a mystery at first. I wasn't really sure where his character was going to fit into the overall story but it worked for me. He clearly had some mistrust for Meg when he first met her but he isn't one to make snap judgments so after he got to know Meg, he began to see her as more than just a young girl who is a bit wild and makes some questionable decisions.

I loved seeing the relationship progress and change between Meg and Alejandro. What I liked was that this was not the main focus of the book and it was definitely a progression and something that happened immediately. Both had their own plans and eventually, they came to care for each other enough that the other’s safety became just as important as the original work they were doing. With that said, Alejandro’s decision at the end of the book seemed to come a bit out of nowhere…mostly because he had been out of the picture for a little while and even though they did come to care for each other, I wasn't really expecting him to propose what he did. Although the part of me that loves the HEA and romance was happy he did.

While all of this is happening, the continual threat of being caught practicing witchcraft is there. Not only because of Meg’s poor decisions but because she has drawn the attention of Marcus Dent, the witchfinder. Marcus wants to marry Meg but she knows who he is and what he represents. Nevermind that she is afraid of him and also in love with Alejandro (yep – I said it). When she refuses to marry Marcus, he accuses her aunt of being a witch and then eventually Meg.

On top of all of this happening, Meg is dealing with the fact that her father and cousin have betrayed her trust. While she has gotten a letter from Princess Elizabeth to try to help her aunt, her cousin and father have decided to use that letter to push those that support her taking over the throne into action. In order to protect the princess, Meg and Alejandro make the decision to chase the letter down and get it back to the princess so that it can’t be used against her.

I really enjoyed this book and am definitely looking forward to the next book in the series. I myself have been on a historical kick so it came to my attention at just the right time. Lamb blends in perfectly the idea of what might have occurred if Princess Elizabeth had a witch for a maid alongside the intrigue that exists in the royal family as well as how people feel about witchcraft. While the first few chapters were a bit slow, once I got past them, the story flew and I couldn't seem to put the book down. Definitely check this one out!

Thank you to Harlequin Teen and Edelweiss for the review copy!

Here’s hoping this review is not super rambly…I tend to get that way when I don’t want to give anything away but still want to tell everyone all the great things….apologies if it gets away from me.

My Date From Hell picks up shortly after Ex ended. Sophie believes that Kai deserted her and the gang after stealing Theo’s chain. Soon after getting back to school, she is kidnapped by Zeus and taken to Olympus. Zeus wants to know where Persephone and Kai were planning the ritual and unfortunately for both Zeus and Sophie, she still doesn’t have her memory back. This is where the book opens and it was one of the parts I loved. Not only do we get a glimpse of what Sophie’s relationship with Zeus is and his feelings toward her, but it leads into her realizing just what Kai did when he left everyone behind.

From the very beginning Darling takes the reader on an action packed ride with this group. Between trying to stop Bethany from taking over the world and creating havoc with her power, trying to get Sophie’s/Persephone’s memories back, and avoiding getting kicked out of school, Kai and Sophie decide they need to go on a date…what really happens is that all of these things (and more) become their date from hell.

Darling continues to build these characters out and we get to have more of Kai this time around as he is now closer than ever to Sophie and the group. I still really like Sophie and want her to be a real life friend (don’t judge me – I know she is fictional). She’s perfectly sarcastic and snarky and doesn’t take everything too seriously. Considering how much her life has changed since that first kiss with Kai, I love that she still has a sense of humor about everything.

With all of that in mind, she continues to struggle with her identity and who she should be. She is continuously being compared to Persephone and that does raise her hackles but she is slowly getting past it. The good thing is that by the end of the book, she gets that those people who are important to her and know her, know she is not really Persephone. Yes, she has pieces of her within but she is Sophie and I think she is coming around.

Kai is one of the reasons Sophie is adjusting. He is slowly chipping away at this wall she has built up to protect herself from him loving Persephone and he does a great job of making her realize it is Sophie he is drawn to not Persephone. It was great to have him involved within the group dynamic and Darling took the opportunity to introduce some of his background which was great and explained a bit more about who he is.

Darling also took some time to introduce some great new characters as well and I have to say, she may have outdone herself this time. First, I have to address Aphrodite – it was brilliant to reference her as “Lina Lamont made flesh.” Every single time she came up and spoke, all I could picture were scenes from Singin’ in the Rain and really made that character come to life for me.

Festos was another great addition – he comes across as the male version of Sophie. Perfectly snarky and he truly has feelings for Theo. From his first interaction with Sophie it was clear he was going to be a great addition to the group.

The other person I will mention is Pierce who is really Eros (Cupid). He makes Hannah realize there is more to life than books and science and she definitely notices him. He actually works for Aphrodite and because of a mishap with one of his arrows; things get interesting between Kai and Sophie.

If you like your books with a lot of action, an assortment of Greek gods and goddesses, quite a bit of sarcasm and some mystery, you will definitely enjoy My Date From Hell. I can’t wait to see what happens next as based on the ending we were left with; it could go any number of ways. I may just have to see what I can bribe Tellulah Darling with in order to get a copy of book 3 because I’m pretty sure I’m too impatient to wait for the book to be released.

Loved this one...you did it again Kasie West.

Ok – so my sister has been raving about this book and Xander forever. For no reason other than the fact that I kept picking up something else, this book kept getting pushed off the next list and I’m glad we decided to do a readalong otherwise I might have taken longer to dive into this. After reading, Kasie West is definitely on my autobuy list. She wrote a wonderful story that drew me in and made me want more of both of these characters.

Caymen is the main character and I have to say, I love her. She has the perfect level of sarcasm and she doesn’t take things too seriously even when she has some serious things to deal with. She has grown up with her mother struggling to make ends meet by running a doll store. Her father is someone she doesn’t even know and her feelings for him and the situation she and her mother live with has given her a health disrespect for the wealthy people in her town. She knows she has to treat them well when they are in the shop but otherwise she tries to keep her distance. All she really knows about her father is that he came from a rich family and when they found out her mom was pregnant, he ran.

Enter Xander Spence (literally – he comes into the shop one day and this is the start of their friendship). He is tall, handsome and rich. I have to say I loved their first meeting. We get just enough of Caymen’s bias and sarcastic wit to make it funny and wonder where it could possibly go from there. The thing that trips up Caymen is the fact that people aren’t always what you expect and she finds this out quickly. Xander may be rich but he finds a way to get past her defenses and makes Caymen realize he is someone she cares about – regardless of what her mom thinks or how much money his parents have.

I loved how West built in this idea of career days to help these characters learn more about each other as well as expose us as readers to them. Clearly Xander has some advantages that Caymen doesn’t but initially he seemed to put more thought into what he wanted to do. I was happy to see her put some effort into setting something up that fit him perfectly (muffins) and showed she put some thought into who he is and what he liked.

There is definitely angst in this story. Outside of the developing relationship, Caymen is also trying to figure out what is going on with her mom. She knows they have been struggling financially but there is something more she is keeping from Caymen and it has her worried. When she finds out what it really is, Caymen’s life changes.

In my opinion, Xander is perfect for Caymen. He slowly gets her to realize he isn’t the bad guy. There are misunderstandings but in the end, when they actually talk about things, they find out that they were based on assumptions and we all know what happens when you assume something.

As usual, West left me wanting for of these characters. If you are looking for a good contemporary that has lovely characters and swoons, definitely check this one out. I had too many sections tagged for me to just pick one or two quotes to include so just trust me when I say you should jump into this one.

Review to come.