I fell in love with Possum Porter from day one. A young girl growing up in a small town that doesn't have much but gossip. Still reeling from the death of her mother and baby brother, I was instantly thrust into Possum's world and didn't want to leave. Possum is quite the tom-girl, more comfortable in her cover-alls and bare feet, running through the woods and learning from the world around her.

But her father is lost without her mother. Deciding she needs to go to school, against her wishes he tells her she must attend the one-room school house. Determined to prove she doesn't need it, she goes up against the school bully, attempts to win an essay contest, and makes new friends. Learning all the way.

There are tons of great characters in the book that surround Possum. From the teacher, the school kids, and even one of their parents. Life was very different back then and I fell like Maria D Laso captured that feeling perfectly.

In the end, I bawled my eyes out. Yes, a middle grade book made me cry and I'm not ashamed to admit it. The last scene was beyond touching. It moved me in ways I find hard to explain. I think this book needs to be in every library and every school. Capturing this girl's moment in time was priceless.

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book**

Season two starts off with a bang, and the drama just keeps on coming. We see a lot more from Tate as he tries to find his place in the political arena. But his ongoing feud with his brother and his betrayal sends waves through his campaign that he may find hard to overcome.

There's just lots of cheating lately - some done on the sly, some done because they went about things in the wrong order. I'm really starting to dislike Travis and Bryce - I really need to seem something redeeming about them soon, or they will have just gone too long without some good action.

Dakota is still at the heart of the recent scandal, and she can't seem to let it go. Somewhere in there, there has to be a sane and rational person. I hope we see a glimpse of it soon, because it looks like her world is about to be rocked yet again.

This was a hard book to rate. We start out with the story of Olivia and Wes, and their mission to take out a rival wizard mafia lord. And it was really exciting and I thought we were really going to get to know this unusual couple. I wanted to see how they met, how they fell in love, and how the rivalry began. But we don't. We skip right over their story and right into the story of Evie.

This transition was a little confusing. We don't see how the first scene ties into her story right away and it seemed like it was all out of place. I was also unsure as to why Evie was so protected by her mother. While this was explained eventually, knowing this ahead of time, even if it was just 'reader knowledge,' would have added a nice element to how the story built. The big reveal also seemed a little forced and out of place in the rest of the plot.

It meandered along, introducing us to a few of Evie's friends, and her too good to be true boyfriend. While I enjoyed the story a lot, I think it would have been better served as two books. One with the history of Wes and Olivia leading up to the mission that starts this book, and one that was dedicated to Evie's story. I loved the dark feel to this. K.N. Lee did a great job building atmosphere and characters, I'm curious what else will be coming out of Woodland Creek.

Ok, so yes our heroine is a cougar - as in she turns into one - but I never really pictured as a cougar in the older woman type of way. She just didn't seem that much older than the guys, unless someone was specifically mentioning it (which was kind of awkward). The image on the cover also makes her look much older than she is in the book.

The awkward reminders of the age difference aside, this was a pretty exciting story. A mismatched group of shifters sent undercover to a prison to try and catch a killer. There are lots of opportunities for craziness, and Eve Langlais takes advantage of most of them. I wish she had left a few out, it got to be a tad overdone at times, especially when paired with three over the top personalities.

The bad guy was great. Super creepy and I was surprised when I found out who it was - so kudos to Eve Langlais because I usually figure a good chunk of it out before I'm supposed to. This was a fun trip back to the Freakn' Shifters series, but I feel like some of the characters are starting to be copies of each other. I'll keep with it though because they are hilarious and hope it goes back to the inventive beginning that first drew me in.

It's been awhile since I read the first book in the Order of the Blade series, and I was quite happy to see that I was able to jump into Darkness Seduced without having to re-read it. There is an overall story arc, but the high points were covered in a way that didn't seem like a re-cap, and the romance was definitely a hot stand-alone affair.

Lily is mentioned in book one and the Calydons are out to find and rescue this woman that has been held by the bad guys (rogue Calydons) for years......yes years! But Gideon is quite surprised when they find her and it seems like she may be his mate. Why? Because he already lost his, and he isn't supposed to have another. So, our story begins with them denying the truth in front of them - but at least they have a good reason to.

Calydons aren't supposed to mate, it turns them into temperamental a-holes that like to kill everyone around them. But in the first book, our couple defies fate and manages to avoid what was thought to be inevitable. Gideon and Lily will now have to do the same.

There is tons of action in this story, and the pacing was reminiscent of an urban fantasy - so I think people who just want a good paranormal adventure will enjoy this book right along with the paranormal romance crowd.

However, with the Calydons playing with destiny, and their sanity, we don't quite have a HEA - but more of a "well, at least we haven't killed anyone yet so we can stay together" type of ending. The evil still lurks out there and they still need to destroy it. There were a few times that it seemed like the action overtook everything else - it was quite violent at times. I enjoy a good fight between good and evil, but the hop between downtime and action happened a little suddenly at times.

How To Tame a Beast in Seven Days was a fantastic book. Set in a fantasy world, it pulled on my roots of high fantasy reading and made them proud. A world that is detailed and vibrant, with people to go right along with it. There are even dragons!!!! Combine that with a beautifully arranged marriage style romance, I think I found a truly winning series.

The Embraced are a group of people born under a certain moon and grow up to be blessed/cursed with strange and sometimes terrifying powers. Luciana is an orphan growing up on the Isle of the Moon, the one place where Embraced are not feared and reviled. She was sent there to protect her from those that would kill her for what she is. She loves the island and her 'sisters,' but when her father (surprise!) shows up, she finds out that her history is completely different than what she believed.

Returning with her father to the mainlands, Luciana will have to convince the world that she is another person as she prepares to marry the Beast of Benwick, a man rumored to kill all who come near. And so begins our romance. Of course, the Beast has a surprising history and personality. I'm wasn't sure how Kerrelyn Sparks was going to get these characters together for a while. Everything was stacked against them and both were terrified of what might happen.

There are some crazy twists and turns as Luciana and the Beast travel to the capital. Attacks, deaths, discoveries, and along the way we get to meet some really great secondary characters that I feel just might show up with a story of their own - I certainly hope so.

While I enjoy a good twisting tale, there were a few times that it seemed like a twist was thrown into drag the story out just a tad, and then we had a bit of a rushed ending. Overall, I loved the world, I loved the characters, and I can't wait to see what they are going to do next.

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book**

Antrax is an amazing mix of fantasy and technology. As the crew of the Jerle Shannara explores Castledown, things come crawling out of the woodwork. Castledown is nothing like what they expected and the prize they seek is even further out of reach than even the Druid anticipated. Castledown is heavily protected, and by a type of entity that none have seen before. As the entity searches for those he wants to keep and eliminate the ones he doesn't...well...a whole lot of things happen.

There are lots of traditional fantasy elements, a bit of sci-fi, and lots of action. Tons of characters, so be sure to read this when you won't be easily distracted or you may lose track of who is doing what and where everyone is. As with most of Terry Brooks' series, you need to read this one in order, and while it isn't necessary to read the previous series in the world of Shannara, it would definitely help.

There's a lot of big reveals in Antrax, but there are even more questions that are brought up or left un-answered. Even though there was so much going on, I had a hard time staying engaged with all the moving pieces. While Terry Brooks' books always have a lot going on, this one seemed to be a little more choppy as it jumped around from place to place and group to group.

There were some characters that I really loved, and I was excited to see how the grew and developed through the pages. The Ilse Witch's story in Antrax was quite interesting. She had some pretty big surprises up her sleeve, and the seer shocked me several times. When the story all ends, we don't really have an ending. While some storylines may have seen some version of resolution, there are many threads left hanging for the next story. This world has such a rich history, and I'm really enjoying see how the story continues.

An interesting ending to the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara, Morgawr is full of some unusual twists and turns. While the actual journey seems to have been gotten them nowhere, there are some good things to come about from the voyage. But it isn't over yet. The crew still needs to find their way back home.

Bek really comes into his own in the book. He has learned to stand his ground for what he believes in and fully commits to "fixing" his sister. I found the Ohmsford siblings to be a great pair. Many times they resembled yin and yang. As one was thriving, the other was not. As one did good, the other supported evil. Finally, they both seem to be on the same page and I was very excited to see what they would be able to accomplish together.

The voyage home seems to have a couple different meanings in Morgawr. While the crew of the Jerle Shannara struggle to stay ahead of their pursuers and return to more familiar land, the Ilse Witch is also experiencing the same journey and running from the same pursuer - but for different reasons. When the time comes and everyone is forced to face the Morgawr, the battle is epic in meaning, but not necessarily in scale.

The Morwawr is one of the few books that has left me with the feeling of reading more than one story at once. The themes and journeys were overlaid in such a great way that they all flowed naturally together and the symbolism and metaphor, while very apparent, didn't get in the way. It was a great ending to a series, but there's still some work for the characters to do. I hope to see them again as I continue the overall series of Shannara books.

We meet Dreya, the master thief, in a previous book. She's quite impressive - able to get into just about anywhere using a mix of her incredible intelligence and her shifter abilities. But she may have taken a mis-step and landed herself in jail. Braden, a police detective, has been tracking her and finally catches to her.

This one seemed to have a lot of downtime. When the DCO sweeps in and offers to keep Dreya out of jail, she goes into some intensive training and testing. While I thought it was interesting to see their set-up and recruiting/training methods - it never seemed to end. I wanted more in the mission and with Dreya and Braden out in the field. The time they did spend in the field, seemed a little forced and overdone.

I did get to see some of my favorite characters from series, and I do feel like the series storyline was moved forward - but just a bit. I've gotten used to some seriously action-packed stories and this one just let down my expectation a little in that regard. I highly recommend reading this series in order. While each book has a stand-alone romance, there is a lot going on in the X-Ops world that really builds from one book to the next.

*I voluntarily read a review copy of this book*

We're jumping forward to the next generation of Partholon. With both Rhiannon and Shannon having daughters, the stage is set for the next generation to take center stage. But it all happens in a bit of an upexpected way. Again, the parallels between the two worlds are quite striking and seem to be aligning for some big new event to take place.

This big event is the birth of two girls - and sets off a struggle for both to find themselves. Even though they are worlds apart, their lives seem to mirror each other's in many ways. But there are some unexpected twists. The bad guys show regret and repentance, and the good guys doubt. The daughters both struggle to find where they might belong in their world, and then those worlds collide once again, then the struggle must begin all over again.

Pryderi, the dark god, is making a big grab for power. It's quite sneaky and I think I enjoy his inventive and manipulative techniques. They fit his shadow god persona quite well, and really add that perfect dark and hidden element to the story and the characters' lives.

We are also introduced to a new realm within Partholon that I found fascinating. We meet new divine characters and explore new cultures. This was my favorite part. I hope it carries on through future books in the series.