My ParaHangover

Might just be my favorite book of the year...it'll be hard to top ;) full review soon!

Ouch, my brain hurts a little... Review soon

I could very well change my star rating up to a 5 - I'm having a tough time rating this one - I can totally see why a lot peeps had a tough time with this one. Full review soon!!

4.5 stars Review very soon ;)

What a fun ride! Review soon!

I liked this!! I will have a full review soon to explain why... ;)

4.5 stars - outstanding intro to Armentrout's new world and, OH! There's a sweet, perfect love story! Full review soon :)

Best story out of all three! Dang, Lisa, you nailed it with this story: Sam, Harrison, setting, plot, action *runs screaming in circles*. Okay, not really so dramatic... Full review, like, tomorrow :)

Full Review:

The third book in the A Little Too Far series by Lisa Desrochers completely held me in it’s grip for it’s entire 284 pages. I needed pages 285, 286, 287… I went into this book thinking it was just going to be a typlcal “Cinderella” story with heat added. I was not expecting the intriguing story I got, the action, and to ultimately like both Sam and Harrison. And what happened to Sam? I never saw it coming!! But more on my freak out in a moment…

Sam is a total screw up, or so she’s been told. She’s just lost her job and has been cut off by her family ever since she flunked out of college for partying too much and not making it to class. Doesn’t sound like a very endearing character, right? Stay with me, though.

Her last chance before being homeless is her best friend, Jonathan. Problem is she needs a job and needs one fast to help pay rent. He takes her to a gentleman’s club they both know because they are short dancers. Because the dancers don’t take their clothes off, Sam’s open to the idea but it’s not easy for her.

It took me a while to figure out where the character Sam is originally from. It’s been a while since I read A Little Too Far. She’s Lexie’s best friend who dated Trent. Another reason why I wasn’t sure I was going to like Sam. But once you read her, hear her voice (because she’s the narrator), and understand “where she’s coming from”, you can’t help but root for her. She’s completely loyal to her friends and her quick wit and sass was so refreshing.

Now Harrison, where do I start? Of course he’s hot and he commands a room with his presence, at least for Sam. But he has his own issues, buried beneath the surface and not quite as obvious as Sam’s. I really liked the attributes that Ms. Desrochers wrote into Harrison’s character. He’s incredibly smart, extremely athletic, and very mature. He’s exactly the type of person Sam needs in her life right now. Except that’s where the story comes in….

So I mentioned earlier that I had a bit of a freak out while reading this. It wasn’t so much of a freak out as a “sitting-on-the-edge-of-my-seat, swiping-the-pages-like-a-madwoman” kind of experience. Ms. Desrochers did a phenomenal job writing this book. She set up the plot, introduced the characters, let the story play out a bit, and then took us off on a crazy train. There was action, a murder investigation, and more importantly romance. Since I wasn’t expecting all this from a NA romance, I was giddy with book love for this outstanding storyline.

The plot moved along great with maybe only a tiny lull here or there. Nothing I would ever care or give a second thought about.

I really wish I could discuss this book with someone who’s read it because there’s so much to the storyline and there’s a few ways this story can be interpreted (ie. this could be a “love it” or “hate it” book). I absolutely loved it because I completely understood Sam: how young she was, how her habits got formed, and how she ended up in the situation she did.

And, if you’re not feeling particularly deep, this book still does a fine job wrapping up the A Little Too Far series with a hot little romance that gives you a nice HEA. Did you really think there wouldn’t be a HEA? tsk, tsk…

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3.5 Stars

I’ve been reading paranormal romance (PNR) for a long time. Or at least I thought I had been but it appears that a lot of great authors and series are zipping right by me as I sit and dwell in young and new adult-land.

Grrrrrrr… too many genres, not enough time!!!!

Cat Devon’s Entity series is one of those PNR series that was on the verge of zipping right by me. I was lucky to have this series introduced to me when the opportunity arose to review it. Now, you’re probably thinking to yourself, “yeah, but it’s the third book in the series”. Fret not, for I had absolutely no problem diving right in and enjoying this world and all the colorful characters.

Sierra Brennan is writer of paranormal mysteries where the heroine in the story is a ghost whisperer. Interestingly enough, so is Sierra because she sees (and talks to) dead people. So needless to say, her writing is authentic. Her heroine is a pretty kick-butt, snarky character who is getting lots of sex. Sierra isn’t getting much in the sex department, considering the ghost issue but she’s all kinds of brave and full of sass and snark. She goes up on my imaginary list of favorite heroines for just being plain funny. That and she worships her Keurig like I do mine.

She’ll need her bravery in spades because she has a chance to inherit her uncle’s house in Chicago if she can live in the home for 30 consecutive days. Her two cousins who attempted it previously failed rather quickly. But Sierra already deals with ghosts on a daily basis; what could be worse? Um, naked vampire at the door?

Yep, that’s exactly how the books starts… oh, yeah! Love them vampires with no shame. *getting mind back on track*

Ronan McCoy is finally free of the master vampire who indentured him into service for one hundred years. Ronan is back in his hometown in Chicago with a claim on his childhood home. He also needs to find a “key” that will help in his attempt to free his sister from a curse. Now what in the world is Ronan going to do with a human getting in his way? Well, if you’re Ronan, you start thinking of all sorts things you want to do to Sierra :)

That’s what I loved about Ronan, he was a simple character trying to get out of a jam. He did horrible things in his past but those things didn’t make up who he is. I enjoyed that he was so much more and then at other times he was just kind of a simple guy.

Some of the secondary characters were off the wall hysterical and totally worth the book if only for them. I can’t even decide on my favorite. It’s a toss up between Bruce, Tanya, and Pat. I think I have to go with Tanya because she started Sierra’s street team and hosted webinars on Sierra’s behalf.

The story was basically a mystery and PNR wrapped into one. The plot moved along great and the only problem I had with the story is that towards the end, a major plot point was introduced that hadn’t been hinted at previously and seemed to come straight from left field. I personally hate when that happens. But don’t let one of my quirks stop you!

Seriously, I had absolutely no problems jumping right into Ms. Devon’s world because she did that little bit of explaining needed to understand references to past books or to understand a character’s background. Yes, of course it is ALWAYS better to start a series at the first book. But I’m just saying that if you want to jump right into where I did, you could do it and still enjoy.

uhhhh… Enjoy! *salute* (it just felt like a toast was needed there)

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3.5 stars.. Review soon

2.5 stars..

I really wanted to love this book. There is so much promise in the world that Cate Tiernan is building with this series. But in the end, I was left scratching my head and asking myself, “what happened?” I kept swiping the page on my e-reader thinking there had to me more to this story and maybe it was just missing from my ARC. And perhaps that’s still the case. But here’s what happened on the way to my 2 ½ star review.

Vivi has just suffered through the loss of her parents and is dealing with the aftermath of grief and regrets. It’s during this time that she discovers more family in New Orleans and heads there blindly from Florida to see this family she knows nothing about. It was a good start to the book. I was starting to speculate how this was going to play out…

But then nothing really happened. The entire story just didn’t live up to the synopsis. It could have been a lot shorter and perhaps worked better as a novella – a warm up to the actual book.

The characters were pretty flat with little fleshing out, except for possibly Aly, Mateo’s girlfriend. She was definitely my favorite character.

Unfortunately, even the love interest was kind of dull. He had so much potential but I couldn’t get over the disjointed make-out sessions that tended to end oddly.

There was a pretty cool action sequence towards the end but where it could have answered a few questions, it only added more questions. Grrrr… And the ending? Talk about all of a sudden!!!



*Swipe, swipe, swipe…*

“Why is my e-reader stuck? There have got to be more pages!!”



I really hope it was just my ARC and perhaps the finished copy had more answers or was perhaps tighter and more organized. I’m not sure I’ll continue with this series unless I know I’ll get some closure.

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4.5 stars - a re-read of the series is definitely in order for those who breezed thru the Hollows the first time (I've been thru 2x). Tink's a Disney whore, don't worry! Everyone shows up for the fun!!! Full review closer to release date ;)

3.5 stars

So that synopsis… I’ve read better. Sorry, but it just doesn’t sum up the book very well. It’s almost TOO vague. To me, the synopsis tells me the book is only about a girl who has the uncontrollable hots for a guy who is not good for her. But I’m here to tell you it’s not all about that. It’s about so much more. There’s a plot, I tell ya!! And it’s pretty good…

Disclaimer: I’m a fan of J. Kenner’s. I previously read her Stark Trilogy and thoroughly enjoyed her writing and the stories in all three of the books. But honestly, it took me some hemming and hawing before I hit the request button for this ARC. In the end, it was the author’s name that sold me and I’m so glad I gave this book a chance.

The story is told from Angie’s point of view. She’s the 22 year old daughter of a state senator. Eight years ago her sister died, the victim of a brutal kidnapping and murder. Angie has always blamed herself for her sister’s death. After the loss, Angie is sent to spend her summers with her uncle in Chicago and that’s where she meets three boys, one of them being Evan Black.

But because Angie has sort of grown-up with these three boys every summer, they see her as a little sister and her uncle has forbidden them from dating her. It’s not until her uncle’s funeral that Angie actually sees Evan as more than a crush.

What ensues is a tale of who will reveal their secrets first, family secrets come out of the closet, and Angie’s growth into who she really is and who she actually wants to be. She has a lot of get over and needs to find a way to do it. I think Evan and her uncle are the only two people on the earth who understand her and can help her. Got you wondering, huh?

Well, it was a good story that I really enjoyed. The only problem I personally had was that for the first 25% of the book, there was a lot of setting up the story, not much “heat” or anything much happening between Evan and Angie. It wasn’t until 50% that we really got going with the “fun” stuff. It was at 75% where the book had me and I could not put it down.

Tyler and Cole are Evan’s “partners in crime”. Tyler was pretty quiet in this book but Cole was very entertaining – I really liked him and his book is up third (Ignited, expected September 2014). Tyler’s book, Heated, is expected May 2014. I kind of wished that Kat and Flynn, Angie’s best buds, were used more in the story. I could have definitely used more Flynn!

Overall, I liked this book, it was definitely worth my time and I’m looking forward to the next two books in the series. Maybe Ms. Kenner could even be bribed into writing Flynn’s book, who knows? :D I’m not above such things…

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The Promise of Amazing has a lot going for it: great character development, strong writing, and overall execution. Oh, and that cover! It is so cute!!! Yes, that’s what got me to pick up this book. But for me, it was the actual story, the situations, and more importantly, the reactions the characters had that got me only liking this story. I just didn’t fall over myself loving this story. But first let me tell you where Ms. Constantine shined.

Wren is one half of the voices of this book and I really liked her. She was spunky, smart, and not quite as average as she would have you believe. She’s young and doesn’t feel like she has to go out of her way to show off for anyone or know where she’s going or what she’s doing for the rest of her life. Ms. Constantine wrote her very convincingly. I thought Wren was a fun narrator and I enjoyed reading the story every time her turn popped up.

As for the other half of the point of view of the story, Grayson, he was thoroughly fleshed out but he just wasn’t a guy a particularly liked. He was so wishy-washy; couldn’t make a decision and stick with it if his life depended on it. It’s hard to get behind a romance when you really don’t like one half of the couple. I think that’s what held back my enjoyment of the story. I can’t exactly say why I wasn’t fan of Grayson’s without ruining the story for you but it has to do with something he does throughout the book and in the end, never stops doing. I didn’t like that he was rewarded for doing the wrong thing again and again. A personal pet peeve of mine but hey, I’m crazy like that sometimes.

I think one of her best characters was Luke. He was written so well and so thoroughly. He was such a nasty piece of work but he was probably the most honest of the lot of them! In the end, I liked him the most. He believed in love at first sight and had one criteria for the girl to meet. I can totally get behind that.

In the end, it was my frustration with Wren and what she was doing that over took my brain. The pacing, grammar, writing… EVERYTHING else is technically spot-on! It was just that the actual story kind of irked me like an itchy tag on a beautiful sweater. Everything is perfect except for that little part that PERSONALLY irked ME.

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I absolutely loved this! I don’t know what else to say about what Ms. Accardo did with the first book in her new series, The Eternal Balance. Ruined is one part urban fantasy, one part paranormal romance, and all parts written in the age group (or genre) new adult. Love, love, love, LOVE, love, huge amounts of affection, love this book! And even despite some formulaic plots devices, there were enough twists and turmoil to the story to keep me engaged to the very end. Strong characters never hurt, either :)

Told in dual POV (my fave), we first meet Jax, one half of identical twins raised by their uncle but who are also direct descendants of Cain. As in Cain and Abel. As in Cain, the first murderer because he killed his brother and lived with a mark on his soul after that. That mark is so heavy and burdensome that it has carried on for generations through Cain’s line. It doesn’t show up every generation but unfortunately for Jax, it decided to show up on his soul.

This mark made Jax a complex and actually a very endearing character. I personally loved where Ms. Accardo went with Jax and his “inner turmoil” between being good and being evil. Jax is hot (duh), fiercely loyal, and protective. Oh, and he wears a dark leather trench which is just, um…. yeah, I kind of like that (I’m so easy sometimes). Unfortunately, it reminded me of a series I’ve read in the past so that kept popping into my brain as I read. But Ms. Accardo DEFINITELY made Jax’s story her (and his) own.

But before I get to the world building, I must tell you about Samantha. She was the perfect “foil”, err love interest for Jax. I loved that we have a wild child with issues. Growing up, she and Jax were always getting in trouble and it wasn’t Jax dragging her into trouble. Apparently Samantha stole a cop or sheriff’s car when she was a teenager and never got caught. Gotta love that!

NOW to the world building… I really loved what Ms. Accardo did with the Cain and Abel story. I really thought I knew what was going to happen and that I had everything figured out – I get cocky sometimes when I read, think I know everything (ha!). Yes, I guessed a twist or two but the reveals at the very end I never saw coming. Oh, there is one character that was such an awesome surprise; I can’t say anymore!!! I ate that tasty humble pie up and it was tasty (mmmm). Actually, I liked that I was getting things right and still surprised at the end.

You’re probably thinking, “why isn’t this a 5 star review, crazy lady?” I think it was my personal frustration with not getting more character development from a particular character. I know it’s an author’s prerogative to decide what we need to know; hell, they’re writing the book. But I just wanted to know more! There are also some “things” written into the plot (I have no other way to say that!) that I’m not a fan of and I find formulaic and used too often for tension and to keep the reader interested. Personal UGH! You may not mind it but I do. Yes, I’m being cryptic but if I told what it was, then I’d be giving away the story and I don’t particularly want to get shot (as in shoot the messenger… I hate to explain my jokes). :)

But a 4 star review still means I LOVED it and I WILL be continuing this series. There was just too much greatness going for this series for me to be turned off! And the ending… yeah, I’ll definitely be coming back for more Jax and Sammy (I loved that Jax called her that).

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Just what I needed!!! My favorite types of books and Ms Croft has a great series (and world!). Quick read, too! Full review coming!!

Updated 1/1/2014:

Second books in a series are toughies; so many expectations, a world to continue building to keep readers interested, and you have to introduce a couple that readers want to invest their time in. Ms. Croft did indeed deliver a hot paranormal romance with a side of mystery. She managed to stay highly original in her world building and tight in her writing. Her supporting characters are again stupendous and I needed to know more about everyone! Yeah, I kind of liked this book…

Roz (short for Rosamund) isn’t entirely sure what she is but she’s been on the earth for a long time. She was “rescued” from being burned at the stake as a witch by Asmodai but at the price of having to do 13 tasks for him. She’s almost done and on her last task when she runs into complications in the form of Piers Lamont and the Order of the Shadow Accords. It doesn’t help that she’s been told very little about the supernatural world but does know she needs to steer clear of the Order.

Roz, for all her years, is resourceful, smart, slightly jagged around the edges, but is definitely a heroine I could get behind. I almost likened her to some of my favorite leading male characters, those guys who are cranky and closed off but always end up doing the good, soft-hearted thing in the end. Kind of like John Wayne in “True Grit”, but without all the stories about his life (okay, my limb is shaky, work with me here). Either way, she could have ended up a total wanker from all the years of servitude, torture, and such but she really is kind of cool, calm, and has a good heart. It’s about time she got a HEA.

I met Piers in Bittersweet Blood and he almost stole the scene from Christian (who is the hero in that story). He literally strolled into the room in all his leather-clad, rock-star hotness, tried to pick up Tara (our previous heroine), and left. He was not the nicest guy. So I was really curious how Ms. Croft was going to win me over to his side. Turns out his backstory is quite “colorful”, as in the color blood red. I thought this is where Ms. Croft’s world building really shined. His story is very unique, gave his character a ton of depth, and made it very easy for me to “fall” for him.

There were so many other places that Ms. Croft took us that I just wanted to know more about: the Faelands, the Abyss, the Crooked Hat. I actually came into the story hoping it would have more of Christian and Tara because to me, it seemed like Tara’s story wasn’t quite finished at the end of Bittersweet Blood. But Piers distracted me so I got over it.

I’m getting long winded with my reviews again so let me sum this up… awesome supporting characters in Ryan, the cop, and Sister Maria, the nun. The story flew by with no lulls and Ms. Croft managed to jam a ton of story in just 300 pages without leaving anything out (except specific Tara and Christian follow-up). And the last 25% of the book surprised me and held me captive. I actually just got done re-reading those pages – still loving it!

Now, where’s book three?

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