Mini-Reviews (8): Tease, All Lined Up, The Falconer

So ever since June of 2014 I've been failing at writing reviews for the books I read. I know. And because it's been AGES since I read these, I'm just gonna do mini-reviews of them, so as to clear my need-review shelf.

Title/Author: Tease (The Ivy Chronicles #2) by Sophie Jordan
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow, May 27th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

So I have to admit that I wasn't all that impressed with Tease, whereas I usually shout my love of all things Sophie Jordan and romance for everyone to hear. She is le awesome normally. And while Tease wasn't bad, it wasn't really all there for me either.

Both Emerson and Shaw are ok, they're ok together and there are some swoons, but mainly I was not really in the falling in love moments with them. Emerson has kept up this facade with guys for FOREVER and now Shaw comes along, knows her for all of two seconds and then sees right through it? I mean, really? But I liked that he called her out on her shit and wanted the real her.

My rating: 3 stars

Title/Author: All Lined Up (Rusk University #1) by Cora Carmack
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow, May 13th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

So this romance has a whole lot of overprotective daddy and while I appreciate dads who care about their daughters, it seemed a bit overly trying to keep his little girl just that: little. Obviously she's all grown and in college and might just need her father, but to support her and not to be overbearing.

But aside from this, I thought that Dallas and Carson actually handled it pretty well, I respect that he's not looking to give up his place on the team for just any girl. I like a man with ambition. And I could definitely understand Dallas' hesitance to start something with another guy on the team, because she's been used to butter up to her father the coach one too many times.
Also, aside from his overprotectiveness, I did like Dallas' father, he's floundering a bit, not knowing how to talk to Dallas and together they're figuring out how to be a family, which was lovely to see.
Carson and Dallas were good together, as with Tease, I didn't really fall in love along with them, but they seemed good together and I liked it.

My rating: 3 stars

Title/Author: The Falconer (The Falconer #1) by Elizabeth May
Publisher/Date published: Chronicle Books, May 4th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

This was actually one of our book club reads and it was SO GOOD! I think this is one of the only books that we unanimously enjoyed. With some people having stronger feelings about it than others. But that's ok.

I LOVED Aileana! OMG, she's awesome! I mean, she goes out every night and fights faeries and she's an inventor. Seriously, how much more of an ass-kicking main character do you want? And she has a very good reason for it: vengeance for her mother who was killed by a faery. Now remember that faeries are not cute and cuddly, but mostly vicious and murderous and all of those nice things.

And aside for Aileana there are even more characters to love: Derrick, who is ADORABLE, Aileana's friends and KIARAN!! KIARAN. I SO ship it. I mean, he trains her in the ways of killing faeries and they have this amazing banter and just YES GIVE ME MORE! I was unsure about him at first, but he grew on me and then OMG THE ENDING!! I just cannot, it was fantastic and horrible and THE WAIT IS KILLING ME.

So. Yeah. I have pretty strong feelings about this one and would love nothing better than to dive right back into this world and FINALLY KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT BECAUSE THE ENDING!!!!
Also: YAY finally a fae book that I didn't dislike!

My rating: 4,5 stars

Mini-Reviews (7): The Body in the Woods, Making It Count, The Once and Future Duchess

So ever since June of 2014 I've been failing at writing reviews for the books I read. I know. And because it's been AGES since I read these, I'm just gonna do mini-reviews of them, so as to clear my need-review shelf.

Title/Author: The Body in the Woods by April Henry
Publisher/Date published: Henry Holt and Co, June 17th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

So I read this book on the airplane on the way to Morocco and so much of it was read in one sitting. If I hadn't been on an airplane, this probably wouldn't have been the case.
The premise was interesting, though having teenagers be part of a field search for a body seems sort of inappropriate, I mean evidence sure, but if there's a chance you'll come across a deceased person, I personally feel that you should only use professionals. And obviously the authorities don't approve of the main characters' quest to discover the killer themselves, DUH.

But hey, they do it anyway and find themselves in danger and one of them becomes the target of said killer and towards the end I was like, OMG, SERIOUSLY??? You should really know better than to walk right into this trap that's being laid for you!! Wow, you've been trying to find a killer and then it's like, yeah, ok, I'll go with this strange person, that totally makes sense.
Anyway.
The Body in the Woods was ok, but it wasn't a very exciting read.

My rating: 2 stars

Title/Author: Make It Count (Bowler University #1) by Megan Erickson
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow Impulse, June 3rd 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

So I'm always looking for that next awesome NA read, and while Making It Count was a decent read, it wasn't that next great thing. The main character Kat is ok at first, but then she blows stuff way out of proportion and does the 'I'm not going to tell you what's wrong, you should be able to read my mind and figure it out' thing and it's ANNOYING. I mean, seriously, just tell the person you're in a relationship with what's bothering you! If we could all read minds, life would be way easier, but we can't ok? Also, I thought she had a shitty reason for staying in a relationship with a guy who was treating her badly at the start of the novel.

Alec was ok, he seemed like a good guy, but I didn't really swoon over him, which I would have expected, cause I like my men hot and nerdy. I thought their relationship could have been developed a bit better, because now it felt to me that they mostly had a physical attraction and that's it.
I did like that Making It Count deals with dyslexia, which is not something that you see a lot in YA or NA and I appreciate this being brought up, because a lot of people have it!

My rating: 2,5 stars

Title/Author: The Once and Future Duchess (Royal Entourage #4) by Sophia Nash
Publisher/Date published: Avon, May 27th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

I liked The Once and Future Duchess, one thing I particularly enjoyed is that the heroine, Isabelle, is a duchess one her own, having inherited the title, which is pretty awesome, as that basically never happens in historical romance. I mean, there's always an abundance of dukes, but duchesses who are not married to said dukes are pretty hard to come by.
And I liked Isabelle because she is strong and intelligent and isn't afraid to go after what she wants. Our duke is also likeable in that he is loyal and just a good man, but this loyalty also got majorly in the way of the romance. I mean, so he promised her deceased father that he would make sure she married a man close to her own age and he's what, a decade her senior? It seems to me that this was pretty much the norm back then, but ok. So even though they love each other, he decides that he can't because of said promise.

And while this makes for some real complication in their lovestory, it also made everything move incredibly slow! OMG, it took forever for him to start taking action and in the mean time it wasn't extremely exciting, though they did have wonderfully romantic moments together. I just would have liked for the pace to be a little faster.
But it was a pretty sweet story and I enjoyed reading it!

My rating: 3 stars

Mini-Reviews (5) Boomerang, For All Time, The Vanishing Season

So ever since June of 2014 I've been failing at writing reviews for the books I read. I know. And because it's been AGES since I read these, I'm just gonna do mini-reviews of them, so as to clear my need-review shelf.

Title/Author: Boomerang (Boomerang #1) by Noelle August
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow, July 8th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

I enjoyed Boomerang, I'll admit that I wasn't as big a fan as some other people whose reviews I've seen floating about the blogosphere, but it was really fun! I liked both Mia and Ethan and could root for them to get together, and I liked that there was some real conflict, I mean, a job on the line is something that will effectively stop you from being together if the company doesn't allow coworkers to date. Which is a really annoying rule in my opinion.

The reason that Boomerang doesn't get more than 3,5 stars is that I felt that it started to drag towards the end, I thought that they were making it unnecessarily hard to be together and it was kinda annoying. Also, I could have done with a little less of them thinking about how hot the other person was. Ok, they're both hot, I get it, moving on. Please just start thinking about all the other stuff you like about each other.

But I did really like that Boomerang dealt with real people, real friendships and real jobs.

My rating: 3,5 stars

Title/Author: For All Time (Nantucket Brides Trilogy #2) by Jude Deveraux
Publisher/Date published: Ballantine Books, July 1st 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

I really liked True Love, the first book in this series and was itching to get back to Nantucket and see others find their happily ever after. I need some good fluff in my life every now and then. But Toby and Graydon just didn't work for me the same way that Alix and Jared did. I never really FELT their chemistry enough to believe in it and sorry, but being together just because you can tell Graydon apart from his identical twin and that means you're "meant for each other" *insert eyeroll* is just not enough for me.

I do enjoy a good prince story and there was something real keeping them apart, but it just felt so old-fashioned! I mean, I get this in my historical romance novels and also in fantasy series and such, but in a contemporary romance? I was constantly wanting to yell at them to start living in the 21st century. Though I do realise that this might be the way things still work for royal families, it was still annoying.

So while this was an ok read, I was waiting for that wow factor that never came.

My rating: 2 stars

Title/Author: The Vanishing Season by Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher/Date published: HarperTeen, July 1st 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

I'd never read anything by Jodi Lynn Anderson before, but I've heard amazing things about Tiger Lily and was excited to start The Vanishing Season. I did like The Vanishing Season, and I can see the potential of Jodi Lynn Anderson's writing, she really has a way with words. The plot for The Vanishing Season just wasn't as exciting as I had liked it to be.

I wasn't really invested in Maggie, Liam and Pauline and could see from MILES away where this was going, there was this sense of doom over the whole story for me. I don't really want to tell you about what happened, cause it will ruin the surprise and shock effect and that in itself was perfection. The ending of The Vanishing Season was basically what saved this novel and I am glad I stuck with it for that.

My rating: 3 stars

Review of When Joss Met Matt by Ellie Cahill

Title/Author:
Publisher/Date published:
How I got this book:
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: Dating can be fun, but it can leave a nasty taste in your mouth. For Joss, ever since her longtime boyfriend cheated on her, she doesn’t want her last memory of a guy to be that jerk. Enter her college friend, Matt. They come up with a theory: after a bad break-up, a person needs to cleanse the palate with a little sorbet sex. Lovers for a night, but always back to being friends in the morning. The two can handle it because they have a contract: rules they wrote, rules they follow and rules they can sometimes bend. The arrangement works: everyone needs a little sorbet now and again... until it starts to be the only thing you want. And then Joss breaks the one rule they never wrote down: don’t fall in love.

So I was ready to LOVE When Joss Met Matt, cause my friend Debby keeps raving about it. But I'm sad to say that I was not nearly as enthusiastic about it as she was (please don't kill me Debby)...

I love a good fluffly contemporary, and New Adult explores a period in someone's life that we don't really get to see much of: college. I LOVE stories set in college, cause it's all about discovering who you are on your own, without the constant presence of your parents and parties and dorms and just YES. But I felt that When Joss Met Matt wasn't so much a fluffy contemporary as it was a sequence of random hook-ups.

It might be due to the fact that I never really cared much for Joss. I did like Matt, but Joss was just a bit too crass and I didn't really get her reasoning behind a lot of things and there was just basically nothing I liked about her except that she liked animals. Or says she likes animals. Cause she was just not a good cat mom. I mean, seriously, she's constantly annoyed by her cat and shoving him out of the way and DUH, cats respond negatively to that. I might be a little oversensitive about this cause I have a cute kitty myself, but it really bothered me that she was constantly talking about *having* to pet her cat cause he wouldn't stop *bothering* her until she did and I was like, yeah, you just got home, of course the kitty wants some attention.
Anyway.

I did like Matt, he seemed like a decent human being and just such a guy, I could understand Joss falling for him in the end. But he was being a bit of a douche at the end, I know he was hurt, but still. I guess that I just didn't like that they kept going back for each other for SEVEN years to have sorbet sex, with the best reason for them not being together being that Joss thinks Matt is too nice? I mean, what? I'm not saying that just not having those kinds of feelings for someone isn't a legitimate reason to be together, but she obviously thinks he's attractive enough to have sex with him and he's one of her best friends. I could have gotten behind this if they'd just been friends without the physical contact, but this just felt off.

The back and forth between the present and their whole history of hook-ups also didn't really work for me, it just felt like one long line of bad relationships interspaced with sex with each other. I never got the fuzzies about them together, I didn't FEEL that they were falling for each other, or at least not from Joss' side of things, which was the POV. I also didn't like that aside from this, we never really got to see much of their lives. I mean, how are they doing in college and hanging out with friends aside from as props for their relationships. There was nothing about either of them just being a person and I would have liked that.

I'm very disappointed to say that I just wasn't into When Joss Met Matt, even though I wanted to love it REALLY badly, I just did not like this and didn't get my fluffy on as I wanted to.

My rating: 1,5 stars

Review of Wild by Sophie Jordan

Title/Author: Wild (The Ivy Chronicles #3) by Sophie Jordan
Publisher/Date published: Avon, November 18th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: Months after her boyfriend dumped her, Georgia can still hear the insults he hurled at her. Boring. Predictable. Tame. Tired of feeling bad, she’s ready to change her image, and go a little wild. What better way to prove her ex wrong than a hot night of sexual adventure at the secret campus kink club?

In the shadowy den of the kink club, she unexpectedly runs into Logan Mulvaney, her friend’s little brother. A player extraordinaire too hot for his own good, he may be younger, but the guy is light years ahead when it comes to sexual experience. Now he’s telling her to go home — “good girls” don’t belong here!

Georgia is tired of having others define her. She’s going to teach Logan a lesson he won’t forget — one white hot, mind-wrecking kiss... that leads to another... and another... and... Realizing she’s way in over her head, Georgia runs.

Only Logan won’t let her go. Everywhere she goes he’s there, making her want every inch of him. Making her forget who she is. Who he is. And just how wrong they are for each other.

You guys, I rely on Sophie Jordan to bring me the swoons. And she did it again!

I absolutely loved the chemistry between Georgia and Logan and how the fact that he's a little younger and younger brother to one of her friends added a very believable embarassment and drama-inducing factor. I mean, it's not like it's wrong if the girl is older, but you don't see it often, but hey, you fall in love with a person, not their age, right? And also, Logan sounds totally hot and very mature (unlike most 18-year-old boys I know). I was definitely shippping it. Georgia becomes a more daring version of herself when she's around him and I think she turns his world upside down, so I felt like they were affecting each other equally. And I liked it.

Georgia is smart, careful, a little too oppressed by her mother and also a caring person who is afraid to give her heart away, but does it anyway. At one point I was so rooting for her to have it out with her mother and just find out WHY she was so hell bent on getting Georgia and Harris back together, because OMG, that guy is a douche and why would a mother want her daughter to be with a guy who CHEATED on her?? I don't get it. My mom would definitely NOT be encouraging it, especially not if I'd made it clear that I wasn't interested in him anymore. So what gives?

Logan is a beautiful boy. He sounds beyond delicious and just made me swoon with all his maleness and putting it all out there and then getting his heart stomped on and OMG how COULD SHE? I mean, I GET it, sort of, but UGH, poor Logan. I loved that even after all that's been going on in his life since he was a kid, he's still this warm, loving guy who's protective of his friends.

So like I said, the age difference and the fact that he's her friend's brother makes for some stomach-clenchingly good drama and I stayed up till 2 AM to finish it even though I had to get up at 6.30 the following morning. I could literally not sleep before I knew they'd be having a happily ever after and I was swooning all through the end and it was just awesome.
I'd definitely recommend trying Wild for yourself and finding out just why I love Sophie Jordan's writing so much!

My rating: 5 stars

Zoë stamp of approval:

Cuddling the bear like I'd cuddle Logan ;)

Review of The Summer of Jake by Rachel Bailey

Title/Author: The Summer of Jake by Rachel Bailey
Publisher/Date published: Entangled Publishing, Embrace, August 4th 2014
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: Falling in love wasn’t part of the plan...

Life is just dandy for aspiring fashion designer Annalise Farley. She has a great job (or she will once her designs are discovered), parents who only slightly disapprove, a cat that thinks she’s a dog, and a best friend... even if she hasn’t seen her in a while. But then Jake Maxwell saunters back into her life. Jake, the love god. Jake, her best friend’s older brother. Jake, who broke her heart at sixteen without realizing it, then left to become a pro surfer. Now he’s back, having taken the surfing and business worlds by storm, and he’s ready for a new challenge — catching the eye of another girl. And he wants Annalise’s help. Helping Jake land his next girlfriend is too fraught with emotional danger for her liking, but then Jake offers to put her designs in his shops. Is that the sound of her life cracking at the seams? It’s hard to tell with Jake smiling at her like she’s the only thing that makes him happy...

I LOVE the best friend's older brother plot. Seriously. As a teenager I used to wish one of my friends had an older brother that I could fall in love with, but sadly, that never happened. So I live vicariously through stories like this.

I really liked Annalise! She has spunk and is a little quirky, with her car she named Mindy and her cat who thinks she's a dog and I liked it cause I could identify with her quirks. Plus, she's a badass fashion designer and I respect creative people. Also, she knows what she wants and knows what she DOESN'T want and I respected that she didn't want to be just another fling for Jake.

And Jake. Jake is kinda awesome and I probably would have fallen for him as well if he'd been one of my friends' older brother or basically just walking by. He's a bit clueless when it comes to women and his own heart and has ISSUES because of his dad and I just wanted to shake him at one point because he was acting like an idiot and just UGH! But it made for some beautiful tension and it made the happy ending all the sweeter, so it all worked out in the end.

So Annalise and Jake definitely had chemistry and I loved seeing them grow closer and felt like they truly had a solid basis for their relationship. And they were surrounded by a lovely family, Jake's sister and mother are wonderful and loving and just my kind of people.
The one thing that I was a teensy bit iffy about is that Jake goes to Annalise to get fashion advise because he's trying to get together with a woman, but he doesn't seem all that interested in her at all, so it felt a bit off that he would go to such lengths to get her and never feel like he's all that into her. But other than that I was happy with this fluffy romance!

My rating: 4,5 stars

Review of Suddenly Royal by Nichole Chase

Title/Author: Suddenly Royal (Suddenly #1) by Nichole Chase
Publisher/Date published: Avon Books, November 26th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: Samantha Rousseau is used to getting her hands dirty. Working toward a master’s degree in wildlife biology while helping take care of her sick father, she has no time for celebrity gossip, designer clothes, or lazy vacations. So when a duchess from the small country of Lilaria invites her to dinner, Samantha assumes it’s to discuss a donation for the program. The truth will change the course of her life in ways she never dreamed.

Alex D’Lynsal is trying to keep his name clean. As crown prince of Lilaria, he’s had his share of scandalous headlines, but the latest pictures have sent him packing to America and forced him to swear off women — especially women in the public eye. That is, until he meets Samantha Rousseau. She’s stubborn, feisty, and incredibly sexy. Not to mention heiress to an estate in his country, which makes her everyone’s front-page news.

While Sam tries to navigate the new world of politics and wealth, she will also have to dodge her growing feelings for Alex. Giving in to them means more than just falling in love; it would mean accepting the weight of an entire country on her shoulders.

Guys, I have watched the Princess Diaries movie SO many times and I love the plot of someone discovering they're royalty (because I'm still hoping it'll happen to me one day ;) or maybe not as it seems to complicate things enormously...), so obviously I jumped on Suddenly Royal! And you know what, Suddenly Royal is basically the Princess Diaries, but with naughty bits.

I liked Samantha. She's a smart girl, she values her education and loves her best friend and stepfather. But the whole 'she doesn't know how beautiful she is' thing was getting old really fast. I mean, seriously? I'm getting a bit tired of this character trait. Why is the good girl always unaware of her looks and the bitch confident about the same thing? It's like you can't be a decent person if you know you're goodlooking. And it drives me crazy! Because I know people who are goodlooking and aware of it and are genuinely good people.

ANYWAY.

Alex is a good guy who didn't have the best taste in women in the past. I truly believed he cared about Samantha and he showed it and I liked him. He was a bit old-fashioned alpha male though with the whole overprotectiveness and everything. I was a bit put off by him at first because he basically wants to leap straight into bed with Samantha within an hour of meeting her and later on he's going on about how it wouldn't just be physical for him and all that stuff a girl probably wants to hear, but he was a bit of a creep at first. And he did really grow on me, but I wouldn't have gone for his 'You'll end up hating me or in my bed, and I know which I'd prefer' attitude. That's just... Just no.

So there was a whole lot of lust at first sight and Alex does a whole lot of chasing Samantha, and while liked both of them, I wasn't really into the whole story. The book had a definite Disney/Cinderella feel to it and it confused the crap out of me that we'd go from those moments to sex scenes and back again. I really thought we'd get a fade to black anytime soon but nope. Not that I mind those parts, but it was just such a contrast!
I really wanted to love this book and I'm not entirely sure why it didn't happen. Maybe it's that a lot of the secondary characters were a bit like cardboard puppets, just placed there to make Alex and Samantha look good. And I'm also still a bit confused why a crown prince would make the effort to travel to the US to search for long lost members of his country's royal families. I mean, if you're a crown prince you have people for that right?

Suddenly Royal was an entertaining book, but it never got beyond that for me. Some of the characters fell flat and I just couldn't really get into the story the way I wanted to.

My rating: 2,5 stars

Review of Keeping Her by Cora Carmack

Title/Author: Keeping Her (Losing It 1.5#) by Cora Carmack
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow, August 13th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

Goodreads summary: Garrick Taylor and Bliss Edwards managed to find their happily-ever-after despite a rather... ahem... complicated start. By comparison, meeting the parents should be an absolute breeze, right?

But from the moment the pair lands in London, new snags just keep cropping up: a disapproving mother-in-law-to-be, more than one (mostly) minor mishap, and the realization that perhaps they aren't quite as ready for their future as they thought.

As it turns out, the only thing harder than finding love is keeping it.

So I really liked Losing It, which started this whole series. I thought the romance between Bliss and Garrick was sweet and quirky and it was just a really fun read. Of course I was interested in seeing what happened for them after the events of Losing It!

In Keeping Her we meet both of them again, they've been together for a year now and got engaged and are now travelling to London to meet up with Garrick's parents. And Bliss is basically a basket case because of it. She's nervous and awkward and just generally not really presentable at the end. And really, I mean, how did either of them think it would be a good idea to arrive at Garrick's parents' after they'd had a drink? Or rather, LOTS of drinks? I mean, that drunk doesn't make for the best first impression.

But I really disliked Garrick's parents. I mean, his father is basically a pompous ass and his mother is trying to make Bliss feel inferior. And these are people who are supposed to love Garrick and want what's best for him and that usually means that they'd try and make a fiancée feel welcome. Yeah, not gonna happen here. His mother even invited ex-girlfriends. So. Not. Cool.

While I liked reconnecting with these two, I didn't really thought this novella added much to the general storyline. I mean, it's cute to see them be all lovey-dovey, but that spark that was there in Losing It was just a little lost here. I did like seeing Garrick's home turf so to speak and it was a really quick read, but I would have liked a little more. It ended rather abruptly after some big drama got resolved and I was just a bit like: that's it?

My rating: 2,5 stars

Made me crave: over too quickly to make me crave much of anything

Review of Losing It by Cora Carmack

Title/Author: Losing It by Cora Carmack
Publisher/Date published: William Morrow, February 26th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley

Goodreads summary: Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible - a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren’t embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor. She’d left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

So there's this whole upheaval in the bookish community about the term new adult and the fiction that falls into this category. And Losing It fits nicely into this category and I must say that I like it! I like reading about 20-something college students.

Losing It is a brain candy read, it's really funny and easy to read and it took me virtually no time at all to get through it. The summary reminded me strongly of the first episode of Grey's Anatomy (you know, with Meredith waking up next to Derek and leaving him there and then running into him in the hospital?) and I LOVE Grey's Anatomy, so I figured this would be my kind of story. And while it wasn't the most original, it was fun and sweet! And I loved that the about the author piece at the end says 'Awkward people need love, too', LOVE IT! And so true :)

Bliss is awkward and nice and just a good girl all around and I liked that while she gives into peer pressure at first and gets into stuff she's not ready for, in the end she follows her heart and decides what's best for her. I respect that. She doesn't really have a clue when it comes to guys, but it was sort of endearing and not roll-my-eyes clueless.
And I pretty much loved Garrett, seriously, how can you not adore a guy with a British accent? He was so sweet and just swoonworthy!

And yeah, of course it's totally horrifying that he turns out to be their new teacher, but they made it work. Towards the end it got a little sappy for me, but I can overlook that. I liked that Bliss had real friends who cared about her and that she felt like a genuine college students, sometimes overdoing it with the alcohol and all.

With all the awkwardness Bliss lands herself into, Losing It was a funny, quick read and I'm looking forward to seeing what Cora Carmack has in store for Cade in Faking It!

My rating: 4 stars

Review of Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

Title/Author: Scent of Magic (Healer #2) by Maria V. Snyder
Publisher/Date published: HarlequinMIRA, December 18th 2012
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: Hunted, Killed — Survived?

As the last Healer in the Fifteen Realms, Avry of Kazan is in a unique position: in the minds of her friends and foes alike, she no longer exists. Despite her need to prevent the megalomanical King Tohon from winning control of the Realms, Avry is also determined to find her sister and repair their estrangement. And she must do it alone, as Kerrick, her partner and sole confident, returns to Alga to summon his country into battle.

Though she should be in hiding, Avry will do whatever she can to support Tohon’s opponents. Including infiltrating a holy army, evading magic sniffers, teaching forest skills to soldiers and figuring out how to stop Tohon’s most horrible creations yet; an army of the walking dead — human and animal alike and nearly impossible to defeat.

War is coming and Avry is alone. Unless she figures out how to do the impossible... again.

***WARNING: SPOILERS LIKELY FOR BOOOK 1 TOUCH OF POWER***

Guys, I'm such a huge Maria V. Snyder fan! I've pretty much read all her books (not the novellas, but I'm not really a novella kind of girl) and she never fails to deliver an amazing story!
And with Scent of Magic she's done it again!!

Though I do have to say that for me this book suffered slightly from second book syndrome, I felt like there was just a huge build up towards the epic showdown that'll be in the third book and some parts failed to excite me as much as I'd expected. But with Maria V. Snyder, that still results in an REALLY GOOD READ!

In Touch of Power I absolutely loved the chemistry between Avry and Kerrick and Belen and the monkeys and with them all split apart, it just wasn't the same. Though I really love each of them on their own, as a group they're just better. Also: GAH, HOW could she split Avry and Kerrick up??? I mean, I get they both have their responsibilities, but to me it would have made more sense if they did it together instead of going off separately and landing in all kinds of trouble because no one was watching their backs! Also, because of this there was somewhat less romance than I would have liked.

I think I'm sounding rather negative, when I'm actually not: I really loved this book! Avry is still the same kickass, hands on, amazing girl that I've gotten to know in Touch of Power and I love that she's a healer! I could feel her struggle with the need to defend herself but the unwillingness to kill someone because it goes against her nature as a healer.
And I loved how Kerrick had his own chapters and we get to know him better through them and yeah, I'm just a big Kerrick fan in general.

Tohon's dead army and Tohon himself CREEPED ME OUT! I do not love zombies, they freak me out! Anything that goes on walking after you've practically cut it in half is BAD in my book. What I liked about them in this novel was that EVERYONE who'd seen them was as freaked out by them as I was, because really, they're not something to be casual about.

Maria V. Snyder added some twists and turns that completely took me by surprise! At some points I had to go back and read again because I was going wait, WHAT?! and I love it when that happens! I'm usually pretty good at predicting what's going to happen, so I'm always happy when I'm caught off guard by events. And seriously, the ending BROKE MY HEART! HOW can she leave me with that ending for another year?? I mean, SERIOUSLY? I should have known better than finishing it right before I went to sleep, I'm still shocked and heartbroken and I NEED Taste of Death RIGHT NOW because it needs to be ok again and just not like this!

I also kinda love that this is for a slightly older YA audience because of the subjects and the sexual references. It's a little more mature and the characters are as well and it adds a little diversity to the genre.

So yeah, basically I'm still in love with this series and even though I loved Touch of Power better, this one ranks among my favourites of the year and I'm pretty sure the wait for the third book will slowly kill me...

My rating: 4,5 stars

Review of Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Title/Author: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
Publisher/Date published: Atria Books, August 14th 2012
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University's Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby needs—and wants—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

I have all these mixed feelings about this book. From the reviews I've seen floating around the blogosphere this seems to be a book you either love with the fire of a thousand suns or dislike with the same amount of passion. While I absolutely hate some of the relationship messages this book portrays, I cannot bring myself to really hate the book.

The writing is really good. Really, really good. The writing was so engaging that even while I was cringing and wanting to put it down, I couldn't. I felt like one of those people in traffic causing a jam because they're watching the accident on the other side of the highway. Knowing you should move along, but unable to do something about it.

I never really connected to Abby and while I tend to enjoy the books in which I connect to the main character more, if I had just found it in myself to like her, I think it might not have mattered so much. I mean, I get that she's been through a lot and everything, but I just wanted to shake her and at times slap her. I mean, how do you go about being so clueless and just plain cruel?

Travis is a boy who needs therapy. Lots and lots and lots of therapy. Seriously. He made ALL the alarm bells go off when it comes to men, I wouldn't let my friends date him. I wouldn't let people I don't like very much date him.
He's got anger management issues, is insanely possesive, controlling, doesn't know boundaries and OMG, SO NEEDY and completely dependent on Abby! It was scary how he completely lost himself when they got together!

I hated how co-dependent they were and how it's used to show how much they 'love' each other. I mean, you should still be a person whether or not you're together and they just weren't. I also hated that Abby's roommate Kara, who was the only one that voiced this opinion was snubbed by both Abby and her best friend.

I thought the getting to know each other phase was pretty sweet, aside from the weirdness of them sharing a bed, but after they got together it just went downhill for me. Also, can I just say that I was constantly rolling my eyes at Travis' nickname for Abby: Pigeon. Seriously??? It was SO annoying. He used it EVERY TIME he spoke to her and while I get endearments, being named after a pretty common and pretty much the vermin among birds is just slightly wrong.

Sorry for my rant, but I had ISSUES with this book. I hope Jamie McGuire will write a book in which I can cheer for the relationship, because then I will gush and gush over it. The writing is amazing, the plot just made me cringe.

My rating: 2 stars

Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder

Title/Author: Touch of Power (Healer #1) by Maria V. Snyder
Publisher/Date published: Mira, December 27th 2011
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: "Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.
Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life..."

I am a HUGE fan of Maria V. Snyder's books and I'm happy to announce this one wasn't an exception to my love of her work! After the high of Under the Never Sky I was kind of scared to read this one after, cause usually after reading a 5 star read, I don't get that same amazement with the book I read next, but this one prooves it can absolutely be done!

I absolutely LOVED the magic system in this book! I mean, lots of times when you have healer's who perform through putting their hands on someone, they just transfer energy and the wound is gone. But in this book the healer actually takes the injuries into themselves and has the ability to heal really fast, so they don't die of wounds that are fatal to other people. Harsh, but brilliant! I also loved that as a sorcerer you pretty much had one ability or some related to your element and you didn't get the all powerful wizards that go around sometimes.

And that's not all to enjoy about this novel, I also fell in love with the characters! Avry, the main character, is a strong, smart, independant woman who knows what she wants and has the snarky thing going on. Basically I just summed up the qualities of my favourite heroines! I was kind of worried about the love interest, but though he seems like an absolute jerk at first, it turns out he's a really great guy and totally swoonworthy! So yeah, the romance made me happy as well :)

Also, I am giving a shoutout to Belen who is a brilliant papa bear and just all around wonderful guy and I just loved him! I also loved to hate some of the bad guys, which is always a bonus :) And I really liked that Avry isn't a teen, but in her early twenties, cause that's a rare age for a main character.
I'm very much intrigued by the world Snyder has created and cannot wait for the sequel, Scent of Magic, to be released so I can find out what happens next!

So, to sum it up: brilliant magic system, loveable characters, intriguing world building, GO READ IT NOW!

My rating: 5+ stars

Ward Against Death by Melanie Card

Title/Author: Ward Against Death (Chronicles of a Reluctant Necromancer #1) by Melanie Card
Publisher/Date published: Entangled Publishing, August 2nd 2011
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: "Twenty-year-old Ward de’Ath expected this to be a simple job — bring a nobleman’s daughter back from the dead for fifteen minutes, let her family say good-bye, and launch his fledgling career as a necromancer. Goddess knows he can’t be a surgeon — the Quayestri already branded him a criminal for trying — so bringing people back from the dead it is.
But when Ward wakes the beautiful Celia Carlyle, he gets more than he bargained for. Insistent that she’s been murdered, Celia begs Ward to keep her alive and help her find justice. By the time she drags him out her bedroom window and into the sewers, Ward can’t bring himself to break his damned physician’s Oath and desert her.
However, nothing is as it seems — including Celia. One second, she’s treating Ward like sewage, the next she’s kissing him. And for a nobleman’s daughter, she sure has a lot of enemies. If he could just convince his heart to give up on the infuriating beauty, he might get out of this alive..."

So how much do we love Melanie Card for making Ward be a twenty-year-old? If you're like me: VERY MUCH! There aren't enough books with twenty-somethings in it. The only thing that bugs me: it's immediately classified as Adult. But I think it would fit the New Adult (which should be way bigger than it is) better :) So that's where I'm putting it.

I really, really enjoyed this book! Right from the start where it challenges the gender stereotypes and flips them upside down. I mean, the female character is a very dangerous assasin, the male character is a wannabe-doctor and seems to have the damsel in distress down more than Celia does. LOVED IT!

Besides, Ward is just really likeable. I get how Celia would become attached to him. He's sweet. He's just a good guy and I think sometimes we're a bit short on good guys. So I liked him. And I LOVED his last name: de'Ath. SO COOL! And I loved that he performed surgery, the almost-doctor in me rejoiced. Though I would never ever even think of doing something like that on my own! Seriously!

This was a nice, relaxing, fluffy read. And I'm curious to find out more about Celia's murder and Ward's abilities and such, so I'm gonna make sure and add the sequel to my to-read list.

My rating: 4 stars