Review of It Happened One Midnight by Julie Anne Long

Title/Author: It Happened One Midnight (Pennyroyal Green #8) by Julie Anne Long
Publisher/Date published: Avon, June 25th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher as an egalley
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: More than one beautiful woman’s hopes have been dashed on the rocky shoals of Jonathan Redmond’s heart. With his riveting good looks and Redmond wealth and power, the world is his oyster — until an ultimatum from his father and a chilling gypsy prophesy send him hurtling headlong toward a fate he’ll do anything to avoid: matrimony.

Intoxicating, elusive Thomasina de Ballesteros has the bloods of London at her feet. But none of them knows the real Tommy — the one with a shocking pedigree, a few too many secrets, and a healthy scorn for rakes like Jonathan.

She is everything Jonathan never wanted. But on one fateful midnight, he’s drawn into Tommy's world of risk, danger…and a desire he’d never dreamed possible. And suddenly he’s re-thinking everything... including the possibility that succumbing to prophesy might just mean surrendering to love.(

Guys, you may know how much I love the Pennyroyal Green series, so I was pretty excited to pick up It Happened One Midnight. But sadly, this wasn't as amazing a read for me as the other books so far have been.

It's not that either Tommy or Jonathan were unlikeable, in fact, I liked them very much. Tommy has had a hard childhood and is still struggling to make it and be respectable. But nonetheless, she's managed to turn into a strong, kind woman with a big heart. I loved that she's in her own way an activist against child labour and seriously, the conditions in which these kids were living and the dangerous jobs they had to do broke my heart.

And can I just say that first and foremost, Jonathan endeared himself to me because he is such an awesome brother?? Because he totally is! His sister Violet is very pregnant and he'd do anything for her. Which is also how he ends up at the gypsy's place, getting his fortune read. I have an awesome brother of my own, so I know a bit about them.
When Jonathan cares about someone, he does it with all his heart, even if he may not realise it himself and I always appreciate this in a person.

So why did this book disappoint me a bit? Well, while I think Tommy and Jonathan suited each other, their romance was just a bit boring. There was really no question that they loved each other from pretty early on and I felt no heartbreak or edge-of-my-seat tension or really much of a feeling whatsoever. Or at least not in the way I've come to expect from Julie Anne Long's writing.

I was also REALLY annoyed by Jonathan's father. I mean, SERIOUSLY? Are you trying to alienate ALL your children? SERIOUSLY? I really very much dislike him and I don't get what he could be thinking. He doesn't seem to care much for his children at all and is just looking for a way to have the family name be made even better and GAH it was SO ANNOYING.

But ultimately, a book that didn't live up to my expectations from Julie Anne Long is still a very enjoyable read. It wasn't as amazing as some of the other books in this series, but I still found myself smiling reading it. I very much enjoyed the witty banter between Tommy and Jonathan and they did suit each other very well.

My rating: 3 stars

Daisy Update (45)

So basically I'm sitting on my balcony, imaging I'm in this hammock instead ;) Wouldn't that be amazing??

Also, last Friday my little blog turned 3! I'm having a giveaway to celebrate, so while you're here, why don't you go enter?

In my last Daisy Update I mentioned that it would be my last day of work that week. I'm now officially jobless, or 'in between jobs', as I'll be starting my residency in September. Work was pretty quiet again and I basically just hung out with all my colleagues. It felt so weird to be saying goodbye to them all week! Some wouldn't be at the hospital on Friday, so I had to say goodbye to some of them a bit earlier than I had expected. I managed not to cry in the end, but it was a highly emotional week for me.
It was nice that on Friday they'd set aside a little time after the work was done to just talk and have a drink. They said some really sweet things and I really felt appreciated, my colleagues are the best and I'll miss them so much!!

After I got back from work, I packed up my things and went over to my parents. They were on vacation near the beach here in Holland and had invited me to spend the weekend with them, which was very nice, since the boyfriend also would be away for the weekend :)
I had a nice relaxing weekend with my parents filled with eating, reading, walking the dogs, cuddling with the dogs and just talking with my parents, mostly my mom. It's thanks to my mom that I actually ate while reading Siege and Storm, because WOW! That book was intense! And I LOVED IT!! My review will be up sometime this week I think.

It's been really weird to just be home this week. It's not a vacation exactly, cause I'm truly unemployed at the moment. I've found myself thinking about what they're doing at the hospital more than once. And being a bit sad that I'm not there with them...

But I've been doing some work around the house, cleaning and tidying and doing the groceries and such. It's much more tolerable (I first put enjoyable, but that's still not true) now that I've discovered the joy of audiobooks! I've been listening to Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay and it's SO GOOD! I hope to finish it in the next couple of weeks, but it's so much slower than just reading the book myself! Even if I can squeeze it in during moments in which I otherwise wouldn't have been able to read.

So summer has finally arrived in Holland and the weather has been lovely the last couple of days! Yesterday the boyfriend and I spent the afternoon at a local lake, which was nice. I hope to spend some more afternoons there the coming week :) It's been 11 years since I had a full summer off without having to work whatsoever and I'm slowly getting used to the idea.

I hope you're all having a great week!!

It's My Blogoversary!!!

It almost slipped by me, but today Between the Pages turns 3!! I can't believe it's been three years already! And I'm still thankful every day that I'm part of this amazing community of booklovers and even though I haven't met you guys in real life, I do feel that I've made some true friends over the years and I just want to thank you all for being your awesome selves!

So I've been feeling nostalgic and looking back at this post I did for my first blogoversary two years ago. And I laughed when I saw how under '5 random facts about me' I mentioned my TBR list as being huge. Then it had 824 books on it (which has exploded to 1530 at the moment), 95 of which I owned (I can now boast of owning 392). I'm such a little book hoarder. See what you all do to me by being awesome and recommending me books??

It's been a year in which lots of things have happened for me: I had my first job as a real doctor (and got to actually sign recipes, yay!), bought my first car, the boyfriend graduated and got HIS first real grownup job, I got accepted into the residency I wanted and I've also seen the end of my first real doctor job. I've met so many people and said goodbye to some of them last week. Doing my job I've had both amazingly happy moments and really difficult, sad, angry moments and though I try not to take my work home with me, I can't help it sometimes.

So before I go all teary-eyed on all of you, let's switch over to the giveaway part of this blogoversary, cause OF COURSE I want to thank you guys with something other than just MY words: I want to give you all words written by authors much more eloquent than I am.

Giveaway:
I'm giving away your choice of any of the books I've rated either 5 stars or 5+ stars here on the blog, because I want to share with you the books I've loved and I hope you'll hold as dear to your heart as I do! If it's part of a series you can choose an earlier/later book in the series instead. Pre-orders are fine as well.
Pictured above are some of the books, but as I said, you can take your pick of any of my favourites!

-Open internationally to wherever The Book Depository ships!
-If under 13 you have to have approval from a parent/legal guardian
-Open from July 5th to July 19th 2013
-The winner will be contacted through e-mail as well as announced on the blog
-The winner will have 48 hours to get back to me with the book of their choice, if there's no response after 48 hours I will pick another winner

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review of Spartan Frost by Jennifer Estep

Title/Author: Spartan Frost (Mythos Academy #4.5) by Jennifer Estep
Publisher/Date published: Kensington, June 25th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads summary: I'm Logan Quinn, the deadliest Spartan warrior at Mythos Academy. At least I was - until the day I almost killed Gwen Frost.

Professor Metis and Nickamedes say that I'm fine, that Loki and the Reapers don't have a hold on me anymore, but I can't risk it. I can't risk hurting Gwen again. So I'm leaving Mythos and going somewhere far, far away.

I know Gwen wonders what's happening to me, whether I'm safe. I can't tell her, but this is my story...

So I'll make this short and sweet, like Spartan Frost was.

I'm not much of a novella reader, but every now and then I make an exception and I'm usually happy I did. Spartan Frost definitely falls into this category.

I very much like Logan and it was nice to see what had happened in Crimson Frost through his eyes. It's not something that should be taken lightly and Logan definitely doesn't. I also liked seeing another side of his father, cause he REALLY annoyed me in Crimson Frost. I get that he was trying to protect his son, but maybe he could have done it in a less obnoxious way.

It didn't even take me an hour to read this, I zipped right through it and besides providing me a little insight into Logan's mind, it also made me excited to continue the series with Midnight Frost soon!

My rating: 3,5 stars

Review of Golden by Jessi Kirby

Title/Author: Golden by Jessi Kirby
Publisher/Date published: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, May 14th 2013
How I got this book: read it on PulseIt
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap — one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery — she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High — perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story — one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live — and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

Ok, so why has noone been SCREAMING at me to read this book??? Seriously??

I stumbled across this on PulseIt when I had nothing to do at work and was scouring the internet for something interesting. I hadn't really given this another glance when I'd heard of it around its release, so I went in with basically no expectations.
And HOLY WOWZA!! I really want to kick myself for not reading this sooner! It was SO, SO GOOD!

Jessi Kirby immediately drew me in with her extraordinary writing style and the characters that I could relate to so, so much! I love stories like this, finding out hidden stories within stories by reading a diary and doing some detective work!

Parker is awesome. And very uptight and in need of a good shove in the right direction every now and then. She's a smart cookie and I loved her drive and seriously, I WAS that girl who was afraid to break the rules back in high school. She was under a lot of pressure from her mother and though of course her mother loves her, at times it was hard to remember this.
I also really loved Parker's best friend Kat and the boy who wants to be more than a friend. Kat is a true best friend who wants what's best for Parker and supports her in everything. I loved her spirit and the bond between the girls!

Sometimes you just know when you make a decision that when you do, you can never turn back or take it back and Golden is about some of those decisions. It's in the decision Parker makes to open Juliana's diary, to go looking for the truth within those pages, to decide what she wants to do with her life and to take a chance on a boy she's known for a long time.

Juliana and Shane's story is both tragic and heartbreaking, but at the end it also filled me with hope. I loved how completely Jessi Kirby had me invested in this story with her engaging writing and amazingly loveable characters! They FELT real to me, as if I could just pass a cafe and find Parker and Kat there drinking a cup of coffee or tea and laughing together.
This book broke my heart and put it back together and is generally just a beautiful story that you should all put on your reading this this summer!

My rating: 5+ stars

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Scare the Bejeezus Out of Me!

As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by my other blog The Broke and the Bookish.

Today we're talking about those books that intimidate you. And I have a lot of those. I also refere you to this TTT from July 2010. I'm proud to say I've actually read some of the books on the list since then ;)

1. Divergent by Veronica Roth: I know, ok, I suck. I REALLY want to read this, but the amount of love it has gotten is SCARY. Someone read this with me?

2. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon: Sarah from Sarah Says Read loves this series so much that I bought the first book, but I'm still a little scared to read it, the size intimidates me and what if I don't love it???

3. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green: Can I tell you a secret? I haven't read ANY of John Green's books... This falls straight into the 'I suck' category. This book scares me because I usually avoid books that deal with cancer because it brings my work a little too much home with me and I like happy books. And the ugly crying I foresee over this one is scary as well..

4. Inheritance by Christopher Paolini: Seriously, reading the ending of a series SCARES ME! I loved the first three books, but what if the ending to the series sucks??? WHAT WILL I DO THEN??

5. All of Cassandra Clare's books: SO MUCH HYPE!! Also, it's a HUGE commitment to read both of her series!

6. The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling: I've heard lots of 'meh' sounds about this one, I still want to read it, I just need to gather all my courage for it...

7. If I Die by Rachel Vincent: I hear events in this book will break my heart. I like my heart unbroken.

8. The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima: I LOVED her Seven Realms series SO MUCH!! What if this one doesn't work for me???

9. The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel: My grandmother loved this series. And I very much loved my grandmother. I don't think I'll get over it if I DON'T love this series...

10. Blood Promise by Richelle Mead: Because: WHAT IF THINGS DON'T GET FIXED??? SERIOUSLY???

11. ALL OF THE OTHER HYPED BOOOKS/LAST BOOKS IN THE SERIES: Which doesn't really need an explanation.

So that's it for me, I have all these classics I'm intimidated by as well, but let's not delve into that right now ;)
Leave me a link to your TTT and I'll be sure to visit you!

Review of Tempest Revealed by Tracy Deebs

Title/Author: Tempest Revealed (Tempest #3) by Tracy Deebs
Publisher/Date published: Walker Childrens, July 9th 2013
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley
Buy this book at: The Book Depository

Goodreads summary: Half-mermaid Tempest Maguire is trying to have it all: fulfilling her duties as second-in-line to the merQueen Hailana while periodically returning home to the California coastline to be with her family and longtime boyfriend, Mark. Living under the sea and rebuilding Coral Straits is grueling work, while being back home reminds her of everyone she loves and misses. But when her old flame Kona arrives bearing news that Hailana has died and Tempest is now officially merQueen, she returns permanently to Coral Straits - even though it devastates her family and rips her apart from Mark. Once there, she discovers that an old enemy has resurfaced, hell-bent on taking over her throne... with or without her. As Tempest prepares for her final showdown against Tiamat and anyone who stands with her, she must decide what - and who - is really important to her. Because there will be few survivors in the ultimate sea battle that is brewing - and Tempest isn't sure she will be one of them.

**WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST TWO BOOKS IN THE SERIES**

This series is absolutely one with lots of ups and downs for me. I really liked Tempest Rising, then I liked, but had some major issues with Tempest Unleashed, but all in all the storytelling did have me convinced to pick up Tempest Revealed, the last book in this series. And I'm sorta disappointed.

All the development Tempest had gone through in the first two books just seemed to vanish at times and she just (for lack of a better word) regressed a bit in my opinion. She's seemingly learned NOTHING of the past and because the decision between her family and the underwater world is impossible, she just continues to do both half-assed, which REALLY annoyed me. I mean, sure, I get that it's not easy, but make up your mind of DO something about it instead of wallowing in selfpity. Geesh. That is not an attractive quality.

I do like that in Tempest Revealed I could better understand her relationship with Mark and why she chose him. He's a good guy, though he does have some major hero-issues and should learn when to butt out and keep himself safe, because holy hell, it is not okay to keep putting yourself in danger trying to 'help' Tempest just to proove you're the 'alphamale'. UGH! At times he pretty much only complicated things and seriously, I kept thinking too-stupid-to-live. I think he's the first male character who's ever gotten this title...

There's also the return of the love triangle. Seriously, couldn't we just not have done this again? I mean, Tempest has chosen TWICE (I know it was also a different boy twice, but that's a whole other argument) and now we're back at this?? Seriously? I mean, JUST STICK WITH ONE. And just tell Kona to stop being and ass and that he'll only ever be your FRIEND and be done with it. GAH.

So I sound really negative. I know. And the truth is, while I was REALLY annoyed by the things I mentioned above, and a couple of other things as well, I did enjoy reading this book. Tracy Deebs has a really engaging writing style and this is what made me keep reading Tempest Revealed. I also wanted to know what would happen in the final showdown, because UGH, TIAMAT MUST DIE! HATEFUL CREATURE!

I do definitely think this could have been a better book if Tempest's behaviour had been consistent with the growth we've seen of her in the first two books. There was a little too much wah-wah-woe-is-me for me to really like her this time, but I do appreciate the scope of the tale Tracy Deebs has told is throughout the series. And I do very much love the underwater world she has created. It is beautiful and complicated and I hope that something like it exists somewhere.

My rating: 2,5 stars