Do your kids Irish Dance?

Well, mine do. And regional championships are over Thanksgiving weekend. I have not been able to sit and read for a bit now, let alone write reviews so I'm a little behind. Please bear with me while I try to survive long drives and big hair for the next 10 days! Happy Thanksgiving!

Jane Blond, International Spy by Brianna Stan Schott

Jane Blond International Spy by Brianna Schatt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(free copy for honest review)

This is a great story for young teen girls or YA who aren't looking for all the romance. (Wait, what? There are girls out there like that?! Pfffff!)

Jane Blond. Yeah, she's heard all the jokes. Big deal. She's more worried about making the cheerleading team, coping with her mom's boyfriend and sneaking to visit her dad in prison. But maybe there's something to her name when she starts dealing with the FBI regarding some strange things happening around town.

I was impressed when I learned Jane Blond was written by a high schooler. It's a short, fun read with an intriguing plot. It's sophisticated enough to not be predictable.

I love how Schott uses unconventional characters that help Jane solve the case. No super cute, nice, outgoing hunk to help Jane along. Nope, it's mostly a solo operation with a nudge here and there from a friend.

Overall, a wonderful jump up for middle schoolers who want a little more in their mysteries.


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Okay...this one is SOOOOO me.

(also from pintrest - https://www.pinterest.com/pin/155092780890548949/)

Oh Daemon.

So I found this on pintrest and I clicked on it so many times, I'm still confused as to where it originally is from but It's so freaking true that I had to repost.

Keri Arthur's new series City of Light (Outcast #1)

City of Light by Keri Arthur
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(ARC from NetGalley in exchange for review)

This dystopian novel had me hooked from the start. It has a very intricate plot that you must pay attention to be able to follow. It weaves and entwines secrets and machinations like none I've seen. And the cliffhanger? OMG! I am very happy to see that the sequel has a name (Winter Halo) with a publishing date of November 2016! No year wait for me!

Tiger is a déchet. The last of her kind. A new breed of human/animal/other made by humans to fight the shifters and vampires in the last war. Surving in an underground bunker long abandoned after the war, she comes to the surface only for food. Saving a child and her shifter-uncle from the vampires one night while out for food changes her life forever. She now needs to sift through the lies and half-truths to find 13 children and uncover the conspiracy before it's too late.

This is a dark story filled with many surprises. Arthur incorporates many different varieties of paranormal beings – shifters, vampires, ghosts, seerers, witches...it makes for a very entertaining read. It kept me up at night and made me, basically, useless to my family during the day.

I'm am very excited about Keri Arthur's new series! I hope it will not be a 'two and through' series of books. I can see myself wanting to see Tiger through a lot of fun adventures!

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Unhidden (The Gatekeeper #1) by Dina Given

Unhidden by Dina Given
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(free copy for review from NetGalley)

Emma Hayes can't remember anything from before her car accident 10 years ago. With no memory or family, she is thrown into a nightmarish foster home. After joining the military and subsequently leaving, she's made a name for herself as a mercenary. Now someone, or something, is after her and who she should trust is just as dangerous as what to believe.

Given did an amazing job in her debut novel Unhidden. Emma is a bad-ass female who is NOT invincible. She's also not a “hard-ass” either and has intense relationships with other characters. I love tough women main characters who are not afraid to show emotion and the author does a fine job with Emma.

Given also utilizes different types of creatures - mages, shifters, elves, etc. in the book. There are many characters in the tale that Given weaves, making each one of them significant to the plot.

The story flows well and you discover things as Emma does, which helps you feel all the same emotions simultaneously; and there are a great deal of emotions in play here. Frustration, disbelief, confusion, heartbreak just to name a few. And just when you think you can put the book down for the night, Given throws in a “SURPRISE!” and there's no way you're going to stop reading after THAT!

Overall, an entertaining read and an author I will be watching closely. Looking forward to the sequel.

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Gavin Frankle's The First Man

The First Man by Gavin Frankle
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

(free copy in exchange for review from NetGalley)

Everything you've been told about the creation of the world – Eden, the first man and woman, etc – is wrong. This is the real story told by Adam himself.

Frankle's version of the Beginning is intriguing, yet it fails to keep the reader interested. It is depressing and, frankly, kind of a bore. Adam talks to himself. A lot. A whole hell of a lot. If you don't pay attention, though, you will miss some important stuff. That's the hard part, paying attention. I found myself skimming the parts were Adam just talks and talks and talks...and talks. Which is a little funny because the book is actually a quick read.

I think Frankle could have done a great job with it. The concept is striking and it is clear that he is extremely talented. Adam has every right to be angry and depressed. However, his ranting is on the level of being childish and his loathing of humans obnoxious.

I think Frankle needs to tone down all the nonessential words and throw in a bit more action if he needs to make the book longer. Lighten up a bit on the human-hating and it's a great read.

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Information Overload

I've read 7 books in 7 days. My brain can't seem to put a coherent thought together. Please bear with me while I process all the data! Thanks!

The Reaper's Daughter - KM Randall

The Reaper's Daughter by K.M. Randall
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

(free copy for review)

Blake lives with her single father and loves her life with her handsome boyfriend. But that all changes when tragedy strikes and she discovers she's the daughter of the Grim Reaper. Thrust into a world she doesn't know or want, Blake must come to terms with her loss and her new responsibilities.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story from start to finish. It has strong characters and world-building. Blake is a very strong female character without being a “bad-ass”. I love how she doesn't give in to her mother or her budding new relationship with Rishi quickly. She doesn't embrace her new life and, in fact, fights it until the end.

There are heart-wrenching scenes that had me bawling like a baby, actually, multiple times. It was sweet and funny. Nothing in this book seems forced or contrived. It has a well-developed plot and it flows as though Randall didn't come up with the story as she wrote.

There's a great jumping off point for the sequel and the ending doesn't leave you throwing the book against the wall because you have to wait for book two. Overall, it was a fantastic start to a new series from new author K. M. Randall, and I look forward to continuing on with Blake, Rishi and company in the (hopefully!) near future.

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Sigh.

From http://books-are-my-life18.tumblr.com/

Crystallum by Laney McMann

Crystallum by Laney McMann
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

(ARC for review from NetGalley)

Crystallum is one of those CAN NOT PUT DOWN novels that gets you all excited. Every time I thought I could read to the end of the chapter and finally close my eyes to sleep for the night, McMann would throw in a surprise that made me say “aaawwww heeellll nooo” and I'd have to continue reading on into the wee hours of the morn.

Kadence Sparrow is different and she's known this since she was 5. She knows that she'll have to give into the demon who hunts her eventually, but until then, she wants to try to be a normal 17 year-old girl. Then she meets Cole Spires and she wonders if maybe she's find where she's supposed to be after all.

It was a little hard to get into at first. McMann jumps right into the story and uses quite a few Latin words (that I needed to look up) that had me wondering what everything meant. After a few chapters, however, things start to be explained and the confusion starts to clear up. It then proceeds to suck you into a seemingly never-ending vortex of secrets and surprises.

The chemistry between Kade and Cole is intense. All the characters (major and minor) are important to the story and there is no extra fluff added to try to fill in the space between critical events. The story moves at a steady pace and keeps you hanging on until the end.

The ending has a nice little cliffhanger. Not so bad as to make you want to bang your head against the wall wondering how it's possible to live until the next book comes out, but just enough to say “Oh yeah! I'll be watching for this next book release!”

Applause to you, Laney McMann, on the beginnings of a stimulating, new series!

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Last book in the Iron Fey series - The Iron Knight

The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was all Ash. And although I adore him, like, to pieces, the reason I love Kagawa's books is because of the chemistry between ALL the characters. There was no Meghan in this story and to me, Meghan is what makes Ash lovable.

I definitely appreciated the journey he had to take and the tests he endured to get to Meghan, I just couldn't believe it was able to made into a whole novel. There were a few surprises that I loved and a loose end or two that was tied up, but overall it could have been a novella for me. It also lead into her next series that I have not decided if I should read or not.

I think it was an okay end to the Iron Fey series, I suppose. I'm just feeling a little bereft because I was hoping for more closure.


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Kate Unmasked (Code of Silence, #1) by Cindy M. Hogan

Kate Unmasked by Cindy M. Hogan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

(free copy for review)

I am more of a fantasy/paranormal kind of girl, but I do branch out and love a good mystery now and again. I have been reading fantasy/paranormal for months straight now so I had forgotten that Kate Unmasked was NOT a fantasy story, just a YA story. NO problem there! This book was great!

Kate has always wondered who her birth parents were, but her adopted parents were always very vague. When a day of spring cleaning uncovers secrets her parents have been keeping, Kate determines she will find answers her own way.

There are so many twists and turns that will keep you up reading this novel. You won't want to put it down. Every character is well-developed. The world-building is impressive, bringing lots of insight into worlds that are not commonly visited. I think any reader would be surprised with the developments to the story.

The ending nicely wraps up the immediate loose ends of book 1, while leaving a few unanswered questions to start book 2. I will be impatiently watching for the sequel, Kate Concealed.

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Jennifer Stewart Griffith's Pandora (Goddesses and Geeks #1)

Pandora by Jennifer Stewart Griffith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

(free copy in return for honest review)

I finished this book quite a few days ago and I am still unsure of how I feel about it. It was not a waste of time, but I felt (and still feel) a little empty from it. Like, it was unfinished or hollow.

The basic story line is great – Congressman Blake Wells takes a much needed vacation from his re-election campaign. While in Bermuda, he falls instantly for a woman, Cressida, and determines he will risk everything to keep her. Little does he know, she's really Pandora, and those risks maybe be too great, even for him.

See, it's an intriguing theme. So, it starts off well enough. Wells is a likable character, as are his staff. But as soon as he meets Cressida, he instantly becomes annoying. His obsession is ridiculous and disturbing. Cressida, on the other hand, never really becomes a real character. Maybe it's because the whole story is told from Blake's POV, but we never get to see a deeper side of Cressida. She's very shallow, with no intensity.

The adventure they go on to save Cressida, is exciting and well thought out. It wraps up quite nicely and the solution is not so easy as to make you roll your eyes. The author does have a talent with words and world-building. I think a little more time developing characters would have made the story much more enjoyable.

Overall, I did enjoy reading the book and will be interested to read the next in the series.

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