Review: Love, Tink by Elle Strauss

Tink is hopelessly smitten with Peter, the leader of the Lost Boys who'd mysteriously arrived at Neverland two years ago. Unfortunately, Peter is tired of the adventure and especially tired of dodging Captain Hook who is after his head. He just wants to go back to New York City and live his life as a normal fifteen-year-old.

Tink is the only one who can help Peter return, but it breaks her heart to do it. She just wants to make him happy, so she does the unthinkable and betrays the fairy king. Now her heart is filled with remorse. Should she go after Peter? Should she follow him to his New York?

I was a weird child, I used to watch the Disney movie 'Peter Pan' at least twice a day until I was like eleven, so whenever I hear about a book which is a different retelling of the story I am so excited to read it. When I saw Love, Tink on NetGalley I just knew that I was going to love it, I was so right. I think that if I'd read it as a series of novellas I wouldn't have loved it, but reading it as a full novel was great.

What I really liked about this book was the mixture of the New York setting with the Neverland setting, I liked that Tinkerbell and Jangle came into this brand new world and had to get their head around technology and cars and money - it made for some really funny moments, as did the fairies in school. I'm suspending disbelief a little bit at some things, such as the fact that the first guy they meet just happens to go to the same school as Peter. I mean, I have never been to new York, but I imagine that there are a lot of schools. As well as this, sometimes Tink and Jangle used phrases in Neverland that seemed almost like slang, then they barely understand anything that anyone is saying when they reach New York. Then again, this is a fun fantasy read and isn't meant to be taken all that seriously.

I am so glad that Wendy was kind of a bad guy in this book - she's the annoying, clingy girlfriend that views anyone and everyone as competition. I always thought she was such a weak and annoying character anyway, compared to the spunky Tinkerbell. Peter was the witty and clever leader we all know in the first few scenes, but after he returns to New York we get to see him as a normal teenage boy, which was awesome as well. I loved Jangle, Tinks fairy best friend who sometimes seems a bit harsh but just says everything that Tinkerbell needs to hear. More than anyone, I loved Tinkerbell - she is loyal, brave and hung up on a boy, making her a fantasy heroine as well as a relateable character for any girl.

If you liked Disney's Peter Pan and Disney's Enchanted, or if you enjoy fairytale like fantasy reads with tough characters, you really should read the Love, Tink collection. Some of the novellas leave off at awkward points and some are a little short so I recommend you read the whole collection together. Honestly though, this is such a fun read which took me back to Neverland, my favorite fantasy world ever.

Book released  10th July 2013 by 

Book received from the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review (NetGalley)

Reviews for other books by this author:

Clockwise

Waiting on Wednesday (31st July 2013)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I have been in such a reading slump, I think I'm out of it now (just read Elle Strauus' Love, Tink collection and adored it), but I've been getting so behind! Eeep! I guess it's the weather, one minute it's burning hot and muggy and the next it's pouring rain (English weather... I love it!).

Anyway, here is my WOW pick, let me know what you think and link me to yours!

Burn Out by Kristi Helvig

April 8th 2014 - EgmontUSA

Most people want to save the world; seventeen-year-old Tora Reynolds just wants to get the hell off of it. One of the last survivors in Earth's final years, Tora yearns to escape the wasteland her planet has become after the sun turns "red giant," but discovers her fellow survivors are even deadlier than the hostile environment.

Holed up in an underground shelter, Tora is alone--her brilliant scientist father murdered, her mother and sister burned to death. She dreams of living on a planet with oceans, plants, and animals. Unfortunately, the oceans dried out ages ago, the only plants are giant cacti with deadly spines, and her pet, Trigger, is a gun--one of the bio-energetic weapons her father created for the government before his conscience kicked in.

When family friend, Markus, arrives with mercenaries to take the weapons by force, Tora's fury turns to fear when government ships descend in an attempt to kill them all. She forges an unlikely alliance with Markus and his rag-tag group of raiders, including a smart but quiet soldier named James. Tora must figure out who she can trust in order to save humanity from the most lethal weapons in existence.

Sci-fi with a red giant sun and survival concept! What an amazing idea! I can't wait to read this one!!

Review: The Clockwork Bluebird by Ravven

London, 1897: Maia and her brother Tyler find themselves in the midst of a war between the Faerie Courts on Christmas Eve. Accompanied by a talking dog, a clockwork kitchen servant and Fox the stable boy, they embark on a quest to save their lost parents and find the Bluebird.

The palace of Night and the Land of the Dead. Skyships. The Goblin Market. A black wolf and the Huntsman who pursues him. A gang of clockwork-enhanced children living in the lost Underground tunnels under the city.

What do you get if you mix the fantasy adventure of Alice in Wonderland, add in some clockwork and airships and put in some fairy queens and talking animals? The answer is The Clockwork Bluebird... this book is a mixture of all the things I would have loved to read when I was twelve years old and reading this book took me back to that age where I didn't need any romance, all I needed was a good adventure with some fun characters and a slightly scary bad guy.

I felt a little bit out of the loop with this book because I haven't read the children's book that this was based on, so I think that I missed out on a few references and stuff that made it a tiny bit less awesome for me. I did really enjoy the story on it's own though, it was short and a complete story and the writing and descriptions were absolutely beautiful, I was really impressed by how Ravven managed to combine the whole steampunk and the fantasy together in this amazing London setting.

Maia and Tyler were both tough, adventurous characters. I loved spunky Maia from the start, but by the end she was such a tough fighter, the type of character I really would have connected with as a younger reader. Tyler started out more meek and mild, but he got a lot braver during this story - I loved him to pieces. The other characters were also fantastic - the treacherous Zazu, the loyal Pip, the faithful Bread and the cunning Fox - every single one of them added a dynamic to the story.

Overall, fans of classical children's books by Lewis Carroll and C.S. Lewis and Enid Blyton will love this book, it will take you back to your younger years. This is one book that you would like to read and then give to your kids in the future.

Book released 4th June 2013 

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review 

Review: Icons by Margaret Stohl

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

This book kind of felt like a poorly made jigsaw to me, everything kind of fitted together but there are still gaps where I felt that I was totally missing something, like where I reread pages to see whether something had been explained but then it wasn't. For some books, the whole vague approach works well, but in Icons it just seemed poorly constructed.

Okay, really negative starting paragraph out of the way, I did actually enjoy Icons. I had read some negative reviews so I lowered my expectations which turned out to be a good thing because this book wasn't amazing. I did enjoy it though, I mean... ALIENS. This isn't a survival style dystopian, this is about four people coming together to lead a rebellion against a seemingly impossible adversary and learning the secret about who they really are. The secret behind the Icon Children is slowly revealed by snippets from files and emails, yet it isn't totally revealed, giving me reason to read the sequel.

One think that I have to give Stohl compliments on is the writing in this book. The storytelling mixes lyrical, beautiful prose with the blunt, scary descriptions of the Icons. I noted it in my review of Beautiful Creatures, but Stohl proves in Icons that she can still write beautifully when she's writing on her own.

Overall, Icons was an interesting and well written read but the characters, world and plot needed a little more development. I'll read the sequel, but I want more development on each of the characters and a little bit more explanation.

Book released  7th May 2013 by HarperVoyage

Book received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review 

Reviews for other books by this author:

Beautiful Creatures (with Kami Garcia)

Shelf Spotlight and Week in Review (27th July 2013)

Shelf Spotlight is my weekly haul meme where I talk about all of the books that I have got this week in print and ebook format!

It's based on Stacking the Shelves hosted over at Tynga's Reviews and The Sunday Post hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Hi guys, I've been struggling to read lately because I've been concentrating on learning how to design blogger templates a little better. My new one is coming along and hopefully soon I'll be good enough to start posting some premades and selling some customs. look out for my new layout coming soon!

This week's haul was pretty small, but awesome... sooooo awesome!

Please link to yours and I'll visit :) 

Review - eBook:

   

NetGalley:

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman (December 10th, Disney Hyperion)

Silent Echo by Elisa Freilich (September 10th, Diversion Books)

Edelweiss:

Promise of Shadows by Justina Ireland (March 11th 2014, Simon and Schuster Children's)

The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos (January 21st 2014, Egmont USA)

   

The Shadow Prince by Bree Despain (March 11th 2014, Egmont USA)

White Space by Ilsa J. Bick (February 11th 2014, Egmont USA)

From Author:

Conception by Jennifer Hartz (2010, Desert Breeze Publishing)

Awaken by Christal M. Mosly (May 2013, Wheelman Press)

  

Rise & Fall by Christal M. Mosly (May 2013, Wheelman Press)

Shiloh by Helena Sorensen (April 2013)

The Agent's Daughter by Ron Corriveau (May 18th 2013, Geek Parade)

What am I most excited about this week? Well everything, but especially These Broken Stars, Promise of Shadows and The Shadow Prince. I'm excited to check out Conception since I recently LOVED Hartz's first book in her new series, and The Agent's Daughter was written by a man who was inspired by his daughter's YA blog, how sweet is that?!

The Week in Review:

Reviews:

Review: The Silent Deal by Levi Stack

Review: Tidal by Amanda Hocking

Review: Thrall by Jennifer Quintenz

Review: Incubus by Jennifer Quintenz

Features:

Waiting on Wednesday

Blogging Tips and Tricks #1 - All About ARCS 

(This is my new feature, please check it out and leave a comment with any questions or topics you think should be covered in this feature!)

Link me up to your haul, baby!

Review: Incubus by Jennifer Quintenz

Braedyn Murphy used to think nothing important ever happened in her sleepy town of Puerto Escondido. But that was before she learned she was a descendent of Lilith, the mother of all demons. Now Braedyn fights to protect humanity from the Lilitu - the beautiful, souls-stealing daughters of Lilith.

As she fights the Lilitu, Braedyn must also fight her growing love for her boyfriend Lucas - because even a simple kiss could end his life. Their only ray of hope is an angel’s offer to make Braedyn human, but it’s an offer she can’t accept until the world is safe from the Lilitu.

Braedyn knows she’s a key player in this ancient war... but she’s not ready to believe she just might be humanity’s best hope of surviving the final battle for Earth.

Despite thinking that Thrall was a bit meh, I really enjoyed Incubus,it was a definite improvement on the first book. Whereas Thrall set the scene, Incubus is where all the action and the mystery happens. I also started to really like the characters and the romance, which I didn't feel so keen on here. The best thing about this book was that it kept me guessing, since I thought Thrall was pretty predictable. We know the bad guy is an incubus, but we have no idea what powers an incubus could have and who it is, there are a few suspects though and I kind of guessed who it was, but I was still kept doubting and guessing from the start to the big reveal.

I really liked Braedyn in this book, she was head-strong and smart and I really felt sorry or her - she just couldn't catch a break! She was constantly being told not to do anything even though she was RAISED to do what she was doing then she does something wrong because she hasn't been told anything and she gets in more trouble. Lucas was more likable here, he has his jealous moments and his mean moments but his dedication to Braedyn is really obvious. I also like that this book happens nearly a year after the first book and their relationship has evolved. I liked that the couple were together but faced troubles, it made it more believable. I found myself actually rooting for the pair and I can't wait for them to be able to be together.

Something that stood out for me in this book was that the friends (Cassie and Royal) are still in it. In sequels, I sometimes find that some characters are completely forgotten about and even though Braedyn is too busy for them, this is explored and is actually the reason the antagonist is able to get to them. 

Despite the story being so much better, I did still feel that the whole plot itself wasn't anything too unique, it did it's job and set up for the next book and was well executed, but it just didn't do anything to make it stand-out.

Overall, Incubus was definitely better than Thrall but didn't do enough to make it amazing. I did like the relationships and characters more in this book though. I recommend fans of the typical paranormal romance books start this series, but not really anyone after anything too original.

Book released  21st June 2013 by Secret Tree Press

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review 

Reviews for other books by this author:

Thrall (Daughters of Lilith #1)

Blogging Tips & Tricks #1 - All About ARCs

This is the first post in my new series of blogging tips and tricks aimed at book bloggers.  I'm planning to run this feature weekly or fortnightly and I aim to help people understand just how book blogging works, and explain things that may be a little confusing for a beginner.

So... you want to be a book blogger? Good for you, it's a fantastic way to meet people with the same interests and do something that's fulfilling. The blogging community are so welcoming and helpful and I have met so many people from around the world in my 3 years of blogging at Ink Scratchers.

Then, when you've been blogging for a little while, you might even get books! That's right, publishers might actually give you books. Sometimes, you'll even get shiny copies of the book before the release date and these may be finished copies (the ones that will be in the shops on release day) or these awesome things called ARCs.

So what is an ARC? You may be wondering. These are uncorrected proofs of the book, meaning that it hasn't undergone it's final stage of editing - they are released any time from a few months to weeks before the release date of the book and the purpose is to build a buzz before the release so that people know about the book before it hits the shelf.

Don't get too excited yet. Publishers wont give ARCs to just anyone. As I said before, these are given to build a buzz for the book, as well as this there aren't that many per book printed and they tend to be more expensive to print than the finished copies. For this reason, publishers want you to have a few things before they send you an ARC:

• A good following: I can't give you an exact number. Some publishers will send you review copies when you have 200 followers, some turn me down at 1300. It isn't just about blog followers though, they want to know about Twitter followers, where you cross-post your reviews and your unique visitors.
• Consistent blogging: Nobody expects you to pump out a review every day, and it's not a massive deal if you miss a week of blogging, but they want to make sure that you are going to review the book in a timely matter so if you haven't posted in a month and then request a book, chances are you'll get a polite rejection. It's also worth noting that some publishers will actually specify that you should have been blogging blogging regularly for at least six months or something before you will be granted access to review copies.
• A good level of professionalism: I don't mean that you should be emailing with Dear Sir/Madam at the beginning of an email. However, you should have a good grasp of grammar and you should get the formality right. Remember that asking for an ARC is kind of like a business deal: They're giving you a book under the condition that you read and review it. 
• Enthusiasm: Now this kind of goes with the last bullet point. When you are pitching to a publisher to request a review copy, it's key that you show that you're enthusiastic about that genre. They want to see that you're excited to review it and you don't just want a free book.

It also looks very good if you have an attractive and tidy blog. This isn't as important as your presence, but if your blog is attractive you're likely to get more visitors. I'll be doing a post on how to get a good blog design and how to keep the blog tidy in a couple of weeks.

So we've covered what ARCs are and what you need to do to get them, now let me tell you where you can go to get them. I'm not going to go into much detail since I'll be doing step-by-step guides showing how to get review copies through these mediums next week.

NetGalley and Edelweiss

These are both online platforms where you can go to browse and request digital review copies. These are, pretty obviously, review copies in eBook form. There are other online platforms for review copies, but most of them are open to US only and since I'm from the UK I'm not that familiar with them.

Publishers

Basically, just emailing publishers requesting a title. They may then put you on a mailing list where you'll be contacted if there are other titles that they have review copies for. Once again, I'll explain how to do this next week.

Waiting on Wednesday (24th July 2013)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I got my first year university results back and I've passed! I am soooo happy now!

Pawn by Aimee Carter

November 26th 2013 - Harlequin Teen

YOU CAN BE A VII. IF YOU GIVE UP EVERYTHING.

For Kitty Doe, it seems like an easy choice. She can either spend her life as a III in misery, looked down upon by the higher ranks and forced to leave the people she loves, or she can become a VII and join the most powerful family in the country.

If she says yes, Kitty will be Masked—surgically transformed into Lila Hart, the Prime Minister's niece, who died under mysterious circumstances. As a member of the Hart family, she will be famous. She will be adored. And for the first time, she will matter.

There's only one catch. She must also stop the rebellion that Lila secretly fostered, the same one that got her killed …and one Kitty believes in. Faced with threats, conspiracies and a life that's not her own, she must decide which path to choose—and learn how to become more than a pawn in a twisted game she's only beginning to understand.

This one sounds amazing. A dystopian which sounds awesome, but written by the awesome Aimee Carter (author The Goddess Test). Exciting stuff!

---

Mayday by Jonathan Friesen

April 10th 2014 - Speak

Why’d I do it? I suppose it’s the only question that really matters. 

Seventeen-year-old Crow will stop at nothing to protect her younger sister—even if it costs her her own life. But then she’s given a chance to come back and make things right. There are a few catches, though. First, she won’t come back as herself. And before she can set things straight, she’ll have to figure out what’s what—and things aren’t exactly as clear-cut as she remembered.

A Before I Fall meets mystery plot? This one sounds amazing but it's the cover that grabbed my interest!

Review: Thrall by Jennifer Quintenz

Braedyn is a normal girl just trying to survive high school with her two devoted friends, Royal and Cassie. Together they’re doing a pretty good job of shrugging off the slings and arrows cast their way by the popular crowd when a new boy, Lucas, moves into the house next door. Suddenly Braedyn finds herself falling in love for the first time.

But as her sixteenth birthday approaches, Braedyn discovers humankind is at war with the Lilitu, an ancient race of enticing demons that prey on human souls. Her father is a member of the Guard fighting against the Lilitu - and so are the new neighbors, including her crush, Lucas.

As her world starts to unravel at the seams, Braedyn learns the right answers aren’t always clear or easy. And as for “good” and “evil” – it all depends on how we choose to act.

As with most paranormal romances that I read these days, I'm kind of torn over Thrall. On one hand we have an original premise (I haven't seen Lilitu done in YA before, though I have seen succubi in adult PR books.), we also have awesome action scenes and good, though simplistic writing. However, on the other hand we have the execution - not bad, but I did feel like I was reading a retelling of like most books of this genre. Bear in mind that I read well over 100 books a year, and a large number of these fit in this genre, the whole 'reading the same story' thing gets old. I understand that it's difficult for a paranormal romance author to separate itself in such a  overflowing genre, but this whole new guy/girl in town has secret, secret ends up being something to do with our MC, MC end sup being responsible for the fate of the world as we know it!! Yeah, I must have read that hundreds of times.

Then there's the romance, which was very shallow and underdeveloped. I did like that this book takes place over a longer timespan than most YA books, but even that couldn't save the lack of chemistry. Also, Braedyn was very selfish even getting involved with Lucas when he doesn't know shes Lilitu since she could, ya know, kill him with her kiss... I'd like to see more development in Lucas in the sequel if I have any chance of liking the couple in this book.

That being said, I didn't NOT enjoy this book. This was a good read and I got through it pretty quickly. Quintenz's writing is good, if not a little simplistic at times, and whilst there were a few small editing errors that must have slipped through the net, there wasn't anything bad or offensive about the writing. I was particularly impressed by the writing scenes, I never seemed to get lost in the action because Quintenz managed to describe what was going on whilst keeping the pace high, particularly in the climatic battle.

I really enjoyed watching Braedyn battle herself - she has these awesome powers that could be used for good or evil, and that's the choice she has to make here. Sure, she makes some stupid decisions (Parker!!) but that just makes it more believable, and I am looking forward to seeing what she chooses in Incubus.

Overall, this book is a pretty evenly balanced book. there were some annoying flaws such as the execution and the romance, but the writing and character development of Braedyn seemed to even it out, so I'm going to give this book a pretty even rating.

Book released  16th May 2012 by Secret Tree Press

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review 

Review: Tidal by Amanda Hocking

Her only hope lies with her greatest enemies

Gemma is facing the fight of her life. Cursed by beautiful but deadly sirens, her extraordinary powers have a terrifyingly dark side, and becoming human once more is proving her greatest challenge yet. As she struggles to break the curse, the sirens, Penn Lexi and Thea are determined to kill her before she can set herself free.

Gemma's only allies are her sister, Harper, and Harper’s boyfriend, Daniel. Together they must delve into their enemies’ mythical pasts – to discover their darkest secrets. But Penn has also set her sights on Daniel. Soon, the sirens threaten everything Gemma holds dear: her family, her friends, her life, and her relationship with Alex – the only guy she's ever loved. Can she save herself and those she cares about before it is too late?

In Wake, we saw Gemma become a siren, in Lullaby we saw Gemma come to terms with what she is, and we saw Harper, Daniel and Marcy looking for answers. Now, in Tidal, we get some answers and the team come together to try and figure out how to make Gemma human again, but with much higher stakes. This book was better than the first two books, and I burnt through it in just a few hours, the pacing was fantastic and Hocking's writing seems to improve with every new book. 

I still had a few issues with the characters - even though Gemma is taking control and has grown on me since Wake, she is still a very weak character when compared to the stronger more likable characters of Harper and Daniel. I do like that we're starting to see more from the siren's point of view (well, Thea's). We're also starting to see some vulnerability from Penn, which I really liked because it makes her more understandable, not that I like her or anything, I just like my antagonists to be a little more human. Daniel and Harper stole the show again for me, they just get more and more awesome and Daniel's decision at the end of this book made me very angry yet at the same time, very swoony - a guy that cares that much that he's do that?! Get me one now! I missed Alex in this book though, he needed more scenes because I actually missed him (despite not loving him in the first two books).

This book was fast paced from start to finish. The stakes are pretty high now and the ending suggests that this fast pace will continue on in the last book (I hope so - it's over 500 pages). I honestly can't wait for Elegy to be released here in the UK because I am hooked on this series! I need to know what happens with Gemma and Harper and Daniel, and I want to see more of the siren's more relatable side. This book raised the bar for this series.

Overall, this book was fast paced and gripping from start to finish. Gemma isn't my favorite protagonist, but Harper and Daniel are amazing as always! This book has raised the bar for this series, I really hope Elegy loves up to my expectations!

Book released  28th March 2013 by HarperCollins Children's Books

Book received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review 

Reviews for other books by this author:

Wake (Watersong #1)

Lullaby (Watersong #2)

Review: The Silent Deal by Levi Stack

When Viktor and Romulus, two peasant boys, dig too deep into their town’s strange past, they awaken the wrath of a mysterious overlord. As the blood brothers struggle to survive, their search for answers takes them through gambling parlors, bare-knuckle boxing matches, and dark forests full of wild animals and men alike. But even with the help of their friends, can they escape the deathly experiments their foe is creating in Staryi Castle?

Enter the bold lands of the Russian Empire where the colorful characters of The Card Game dwell, from the fortune-tellers and fire-jugglers of the Romani Gypsies, to the dangerous criminals that make up the Thieves World, the predecessor of the Russian Mafia.

The Silent Deal has such an original premise that I was completely intrigued by the synopsis, it's for this reason that I accepted it for review, but I am so glad that I did. This book took me around four hours to read and I am so excited to read the sequel now! This book has intrigue, action and friendship and will be a definite win for people wanting to revisit their Harry Potter days as well as read something original and fun. This book has the historical thing down, but it's a historical dystopian, which was something totally new fr me, but it worked.

This book runs on the relationship between Viktor and Romulus and it is so well written. From Romulus' distrust and Viktor's curiosity to such a tight-knit bond between the two, despite some lies and some betrayal between the two they come out of it as close as brothers. It's this relationship that is center to this whole book and it was done so well. 

Stack also manages to write an engaging mystery and adventure in this book. The boys start out armed with only one card and their curiosity to find out the secret behind their town and in their mission they come across secrets and scandals as well as meet many new people, good and bad. The Crossbones Clan were the highlight of this book for me, any part of the book where these people turned up was so fun and exciting. The bad guys are pure evil, and there are twists and turns in this book which will shock you, but also clear things up. It's obvious that Stack planned out this book because everything fits together perfectly.

Overall, The Silent Deal was an engaging adventure that I absolutely adored. Reading this reminded me of why I loved Harry Potter so much, and whilst I won't say it was as good as those books, it was a fantastic read and does have the right doses of adventure, friendship and action to keep any reader gripped.

Book released  2nd May 2013

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review 

Shelf Spotlight (20th July 2013)

Shelf Spotlight is my weekly haul meme where I talk about all of the books that I have got this week in print and ebook format!

It's based on Stacking the Shelves hosted over at Tynga's Reviews and The Sunday Post hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Some amazing books here. Still waiting to hear back on a massive load of Edelweiss books!

UK GIVEAWAY:
My UK Giveaway for Angelfall by Susan Ee ends on Monday, so enter here if you want a chance to win an awesome book!

  

Review - Print:

Winter Damage by Natasha Carthew - Bloomsbury, August 1st

(ARC) Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas - Bloomsbury, August 15th

Addicted to You by Alix Wenmouth - March 22nd 2013

The Killing Woods by Lucy Christopher - Chicken House, October 3rd

   

Icons by Margaret Stohl - Harper Voyager, May 7th

Tidal by Amanda Hocking - Tor, June 6th

The Thing about Wolves by Leigh Evans - Tor, August 1st

Anatomy of a Boyfriend/Anatomy of a Crush by Daria Snadowsky - Delacorte, January 8th 2013

Edelweiss:

Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott - Harlequin, January 28th 2014

   

NetGalley:

The Woken Gods by Gwenda Bond - Strange Chemistry, September 3rd
Student Bodies by Sean Cummings - Strange Chemistry, September 3rd
When the World was Flat (And We Were in Love) by Ingrid Jonach - Strange Chemistry, September 3rd
Love, Tink by Elle Strauss 

  
Over the Rainbow by Brian Rowe - August 6th
The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle - Amulet, August 20th
From Author:
Rory by Ciye Cho - August 10th


There's my haul, now show me yours!
I do follow backs if I like the look of your blog, so tell me if you're a new follower!

Review: The Truth about Letting Go by Leigh Talbert Moore

Ashley Lockett has always followed the rules. She's always done the right thing and played it safe until her ideal life is shattered when her dad dies suddenly.

Fueled by anger and grief, she vows to do everything opposite of how she lived before. Then she meets Jordan. He has big dreams, he's had a crush on Ashley for years, and he's a great kisser. But he's also safe. 

Enter Colt. He is not safe, and he's more than willing to help Ashley fulfill her vow.

To sum this book in one word I would say 'Meh.' It had a fantastic storyline but the execution was severely lacking. I was about a third the way through when I realised that what seemed like every econd page had making out on it. Now, I'm all for sexual tension and all that but this book just seemed overly excessive.

I did understand why Ashley was acting up with Colt the way she was, but there never seemed to be any attraction between the two whereas there was with Jordan yet for a large percentage of the book he just got laughed at and pushed aside. Honestly, until the end I seriously disliked Ashley. However, my dislike for Ashley is nothing compared to how much I despised her best friend, who comes out with lines like "Kate Moss is SO not in" when Ashley turns up to school with stringy hair and no makeup... not like her Dad has died or anything!

Actually, I did really like any scenes which had Jordan and Charlotte in, these two characters are the key to bringing out Ashley's 'better' side and I really enjoyed how they managed to change her way of seeing the world, it was absolutely fantastic. However, any scenes without either of these characters in just made the book fall short.

Moore's writing isn't bad, but it didn't particularly stand out for me. In a world being littered with romantic realistic fiction you have to do a lot to stand out and Moore just didn't manage to do this for me. This book wasn't completely awful, but I wouldn't really recommend it, it just wan't a total waste of my time.

Overall, The Truth About Letting Go wasn't an awful read, but I really wasn't impressed. The book was made up of make out scenes and had a less than likable heroine. Still, Jordan and Charlotte added some light, so it wasn't a total failure. 

Book released 2nd March 2013

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review (NetGalley)

Review: Rewrite Redemption by J.H. Walker

She’s sixteen. He’s seventeen. They don’t know each other…at least not yet.

She has a secret and her whole life revolves around keeping it. Every few months and with little warning, she simply disappears, pulled into the past for hours or even days. She’s terrified it will happen in front of someone, changing her life forever. So far, the only witnesses have been her parents, and that didn’t end well. She has no control over it and no idea why it happens to her.

She wants answers.

He has answers—at least he understands what’s going on. He has a secret, too. He’s part of an organization that goes back in time to rewrite reality. But he also has a problem. He broke the organization’s number-one rule by altering his own timeline. As punishment, he’s been blocked from time travel, which is most unfortunate. Because the changes he made to his timeline, accidentally resulted in disaster for his family. A disaster he’s now prevented from repairing. No one can travel beneath the organization’s radar except a Shadow. But they’re rare, so rare he’s never even met one.

Then he moves to her town.

I was so impressed by Rewrite Redemption because even though it sounded good I was a bit worried that this book would have a little bit too much going on. This book did have a lot going on, but it was so well developed and paced so I never felt overloaded with information or drama. 
There were some things that I felt were a little less developed than I would have liked, for example the romance. I get that there's this whole 'melding' thing and Constantine feeds off her energy, but he sees her once, whilst stalker-y sitting in her garden and decides he's in love with her, because she's pretty! Then, they barely say two words to each other and she's sucked back into the past and he has to save her from some creepy rape-y guys and he gets shot and suddenly she realises she loves him... this happens over a span of about three hundred pages but they maybe say two words to each other in that span. It seemed very under developed. Okay, so their ending was cute, but I would have loved some actual development in that relationship.

To start with, I seriously disliked Constantine - for one thing he acts like a junkie for a lot of this book, always talking about getting his fix of tree energy and for another thing he talked like a real boy. yes, the authentic boy voice annoyed me to start with because... well... boy talk is annoying, all those 'man' and 'chick'. when i got used to it I did start to really like him, especially when I realised he did care. I really liked A.J. - her journey in this book is more than just her ability, it's her coming out of hiding and dealing with her life. The friendship between A.J, Ipod and Lex was so amazing and I loved that this was a multi-dimensional friendship forged on shared experiences and awful pasts.

The explanations weren't all that believable, but they were well explained and researched. There's both a naturalistic approach, what with the trees and the energy as well as a sci-fi approach with all the alien technology and string theory. I was a little confused by the ending (I'm sure it makes sense, my simple mind just couldn't compute it all though!). Walker really puts across her ideas though, and the story, science and ideas are all so well written.

Overall, Rewrite Redemption was a great book - I loved the concept and execution, the characters were great and the friendship between A.J., Lex and Ipod really sold this book. I didn't really enjoy most of the romance though, it was very underdeveloped and forced.

Book released  2013 

Book received from the author in exchange for an honest review