Saturday 31 May 2014

Consume - Book #2 in the Devoured Series by Shelly Crane - 3 STARS

Consume by Shelly Crane

Three could have been better stars

Blurb - Eli and Clara's story continues as she tries to finish high school. Eli is as over protective as ever and Tate and his group of friends are no help. They wait for the Horde, always looking over their shoulder. But the ever annoying but strangely prophetic bird begins to become more of a chatter box and Eli learns something that could change some things. Not just for him and Clara, but Devourers everywhere.
Then an unexpectedness guest comes forcing Eli to flee with Clara, leaving her temporary family behind. She is thrown into his world of underground 'traitors' and learns much of his past. They meet many new people and creatures along the way to freedom. But when tragedy strikes the two, will Clara see the monster in Eli? Can she handle his strange world and awful past? Will one of them lose their life forever...
Consume is book #2 in the Devoured Series by Shelly Crane, it starts immediately following on from the end of Devour.
I enjoyed Devour but to be honest Consume was a bit of a letdown.
So the good bits...
·         Enoch I knew there was a good guy in there, it didn’t come out as much as it could but hey he has his own follow on book.
·         Clara & Eli arrrrr how cute.
And the not so good bits...
·         This book was missing a serious action injection!!
·         Cliché I know but this book was just too nice!
God I found this book a bit disappointing, Devour book #1 felt like it was setting up some serious action. But it never happened, the story built and built and then Eli got made human!!!! WTF
Clara & Eli they were so cute together, a bit too sickly sweet, it’s rare that I will say this but this book just didn’t have enough drama and angst in it.
Perhaps I have been comparing this series too much to the Significance and Collide series, but they are so action packed, you have to take a break to take it all in. This is why the slow paced Consume just didn’t really float my boat.
I feel like this series had so much potential but it just never happened. Eli got made into a human; I was really not expecting that!! Now if Clara had become half human half devourer that would have opened up the opportunity to fight against the Horde and at least a couple more books in this series.
What I hated was the rebels saving them, then asking Eli & Clara to join them as human like a weird hippy commune.
I’m not trying to be horrible when I say that everything came a bit too easily to Eli & Clara, now don’t get me wrong it’s not that I didn’t want them to have a happy ending, I did. But to be honest I think they should have had to work a bit harder to get it.
I liked Consume but it could have been soooo much better.

Devour - book #1 in the Devoured series by Shelly Crane - 4 STARS

 Devour by Shelly Crane
Four supernatural stars
 

Blurb - Clara has it all. A wrestling star boyfriend, popular friends, all the right school activities...pretty much a perfect life...up until her parents died. Now she lives with the Pastor and his family and though they take good care of her, she feels alone. Then her boyfriend, Tate, starts to show signs of trouble when a new guy, Eli, comes to town. Clara is fascinated with him but hides it until something happens. Eli confesses to her that she gives him something he's never had before...something he needs. Everything is about to change for this normal pretty popular girl in a supernatural way.
Devour is book #1 in the Devoured series by Shelly Crane, I’m a massive fan of this author and have read both her Significance and Collide series and loved them.
Well so far so good for devour I’m not fan girl obsessed yet but give me time.
The good bits....
·         Eli, I love a good anti hero and you can’t get any better than an evil being gone good!!
·         Clara in badass mode is genius she makes me think of a annoyed kitten lol
·         I love a good supernatural love story!!
The bad bits....
·         The first book is a bit too nice, now I’m sure that will change in the following books, but at the moment it’s all a bit cheerful.
Shelly Crane has a unique ability to write about supernatural characters that could easily live among us and normal humans would have no idea.
I love her books they always have an epic love story, it happens quickly but you always feel the devotion.
Now Clara & Eli I feel there connection but I liked that it is age appropriate, they feel like teenagers falling in love. The way they interact and speak is sweet and although it’s more of a slow burn than an all out passionate connection it doesn’t feel any less powerful.
I loved the idea that Eli & Clara are connected because she decided she wanted it, that is such a change normally it’s the male supernatural being who attaches themselves to the human girl.
Now Enoch I need him to get more involved in the story, vampire diaries is mentioned several times and Enoch is definitely Damon!!! He might be evil now but I’m convinced he’s a good guy it might just be buried quite deep
My only real criticism of Devour is that it feels like a bit of an intro book, and although as book #1 in a series it has to do the intros and fill in vital info, I wanted it to have a bit more action.
I love the idea that as Eli & Clara bonded it also bonded her to the other members of his family forcing them also into a protective role; I can’t wait to see how that plays out.
Mara his sister is EVIL and that’s saying something about a race of beings those devour and feed on negative feelings and fear.
I liked this book, not quite as much as the Significance series but it has potential I will definitely be reading the next book in the series.

Take This Regret by A.L. Jackson - 3.5 STARS

 Take This Regret by A.L. Jackson
3.5 cute but not fluffy stars
Blurb - There are some mistakes we make that we will regret for the rest of our lives. For Christian Davison, it was the day he betrayed Elizabeth Ayers. For five years, Christian has regretted the day he walked away from his family and will do anything to win them back. Can Elizabeth forgive someone who has committed the unforgiveable? Or are there some wounds that go so deep they can never heal?
Take This Regret is the first book in the Take This Regret series by A.L. Jackson.
This is the first book I’ve read by this author and on first impressions it definitely won’t be the last.
This book is both sweet and yet heartbreaking at the same time, Elizabeth is left alone to raise a child and Christian spends five years regretting it.
So the good bits....
·         Elizabeth, this woman has some serious righteous indignation, her anger is palpable and I love that it wasn’t sugar coated!!
·         Claire, Christian’s mom what a wise woman.
And the not so good bits....
·         Young Christian what an asshole!!!
·         Lizzie what a precocious child!!
This book is not groundbreaking but who cares, what it is, is real. It shows a man who made a stupid mistake and is forced to spend five years living with the consequences of that mistake.
I loved that Elizabeth did not welcome him into her life easily, Christian deserved to have to grovel and scrape to become involved with his daughters life.
Christian & Elizabeth, a lot of water has gone under the bridge but the desire and chemistry is still palpable. I loved how they took time to rebuild the trust that had been broken between them.
I actually feel quite sorry for Christian; now don’t get me wrong to a certain degree he gets everything he deserves. But he is so lonely and sad; the author has managed to show his shame and guilt in his every word and action.
I loved that despite Christian’s bad relationship with his Dad he can almost relate to it, I completely engaged with the rollercoaster of emotions he went through when his dad died.
It’s rare that I actually engaged with quite a few of the characters, but I actually really like Elizabeth, Christian as well as Matthew and Natalie.
This book is the perfect beach read, it’s easy and cute but it’s not fluff. I really enjoyed it and I will definitely be reading the next book in the series.

Friday 30 May 2014

Written in Ruberah: Age of jewelled intelligence by P.Christina Greenaway - 3 STARS

 
Written in Ruberah: Age of Jewelled Intelligence
by P. Christina Greenaway
Three crazy fantasy stars
Blurb - New York real estate broker Miriam Lewis takes off for a brief getaway to a remote inn on the rugged cliffs of Cornwall. Rest and romance with her boyfriend seem like the perfect cure for a life that appears to be going nowhere, and too fast. Entering Cornwall, Miriam crosses the River Tamar and glimpses a luminous girl floating in the river. A memory from long, long ago begins to unfold in Miriam's thoughts-something about a promise she made to perform a selfless act of courage. Could it be true? Could she ever rise to such heroism or is it just a hallucination? While at the inn, Miriam experiences a series of flashbacks from a life she lived in an ancient land called Ruberah. These startling images convince Miriam that she did write the promise and that she must keep it. But to do so, Miriam will have to let go of everything in her life and place her trust in a guide-the river girl-the wise and eternal spirit of the River Tamar.
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review so here goes....
Written in Ruberah is an incredibly complex and detailed fantasy novel that is somewhat based in actual Cornish folklore.
This novel is not exactly what I was I expecting, it was sold to me as a paranormal romance and I would argue that it is much more of a fantasy epic, because the romance was conspicuous in its absence.
This is not necessarily a bad thing but if you are expecting a happy clappy romance this is definitely not it!!!
So the good bits....
·         Tamara, I found her story to be the most compelling of all of the characters.
·         The idea behind the book is very imaginative and intriguing.
And the not so good bits....
·         This book definitely needs a glossary, there is so much background info, place names, character names etc that I completely lost track of who was who in a past life etc!!!
·         I hated Miriam & Mitch; if they were supposed to be the romance element of this novel then they failed miserably!!
·         Kate, she may have only been 14 but she was a spoilt brat!!
Ok so Written in Ruberah is quite possibly one of the most complicated fiction novels I have ever read!!!
Now being complicated can be both a good and bad thing and in this case I don’t think it works in its favour.
Having read 421 pages of story I’m still not actually sure I understood most of it!!
Each main character had at least two names/identities and in some cases multiple past lives that as a reader you are expected to take in and understand. In some cases the persona or planet is referred to in passing at the beginning and then never mentioned again until a critical point at the end. I actually found myself having to flick back to the start to remind myself what something was or who the person was in Ruberah.
The book ends with Mitch going to New York with the intent to ask Miriam to marry him and then take them and Miriam’s daughter Elaine (who is actually his daughter in several of his past lives!!) to Tahiti. Now this all sounds very romantic doesn’t it, but if I were Miriam I would open the door punch him in the face then slam the door in his face!!!
Miriam and Mitch are not in love at all they are comfortable, even the couple they were in Ruberah was not exactly a grand love story Mitch (AKA the prince Da’krah) and Miriam (AKA the princess Li’ram) may bond for life and she may be infatuated with him, but he is manipulating her to get what he wants!!
In the present they are actually only a couple for the first day once they arrive in Cornwall and then he is possessed by Gwendellen (aka the evil mermaid) and then he basically follows her round like a lost puppy for the rest of the book.
Don’t get me wrong, this book is impressive because of the sheer quantity of information that is in here. She has obviously done a lot of research into Cornish myths and legends and must have had an amazing imaginary friend as a child to create this insane, in-depth fantasy world that is both old and yet new age and futuristic.
My main issue with this book is the fact that it is not written from any one or two people’s point of view. I have no idea who was narrating this story, at times it was Tamara and I enjoyed those sections. In my opinion Tamara is the grounding influence of this story and when she was telling the story it made sense and was cohesive and calm.
Unfortunately the rest of the time the POV jumps from person to person and at times is just an unidentified overseer who just reported on the action.
I wish this book had a decisive main character so I knew who I was intended to engage with, as it stands the only characters I liked were Tamara, Tavy & Tawridge and considering they were river spirits I feel like it says a lot.
The detail is beautiful, the fantasy worlds were in depth and I could imagine what they looked like. But for me there was too much information, too much going on that wasn’t explained fully enough and no romance.

Thursday 29 May 2014

Healed - Scarred #2 by J.S. Cooper - 3 STARS

 

Healed by J.S. Cooper
Three cute but slightly erratic stars
 Blurb - Lexi Lord has dreamed of dating Bryce Evans for years. And now that her dream has become a reality, she is no longer sure that he is the man for her. When tragedy strikes in their lives, they take a good hard look at their relationship and their very existences.
There are some ties that can never be broken, but Lexi and Bryce have to decide what love can heal them from their scarred pasts and what love they have to let of of. Sometimes letting go is the greatest gift of all.
Healed is book #2 in the Scarred series by J.S. Cooper, I’ve read this book straight after Scarred which is book #1.
My first impressions of Healed are Christ this is a complicated book, but thank god it has a happy if not slightly strange ending lol.
The good bits....
·         Luke, what a lovely bloke he loves Lexi and has for years.
·         This book has a happy ending and little Shelby gets a family... all together now arrrr.
The bad bits...
·         The who’s related to who gets very complicated in this book...? Bryce’s dad had an affair with Lexi’s mom, they had a daughter Shelby. So Shelby is both Bryce and Lexi’s half sister!! BUT then Luke is adopted and his dad is no other than... Bryce’s dad lol so that makes him half brother to both Bryce and Shelby!!!
·         I wanted to slap Lexi the girl needs to sort herself out!!
Ok so this book is sweet if you over look the slightly manic writing style.
This is nothing like the Forever Love series by J.S. Cooper; I think it’s the novella thing again, trying to pack as much stuff into a much shorter story.
I loved the moment when Lexi & Bryce both agree on their own that they will honour their commitment to each other, but as soon as they are together they realise that they don’t love each other it is just infatuation on both side. I’m not sure if it was supposed to but this whole scene had me literally LOLing.
I think I defiantly engaged more with Bryce in this book he seems much more stable, I loved the AHAAA moment when he meets Shelby and realises that this could be his fresh start raising his sister.
I think the nice message at the end where Luke & Bryce have embraced a relationship as brothers and all of them have created a big happy family for Shelby is lovely.
Anna, she seems like the only sane one out of the lot of them in this book she takes the mick out of Bryce and considering she behaved like a 15yr old in the previous book, she seems to have grown up a lot and matured in this one.
I didn’t hate this book it was just OK for me, I wish I had really liked and engaged with all of the characters but for me the storyline was so erratic I just didn’t feel like any of the characters were well rounded and developed enough for me to really relate to.

Scarred - Scarred #1 by J.S. Cooper - 3 STARS

 
Scarred by J.S. Cooper

Three slightly weird stars
Blurb – Everyone in Jonesville thought that Bryce Evans had the perfect life in High School: he was the Mayor's son, the quarterback for the football team, the boyfriend of the head cheerleader and had a 4.1 GPA. His acceptance to Notre Dame came as no surprise but when he chose to enlist in the army instead everyone was shocked.

Lexi Jones was the quiet girl in school and kept to her small group of eccentric friends. She had no connection to any of the popular kids except for one incident on Prom Night when her path crossed with Bryce's.

When Bryce enlisted Lexi was the only one that wasn't disappointed and decided to send him anonymous letters as a way to feel connected to him. She stopped after a year because she felt there was nowhere for their relationship to go.

Fast-forward four years and Bryce is back in Jonesville and once again he and Lexi cross paths. Only he's no longer the seemingly perfect man and Lexi's no longer the quiet girl.
This time their relationship is quite different but both of them have secrets from the past and friends that threaten to ruin their chance at happiness together.
Scarred is book #1 in The Scarred series by J S Cooper, I’m a massive fan of J.S. Coopers Forever Love series and when I came across this series I was super excited to get started.
Ok so my initial thoughts are OMG this book is weird!!
So the good bits...
·         Luke & Lexi have great banter, I love the chemistry that’s best friends but you can also see the spark of something else.
·         The fantasy that is your first love, no matter when you meet your soul mate you will always have that special place in your heart for your first real love.
And the not so good bits...
·         This book is a little strange
·         There are a lot of interconnecting relationships that’s a little confusing.
·         Events that happening in the past whilst Lexi & Bryce were at high school are referred to but never clarified. I appreciate that this is to keep the tension but it also makes it a little hard to follow.
Now this is weird for me but I don’t like Lexi & Bryce together, their relationship once they get together seems a bit odd.
To be honest this whole book feels like it could be one large dream sequence or a tripped out drug induced haze.
I’m not a fan of Lexi, she seems very immature and slightly self absorbed.
Bryce keeps referring to his doctor... not sure but get the impression he has PTSD possibly.
I really don’t like Anna she deliberately slept with her best friend’s crush/fella not cool!!
Lexi & Anna are very strange they are 23 yet live at home are both virgins who still lust over their high school crushes!!! Is it me or is that a bit odd.
Lexi & Bryce’s relationship feels a bit incestuous their parents had an affair that resulted in a child just seems like they are a bit related lol.
This whole book feels abit amateurish, because it’s only a novella an awful lot of information has been forced into too little words. It’s a bit like a soap opera everything happens at once.
Everything about Lexi & Bryce’s relationship feels a bit forced, they feel like they have this amazing connection because he saved her in high school, then they feel connected over the letters whilst he was in the army.
But for me them as a couple is a fantasy and doesn’t work in real life.

Wednesday 28 May 2014

Seeking The Succubus by Emma Jaye - 2 STARS



Seeking The Succubus by Emma Jaye
 
two god feel slightly disturbed stars
  Blurb - For latent vampire Gwendolyn Jones, her role is clear. Keep the males of her clan satisfied, to prevent them seeking partners amongst the fragile humans, and exposing their diminishing species. It’s an essential function according to her clan leader, but contempt from the fertile females and many of her ‘clients’ makes her yearn for life where she’s considered more than a sex toy.
A part time job in a souvenir shop seems like an ideal compromise, until the overwhelmingly sexy chef next door turns out not only to be a rogue latent, but one with a deluded fantasy that Gwen isn’t a vampire at all, but a succubus he’s been seeking across the globe for years.
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review so here goes....
I’m honestly not sure if I liked this book, it has a whole host of issues inside that have been wrapped up in a vampire package that will hopefully make them more acceptable.
I’m not sure it does.
The good bits....
·         Gwen/Josie she is in a horrible position although she does love all the sex she is still essentially a prisoner. I feel for her and definitely engaged with her character.
·         Lucas, when he was first introduced I thought he would save her and I liked his F YOU attitude but I’m not so sure anymore
The Bad bits......
·         So much about this book is unacceptable I’m not really sure where to start.
·         Gwen/Josie was kidnapped as a 2yr old. She was then kept captive until she was 15yrs old (not legal!!!) then essentially put to work as a sex slave. Feels a lot like sex trafficking to me!!!
·         She is abused by Alec which Blair, who in theory actually cares about her, knows about but does nothing to stop it. WTF!!!
·         She is treated like a prostitute but brainwashed into thinking it’s her duty!!!
·         There is a rape scene and also rape scenario sex but this is never addressed as wrong or unacceptable just brushed aside!!!
So much of this book leaves an unpleasant taste in my mouth.
Now I’m not a prude I like my girl smut as much as the next person. But I didn’t find this book titivating as much as cringing in discomfort.
To be honest if this book wasn’t wrapped up in the vampire sugar coating it would most definitely be classed as a tragedy.
The author sent me the other two books in the series too, but I’m not sure I can or want to read them. At some points in this one if I hadn’t felt obliged to finish it so I could review I may have put it in my DNF pile.
I feel so incredibly sorry for Gwen/Josie and as the book finished with her crying at the state of her life was just heartbreaking.
I need someone to save her, I’m not sure that person is Lucas but I’m hoping he is just playing the game as part of his plan to get her free.
I’m hoping Ulrich will stand up and help her, I get the sense he is a good person.
God I just hope someone helps her!!!

The King - Book # 12 In The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series by J.R. Ward - 5 STARS!!!

The King by J.R. Ward

Five Amazing im a fangirl stars!!!
Blurb - Long live the King…

After turning his back on the throne for centuries, Wrath, son of Wrath, finally assumed his father’s mantle--with the help of his beloved mate. But the crown sets heavily on his head. As the war with the Lessening Society rages on, and the threat from the Band of Bastards truly hits home, he is forced to make choices that put everything--and everyone--at risk.

Beth Randall thought she knew what she was getting into when she mated the last pure blooded vampire on the planet: An easy ride was not it. But when she decides she wants a child, she’s unprepared for Wrath’s response--or the distance it creates between them.
The question is, will true love win out... or tortured legacy take over?
The King is book #12 in The Black Dagger Brotherhood Series by J.R. Ward.
I should start by admitting I am a huge fangirl for this series, I discovered this series when the first eleven books were available and I read them all in a marathon Vampire fest!!! I waited not very patiently for The King to be released and since then it has sat in my ereader waiting for me to start it. To be honest I have put off reading it, I loved the first eleven books and I think I was worried that after having such a big gap since I read book #11 I would not enjoy this book as much.
Thank god I was wrong!!! This book is amazing, I loved it soooo much.
The best bits....
·         Wrath has always been one of my favourite characters and it was so fab to have another book focused on him and Beth.
·         The shadows, we get so much more insight into Trez and iAm in this book I can’t wait for their book now!
·         I’m so glad I still love this series!!
The only bad bit...
·         I am completely hooked on this series and characters but now I’m gutted that I have to wait again for the next book to come out L
Fangirl moment again, this book was brilliant, I love the characters it’s definitely an ensemble cast with so many characters now.
Wrath and Beth are such a lovely couple and to be honest since the first book they have been in the background of each book but never the focus. It was so nice to get a look at not only their relationship but also Wrath as the king.
The get to have a baby!!! Sooo cute and LW bless everyone is having babies in this series at the moment.
This book reminded me that there are so many characters left that need their stories told, obviously the shadows are next but I need Lasiter, Assail and Saxton to get their happy endings too.
Whilst I’m thinking about it Sola & Assail OMG I love them she has managed to turn Assail the stoic drug lord into a loved up marshmallow!! I need to find out what happens to them.
I loved that Wrath really becomes the King in this book; he really steps up and embraces the role. J.R. Ward obviously lives and breathes these characters because they are so developed. It’s amazing that she can have a cast of characters as large as the ones in the BDB series and each are so unique and well rounded.
This book has answered as few questions but leaves so many more unanswered in its wake, the potential for more books is endless.
I like the fact that this book was duel POV it was nice to get sneak peeks into the characters lives but still having Wrath and Beth as the main story.
Layla and Xcor WTF there was chemistry in the previous books but I’m not sure how this is going to work, I like Layla she needs a deserving happy ending she is always so lonely.
The King gives up his throne then gets elected by his people to rule as king it’s like the circle of life I love it.
John Matthew is going to have to get another book soon, I have no idea how it’s going to work with the whole John Matthew but actually Darius thing, but I can’t wait to find out.
I love this series, I loved this book and I cannot wait for the next book!!!