A Review for Goddess (Starcrossed #3) by Josephine Angelini

Posted by Donna
Release Date:  May 23rd, 2013
Finished Date: May 10th, 2013

Publishers: Macmillian
Source: For Review 

Format: Paperback
Pages: 480

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

After accidentally unleashing the gods from their captivity on Olympus, Helen must find a way to re-imprison them without starting a devastating war. But the gods are angry, and their thirst for blood already has a body count.

To make matters worse, the Oracle reveals that a diabolical Tyrant is lurking among them, which drives a wedge between the once-solid group of friends. As the gods use the Scions against one another, Lucas’s life hangs in the balance. Still unsure whether she loves him or Orion, Helen is forced to make a terrifying decision, for war is coming to her shores.

In Josephine Angelini’s compelling conclusion to the masterfully woven Starcrossed trilogy, a goddess must rise above it all to change a destiny that’s been written in the stars. With worlds built just as fast as they crumble, love and war collide in an all-out battle that will leave no question unanswered and no heart untouched.

The Review: Oh yeah!! Now that's what I'm talking about!!! Josephine Angelini is back and back better than ever, because Goddess is a cracking finale - one full of action, drama, love and an epic past and I absolutely loved it. 

It's no secret that how much I loved Starcrossed and it's no secret how much I didn't like Dreamless. So, in all honestly, I was worried what Josephine would do with the final book in this series, but I'm so over the moon she did us readers proud!!! It is one of them books that gives you tingles while reading it, and I was literally a bundle of nerves all the way through. I did have to peak at the ending before I started reading it though - I know, so bad! But I needed to prepare myself. ;) 

Helen has really grown through-out this series, she's gone from a normal teenager to a girl who is now  one of the strongest with supernatural powers. I believe she’s handled everything well and it’s been great to watch her journey. It was amazing to watch her come into her powers, test them out and then finally start to use them. Her journey has been an emotional one - especially when it comes to Lucas. 

Lucas, my boy Lucas! How I do love him. He's amazing and really he's such an open book, you can see everything he feels from his face and I felt so bad for him through-out Dreamless. Imagining loving a girl you can't have, but knowing you won't be able to move on ever? Yep, that's why I felt for him. He's such a loyal person, that it's hard not to love him.

The whole Lucas, Helen, Orion love triangle was one of the main reasons I didn’t love Dreamless. In all honestly, I’m pretty sick of so many authors introducing them. They’re kind of played out now, so I’m glad Josephine Angelini didn’t drag it out and that Helen made the right choice in the end. Or should I say, the author made the right choice for Helen. I also adore the connections Helen has to Hector, Orion, Cassandra and James….all of them really. Each one of these characters has something very unique about them and they’re definitely characters I won’t forget in a long time.

In all, I may have had my up's and down's with the Starcrossed trilogy but it's one that is very unforgettable and hopefully I’ll have time to re-visit this series in the future.

A Review for Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend (Confessions #2) by Louise Rozett

Posted by Donna
Release Date: June 18th, 2013 
Finished Date: April 19th, 2013

Publishers: Harlequin
Source: For Review 

Format: Kindle 
Pages: 288

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

Rose Zarelli has big plans for sophomore year—everything is going to be different. This year, she’s going to be the talented singer with the killer voice, the fabulous girl with the fashionista best friend, the brainiac who refuses to let Jamie Forta jerk her around...

...but if she’s not careful, she’s also going to be the sister who misses the signals, the daughter who can only think about her own pain, the “good girl” who finds herself in mid-scandal again (because no good deed goes unpunished) and possibly worst of all...the almost-girlfriend.

When all else fails, stop looking for love and go find yourself.

The Review: "His kiss ricochets throughout my entire body in a nanosecond. He grabs my arms and turns me, practically lifting me off the ground as he backs me up against his car, pinning me to the driver's-side door with his body as his tongue lashes across my lips and into my mouth. It's like he's been waiting for this to happen again as long as I have."

I fell in love with Louise Rozzet's novel; Confessions of an Angry Girl when I read it last year, and once again, she's wowed me with the sequel; Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend. 

This time around we see Rose Zarelli dealing with her drama filled lifestyle. Her relationship with her mother is still as rocky as ever, and so is her relationship with her brother because of his new girlfriend. But most of all, Jamie Forta, the guy she's in love with, is still messing her around.....and Rose doesn't know where she stands with him.  In order to forget about all her troubles, Rose decides she wants to become a singer, so she tries out for the school musical. But has she really got what it takes to be a singer? And will her feelings for Jamie Forta ever go away? 

I loved Rose in Confessions of an Angry Girl and I love her even more in this time around. When we first meet her she's a teenage girl, struggling with the death of her father and dealing with high school drama - mainly sex. But now, she's that little bit stronger and older, she finds different ways and better ways to deal with her pain, frustration or anger. I wasn't sure what to expect in the sequel but Rose really does have an emotional life and for a teenager her age, she sure does have to deal with a lot. I'm pleased she has friends around her and by the end, even more friends that she can confide in, because without them, I'm not sure where she would be.  I also loved that Rose wasn't afraid to go after what she wanted, okay, well she was a little bit but, she overcomes her fears. I was proud of her and was constantly rooting for her! 

Rose's mother is a stronger fixture in this story and while I kind of liked her in the first book, I couldn't stand her this time around. She handles things so badly with Rose, she can't control the things she says and it's sad to see a mother-daughter relationship like this. I know the family are still trying to overcome their loss, but I believe Rose's mother could try listening to Rose more, instead of just telling her what she should do. She was definitely my most hated character for this series, so far. 

And Jamie, Jamie Forta! He's a YA version of a NA jerky boy who I can't help but love. When I finally thought I'd figured him out, he would do the complete opposite. There were many times I wanted to strangle him and tell him to get his act together but then, the nice version of Jamie would come out, and I would be sighing like a teenage girl. He's a unique character, one that comes with many struggles and I honestly believe it was going to happen for Jamie and Rose this time around, and you can imagine my surprise when I finished the book, and was like huh? There's a third book? How did I not know this wasn't the end for Jamie and Rose? I'm glad though, I want more of Rose and Jamie. They need their happy ending and I'm hoping they will get it. 

In all, the Confession's series is easily one of my favourite contemporary reads around right now, because Louise Rozett writes Rose's life very realistic and with so much passion! I adore this series and I can't wait for more.

A Review for Trick by Lori Garrett

Posted by Jess
Release Date: April 23rd, 2013
Finished Date: April 30th, 2013

Publishers: Self - Published 
Source: For Review

Format: Kindle 
Pages: Unknown 

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US 

Gunner Hunt—resident bad boy and town loser—made one smart, selfless decision in his entire screwed up life—he walked away from Harlow Mills.

He and Harlow had one summer of mind-blowing sex and passion, but Gunner knew he wasn't good enough. He loved Harlow enough to walk away.

It's been three years since Gunner stomped on her heart and left her broken, but when Harlow walks into the dive bar he now owns, that familiar spark reignites and burns through both of them.

Contrary to what Gunner thinks, Harlow isn't just lusting after the off-limits bad boy...or the toe curling sex they have. She wants Gunner back, and she wants him for good.

But some things never change, and even though their feelings—and their chemistry—are still going strong, the fact remains that Gunner’s world of motorcycles, booze, and a band of screwed up brothers is no place for Harlow Mills, card-carrying member of multiple country clubs and daughter of a millionaire.

Gunner has two choices:

Accept that Harlow deserves better than him, and walk out on her…again.

Or man up and learn to be good enough for the only girl he wants in his bed, and his heart.

Gunner tricked himself into believing he didn't need Harlow in his life once before...but can he give up the only woman he ever loved a second time?

The Review: Really enjoyed this. Lori approached myself and Donna to review this, and I was on a NA kick so I couldn't wait to get started. 

The moment I started this I couldn't really put it down. I really enjoyed it. The characters are great, the story is although been done before still worked fine for me because I like these kinds of stories.The sex was..well it was steaming hot. Which I also like. However there was a lot of it, and to some it may detract from the story and their relationship on a whole or feel a little unnecessary but overall, hot hot hot! 

I really liked Harlow from the start and I thought she was a strong female who knew what she wanted and went out and got it, and that something was Gunner. Ah Gunner, read so many other men like Gunner, that I actually don't find it dull. Yes ok, I thought the book became slightly predictable in parts and I felt myself rolling my eyes a little in places,but none the less I still enjoyed it.

Short and sweet review, overall not a bad book at all. A little flawed in places, but the plot is good the characters well developed and there's a HEA. Fairly satisfied with the reading experience overall. It's definitely a solid 3 stars from me.


A copy of this book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review

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A Review for Grounding Quinn (Grounding Quinn #1) by Steph Campbell

Posted by Donna
Release Date: May 9th, 2013
Finished Date: May 13th, 2013

Publishers: Simon & Schuster 
Source: For Review 

Format: Paperback
Pages: 240

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart?

The Review: “You always hear people talk about how there are moments in your life when you just know that things will never be the same. I always thought that was all horses**t. But here, now, with the feeling of her soft, incredible lips moving with mine, I know that it happens.” 

This was my second book by author Steph Campbell (the first being Delicate) and I have to say, I definitely enjoyed Quinn's story more than Sydney's.

In Grounding Quinn we see Quinn, an eighteen-year-old high school student struggling in life. She hasn't got the best relationship with her mother or father, and she tries to be the best she can for her younger brother, but life keeps getting her down. She has no-one she can confined in and, no-one seems to understand her. When she meets Ben, Quinn finally feels like she has someone to lean on, but somewhere in the back of her mind is, knowing that she will eventually destroy the one good thing she has in her life - because she's no good for anyone. Will Quinn be able to let people help her, or will she always feel like her life is out of control?

Grounding Quinn is definitely a highly charged emotional read and it's one of reasons I enjoyed it more than Delicate. Quinn's life has so many different problems and yes, most I believe she brings on herself, but for a girl of her age and to be struggling as much as she is, can I really blame her? Of course not! I felt for Quinn's situation, I wanted her to open up to her friends or talk to her parents about the mistakes they're making but I could also see why she couldn't. It was easier for her to run from her problems, instead of facing them head on. 

With the story being told in Quinn and Ben's point of view, it really gave you an insight to see how Ben was feeling about everything. Quinn does some pretty mean stuff to him and it was good to get inside his head. He proved himself to be a very loyal character and I loved that about him. 

The story has a few good twists and once again it's very emotional with very likable characters, so it was definitely worth a read if you're a fan of this genre. 

A Review for ACID by Emma Pass

Posted by Donna
Release Date: April 25th, 2013
Finished Date: May 7th, 2013

Publishers: Corgi 
Source: For Review 

Format: Paperback
Pages: 431 

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

2113. 

In Jenna Strong’s world, ACID – the most brutal, controlling police force in history – rule supreme. No throwaway comment or muttered dissent goes unnoticed – or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a bloody crime she struggles to remember.

The only female inmate in a violent high-security prison, Jenna has learned to survive by any means necessary. And when a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID – and to uncover the truth about what really happened on that dark night two years ago.

The Review: I was excited to receive ACID that I started it within a few days of receiving it, and while the story had such a strong start, after a few chapters it slowly started getting weaker. And so in the end, it was impossible for me to love it, but I certainly didn't hate it.

As I said before the plot started off strong but no sooner than things getting interesting, I started to lose interest. It was pretty easy to figure out what had happened to Jenna before she did, and because of this there was no excitement and nothing to grip me to the edge of my seat with anticipation. So of course, by the time Jenna figured everything out, I was over it and all the surprise was taken out of what I was reading.

As for Jenna, she starts out as a strong main character. We see her kicking the butt out of a guy who she's in prison with, and we see her trying to get on with her life as much as she possibly can. However, when she's sprung from prison, Jenna doesn't come across as the kick-ass character that she once was - which was slightly disappointing. It isn't until the last few chapter's that we start to see her once again, becoming the kick-ass character she was. I guess you could say my expectations were very high when it came to Jenna. I'd seen all the glowing reviews comparing her to likes of Lara Croft, so of course I was expecting awesomeness from her, but in my opinion Jenna never came across that way. I felt she was somewhat lacking as a character, and although she did have her moments, I don't feel like the author took the time to explain what it was really like for her to be in the prison or what it was like to 'kill' her parents. 

Max as the love interest was a weak character. Nothing screamed out to me about him, even when he's gone in part of the story, it was easy to forget he was even in the story. It was good how his character was wove into the story but that's about it. Sorry Max!

The government; ACID, were probably the highlight of the book for me, even though they were the bad guys. It was interesting to unravel the laws that had put in place and how they kept everyone under control. As a dystopian, Emma Pass did a good job bringing something dreadful and scary to the table, and making it work so well. Especially since ACID aren't the only players in this story. We have two other groups trying to take control, and that's NAR and FREE. Once again, I enjoyed their stories and loved seeing how they wanted to make an impact if they could over throw ACID.

The story did have many good and bad points and some of the  information I felt was irrelevant and some was not. Near the end, there were a few chapters that I felt didn't need to be there because they didn't really have any impact on the story. But then everything picked up again towards the end. 

The ending, I guess I could say it was enjoyable, if not predictable at times. I think it could have been put together better but still, it was one of the best parts of the story. The epilogue was a good added bonus that I believe felt right. Not a lot of authors take the time to write epilogues, but I'm glad Emma Pass did and I felt everything was concluded well. 

In all, Emma Pass's ACID didn't live up to my expectations, but it was still an enjoyable read. I still believe many people will love, so it's definitely worth a read. 

A Review for Dead Jealous by Sharon Jones

Posted by Jess
Release Date: July 4th, 2013
Finished Date: May 5th, 2013

Publishers: Orchard Books
Source: For review

Format: Paperback
Pages: 320

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

People think of Mother Nature as a gentle lady. They forget that she's also Death...Sixteen-year-old Poppy Sinclair believes in quantum particles, not tarot cards, in Dawkins, not druids. Last summer, in a boating accident in the Lake District, Poppy had a brush with death. But the girl she finds face down in Scariswater hasn't been so lucky. 

As she fights to discover the truth behind what she believes is murder, Poppy is forced to concede that people and things are not always what they seem and, slipping ever deeper into a web of lies, jealousy and heart-stopping danger, she comes to realise - too late - that the one thing that can save her has been right there, all the time.

The Review: Wow. Actually astounded with how much I enjoyed this book. I don't normally seek out YA thrillers/crime books, but when the publishers where offering this little baby up for grabs to review, I couldn't say no. I'm glad I didn't. It was a great book, one that I actually couldn't put down! 

I really very much liked everything about this book, especially Poppy, it was great being in her head, she's a great protagonist, one that you instantly like. You really just get swept up into the story and everything that Poppy goes through you feel and experience that as well.

It was really nice to read a book set in England, it's such a nice change and the way Sharon Jones manages to captivate the reader with her descriptions and development of the story made it an even better reading experience for me as whole.

As far as romance goes, it's more sub-plot and it seems unrequited, although it is a mutual feeling it isn't discovered by the two until things get tense and come to blows. Overall the there was enough underlining romance to keep you wanting more and rooting for the two loves. But mostly Dead Jealous is very much centred around the plot and the mystery unravelling around Poppy and her friends. It took me a while to figure out who the killer was, in the end I wasn't overly surprised because when said killer was found out I sort of had a bad feeling about that person anyway. 

As a first book Sharon Jones has done incredibly well with Dead Jealous. It's one of dark mystery, betrayal, danger and suspense, with a little romance and some comedy just thrown in to turn it up a notch.

Overall, really enjoyable read, very fresh and addicting from the get go. One that I would recommend to anyone who's a fan of YA mystery/thriller books. If you enjoyed New Girl by Paige Harbison, you'll most definitely love this one too I most definitely am looking forward to another Poppy Sinclair mystery. Very much a solid 5 stars from me.

This book was given to me by the publishers in exchange for an honest review.