{Review} Reawakened (The Reawakened #1) by Colleen Houck

Posted by Melanie
Release Date: August 13th, 2015
Finished Date: October 11th, 2015

Publishers: Hodder
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Source: For Review
Format: ARC

Pages: 400
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

From COLLEEN HOUCK, New York Times bestselling author of the Tiger's Curse series, comes the first book in a series about a teenage girl entangled in an epic Egyptian quest full of romance, adventure, and mythology!

When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.

And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe.

But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.

From New York Times bestselling author Colleen Houck comes an epic adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself. 

The Review: Reawakened is the first book in the series of the same name. We have a 17yr old heroine in Liliana Young, a girl from a privileged home that feels trapped by expectations of how her life must pan out. Her passion is art and she often finds herself in museums but on this particular trip to the Met she finds more than she bargains for. Amon has reawakened as he has done every thousand years since the task befell him and his brothers but this time he faces a dire situation – he isn’t in his usual country and something major is missing from his sarcophagus that he needs to survive – with no other options and a quest to fulfil, he binds himself to Lily so that he can complete his mission to save the earth. They both head off on a world wide quest, learning about modern times and old, sharing experiences and maybe falling a little in love…. But what happens to Amon when it’s over – win or lose?
This is my first foray into the work of Colleen Houck and it was sort of a mixed bag for me. I liked the characters of Lily and Amon, they were both very different obviously with one being ancient but I liked how they came together. Lily showed Amon what it was like to live in the modern world whilst Amon shared with her some old world wisdom and customs. I thought Amon assimilated to modern times really well considering how technology has moved on since the last time he was awoken, he willing to learn, willing to give everything a go and more than willing to have Lily guide him. Lily was quite sweet and I had sympathy for some of her home life but saying that, she had opportunity to rebel had she wanted to and that made her seem like a person who was a people pleaser so it was good to see her get some sass and realise how much bigger the world could be if she took a chance. When a romance did blossom through them, it was sweet and even though I wouldn’t class Lily as anything other than demure, she came across as the more dominant because of Amon’s background and morals on what should happen between a couple which brought a nice bit of tension to the story and gave a will they won’t they feel but in a totally PG way.
The story is split up into three parts with part one being nearly half of the book and the part I had the most struggle to stay interested in. In this part there was lot of getting to know you and your world stuff which is ok but when you have Amon needing to be brought up to date and Lily being told about his time etc……it bored me. I know why it was there, I appreciate it was needed for the story but it bogged the story down when all I wanted to do was get to some action and adventure. That definitely changed in the latter 2 parts when things got a whole lot ‘Indiana Jones’ where quests amongst the pyramids were the order of the day, the pacing really picked up and I loved it! I really like all of the Egyptology that was intertwined with the story, yeah I get that some of it isn’t factual but it was woven with the real stuff really well and who doesn’t love knowing more about that civilisation? There were some great chapters with descriptions of them in the tombs, secrets passageways and traps that were laid in them and that definitely gave the adventure/quest impression a boost. I loved how Amon – along with Lily – had to go and find his brothers resting places in order to summon them and like him, they too had been moved; so again with the quest feel.
The enemy and danger fit in really well with the story and used a real god from Egyptian times as the ultimate enemy but it wasn’t all him – he had ground forces too, people who were determined that the brothers would not finish their ritual and this brought plenty of danger, action and excitement to the plot causing all of our characters to have to run for their lives on numerous occasions. So what started as a borefest turned into an all action adventure that I couldn’t stop reading and because of that super slow start, what would have been a 4* book is now a 3* - but….saying that, the latter half of the book was redemption enough that I have been left with enough interest in it to read the sequel. 

Thank you to Hodder for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

{Review} Misty Falls (Benedicts #4) by Joss Stirling

Posted by Donna
Release Date: October 4th, 2014
Finished Date: October 24th, 2015

Publishers: Oxford University Press
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback

Pages: 288
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

Misty is a one-girl disaster zone. Born with a Savant 'gift' that means she can never tell a lie, her compulsive truth-telling gets her into trouble wherever she goes.

So when she meets Alex: gorgeous, confident, and impossibly charming, Misty instantly resolves to keep her distance . . . Someone so perfect could never be hers, surely?

But a dark shadow has fallen across the Savant community. A serial killer is stalking young people who have these special mental powers. 

Soon one of them will be taken to the edge of death . . . and beyond.

The Review: The Benedict series by Joss Stirling is one of my favourite YA paranormal series so I hate that it’s taken me this long to get to Misty Falls – it’s definitely the case of too many books, so little time. But I’m really glad I took the time to catch up with the series because it reminds me just why this is one of my favourite series. 

Misty Falls is about Misty, a teenage girl who has a Savant gift for truth-telling. She can never tell a lie and her gift can also extends to the people around her. So without complete control of her gift sometimes it gets a little out of control – which was see more than once in the story. And although it shouldn’t have been fun, at times it was fun to read because although we always encourage people to tell the truth, sometimes little white lies don’t hurt. I did feel sorry for Misty at times because you can see her struggles with her gift. It makes almost every day life hard for her so I definitely felt bad for her. 

I loved when Misty meets Alex because she doesn’t immediately recognise him as her soulfinder. And if you’re wondering what a soulfinder is it’s the other half a savant. Almost like soulmates but more intensive and with special gifts involved too. The two characters almost seem at war with one another and neither can understand why. I love the added suspense to the story and how it’s not an immediate connection. Alex though is a little hard to love at times though. Just because he is so guarded but that’s down to his troubled past which once we discover, I’m guessing anyone could see why he is the way he is. 

Uriel Benedict’s story is also an added bonus. I love the Benedict family and I was sad to see they would only be secondary characters in the next three books but Stirling did a good job with making them a big part of the story still so the readers don’t feel like we’re missing out on too much with them.

Misty Falls isn’t just about the two people finding each other it’s also about the troubles that come with being a savant. And in this case it’s about humans trying to expose the savants but by twisting what their really about and trying to claim they are the bad people. It added to the danger and excitement of the story and also brings new twists to the savant world. 

So if you’re looking for a new YA paranormal series to read then I’d highly recommend this series. And although each book could be read as a stand-alone, I’d highly recommend you start with book one – Finding Sky because why wouldn’t you want to start right at the beginning to see where it all began?

Thank you to Oxford University Press for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

{Blog Tour} Ice Like Fire (Snow Like Ashes #2) by Sarah Raasch

Posted by Donna
Release Date: November 19th, 2015
Finished Date: September 5th, 2015

Publishers: Balzer + Bray
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Source: For Review
Format: ARC

Pages: 432
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

Game of Thrones meets Graceling in this thrilling fantasy filled with shocking twists and heart-pounding action, the highly anticipated sequel to Snow Like Ashes.

It's been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring's king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria's lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm's secrets, Meira plans on using the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Jannuari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell's growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter's security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken Kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception is woven tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter but for the world.

The Review: Snow Like Ashes was easily one of my favourite reads last year and so of course I jumped at the chance to get my hands on the sequel, Ice Like Fire and I simply couldn't wait to start it. 

Meria is looking for a way for her people to be free after Cordell helped her take back her country but, she now has the bargain that she made with them breathing down her neck and so she has no choice but to try and fulfil her debt, even when her own country needs the money more than them. Not only that but, everyone is still searching for Primoria's lost chasm of magic and when it's found, everyone is at lodger heads about what to do with it. However, the King of Cordell has other ideas and is seeking to use Winter for his own purpose, so Meria leaves on a journey to try and gain Winter some new allies within the other Kingdoms.  But her journey isn't just about gaining new allies, Meria is trying to find the keys for lost chasm before anyone else can because releasing all that magic out into the world, when there is already so much danger surely can't be good for her people? Can Meria find them in time to save Winter? 

Ice Like Fire is told from alternative narratives which is slightly different from Snow Like Ashes because we've only ever saw Meria's point of view. This time we get Mathers, so you Mather's fan will definitely be happy with this change. It was nice to get to know him a little better because both Meria and Mather have different ideas for Winter - both on their own journeys, so it was a nice change to see what was happening to both characters and getting their own thoughts on the issues that arise in Ice Like Fire. 

Ice Like Fire is definitely a book that sets everything up for the grand finale and in all honestly, as much as I wanted to love this just as much as Snow Like Ashes it was pretty hard not to because it was so painstakingly slow for the first three quarters of the book. That disappointed me because I wasn't expecting this and I found I kept having to push through. I did this because of how much I loved the first story and I just knew something epic awaited at the end of this story. And I was right - it did. But this was still pretty much a filler book in my opinion and definitely fell into the second-book syndrome category. 

Even though I had issues with the story I still very much enjoyed parts, hence my 3.5 star rating. Meria, Theron & Mather will always be great characters for me. Even though they change a lot through this story and go through a lot of personal struggles, I still root for them to be the people I know they are destined to be. They have so much determination and are full of hope. I just hope that they learn from the mistakes they've made and move on from them. 

Another reason I enjoy this series so much is because of the relationships/romance between the three characters but honestly, Ice Like Fire in my opinion is a turning point. It's clear now who should be with whom now but I'm still a little torn as to whose team I'm on, but like I've said before, I think I would be happy with either guy for Meria. It really just depends on what happens after the events in this book. Nail-biting! 

In all, Ice Like Fire for me wasn't as good it's predecessor but it's still worth a read especially if you're invested in these characters and their story just as much as me. 

3.5 flowers! 

Thank you to Harper 360 UK for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Review} A Review for Phoenix Rising by Elise Faber

Posted by Melanie
Release Date: October 6th, 2014
Finished Date: October 16th, 2015

Publishers: Blue Tulip Publishing
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance
Source: For Review
Format: eARC

Pages: 496
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

A dangerous man with piercing green eyes.

A powerful ability that is rearing out of control.

Daughtry stumbles into a world where magic is real and the possibilities for her future are greater than she’s ever believed possible.

But the road to that future isn’t easy to navigate.

As she engages in a wrenching game of give and take with Cody, the man who’s gripped her heart in his sexy-as-hell fist from the moment she’s met him, Daughtry must decide whether she’s willing to risk it all — heart, mind, and magic — to take a chance on the man she loves.

The Review: Phoenix Rising is the first book in the Phoenix series and I thought it was a pretty good read.

We start the story with Daughtry, a down on her luck woman, her life is in ruins – lost her job, dumped by her fiancé, being evicted and has turned to drink to numb a power she wishes would disappear. After making one of the worst decisions of her life, she is saved by a couple of men who want her to go with them to somewhere safe…..ummm no! but when they are forced to save her again and explain that a brutal enemy is out to get her…..she re thinks that decision and joins them on a road trip to a place full of people like her, a safe haven. The thing is… even with the people like her – she is an anomaly and feels more alone than ever. The one thing that is distracting her however is a gorgeous green eyed man, with emerald magic and the ability to infuriate and infatuate Daughtry all at once. Their connection and chemistry is as wild as both of their magics and also as rare - but there are enemies who will stop at nothing to break them.

I was intrigued by this first instalment of the Phoenix series, there were definitely a ton of questions that were raised throughout the story. I liked Daughtry’s character and it was easy to sympathise with her because she was so pathetic and basically on a path of self destruction – I can’t say that I blamed her to be honest because if you could see everyone’s death and not be able to do anything about it…. Your head would be pretty messed up too. When Cody entered her life, she was at her lowest and all she had was the connection to him but even though it was a sort of instalove, they both still had a way to go before they would be in a place that they would be willing to act on it. They both have issues that get in the way of what they mean or say, hurt on both sides plus they constantly don’t think before they speak which causes a lot of unnecessary bs. For all we don’t really get any sexytime until later on in the book, it still seemed rushed to me – I’m a fan of hate to love, sexual tension and little moments where they could give in that build up to a huge ‘can’t control the desire anymore’ situation that leaves you breathless and whilst the author tried in some ways, it didn’t hit the spot for me but was still appreciated overall.

The story was very interesting, I liked the world that was brought to life – a world filled with people with magic in various forms, a world with a deadly enemy and a world that Daughtry knew nothing about. I like that sort of premise in a book where the main character doesn’t really know their heritage or that they have power and there are others, I like to find out along with the character because I can easily put myself in that mindset and it was very easy here. I really liked the magic aspect and how each individual used their own, how they all had a colour to their magic and the possibilities it brings. As always when you find a group of people that have something others may want…. You get an enemy who is out to destroy you and in this they have a sort of vampiric nature and once were like the magic users but used their magic for nefarious purposes that tainted their souls. They are definitely a formidable enemy and also quite brutal and savage – which Daughtry will truly discover. They are really intriguing and I want to know more about them because from what we see in this – it’s only the tip of the iceberg. The same could also be said for the Rengalla –magic users- I want to know more about them and their origins, it was lightly touched upon but I would like more detail. I definitely want to know more about Daughtry, her parentage is a big question that needs answering and also Codys and how he became to be where he is.

Whilst most of the story is about the relationship, there is also a threat bubbling beneath the surface that has set their sights on Daughtry. Time and time again she is sought after, attacked, forced to run for her life or fight which brings some welcome action to the plot and some awesome action scenes where we can get a good glimpse of what Daughtry may be capable of….. someone wants something from this girl, she is special and even though we get a couple of answers, I have a feeling there’s a whole lot more to come. 

3.5 Stars!

Thank you to the Author and Publisher for gifting me this book in exchange for an honest review.

 

{Review} A Thousand Nights by E.K Johnston

Posted by Donna
Release Date: October 20th, 2015
Finished Date: October 5th, 2015

Publishers: Macmillan Children's Book
Genre: YA, Fantasy, ReTelling 
Source: For Review
Format: ARC

Pages: 256
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

LO-MELKHIIN KILLED THREE HUNDRED GIRLS before he came to her village, looking for a wife. When she sees the dust cloud on the horizon, she knows he has arrived. She knows he will want the loveliest girl: her sister. She vows she will not let her be next.

And so she is taken in her sister’s place, and she believes death will soon follow. Lo-Melkhiin’s court is a dangerous palace filled with pretty things: intricate statues with wretched eyes, exquisite threads to weave the most beautiful garments. She sees everything as if for the last time. But the first sun rises and sets, and she is not dead. Night after night, Lo-Melkhiin comes to her and listens to the stories she tells, and day after day she is awoken by the sunrise. Exploring the palace, she begins to unlock years of fear that have tormented and silenced a kingdom. Lo-Melkhiin was not always a cruel ruler. Something went wrong.

Far away, in their village, her sister is mourning. Through her pain, she calls upon the desert winds, conjuring a subtle unseen magic, and something besides death stirs the air.

Back at the palace, the words she speaks to Lo-Melkhiin every night are given a strange life of their own. Little things, at first: a dress from home, a vision of her sister. With each tale she spins, her power grows. Soon she dreams of bigger, more terrible magic: power enough to save a king, if she can put an end to the rule of a monster.

The Review: This is a tough review write because when I first heard about A Thousand Nights I was excited to read it. I was not familiar with the original story A Thousand and One Nights and, was looking forward to trying something new but, then a book called The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahideh popped in my lap and that was it, nothing was ever going to compare to that book. That’s so bad to say but honestly it’s impossible to not compare the two books.

With that said, even though the books are based around the same story they are delivered in a completely different way and also told a differently. However, A Thousand Nights in my opinion fails to deliver because it also doesn’t manage to drag you into the story. I found it hard to connect to the characters who had no names. The family members are referred to as her parents or sister. But the main character herself has no name. Am I the only one who finds this strange? I have no idea what to call now even. How can I identity a character with no name? It’s strange. The only one in the story who has a name is Lo-Melkhiin and I didn’t find myself swooning over the bad boy who doesn’t even have much show time in the story.

The story just didn’t hold my attention with it’s slow plot. I had to force myself to finish it and it’s quiet a short story too, being just under 300 pages. But as I’ve said before, the main issue I had was I couldn’t stop comparing it to The Wrath and the Dawn and maybe that’s my fault for not being able to separate the two books and I do appreciate the effort the author has taken to write the book, but for me this just didn’t work.

Thank you to Macmilliam Children's Books for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Review} The Great Hunt by Wendy Higgins

Posted by Donna
Release Date: March 6th, 2016
Finished Date: September 21st, 2016

Publishers: HarperTeen
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Source: For Review
Format: eARC

Pages: 426
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US

 

Kill the beast. Win the girl.

A strange beast stirs fear in the kingdom of Lochlanach, terrorizing towns with its brutality and hunger. In an act of desperation, a proclamation is sent to all of Eurona—kill the creature and win the ultimate prize: the daughter of King Lochson’s hand in marriage.

Princess Aerity understands her duty to the kingdom though it pains her to imagine marrying a stranger. It would be foolish to set her sights on any particular man in the great hunt, but when a brooding local hunter, Paxton Seabolt, catches her attention, there’s no denying the unspoken lure between them…or his mysterious resentment.

Paxton is not keen on marriage. Nor does he care much for spoiled royals and their arcane laws. He’s determined to keep his focus on the task at hand—ridding the kingdom of the beast and protecting his family—yet Princess Aerity continues to challenge his notions with her unpredictability and charm. But as past secrets collide with present desires, dire choices threaten everything Paxton holds dear.

Inspired by the Grimm Brothers’ tale, “The Singing Bone,” New York Times bestselling author Wendy Higgins delivers a dark fantasy filled with rugged hunters, romantic tension, outlawed magic, and a princess willing to risk all to save her people.

The Review: The Great Hunt is a new fantasy romance story retelling Brothers Grimm tale, The Singing Bone. If like me and you’re not familiar with the story then let me tell you you’re in for a right treat!

When a terrible beast rips through the kingdom of Lochlanach and starts killing people Princess Aerity’s father does the only thing he can think of and offers his daughter’s hand in marriage to the person who can slay the beast, whether they are royalty or not.

Princess Aerity has always known that her kingdom must come first but she never thought she’d have to give up the one thing that was hers – her love. But in order to stop the terrible things happening, she will do as her father asks and marry a stranger. But when Paxton Seabolt arrives at the palace Princess Aerity hopes that he’ll be the one to win.

However, Paxton Seabolt has other ideas. He’s not there to win the princess’s hand in marriage. He’s there to do what he does best and that’s hunt. But the more time he spends with the Princess the more he starts to open up but for Paxton that’s not a good idea, because he’s hiding a secret that could destroy him and his family...

I have to admit I did have my struggles when I first started reading The Great Hunt. I found the first quarter of the book quite slow paced and I did wonder if I have to DNF the book but I’m glad I stuck through because the story really does pick up and to start with I realise now that the author was world-building and so enough I was enthralled and now I only have good things to say about it.

This was such a refreshing read, mainly because I didn’t know anything about the original story and after some web searching and of course reading this book, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Higgins has done a good job on retelling the story but also by making it her own – or so far anyway. I was under the impression this was a standalone story but it’s not, it’s a duology. And after that ending I really wish I had the second part already in my hands.

The story has a great set of characters and some fantastic secondary characters that I’ve found hard to forget. Princess Aerity and Paxton’s relationship is so interesting that I’m dying to know more. I loved their moments together.   

In all, The Great Hunt is a fresh YA fantasy story by a talented author and I only hope, even after the sequel that Higgins has more fantasy stories up her sleeve because I know that this one series is not going to be enough.

 Thank you to Balzer & Bray for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

{Review} Secret Garden Artist's Edition: A Pull-Out and Frame Colouring Book by Johanna Basford

Posted by Melanie
Release Date: September 14th, 2015
Finished Date: October 5th, 2015

Publishers: Laurence King
Genre: Adult Colouring Book
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback

Pages: 20
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US 

 

From the artist and the publisher that brought you the hugely successful Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest - this special artist's edition features 20 beautiful, pull out art prints for colouring in. 

Colouring fans of all ages will enjoy immersing themselves in a selection of the most popular artworks from the original book, now presented in a new, large-scale format for maximum colouring enjoyment. 

Each detailed illustration is printed on high-quality card and can be removed easily for framing or craft projects.

The Review: I normally receive fiction to review so you can imagine my surprise and glee at getting this! Adult colouring books are really taking off at the minute and I have quite a few, I bet most of the adults who indulge in these books used to love colouring in as a child and I must admit that I definitely did and nothing gave me greater pleasure than getting a new colouring book and felt tip pens in my Christmas stocking. That being said… I have NEVER seen a more beautiful colouring book as this and when I unwrapped it, and looked through, I was really blown away by the quality of it. I have seen the paperback version of this book and I was impressed by it, there are a lot more pages of course but here they seem to have taken the best of those pictures and created an artist’s edition. The images are superb, really wonderful and quite whimsical too; every single page is a work of art and open to interpretation by the individual in how they would like to decorate it. I actually didn’t even want to colour it in for fear of spoiling the book. The artist really excels at the subject of the book and I couldn’t imagine any more images so perfect for the topic.

The quality of the books pages are premium – thick card pages that are easily detached from the spine or left alone in the book. They withstand the pressure of pencils, absorb the colour of pens without seepage and have no doubt that paint wouldn’t make a difference either. It’s like being given a freestyle paint by numbers where you’re given the template and have the freedom to run wild with whatever media and colour you decide plus you can frame the results easily.

I have to say this is the best colouring book I have ever seen, I have shown everyone who has came into my home and they –like me – are well impressed and I’d be very surprised if they didn’t go out and buy their own. No amount of words can describe this, it must be seen to be appreciated and believe me…. You’ll be in awe too!

Thank you to Laurence King for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Blog Tour} Daughters unto Devils by Amy Lukavics

Daughters unto Devils
by Amy Lukavics
Release Date: October 8th, 2015

Publishers: Simon & Schuster
Genre: YA, Horror

Pages: 240
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US

 

Sometimes I believe the baby will never stop crying.

Sixteen-year-old Amanda Verner fears she is losing her mind. When her family move from their small mountain cabin to the vast prairie, Amanda hopes she can leave her haunting memories behind: of her sickly Ma giving birth to a terribly afflicted baby; of the cabin fever that claimed Amanda's sanity; of the boy who she has been meeting in secret...

But the Verners arrive on the prairie to find their new home soaked in blood. So much blood. And Amanda has heard stories - about men becoming unhinged and killing their families, about the land being tainted by wickedness. With guilty secrets weighing down on her, Amanda can't be sure if the true evil lies in the land, or within her soul...

Top 10 Horror Films (In No Particular Order)

by Amy Lukavics

The Exorcist- I saw this movie when I was way too young to. It introduced me to a level of terror I hadn't yet known existed- I was literally too scared to move. It didn't help much that when the movie was over, the lamp in my bedroom just so happened to short out, but of course I was certain it was the devil who did it.

Pet Sematary- The Stephen King book that this movie was based off of is, to this day, my favourite horror novel of all time. But I actually saw the movie first, when I was very young. The themes of this story are terrifying on their own; to add a cursed burial ground that raises pets (and people) from the dead just takes the terror that much further.

Alien- This film is just plain artful in its delivery. Everything from the setting to the visuals to the soundtrack work together to create a truly epic horror experience. Ellen Ripley is a hero to us all!

The Others- I saw this when it first came out to theaters, and was blown away by the intensity of the atmosphere. This movie is the definition of chilling. All the actors nailed their performances, and the end twist was quite horrorlicious.

Cabin Fever- This movie is incredibly gruesome, with buckets of blood and an assortment of other crazy things. From the treatment of the title screen to the stomach-turning ending, this movie makes you feel the dirty paranoia around catching a mysterious (and brutal) illness. Effective? I'd say so.

The Babadook- This one lived up to the hype for me- I always tell people that I recommend it to that it's psychological horror done right. I especially love how it doesn't spell things out for the viewer; instead, you are forced to draw your own conclusions as to what exactly is happening in this petrifying tale about a mother and son who are suddenly being stalked by a picture book monster.

The Descent- Like Alien, this movie possesses a setting that is capable of instilling fear on its own. A group of girlfriends get stuck in a complicated and seemingly never-ending system of underground cave tunnels, that also just so happen to be infested with monsters. It's the type of movie where you are gifted with a feeling of immense gratefulness and content once you leave the dark cave of the movie theater, a true indicator of a good, solid horror.

28 Days Later- Never before had zombies been as truly visceral as they are in this movie. They don't just hobble after you, they sprint. They don't just bite, they maul. And while many will argue that 28 Days Later is not a 'true' zombie movie due to its lack of undead subjects, I greatly appreciated the fresh take on a classic horror staple. Even better, the sequel actually holds up to the original fine enough.

It- This wasn't actually a movie, but a mini-series made for TV. Regardless, my child self had never seen anything so scary. A clown that eats kids and causes blood balloons to inflate (and pop) from the bathroom drain? Yeeeah, needless to say, young Amy's heart skipped many beats while watching (and re-watching) this one.

Tremors- Can you say instant classic? This movie is legendary! As an adult re-watching, I can greatly appreciate the funny lines and entertaining effects, but as a child, the notion of monsters that could swallow people or even cars from under the ground was petrifying. The first time I watched it, I had to turn it off for about an hour because the car scene scared me so bad. Of course, I couldn't resist turning it back on as soon as my heart rate slowed back down...

{Review} Worth It (Forbidden Men #6) by Linda Kage

Posted by Donna
Release Date: August 25th, 2015
Finished Date: September 15th, 2015

Publishers: Self Published
Genre: NA, Contemporary, Romance
Source: For Review
Format: eARC

Pages: 395
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US

I fell in love once. It was amazing. She was amazing. Life was amazing. I lived for each time I could see her, and nothing else mattered, not that our families were enemies, our time together was forbidden, or we had to meet in secret. Our love could conquer all. Until it didn't. So I was ripped away from the love of my life and shoved into hell, forced to continue without her. It shattered me, broke the best parts of me, left me permanently damaged.
Or so I thought. Years later, I swear history’s trying to repeat itself because she’s back in my life, and I’m just as drawn to her as I was before. But I'm older and wiser now, and I know she should stay away from a worthless piece of ex-con like me. So, I will not let her in. I absolutely refuse to hurt her. I will keep her away. Then again, sometimes risking your greatest fear to get to a smile makes everything worth it, and besides, I’m not sure I can resist her, anyway. This is the story of how Felicity Bainbridge changed my life forever, starting one summer day long ago after I was forced to change a dirty diaper...
--Knox Parker

The Review: Worth It is book 6 in the Forbidden Men series by new adult author Linda Kage and it was so good to be back to this series!

Knox Parker and Felicity Bainbridge families have always been enemies especially after one of Felicity’s brother got Knox’s sister pregnant as a teenager and denied he was the baby’s father. But Knox is determined to get some payback on behalf of his sister and doing so, he meets Felicity and they secretly form a bond, a relationship that they spend the summer hiding from they’re families. Until one night their worlds come crashing down and Knox’s ends up in Jail but Felicity is determined to wait for Knox. 

Fast forward 6 years and Felicity decided she couldn’t wait for Knox after he was sentenced for committing murder while in Jail but fate has other plans when Knox is released from Jail and somehow ends up working at Felicity’s work place but Knox has changed so much from the 18 year old boy that Felicity once knew. And while Knox is determined to stay away from her, Felicity is determined to crack the hard shell on the man she fell in love with all those years ago……

I was excited to read Knox and Felicity’s story just because they seemed to pop out of nowhere at the end of the last book and left everyone wondering just who these people were. I was so looking forward to reading their story because it sounded completely different from what I’ve previously read and while I enjoyed it, I just felt the story has a few issues.  

Like I said, I did enjoy the story. I loved how we got the back story to how the main character’s journey started. It was entertaining and full of sweet romance. I liked how the story was set in past and present tense. It really adds to the suspense of the story and makes us readers sit on edge waiting for the part we all know was coming – the reunion. However for me, this is where the story started to bug me. I just felt so coincidental that he’d bumps into Zoey, Pick and then of course Felicity. I guess I was expecting a bit more of a run around like Knox trying to find Felicity or something. This wasn’t my only issue though. I felt that Linda built up a good story and then at the end decided to throw a huge secret into the story that for me felt unnecessary – it just felt so dark for the story when the story was already dark enough as it was. I guess I could say okay, I understand that something bad happened to Knox but I really didn’t enjoy the characters explaining – in detail – to Felicity the events. It left a sour taste in my mouth and yes, I understand that this type of stuff happens to people but I felt the events were hashed out a bit too explicit for my tastes and felt the way it was delivered to Felicity could have been handled without so much details. 

Even though I did have issues with the story, I still did enjoy Knox and Felicity’s journey together. I’m even more excited for the next book though…yes, I can’t wait!

Thank you to Linda Kage and Xpresso Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.