Tuesday, July 23, 2013

BOOK REVIEW: Something Like Normal by Trish Doller

Publication Date: June 19,2012
Synopsis:
When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.







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Review:


I think this is the best shortest book I’ve ever read.

Travis is a 19-year old marine who came home from a one year duty in Afghanistan. He has a very supporting mom and a not-so-supporting dad and a brother who hooked up with his girlfriend.
I think it’s a typical story of a guy who went to serve his country and comes back a bit shattered and in a deeper perspective in life. You may think it’s like Dear John, which was mentioned several times in the book but it’s totally different.

Travis has experienced a lot of encounters in Afghanistan and one of them is the unlikely death of his friend, Charlie. He became a changed man since the incident and a more mature one. Coming back means being with his family-mom, dad and brother. But a lot has changed since then. I love his mom. She’s so supportive of him in all of his choices unlike his dad. I can’t help but feel for her, for all her sacrifices, not just for her son but for her family.

Then there’s Harper, a girl she knew in middle school who isn’t charmed by him, maybe, just in the beginning. Eventhough she hates Travis, their relationship gotten so much better and she became his salvation to pass through the trauma he’s experienced.

I only have two complaints. One is that the story was too short. Or maybe I just felt I need more! I even thought I have an incomplete copy when I saw the number of pages the book has. Second, I felt that there’s a need for closure between Travis and his dad, also his brother. So there!

Recommended? YES!


Rating:

Memorable Quotes:



“He was the person all of us should be, but most of us aren't. And if I could have taken his place to buy him a little more time in the world, I'd have done it. I'm sorry I couldn't.” 




“Maybe someday we'll see each other again, Charlie. For real I mean. Until then, save me a seat, okay?

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Tenth book for

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday (#29)


“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:
Title: Unchained (Nephilim Rising #1)
Author: Jennifer Armentrout as J. Lynn
Expected Publication: September 17, 2013
Synopsis:
Between the pissed off creatures that want demon-hunter Lily Marks dead and the fallen angel who just...wants her, Lily is about ready to trade in forever for a comfy job in a cubicle farm.

The fact that she and Julian are civil to one another is enough to have her thrown out of the Sanctuary, but she can't shake her not-so-angelic stalker or how he brings her dangerously close to ecstasy.

Her forbidden relationship with Julian provides the perfect fuel for suspicion when a traitor is discovered to be working within the Sanctuary. Lily quickly finds herself hunted by well, everyone.

Her only hope is to discover the real traitor before she loses everything--and she'll need Julian's help. That is, if Julian is really there to help her...and not destroy her.

Yeah, being a Nephilim isn't everything it's cracked up to be.

Thoughts:
I'm a big fan of Angel books and if you haven't noticed, I'm also a fan of Jennifer Armentrout. Hope this one's good!

How about you? What's your Waiting on Wednesday? Link me.


Tuesday, July 16, 2013

OFFICIAL FRIGID BOOK TRAILER REVEAL!!

Frigid Description:

For twenty-one-year-old Sydney, being in love with Kyler isn’t anything new. They’d been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie. Somewhere over the years, she fell for him and fell hard. The big problem with that? Kyler puts the ‘man’ in man-whore. He’s never stayed with a girl longer than a few nights, and with it being their last year in college, Syd doesn’t want to risk their friendship by declaring her love.

Kyler has always put Syd on a pedestal that was too high for him to reach. To him, she’s perfect and she’s everything. But the feelings he has for her, he’s always hidden away or focused on any other female. After all, Kyler will always be the poor boy from the wrong side of tracks, and Syd will always be the one girl he can never have.



But when they’re stranded together at a posh ski resort due to a massive Nor’easter, there’s nothing stopping their red-hot feelings for each other from coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? Better yet, can they survive at all? Because as the snow falls, someone is stalking them, and this ski trip may be a life-changer in more ways than one.

# 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.


Frigid Link:


Jennifer is hosting a contest in her blog. Check it out!

Friday, July 12, 2013

BOOK REVIEW: Until I Break by M. Leighton

Publication Date: May 12, 2013
Synopsis:
Laura Drake is an author. She writes bestselling paranormal romances that continue to top the charts. She is sharp. She is confident. She is in control. 

And she doesn’t exist.

Samantha Jansen is the woman behind the wig, the woman most of the world doesn’t know exists. She is shy. She is insecure. She is nothing like her main character or her alter ego. She is scarred—deeply scarred—by a past she can’t let go of and a present she can’t make peace with.

Samantha’s dreams are consumed by one man, the broken hero from her books. Mason Strait is both her wildest fantasy and her most terrifying nightmare. 

When Samantha meets Alec Brand, a corporate consultant, it is as though Mason has come to life. Alec is handsome to a fault, as elegant as he is arrogant, and more intense than any man has a right to be.

Samantha is soon sucked into a world that mirrors the fiction she writes. Just like her main character, Daire Kirby, Samantha finds herself unable to resist the forbidden lure of Alec. And just like Daire, she also finds that she is faced with taking a chance on a man who could either set her free or destroy her.

The scale tilts toward destruction when Samantha finds out that Alec is as much a work of fiction as Mason. And he has scars of his own, scars that could ruin them both.




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Review:

Out of all the books I've read of M. Leighton, this is my least favorite one.I think the plot has it's potential but when I started reading the book, it was more complicated that what I expected.

This book is about two broken souls who found each other under the most unexpected circumstances. Sounds familiar?

Sam is an orphan. She experienced some gruesome childhood which she never gotten over. She had a hard time getting into relationships especially, the sexual matter. So with her foster sister's persistence, she went into therapy.

Alec is Mr. Mysterious. You will meet him in the beginning where he is described as gorgeous and with captivating eyes. It has taken some time for me to get to know him especially with his secret past. He's been haunted by it and he knows he can't resist his demons when he met Sam.

The book is narrated in two POVs,Sam and Alec's alternately every chapter. At the beginning, I think the flow of the story is a bit sloppy and predictable. But it definitely gotten better in the end.


Rating:


Memorable Quotes:

“Every person's worst fear-that no one will be able to love us in spite of our scars.”


“In love, sometimes what you fear is exactly what you need.” 


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Ninth book for

Monday, July 8, 2013

BOOK REVIEW: This Girl by Colleen Hoover

Publication Date: April 13, 2013
Synopsis:
Layken and Will’s love has managed to withstand the toughest of circumstances and the young lovers, now married, are beginning to feel safe and secure in their union. As much as Layken relishes their new life together, she finds herself wanting to know everything there is to know about her husband, even though Will makes it clear he prefers to keep the painful memories of the past where they belong. Still, he can’t resist his wife’s pleas and so he begins to untangle his side of the story, revealing for the first time his most intimate feelings and thoughts, retelling both the good and bad moments, and sharing a few shocking confessions of his own from the time when they first met.

In This Girl, Will tells the story of their complicated relationship from hispoint of view. Their future rests on how well they deal with the past in this final installment of the beloved Slammed series.




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Review:


I’m a big fan of Colleen Hoover especially the slammed series. So when I heard that there will be a third book in Will’s POV, I was so thrilled!

The book contains Will and Lake’s honeymoon and a bunch of flashbacks, some of them are not in the first and second book. I loved how it was narrated. Although there were a lot of flashbacks, I wasn’t confused at all.

I really love all the characters of the series. Having Will’s POV made me love him even more. What made me love the series is the flawless way Colleen writes. The love the poetry and emotions the book reflects.

Reading this book, I realized how Lake and Will changed and matured with the help of Julia, Lake’s mom. She’s a wonderful woman and I’m in awe of her. She’s a very cool mom. She always knows what to say. She left some small notes of advice and gifts that are overwhelming it makes me want to cry.

I can’t think of anything more to say. I JUST LOVE IT!  


Rating:
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!


Memorable Quotes:

“I wish I could explain how I feel, but nothing can explain this moment. Not a vase of stars. Not a book. Not a song. Not even a poem. Nothing can explain the moment when the woman you would give your life for sees her daughter for the very first time.” 


“I just wanna make sure that you don't miss out on the things in life that are happening when you're not thinking. Because believe me, those are the best things in life.” 

“I want to be your soulmate, even if I don't believe in them.” 



Thursday, July 4, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday (#28)

“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication “can’t-wait-to-read” selection is:
Title: Origin (Lux #4)
Author: Jennifer Armentrout
Expected Publication: August 27, 2013
Synopsis:
Daemon will do anything to get Katy back.

After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he’s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure.

All Katy can do is survive.

Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don’t seem entirely crazy, but the group’s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen?

Together, they can face anything. 

But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on? 

And will they even be together?

Thoughts:
Opal left me speechless. I can't wait for this book and knowing it's in dual POV made me more excited about it!


How about you? What's your Waiting on Wednesday? Link me.

Monday, July 1, 2013

BOOK REVIEW: This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Publication Date: June 19, 2012
Synopsis:
It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually wantto live. But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?


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Review:

The book is about a group of teenagers trying to survive an attack of zombies in their town. The group consists of Sloan, Cray, Grace, Trace, Rhys and Harrison.

The main character and the voice of the book is Sloan. She’s in the verge of planning to take her own life when the attack happened. Her sister, who’s she’s close with, went away without her because of some family problems. With what happened, she felt left out and insensitive about the people around her.

Cray acted as the leader of the group. He has some good survival instincts which made them last long. Cray is known in school as the one who sells pots and is always stoned. Grace and Trace are twins. Grace, as described by Sloan has a vintage look while Trace has a jock vibe, plays a lot of sports. They lost their parents while trying to get away from zombies. Rhys is a good guy and you’ll know more about him as you read the book. One thing that makes me remember Harrison is that he always cry, ALWAYS.

Sloane's way of narrating the book is a bit depressing and full of negativity. But I became so into the book and I really want to know what will happen to these kids. I felt for all of them eventhough each have different personalities. This is a book full of emotions and twists.


I haven't read any other zombie books but I highly recommend this!

Rating:


Memorable Quotes:

“I woke up and the last piece of my heart disappeared. I opened my eyes and I felt it go.”


“Waiting around to be saved is like waiting to die and I have done more of both than anyone else in the room.” 


“The thing no one tells you about surviving, about the mere act of holding out, is how many hours are nothing because nothing happens. They also don’t tell you about how you can share your deepest secrets with someone, kiss them, and the next hour it’s like there’s nothing between you because not everything can mean something all the time or you’d be crushed under the weight of it.”