Review: Fire and Bone by Rachel A. Marks

Fire and Bone

(Otherborn #1)

Rachel A. Marks

4.0/5.0 Stars

After accepting an invitation to a party, Sage goes from being a homeless teenager desperately trying to survive on the streets of L.A. to finding out she is actually the daughter of a Goddess. Her whole life is a lie and the world is way more fantastical than she ever imagined.

The beginning 1/3 or so of this book was a little bumpy for me.  She doesn’t know what is going on and neither did I.  It’s a little wordy and the lack of clear answers gets a bit frustrating.  Not enough to give it up but it lacked the “can’t put it down” factor. Once it evens out and the pace picks up some, it was definitely worth the wait.

The characters are the biggest strength in this book.  Sage is a fantastic MC and her reactions to certain events were true to who she is and her background.  There is an element of love triangle which is totally not my thing but in this case it was definitely integral to the plot.  Both of the interests are very different and compelling in their own right. 

Overall, I really enjoyed Fire and Bone and would definitely recommend it.  The Irish mythology was refreshingly different from the typical YA fantasy reads and the characters are well drawn and layered.  I will definitely be adding the sequel to my TBR.

***I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review***

Blitz - Excerpt & Giveaway! My Life from Hell by Tellulah Darling

It's Tellulah's virtual book bash and you're invited!

Come to: http://tellulahdarling.com/tellulah-darling-live/ on Sunday, Mar 23 between 10-11AM PST and help Tellulah celebrate the release of My Life From Hell. She'll be live on video, doing a reading, answering your text Q&A, and just chatting. So come on over, ask a question, discuss the pros and cons of swoony boys, or just say hi! She'd love to have you there to help mark the end of Sophie's journey. Better yet, she's the only one who has to get dressed for the event. :D
_________

Book & Author Details:

My Life From Hell by Tellulah Darling

(The Blooming Goddess Trilogy #3)

Publication date: March 20th 2014

Genres: Fantasy, Mythology, Young Adult

Synopsis:

To say that Sophie Bloom is at the top of her game with one only week until spring equinox and the final showdown with Zeus and Hades would be, well, lying. The Goddess of Spring feels more like the Goddess of Bzz Thanks For Playing than the savior of humanity. And could her relationships be any more messed up?

Good times.

Sophie is convinced that things can’t get any worse than crawling back to her mother Demeter and begging for help. But she’s about to find out how very wrong she is.

It’s a race against time for Sophie to implement the big battle strategy in the YA romantic comedy/Greek mythology finale My Life From Hell. Love meets comedy with a whole lot of sass in book three of this teen fantasy romance series. Save herself; save the world. Humanity may be screwed.

Excerpt:

Of all the Prince of Darkness’ powers, his best were his bone-melting super-kisses. Which is why, when my boyfriend Kai, (formally known as Kyrillos, son of Hades, Lord of the Underworld) pushed me up against my bedroom wall with a liplock of mind whacking proportions, I didn’t do much other than grip his shoulders, try to stay in an upright position, and willingly participate.

But as right as it felt, I also knew that it was very very wrong.

“We have to talk,” I gasped as I came up for air.

“Overrated,” Kai murmured, nudging his hips up against mine. Instead of talking, he opted for Plan B, which was pretty much a new and improved version of Plan A. His hand clasped the back of my head to pull me closer.

If I pressed myself any harder against him, I’d be behind him.

Maybe that would be a good thing. Then I wouldn’t be distracted by things like the way his stupidly gorgeously-lashed eyes fixated on me, their normal espresso brown darkened and full of heat.

Kai shook his head, flinging a wayward lock of dark hair out of his eyes. That just made me want to sink my hands into his hair. And like the most pathetic Pavlovian conditioning, one of my hands snaked up to twine my fingers into the curled ends just below his ears.

His breath caught at my caress.

Kai leaned forward and gave me the most fleeting, teasing kiss, his lips brushing mine. My stomach fluttered at hummingbird speed in that split second of connection.

Kissing, touching; our chemistry was off the scale.

Sadly, so was the weight of our baggage.

Find this book on Goodreads!

Purchase:

Will be found here come release day:

--Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tellulah-Darling/e/B008ISMY6O/?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&tag=httpswwwfa035-20

--B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/tellulah-darling

--iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/my-date-from-hell-blooming/id707522811?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

--Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/my-life-from-hell-the-blooming-goddess-trilogy-book-three













AUTHOR BIO
Tellulah Darling
noun

1) YA romantic comedy author because her first kiss sucked and she's compensating.

2) Alter ego of former screenwriter.

3) Sassy minx.

Writes about: where love meets comedy. Awkwardness ensues.

Tellulah Darling is a firm believer that some of the best stories happen when love meets comedy. Which is why she has so much fun writing young adult romantic comedy novels. Her tales span contemporary, teen fantasy romance, and YA Greek mythology, and range from stand alone books to series. For Tellulah, teen romance is the most passionate, intense, and awkward there is - a comedy goldmine. Plus smart, mouthy, teen girls rock.

Sassy girls. Swoony boys. What could go wrong?

www.tellulahdarling.com

Author Links:

Website: http://welcome.tellulahdarling.com/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6429243.Tellulah_Darling

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tellulahdarling

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TellulahDarling


GIVEAWAY

Prizes:

-Signed copies of Books 1, 2 & 3

-2 x eBook copies of the series (incl the short story)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

Fire & Flood

(Fire & Flood #1)

Victoria Scott

4.0/5.0 stars

I've heard great things about Victoria Scott's writing but having never read her myself I was a little nervous. Could she actually be as good as everyone says or was I about to be monumentally crushed? I can now happily say I see what all the fuss is about. Fire & Flood was immensely entertaining and kept me up well past my bedtime!

Tella Holloway is a somewhat vain and materialistic girl from a well to do family in Boston. Her brother, Corey, is suffering from a mysterious terminal illness. As the story starts her family has recently moved to the middle of nowhere in Montana in the hopes it will help her brother be more comfortable. Tella is struggling with the lack of social life and the sudden change of lifestyle. Returning to her bedroom one night she finds a mysterious device that when activited tells her she is invited to the Brimstone Bleed where the winner receives the cure. Her family does its best to dissuade her but knowing this is the only way to save her brother she, of course, does it anyway.

Tella and I had a bumpy start. She's that very girly, very spoiled type that I have a really hard time identifying with and I was warming up my eyes for some good eyerolls right off the bat. But they never really came because her voice was so hilarious. I ended up really loving the fact that she was the exact opposite of the usual heroine. We all want to think we'd be like Katniss if we were ever placed in this situation- confident, strong, brave, ready to kickass all day long. But come on guys, let's be real, most of us would be terrified and not have the first clue what to do. Tella isn't brave in the beginning or good at survivalist stuff, at all. Why would she be? The worst thing she's had to survive before was missing a killer sale at the mall. What she is- is desperate. Desperate to save the brother she loves and get her family back to some sort of normal life. That's the beauty of this story and Tella specifically. We get to watch her realize how strong she truly is and how much she is willing to risk to save her brother.

The pacing of this story was on point, with lots of action that kept me flipping pages after I promised I would put it down and get some sleep. That was a great plan but then something would happen or some big twist would drop and I'd realize I just killed another hour. Ooops. No biggie- kids can take care of themselves, right?

The only part I wasn't totally hooked on was the romance. I liked Guy but he's very standoffish and secretive and it was hard for me to invest in their romance because I was always suspicious. We do finally get some straight answers from him at the end though and I felt much better about him after that.

Oh. My. God. I almost forgot the Pandoras! Clearly my caffeine level is getting dangerously low. The Pandoras are genetically modified animals that are given to the contenders to help them survive. They all have different skills and powers and it's up to the contestant to figure out what they can do. They are freaking awesome! Fire & Flood is worth reading just for the Pandoras alone. I loved how a lot of their special powers tied into natural skills or behaviors of the actual animal.

Pandoras, fast-pace, action, twists, violence....do I really have to tell you that you want to read this? Okay. Fine. YOU WANT TO READ THIS!

Review: The Shadow Prince (Into the Dark #1) by Bree DeSpain

The Shadow Prince (Into the Dark #1)
Bree DeSpain
3.5/5.0







Think Persephone-Hades myth with a modern twist.

Haden is the disgraced prince of the Underealm with little chance of redemption. However, when an Oracle chooses him to go out and bring back the next Boon, he sees his opportunity. This Boon isn't just any Boon though. She is the Cypher and the key to finding Hades' key to the Underworld. Without her all hope for the Underrealm and humanity could be lost.

Daphne Raines gifted musician and small town girl. She has a led a very sheltered life, a life that makes pursuing her dreams of becoming a famed musician damn near impossible. When her estranged rock star father appears out of the blue and offers her an opportunity to escape her small town and small life. She trades in her sheltered life for what she thinks is the opportunity of a lifetime - joining the esteemed musical program of Olympus Hills High School.

What she doesn't know is that she is the Boon that Haden seeks, and her new home in Olympus Hills has put her in prime territory for him to find her.

The book starts out rather slow, and while I get the need for back story so we can understand the characters and their motivations, this book almost takes it to far. It was really difficult to hang in there at some points. It does pick up, but it's about halfway through the book.... and this isn't a short book...

I will say that once the story picks up, DeSpain does a really good job and it gets really interesting. She throws a lot of twist and turns in there - a dash of mystery. It's really pretty good.

I enjoyed watching the characters and their development. DeSpain is really good at painting characters that are individual and realistic. I had no problems identifying with Haden and Daphne, or any of the supporting characters. Their motivations made sense. Even when they were doing something incredibly stupid, I could grasp why they would do it.

Overall, I liked the book, but I really wish that the pacing was a little better in the beginning. It's one of those books where I really feel like a lot could have been cut out or worked in differently to make a shorter more cohesive story. However, I felt like the author hit her stride towards the end of the book, and I'm certainly interested to see where book two takes us. I'll definitely give the second book a shot before I make a final call on this series.

Cover Reveal: Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer Armentrout

It's Time!! The STONE COLD TOUCH cover is here!

We cannot wait to share the cover for Jennifer L. Armentrout's STONE COLD TOUCH with you all! STONE COLD TOUCH is a young adult paranormal romance by Jennifer L. Armentrout and is the second full-length novel in The Dark Elements Series being published by Harlequin Teen.  You'll want to add this to your TBR pile ASAP. Check out this amazing cover!  

 Isn't it awesome?! You can Pre-order it right now!

**Amazon**  **Barnes & Noble**  **iTunes**  **Kobo**

STONE COLD TOUCH Synopsis: Every touch has its price Layla Shaw is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life—no easy task for a seventeen-year-old who’s pretty sure things can’t get worse. Her impossibly gorgeous best friend, Zayne, is forever off-limits thanks to the mysterious powers of her soul-stealing kiss. The Warden clan that has always protected her is suddenly keeping dangerous secrets. And she can barely think about Roth, the wickedly hot demon prince who understood her in ways no one else could. But sometimes rock bottom is only the beginning. Because suddenly Layla’s powers begin to evolve, and she’s offered a tantalizing taste of what has always been forbidden.  Then, when she least expects it, Roth returns, bringing news that could change her world forever. She’s finally getting what she always wanted, but with hell literally breaking loose and the body count adding up, the price may be higher than Layla is willing to pay… "Constantly entertaining...the narrative sizzles with as much tension as romance." —Kirkus Reviews on White Hot Kiss

And...Don't forget to check out the first book in The Dark Elements Series,

WHITE HOT KISS! 

 

  ABOUT WHITE HOT KISS: One kiss could be the last. Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses. Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever. Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul. But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne…it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.

**Amazon**  **Barnes and Noble**  **BAM**  **iBooks**  **IndieBound**  **Kobo**  **Walmart**

  About Jennifer L. Armentrout: # 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. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV. She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

The Dark Elements Series Website

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Jennifer L. Armentrout Goodreads

STONE COLD TOUCH Goodreads

WHITE HOT KISS Goodreads

Review: Unite by Jamie Campbell

Unite
Jamie Campbell
2.0/5.0

This book was a struggle. It took me MONTHS to read it, because I kept tossing it aside to read something (ANYTHING) else. 

The premise was interesting enough, it was just poorly executed and lacked any realism.
The idea is that somewhere in the vast area we call space, there is another planet very much like our own. This other planet is in the path of another planet... asteroid... whatever. Point is the planet they are living on is going to be destroyed. So in an effort to save themselves the aliens contact Earth. In exchange for some pretty bitchin' technology, we are to take some of their alien offspring and integrate them into Earth's population. The FBI gets involved and creates a program. The little alien babies will be secretly integrated into our school systems. They are required to be good little aliens and do everything in their power to make everyone like them. They must achieve stellar grades, go to college, and get awesome jobs. After 25 years the government will reveal their existence, and since they have already established themselves as lovable aliens, humans will totally accept them. Whoever came up with this idea must have some of the rosiest rose colored glasses ever, because I'd bet money that the big reveal would be mass hysteria. Cuz, ya know... HISTORY. 

However, to be fair, if this was the ONLY unbelievable thing about the story, I might have been able to roll with it. IT'S NOT. 

 
When a group of people learn of these alien teens (teeliens?).... they start picking them off one by one. The US Government immediately tucks its tail between it's legs and scampers off. They tell the aliens and their foster families that due to budget cuts the program is being shut down. Ummm... WHAT!? Seriously... WHAT?!?!?! I'm expected to buy that the government just invested all this time and money into this project and one little group of extremist takes it down by knocking off a few of their aliens?? We are talking a fairly small grassroots alien take down effort here. Not only is this a small grassroots effort going on here, they aren't very good at it apparently. They find Amery (the MC) studying in the library with her mortal enemy (we'll get to that in a moment) one day. The big bad alien hunters proceed to chase the teens down the school hallways. The teens slip into a janitors closet and carry on a conversation, and the big bad alien hunters lose them. I dunno, maybe they are soundproofing Janitor's closets these days. Whatever.... NOT.BUYING.IT.

So, what is an teelien and her foster family to do when their ONLY means of protection has just left them high and dry? They do the logical thing and go into hiding, right? RIGHT? WRONG. They stay right where they are and the teelien revels in her new found freedom. I'm totally serious. She literally goes out and gets all giddy over the fact that no one is watching her anymore... except maybe the alien killers. The alien killers, who by the way, have already attempted to catch her in her school. The school that she continues to attend. *BANGS HEAD ON DESK*

Ok... So, as for this mortal enemy thing... Amery seriously, seriously hates this guy she goes to school with, Lochie. Which, fine I get it, we all had someone we went to school with that we wanted to stab in the eye with a fork. What I don't get however is WHY she hates him. From what we're told he's never really done anything to her. He never really says anything in the book that makes me go "oh, well, he's an ass." Actually, he seems like a pretty boring nice guy. I dunno... maybe he smells funny or something. 

 
I get that the author is probably trying to do that whole love-hate thing. However, if you want me to buy into that I have to have a reason to hate the guy.

Overall, I'm sorry to say I don't think I'll be following this book any further. I just didn't get it. There were too many things that seemed highly unlikely, impossible, or just plain silly for me to get too excited over this book. It may be better suited to a tween audience, but I don't foresee a lot of older teens or adults reading this and seeing writing gold.

White Hot Kiss Release Day Launch

We are beyond excited to participate in the Release Day Launch for Jennifer L. Armentrout's WHITE HOT KISS! WHITE HOT KISS is a young adult paranormal romance being published by Harlequin Teen TODAY! This is the first full-length novel in The Dark Elements Series and one you'll want to grab as soon as you finish reading this post.



ABOUT WHITE HOT KISS: One kiss could be the last. Seventeen-year-old Layla just wants to be normal. But with a kiss that kills anything with a soul, she's anything but normal. Half demon, half gargoyle, Layla has abilities no one else possesses. Raised among the Wardens—a race of gargoyles tasked with hunting demons and keeping humanity safe—Layla tries to fit in, but that means hiding her own dark side from those she loves the most. Especially Zayne, the swoon-worthy, incredibly gorgeous and completely off-limits Warden she's crushed on since forever. Then she meets Roth—a tattooed, sinfully hot demon who claims to know all her secrets. Layla knows she should stay away, but she's not sure she wants to—especially when that whole no-kissing thing isn't an issue, considering Roth has no soul. But when Layla discovers she's the reason for the violent demon uprising, trusting Roth could not only ruin her chances with Zayne…it could brand her a traitor to her family. Worse yet, it could become a one-way ticket to the end of the world.

  EXCERPT: “I don’t think of Zayne that way!” She laughed. “What man-parts-loving female in this world doesn’t think of Zayne that way? I can barely keep myself breathing when I see him. All the guys in school have squishy waists. I can tell Zayne doesn’t. He’s the awesome sauce with extra sauce.” That he was and he so didn’t have a squishy waist, but I tuned Stacey out at that point. I really did need to cram for this test and I also didn’t want my fantasies involving Zayne to occupy my mind right now. Especially after I’d woken up this morning, carefully tucked under the covers. The bed had smelled like him: sandalwood and crisp linen. “Oh, sweet baby Jesus in a manger,” Stacey murmured. I clenched my jaw, cupping my hands over my ears. She jabbed me in the side with her elbow. At this rate I’d be covered in bruises before lunchtime. “Our bio class just got a billion times more interesting. And hotter, lots and lots hotter. Holy mother, I want to have his babies. Not now of course, but definitely later. But I’d like to start practicing soon.” The cell wall is a thick and rigid layer covering the plasma something, something plant cells… Stacey stiffened all of a sudden. “Oh my God, he’s coming—” Composed of fat and sugar— Something slender and shiny fell from who knew where, landing in the middle of Sam’s notes. Blinking tightly, it took me a couple of seconds to recognize the faded and half peeled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles sticker covering the back of the silver cell phone. My heart slammed against my ribs. Gripping the edges of the notebook, I slowly lifted my gaze. Unnaturally beautiful golden eyes met mine. “You forgot this last night.” Amazon Barnes and Noble Kobo iTunes

Now that you have a taste for this fabulous new series, here are the details for the AMAZING international giveaway!!! 

Harlequin Teen is giving away a large Harlequin Teen Tote. Tote Includes:

 ·        Harlequin TEEN branded tote
 ·        The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa (trade)
 ·        Pawn by Aimee Carter (hard cover)
 ·        Crash Into You by Katie McGarry (hard cover)
 ·        Through the Zombie Glass by Gena Showalter (hard cover)
 ·        2 copies of White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout
 ·        1 pair of black harlequin branded socks (they are so comfy!)   

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

About Jennifer L. Armentrout: # 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. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV.   She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Links:
 Series Website: http://www.thedarkelementsseries.com
 Website: http://www.jenniferarmentrout.com/
 Twitter: https://twitter.com/jlarmentrout
 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenniferLArmentrout
 Jennifer L. Armentrout
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4476934.Jennifer_L_Armentrout
 WHITE HOT KISS Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17455585-white-hot-kiss?bf=500&from_search=true