Dumplin' by Julie Murphy

Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked…until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.

Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.

This book was recommended to me by a coworker with the words "I wish this book had been around when I was a teenager."  I can't say it effected me as profoundly but I did really like this book.

I liked Willowdean. She is sassy and confident but also insecure and slightly petty. She wants to be "good" and to do right but sometimes cannot reconcile with her own insecurities. Because she is judged only on how she looks by so many people, she can't understand people who see her for herself. I like that most of this book was about Willowdean and her coming to terms with herself and with her body. It's a hard thing that most struggle with well into adulthood and for a teenager is extremely difficult.


I'm glad it wasn't just a fat girl in a beauty pageant book. This was an outsider type book. Or someone who cannot get past their own self to see what others see type book. It was about a girl who wants to be loved but doesn't know she deserves it type book

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Simon Snow is the worst chosen one who’s ever been chosen.

That’s what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he’s probably right.

Half the time, Simon can’t even make his wand work, and the other half, he sets something on fire. His mentor’s avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there’s a magic-eating monster running around wearing Simon’s face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here—it’s their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon’s infuriating nemesis didn’t even bother to show up.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story—but far, far more monsters.

As much as I love Rainbow Rowell and her books, I wasn't sure if I was going to read this one. I loved Fangirl but was less interested in the fanfic that Cath writes than in the story itself. But since I've loved every other Rowell book I thought, why not? It's a fairly meta book. Meta meta even. Because it's a fanfic of a fanfic of fictional book in another story entirely. But you don't need to have read Fangirl to love this book. It probably helps but it stands on its own too. 

I loved this book. I loved Simon and Baz and Penelope and even Agatha. I think most of the backstory was there. You really don't need to have read the "Simon Snow" books to know what is going on. Because in the end this is a love story. It's not actually about the villain and the hero. It's about two boys who fall in love despite having not having reason to. It's about destiny and how it is not always what you think is. It's about friendship and loyalty. It's about love.

Wild Rover No More: Being the Last Recorded Account of the Life & Times of Jacky Faber by L.A. Meyer (Bloody Jack #12)

Just when it looks like Jacky Faber and her beloved Jaimy will finally find their romance, Jacky is accused of treason and must flee Boston while her friends attempt to clear her name. Of course that means wild adventures for our fun-loving heroine, who manages to secure a job as a governess…and run away with the circus. The highly anticipated grand finale of the Bloody Jack Adventures

The saddest thing is that this is only the last book because L.A. Meyer died last year. It's a small blessing to those who loved this series that he wrote the conclusion for Jacky. It also makes the ending sadder than you'd think.

Jacky is almost reunited with Jaimy when she is set up for charges of treason by an old enemy. So instead she is on the run first as a governess and then to the circus. Jacky, of course, is excellent at both as she always seems to be. I did enjoy the part where she was the governess and had to deal with a very spoiled little boy. 

I like the ending that Jacky got. It seemed right though I would have liked to see more of her and Jaimy together but then I think this series was about Jacky, growing and seeing the world. It had less to do with Jaimy, really in the end than I think Jacky would think. I do hope she continues to see the world and have many (tamer) adventures.

Boston Jacky: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Taking Care of Business by L.A. Meyer (Bloody Jack #11)

Jacky Faber has a habit of making waves--even when docked in her adopted city of Boston, where she is attending to the business of Faber Shipping Worldwide. With big dreams and perhaps a bit too much exuberance for the very Puritan populace, she purchases the Pig and Whistle Inn, determined to revive her old stomping grounds and establish a musical theater.
But Jacky quickly finds herself at odds with the Women's Temperance Union and a town roiling with tension over the arrival of hundreds of Irish laborers--brought in by her very own Lorelei Lee. As things heat up, both literally and figuratively, she's soon back in Judge Thwackham's courtroom facing the dozen lashes promised the last time she stood before the judge. Thwarted at every turn by her enemies, Jacky is finally forced to confront her shortcomings--and possibly lose her beloved Jaimy Fletcher in the process.

It doesn't seem right to not finish out my reviews on the Jacky Faber series. The penultimate book finds Jacky in Boston supposedly just trying to live her life right and carry out her business while waiting for Jaimy to arrive back from Rangoon. Of course Jacky being Jacky, she manages to make new enemies in a local temperance group and, through an unfortunate event, also loses Jaimy in a manner of speaking. 

I enjoy Jacky and love her adventures and as usual her past has a way of making her careless and she is careless because she doesn't seem to learn from her past. I think she has definitely grown though as a person since the first book, but she is so impetuous that it makes it difficult for her to stay out of trouble. It's funny because though I don't want anything awful to happen to her, I also like the moments when her clever schemes did not work to her advantage for a chance. I think it's a good learning opportunity for her.

I was significantly less fond of Jaimy Fletcher though. I wish he would quit being an idiot. Like a lot of conflict in books, much of the drama could have been avoided if he had just asked Jacky instead of assuming and I was disappointed with him in the end.

All in all, I am looking forward to the last book though I am sad that it is the last.

The Case of the Cryptic Crinoline by Nancy Springer (Enola Holmes #4)

Enola Homes, younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft, is living on her own and evading her brothers in an attempt to stay out of boarding school and keep her independence. When her landlady is mysterious kidnapped and her house ransacked, Enola sets out to find her and figure who and why someone would want her sweet old landlady.

This was a very fun mystery. I enjoyed the character of Enola and how clever she is. Her brothers very much underestimate her but I think Sherlock is beginning to see the truth of his little sister. Enola is a very independent and she knows more about the ways of the world especially a lady's world than her brothers can understand. She is also very good at riddles and coded messages and those skills certainly come in handy for this case. I also like the history of this era like Florence Nightingale and how London was at this time. That was very interesting. 

Katharine Kellgren, one of my favorite narrators, is the reader of this book and I can't say enough good things about her. She really is one of the best narrators I've come across and does a great job on every book and this one is no exception.
The only thing is some weird lengthy pauses between chapters. A few times I wonder if the book had stopped but it was just the way it was engineered.

The Stones of Ravenglass by Jenny Nimmo (Chronicles of the Red King #2)

The second book of the Chronicles of the Red King finds Timoken still looking a home and then, when he finds it, dealing with his enemies and supernatural forces that wish to stop him.

(Some SPOILERS)
If I'm being honest I'm not entirely sure what I want to say about Ravenglass. It was a good book, for sure. Timoken finds a place to call home and tries to build a castle for himself and his friends but meets with supernatural resistant. Also he is hunted by some enemies and in the end defeats them, is found by all of his friends and they make a home together in the castle that he builds. I didn't really connect with Timoken that much so his story didn't grab me like, for example, Charlie Bone's did. But still it was a good story and I am definitely going to get the third one and hear more about Timoken and his children.

John Keating was once again the narrator and I enjoyed his reading. The audio book was very well done.

5 hours, 46 minutes.

Chronicles of the Red King
#1 The Secret Kingdom

Once Upon a Thriller by Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew Diaries #4)

Somehow I ended up trying out the new Nancy Drew series on book 4 rather than book 1. But that's okay. The beauty of Nancy Drew is that there are not super linear and can be read out of order. As for this new series, eh, it's okay. I still prefer my classic Nancy and the girl on the cover looks 12, not 18 as it's implied this Nancy is. She can drive and has credit cards but no discernible income. I honestly thought this was closer to middle grade based on the cover.

The mystery itself is classic Nancy though. She goes on a weekend vacation with Bess and George and falls straight into a mystery based out of a book. When a bookstore in the town catches on fire, arson is suspected. Was it the reclusive author who was due to give a signing? Or the book store owner herself? Or the inn keeper who didn't get along with either? And why is there a sudden rash of crimes related to the author's books? It's up to Nancy to solve the case.

Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Confessions #1) (audio)

Tandy Angel is a member of the elite Angel family, known for their perfectionism and lack of emotion. Some people call them sociopaths, she just thinks of them as family. When her parents are found dead in their room, the police suspect foul play and everyone including the Angel kids are under suspicion.

Confession: I found Tandy Angel extremely hard to relate to, but then she is almost the exact opposite of me. Her parents have encouraged, beyond encouraged, made her into a emotionless, laser focus practically automaton. So much so I expect the big reveal to be that Tandy and her brothers were created in a lab of some kind. Not quite it turns out, but close (unless that comes up in the next book).  She methodically tries to find out who killed her parents believing she has a better shot than the police and in the midst of her investigation, without her parents' influence, she beings to develop emotions as more and more of the Angel parents' secrets come to light. In the end I still wasn't attached to Tandy or any of her brothers but the story was good and the mystery was interesting (even if the solution was a cop-out).

Highlight for SPOILERS:
The fact that the death of her parents was suicide felt completely like a cop-out though it does fit with how selfish and irresponsible Malcolm and Maude were. They didn't care at all about their kids judging by how they used to them to test out drugs and made them into emotionless robots or try to anyway. And the saddest thing in the whole book was the ending where the Angel children try to convince themselves their parents loved them. The suicides were anti-climatic after learning so much about them and how they handled their personal AND professional lives. Also why would it say in a journal on Tandy that she can read for 6 hours without moving but then the cameras were hidden cameras leading to the neighbors apartment? Malcolm at least would have had to review the footage himself to know what the kids were doing so that couldn't have been a secret. That last part was confusing. It was just a too easy way to show that the parents had committed suicide and to wrap up the book. (end)

6 hours, 3 minutes

Emma Galvin narrates this books and she does a good job of capturing Tandy's emotionless state and then later the one where she starts to gain emotions. I enjoyed her reading. My only issue with the audiobook is that there were sometime long pauses between chapters. It's like they took the CD version and transfer it directly to mp3 without taking out the change of CD pause. The first time it happened I thought my device had failed or something. So that was disconcerting.

The Reluctant Assassin by Eoin Colfer (W.A.R.P. #1) (audio)

Riley, a teen orphan boy living in Victorian London, has had the misfortune of being apprenticed to Albert Garrick, an illusionist who has fallen on difficult times and now uses his unique conjuring skills to gain access to victims’ dwellings. On one such escapade, Garrick brings his reluctant apprentice along and urges him to commit his first killing. Riley is saved from having to commit the grisly act when the intended victim turns out to be a scientist from the future, part of the FBI’s Witness Anonymous Relocation Program (WARP). Riley is unwittingly transported via wormhole to modern day London, followed closely by Garrick.

In modern London, Riley is helped by Chevron Savano, a nineteen-year-old FBI agent sent to London as punishment after a disastrous undercover, anti-terrorist operation in Los Angeles. Together Riley and Chevie must evade Garrick, who has been fundamentally altered by his trip through the wormhole. Garrick is now not only evil, but he also possesses all of the scientist’s knowledge. He is determined to track Riley down and use the timekey in Chevie’s possession to make his way back to Victorian London where he can literally change the world.
 
Eoin Colfer always delivers even if it takes me a while to get into it. I wasn't too keen on Chevie at first. She seemed too much a FBI agent stereotype but I think, in the end, that was the point of her. She was trying so hard to be a grownup and fit into the idea she had of being an FBI agent and then things get out of hand and way beyond her wildest dreams or experiences. Meanwhile, Riley is a more sympathetic character who is pretty smart for a kid who was essentially raised by a psychopath. But then I guess you'd have to be to stay alive for any length of time. I enjoyed the, as a team and I was glad that they got together quickly and any mistrust between was done away quickly. It made the story stronger.

Time travel can be hard to do but if you largely ignore the science, then it is usually fun. The Reluctant Assassin largely ignores the science and I think the consequences don't show up til the 2nd book based on the description I read of that one. This is sort of a science fiction mystery with a bit of thriller thrown in as Riley and Chevie run from the madman Garrick literally through time. Thrown in are bits of Riley's past and how Chevie got into the FBI in the first place. It was slow to start for me but then, when it took off it was really good and I look forward to the next book.

 

9 hours, 29 minutes

Maxwell Caulfield is the narrator who in my mind is from Grease 2 and Empire Records but that might show my age. Anyway, he also co-narrated Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell when I wondered how he'd do with an entire book and I got my answer. Pretty good it turns out. He has a good voice for the reading though his distinct voices need work. I also feel like this book would done well with a female narrator but I didn't mind Caulfied at all.

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Wendy is determined to find her younger brothers, John and Michael, twins who are presumed dead when their surfboards wash up after a giant wave they tried to surf. But Wendy refuses to believe they are dead and her search brings to a private beach called Kensington and a group of surfers lead by the charismatic Pete. Here is where Wendy thinks she will find her brothers' trail but here is where she falls into between a rivalry between Pete and the fairy dust drug dealer Jas.

It might sound strange given that I requested to read this but I wasn't sure I was going to like it. Surfing is not a sport I've ever been interested in but I liked the idea of a retold Peter Pan with Wendy as the focus.  It turns out there's not a lot of that here. Yes, the names are the same and the locations have familiar names as well  but this story is not one that needed to be tied down to the Peter Pan legacy. It was good all on its own. It turns out that I did like it and a lot. Wendy is a confused and sad girl looking for her brothers and she doesn't know what to make of Pete and Jas and all the lost surfer kids who live with them. It was interesting to see the dynamic shift of Peter and Hook to Pete and Jas, two guys who use to be friends before a falling out and Wendy caught  between them. Yes, there's a love triangle but only sort of. Everything is only sort of in this book and it's the nature of the telling, the dream-like quality of Wendy's time on Kensington, that does it. I'm probably only 98% sold on the ending but only because I like a concrete ending. Still it was appropriate.


from NetGalley 
Publish date: May 13, 2014
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Cadence comes from a rich family who summer on their own island. She and her cousins and a friend are basically the same age and they always have the time of their lives. But something happens summer fifteen and Cadence is left with a faulty memory and severe migraines. So on her return trip to the island summer seventeen she is determined to find out what happen.

It's hard to say just how brilliant this book is. So amazing. I kind of guessed the ending, not to be smug or anything, it just reminded me of another book I love.*  But even though I did, it was still so good and so effecting. It's hard to even review without giving away too much. But as Cadence digs into the events of summer fifteen more and more of the makeup and attitude of her family becomes apparent. It is a very layered book and reminds me of when you are old enough to really understand your parents and aunts and uncles and their relationships with each other and to your grandparents. No relationship is without its complexities and We Were Liars explores that through Cadence and her memory loss and her relationship with her cousins and friend, collectively called the Liars. Their relationship is everything especially on their magical summers on her family's island. And then an accident happens and Cadence can't remember. It's through the remembering that she finally finds the truth and also understands more of her family. It's hard to say more because I wouldn't want to spoil anyone. Just read it. You won't regret it.




*The Basic Eight.

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

When a tornado picks  up her trailer home and deposits Amy Gumm in Oz, she can't believe it.  But this Oz is different than the one in the stories. Oz has become a dark and desolate place and it's all because of Dorothy. Now it's up to Amy trained by the Order of the Wicked to stop Dorothy from mining all the magic out of Oz and put an end to her cruelty. Because if one thing is for certain, Dorothy must die.

"Let this be a lesson to all of you," she said quietly, although her voice carried through the throne room. "This is where revolution will get you. In Dorothy's Oz, there is no room for the Wicked."

But then the Lion slunk through my field of vision - licking his chops and eyeing me, because apparently patrolling the outskirts and creeping people out was his preferred party activity-

I love a good retelling and/or fractured fairy tale and this is certainly no exception. While I've always enjoyed the Wizard of Oz, it is not one of my fairy tale obsessions. Still I thought I could get on board with an evil Dorothy and nightmarish Oz and I was right. It was definitely worth the read. It was a bit more violent than I expected and the dialogue needed a little more polish in places (the way some of the characters spoke was didn't gibe with me a few times) but I still really loved it. It seems to be mostly pulled from the books but I suspect a few elements of the movie sneaked in. Certainly Dorothy's red shoes are a nod to the movie.

Amy is a sort of the anti-Dorothy. She is a nice girl who had a rough upbringing but still wants to do the right thing and take of business. When she is brought to Oz by the tornado she can't believe it but she carries right on because she doesn't know how to do anything else. What she finds there is nothing like the movie portrayed as she finds that all of Dorothy's sidekicks have been turned into nightmare versions of themselves. The Scarecrow is an evil scientist, the Tin Man is made of sharp things and has no problem torturing people, and the Lion is a grotesque massive fear-eating beast. And Dorothy herself is power hungry and vindictive. But what happened to them? The book only touches on that at the end. It is a trilogy after all and so Amy isn't given her real task till then. Bits and pieces of the how the characters wound up like they did are thrown in.

But it's the prequel novella No Place Like Oz that provided some insight into what happened to Dorothy and I'm glad I read it. I bought it after I read the book and then reread the book after I read the novella. It explains a few things about Dorothy and how she came back to Oz and why Oz is the way it is when Amy arrives. Now I have a few more suspicions to go on for how the trilogy is going to play out.

The House of Hades by Rick Riodian (The Heroes of Olympus #4) (audio)

Annabeth and  Percy are stuck in Tartarus, making their way to the Doors of Death. Meanwhile, the rest of the group are going to find the doors in the mortal world to save them.

I always enjoy the Olympus books even if the action can be predictable. Predictable is fine as long as it isn't formulaic. And if the characters are good, then predictable is less predictable and more comfortable. Because we've been with Annabeth and Percy through one series and now partway through another we know how they will react to situations with Annabeth trying to talk her way out and Percy trying to fight his way out. So it's easy to see that they are going to get out of Tartarus using their skills. On the other side of the Doors are the rest of  the demigods who are making their way to mortal side in order to rescue Annabeth and Percy and then close them on their side therefore making Gaia unable to summon more monsters and making her weaker. I feel like we get more of Leo and Hazel than anyone but that's fine. I think I like them best anyway. Still it was nice to see Hazel and Frank step up and take charge and for Leo to get some self confidence.

So now it's all set up for the final book, The Blood of Olympus, out later this year. I can't wait though I'm going to be sad to, once again, not have a demigods book to wait on.

17 hours, 30 minutes

Nick Chamian is the narrator and I enjoyed his reading. He did a good job with the voices and the acting and I didn't really notice a difference between him and the last narrator other than he seemed ot have a "surfer" quality to his voice especially for Percy. 


The Heroes of Olympus
#1 The Lost Hero
#2 The Son of Neptune (not reviewed)
#3 The Mark of Athena
 

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

Prenna and her community have a huge secret. They are from a future where the world has collapsed and a deadly blood plague carried by mosquitoes is an epidemic. Sent back in time, the leaders of her community are suppose to be working on the solution. But in the meantime they are expected to assimilate into the 21st century and above all else, never tell who they are or where they came from. But Prenna falls in love with Ethan and the two make a startling discovery about Prenna's time and her community itself.

To get it out of the way first, I didn't like the romantic plot. It was strange. Yes, Prenna and Ethan had known each other for a long time but it moved so quickly into true love that it felt forced and I wasn't feeling it. It was more like teenage lust than love. And that's fine but don't pretend it to be otherwise. Anyway. I enjoyed the book despite my objections to the love story. It was a good read and I liked how feisty Prenna was and how she was willing to challenge the leaders of her community. I liked Ethan for how loyal he was and how he was just a good guy. I liked that there was just enough mystery to keep me going but not so much that it bogged the story down. And, honestly, I'm glad the author didn't get into the sciencey stuff too much.

Time travel is a tricky thing to write about, in my opinion. There's a lot to deal with and paradoxes, etc. It was handled fairly well and I didn't really have any questions at the end. I think it was all wrapped up pretty neatly.

Review copy provided by NetGalley
Publication date: April 8, 2014
Publisher: Delacorte Press

A Corner of White by Jacyln Moriarty (The Colours of Madeleine #1)

Madeleine and her mother have run away from their rich lifestyle and her father for mysterious reasons. Now living in a tiny apartment in Cambridge and eating beans for dinner every night, Madeleine's mother is determined to win a quiz show to make their lives better. Meanwhile, Madeleine is waiting for her father to show up and fix everything.
In the Kingdom of Cello, Elliot searches for his father who may or may not have been killed by a third-level Purple. In Cello, colours have power and one may have taken off his father and killed his uncle.
The two places are never suppose to meet but, thanks in a crack in the kingdom, there is a way to for Elliot to communicate with the World and with Madeleine in particular.

First, I love Jaclyn Moriarty. She is one of my favorites so I was pretty excited for her new fantasy/contemporary series. I found the concept of sentient and destructive colors really good and it's what attracted me to this book in the first place. The Kingdom of Cello is sort of Jasper Fforde without going full Jasper Fforde.

In a way, Elliot and Madeleine's loss of both their fathers, though it happens differently for each, parallels each other and I think a bond will be created in them looking for their fathers. One literally, the other metaphorically.  Elliot and Madeleine are both great characters and it's nice to see a good character arc for both in this book alone, so I wonder how the series is going to expand on their relationship. You have to love a series where the first book sets up the main mystery but doesn't do it with a last scene cliffhanger. It's going to be a steady mystery, I think.

Viva Jacquelina! Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Over the Hills and Far Away by L.A. Meyer (Bloody Jack #10 ) (audio)

This time Jacky has landed herself in Spain once again a spy for the crown. When things once again don't go to plan, she finds herself working as a model for a famous painter gaining access to the royal family that way. But things never run smoothly for Jacky Faber and she finds herself in band of gypsies.

As always Jacky is a treat. I really enjoy her character and the situations that she finds herself in are always ridiculous and interesting and you know that somehow she will always come out ahead. So in that respect the books never change. Just the location and the boy who has caught her eye. She doesn't seem to mind her lads though Jamie is always first in her mind. And it's probably good for them to enjoy the company of others because I am sure they will ultimately end up together and sowing the wild seeds now is a good idea for Jacky. She's a lusty sort of girl and I love it. This adventure lands her in Spain around 1793 when Napoleon's brother is put on the throne. She falls in with a famous artist and does some entail for the British. After being a betrayed by a member of that household, she falls in with a band of gypsies. So this book explores Spain at that time period and some of its traditions, like the running of the bulls and its different culture.


9 hours, 29 minutes.


Bloody Jack
1.     Bloody Jack
2.     The Curse of the Blue Tattoo
3.     Under the Jolly Roger
4.     In the Belly of the Bloodhound
5.     Mississippi Jack
6.     My Bonny Light Horseman
7.     Rapture of the Deep
8.     The Wake of the Lorelei Lee
9.     The Mark of the Golden Dragon (not reviewed)

Of Triton by Anna Banks (The Syrena Legacy #2) (audio)

In this sequel to Of Poseidon, Emma has just learned that her mother is a long-lost Poseidon princess, and now struggles with an identity crisis: As a Half-Breed, she’s a freak in the human world and an abomination in the Syrena realm below. Syrena law states that all Half- Breeds should be put to death.

As if that’s not bad enough, her mother’s reappearance among the Syrena turns the two kingdoms—Poseidon and Triton—against one another. Which leaves Emma with a decision to make: Should she comply with Galen’s request to keep herself safe and just hope for the best? Or should she risk it all and reveal herself—and her Gift—to save a people she’s never known

So here is the second half of  Of Poseidon and it clears up what will happen to Emma if she is ever found out and about her mother, the lost princess of Poseidon. Galen is such an alpha male and he borders much more on controlling in this book than he did in the first or maybe I don't remember. And Emma comes out much more child-like because of this. Her mother is still not a presence despite being in the book more. I wish there would have been more of that relationship or any other relationship. Galen and Emma spend most of the book apart though they do manage a few nice kissing scenes. Still I wanted them more together. I guess that's why there is going to be a third book. It's not entirely necessary. The plot points were pretty wrapped up at the end of this book so I guess the third one is just for kicks. Ah well, it is a cute series and the characters are genuinely enjoyable. Hopefully Galen and Emma can get time together now that the Syrena issues are settled.

Rebecca Gibel narrates this one as she did the first one. I enjoy her reading and I like the voices she does for each. She is best in Emma's chapters but I would listen to her again.

Untold by Sarah Rees Brennan (The Lynburn Legacy #2)

With her link to Jared broken, Kami is alone and scared. But like the feisty girl reporter that she is, she begins making plans to defeat the evil sorcerers now threatening to overtake her town. Finding allies is the first step and that might be harder than she thought.

I loved Unspoken so much and yet it took me a long time to get around to the sequel. I think that is partly because people keep talking about the ending on Twitter and I wasn't up for it yet. It turns out though if you are spoiled that the ending is shocking it actually makes it less shocking or at least that is what happened to me. It's the downside of following an author. Anyway, other than that I wish I had read Untold sooner. It was really good though less funny than the first book. I admire Kami for her willingness and courage to stand up to the sorcerers and there were some plot threads left open, aside from the obvious big character developments, that I can't wait to find out the answer. I also hope that (spoiler) the link between Ash and Kami is severed though how many times she can do that I don't know. I actually found that part pretty surprising. All in all, it was definitely a middle book. Now I can't wait for the finale.


*Just a note to say that this is my 1,000 post! That is just so amazing!*

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier (Ruby Red #3)

Picking up where Sapphire Blue left, Gwyneth is heartbroken after her last encounter with the Count. And when Gideon doesn't deny anything the Count said, she is determined to move on and not be a sad sack. But the Circle is moving closer to being closed and it is becoming apparent that the Count may not have the best intentions when it does. It's up Gwyneth and her best friend Leslie to figure out what will happen when the Circle is closed and put an end to the Count's plans.

Upfront let me just say that normally the insta-love thing bothers me. But somehow with Gwen and Gideon it doesn't. That may be because of the time travel thing. It feels like they've spend a lot of time together even though it's only been a few weeks. Still (spoiler) I feel like deciding to spend an eternity together is a bold choice from two teenagers that really just met. So I wasn't feeling that part of the ending too much. I also felt like it wrapped up pretty easily and that the shocking revelation wasn't as shocking as it was suppose to be. Usually it is a little more difficult than that. The really shocking thing was Gwen's parentage but then I guessed that in book two and I don't think it was really that much of a secret anyway. At least not to the reader.

Overall, I loved the book and the series. Gwen is the best sort of heroine, bold and feisty and not willing to be a doormat. Gideon turned out alright in the end and Leslie is truly the best friend in the world. I'm glad of how it all turned out and the ending was just right.

#1 Ruby Red
#2 Sapphire Blue

Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt

Brighton is desperate to achieve 100% participation for her school in volunteer activities in order to get her name on the wall next to her late father's. Jonah is unwilling to get involved in anything in his new town, instead driving to his old one every weekend where he tries to pretend everything is exactly the same. But 24 hours together can change many things and Brighton and Jonah are about to discover more about each other and themselves then they ever thought.

I read this before last year ended but saved the review for closer publication. It was absolutely one of the best books I've read in a long time and it didn't take me long at all to finish it. I stayed up til 1 a.m. one night because I simply could not put it down. It is pretty different than Tiffany's first book but that's not a bad thing. It just proves how talented a writer Tiffany is.

I loved Brighton and how her perfect facade slowly disintegrates as the night wears on and how Jacob's tough guy attitude changes too. It goes to show that you really never know what is going on in someone else's head and that Jacob completely misjudges Brighton because of her perky girl can do attitude. I am also a sucker for one night stories. There is something that happens to people in the wee hours that feels crazy and magical and I think this book captured that feeling in all the right ways. It was a great read.

Review based on ARC provided by NetGalley
Publication date: February 18th 2014 by Walker Childrens