Dream Things True by Marie Marquardt (Review)

    Life is hard, especially when you are a young illegal immigrant just trying to survive and stay where you are. Fighting to take care of her family and built a future for herself at the same time, Alma has a lot on her plate when pretty boy Evan appears in her life. Evan seemingly has everything; money, power and popularity. But ultimately he doesn't have what he really wants, a loving family. Alma seemingly has nothing. She has little money, no power and no popularity, but she does have one thing; family. Coming from opposite worlds, Alma and Evan clash as they fall for each other and struggle to overcome obstacles standing in their way.

    I found this book boring and slightly underwhelming. The characters were underdeveloped and they seriously lacked depth. It was very difficult to invest in them and care deeply about what happened to them. In addition to that, the relationship between Alma and Evan seemed shallow and rushed. I felt there was not enough romantic tension in the novel to really hold the readers attention for long. Ultimately, I don't really recommend Dream Things True and give it the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Nobody's Lady (Never Veil #2) by Amy McNulty (Review)

      The second installment of the Never Veil series, Nobody's Lady continues that tale of Noll as she faces the changes in her home village after the breaking of the curse that was set upon them. With the curse broken, men are beginning to think for themselves and they want to be free to make all of the choices they were once denied, throwing their world into upheaval.
      Nobody's Lady wasn't good or bad. The voice of the narrator was smooth and nice to read, but plot wise the books was very dull and didn't seem to go anywhere. Romance wise, the book completely failed. There was no progression in the relationship from the previous novel, if anything it regressed. I still very much liked the character of Noll, but I found that her character growth was stunted in Nobody's Lady. All in all, I didn't think Nobody's Lady was a worthwhile read and I don't recommend it. I give Nobody's Lady the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Nobody's Lady (Never Veil #2) by Amy McNulty (Review)

      The second installment of the Never Veil series, Nobody's Lady continues that tale of Noll as she faces the changes in her home village after the breaking of the curse that was set upon them. With the curse broken, men are beginning to think for themselves and they want to be free to make all of the choices they were once denied, throwing their world into upheaval.
      Nobody's Lady wasn't good or bad. The voice of the narrator was smooth and nice to read, but plot wise the books was very dull and didn't seem to go anywhere. Romance wise, the book completely failed. There was no progression in the relationship from the previous novel, if anything it regressed. I still very much liked the character of Noll, but I found that her character growth was stunted in Nobody's Lady. All in all, I didn't think Nobody's Lady was a worthwhile read and I don't recommend it. I give Nobody's Lady the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Paper Princess (The Royals #1) by Erin Watt (Review)

    Set in the modern world, the story Ella Harper is a classic rags to riches story. Taken from a world where she had to strip for money, she is thrust into a world of mansions, fancy cars and high society but with a dark twist. The new "brothers" she inherits hate her and want her gone. They harass her and plan to bully her into leaving this new world and return to the life she once had.
     Paper Princess is not what I expected. From the synopsis to the cover, I assumed that the novel would be clean and family friendly but I was dead wrong. There is content in this novel that makes me believe this novel should not be classified as Young Adult and be classified as Adult romance instead. Addicting but extremely inappropriate, Paper Princess is very well written but shows a very unhealthy relationship between her and one of the brothers that abused her emotionally and mistreated her. I found it very disturbing to read about. One minute he's tormenting her and harassing her and the next they are supposed to be in love? I'm not buying it. There is no way this relationship would not be seen as abusive and unhealthy in the real world. All that aside, the story was very well written and an addicting read (unhealthy relationship aside). I don't believe that anybody under the age of 18 should read it, so you have been warned. I give Paper Princess the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Paper Princess (The Royals #1) by Erin Watt (Review)

    Set in the modern world, the story Ella Harper is a classic rags to riches story. Taken from a world where she had to strip for money, she is thrust into a world of mansions, fancy cars and high society but with a dark twist. The new "brothers" she inherits hate her and want her gone. They harass her and plan to bully her into leaving this new world and return to the life she once had.
     Paper Princess is not what I expected. From the synopsis to the cover, I assumed that the novel would be clean and family friendly but I was dead wrong. There is content in this novel that makes me believe this novel should not be classified as Young Adult and be classified as Adult romance instead. Addicting but extremely inappropriate, Paper Princess is very well written but shows a very unhealthy relationship between her and one of the brothers that abused her emotionally and mistreated her. I found it very disturbing to read about. One minute he's tormenting her and harassing her and the next they are supposed to be in love? I'm not buying it. There is no way this relationship would not be seen as abusive and unhealthy in the real world. All that aside, the story was very well written and an addicting read (unhealthy relationship aside). I don't believe that anybody under the age of 18 should read it, so you have been warned. I give Paper Princess the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Trial By Fire (Going Down in Flames #3) by Chris Cannon (Review)

    The third installment of the Going Down in Flames series, Trail by Fire continues the tale of Bryn the teenage hybrid dragon. Faced with the oppressive culture and governing body of the dragon population, Bryn tries to blend into her new culture, without being assassinated. To aid her in that endeavor is her own personal, attractive, and magical knight. With him on her side, she will navigate the political world full of danger, murder and magic.
    Overly political, boring, slow, Trial by Fire was my least favorite novel in the series. It seems as if the strong, independent and interesting girl from the other novels seems to have killed off and replaced with a cowardly normal person. She wasn't all terrible, but she was missing that spark I had loved so much in her from before. Although highly political, there was some genuinely cute romantic scenes. Bryn and her knight were a cute couple and had some good romantic tension going on. The romance was good, but not good enough to make up for such a dull and political plot. I give Trial by Fire TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Trial By Fire (Going Down in Flames #3) by Chris Cannon (Review)

    The third installment of the Going Down in Flames series, Trail by Fire continues the tale of Bryn the teenage hybrid dragon. Faced with the oppressive culture and governing body of the dragon population, Bryn tries to blend into her new culture, without being assassinated. To aid her in that endeavor is her own personal, attractive, and magical knight. With him on her side, she will navigate the political world full of danger, murder and magic.
    Overly political, boring, slow, Trial by Fire was my least favorite novel in the series. It seems as if the strong, independent and interesting girl from the other novels seems to have killed off and replaced with a cowardly normal person. She wasn't all terrible, but she was missing that spark I had loved so much in her from before. Although highly political, there was some genuinely cute romantic scenes. Bryn and her knight were a cute couple and had some good romantic tension going on. The romance was good, but not good enough to make up for such a dull and political plot. I give Trial by Fire TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Snow Globe by Jeanne Skartsiaris (Review)

    Snow Globe is a story of a troubled young woman who is trying to figure out her life and keep her job, all the while eluding her creepy stalker. A dark and serious tone is found throughout the novel as Aja Harmon lives in constant mistreatment from the school boards, the police and her boss. They all treat her like she is a no good juvenile delinquent, and in treating her as such makes it hard for her not to be a delinquent they call her.
    There was a lot of serious topics in this novel, making the overall feel of the novel darker. Story wise, Snow Globe was okay. It had some truly heart warming moments that made the characters more interesting. The best romance in this novel was not in between Aja and her love interest, but between an old married couple whose love truly lasted the ages. Plot wise, Snow Globe was a slower read. I did find it difficult to engage into certain parts of the novel. There were definitely moments that I would describe as boring to read. All in all, Snow Globe was a mediocre read and I give it the rating of  TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Elementals: The Prophecy of Shadows (Elementals #1) by Michelle Madow (Review)

     In a world of magic and mythology, Nicole Cassidy the heroine is faced with mysteries and monsters. Elements mixes witches and demigods into a hodgepodge of magic fantasy. After discovering that there is a hidden world of witches, mythological gods and magic; Nicole's world starts to drastically change. Suddenly she has powers she never even dreamed about and she is thrust into a dangerous mystery involving ancient monsters and prophesies.
      I found this novel to be a little slow and boring. The plot itself felt disorganized and was not the best. There was some pretty good moments in the novel, but the was definitely moments in which I found it hard to connect to the characters or enjoy the story. The romance in this novel was minimal, but what was there was lack luster. Also, the magic and powers were very vague as to what they can do and what they cannot do. Ultimately, the novel was mediocre. Not very good, but not terrible either. I give Elements the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Spark (The Chronicles of ISLE #1) by Starla Huchton (Review)

   In a world of superheroes, Phoebe Lawrence has a lot of pressure on her plate between her love life, saving the world and learning to control her powers. Daughter of the famous hero couple from the Starla's previous series, The Evolution; she is expected to become as awesome of a superhero as her parents were. A romantic action-filled story, Spark follows Phoebe as she learns control, love and responsibility.
   I found Spark to be very similar to the first book in the Evolution series. It had its ups and downs. I found in both novels, the romantic male lead was underdeveloped and that the romance between the characters was rushed. I felt the relationships in both felt very shallow and uninteresting. On a more positive side, Spark had some interesting mystery elements and had some pretty cool super powers. Phoebe has the power to control purple energy fire, which I thought was pretty interesting to read about. The main character Phoebe was a diverse and well developed character, who had me cheering for her throughout the novel. Ultimately, Spark was not bad, but not amazing either. I give Spark the rating of TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Resistance by Kayla Howarth (Review)

    As the second instalment of The Institute, Resistance continues the story of Allira and her fight for the freedom of her brother, herself and all the other Defectives. I found Resistance to be a very good story. I was very interested in the flow of the plot and the depth of some of the characters.  A highlight of the story, for me, was the determination of the main character Allira. Even when she was confused she was a strong and determined character.
   A complaint I have about the novel was how it treated the topic of sex. I felt like it was a little too flippant about it. My biggest problem with Resistance is the ending, which I will not spoil. I felt that the ending was not satisfying and a wee bit over dramatic/unnecessary. Needless to say, I did not enjoy the ending of the novel.
   Back to the positives, I really liked the concepts of the Defectives powers. They were each individual and unique. To sum it up, I liked but did not love Resistance and give it the rating of  TWO AND A HALF  STARS OUT OF FIVE!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review* 

Winter Wolf by Rachel M. Raithby (Review)

  Katalina Winter is a wolf, and not just any wolf, one of the last pure-bread wolves alive; and she doesn't even know it. After a tragic car crash that kills her adoptive parents, Katalina is thrust into the world of were-wolves, packs, murderer, mates and feuds.
  I found Winter Wolf quite generic. It seems to be a run of the mill were wolf mate story. It's a combination of Romeo and Juliet and were-wolves. I didn't dislike the story, but I did not find anything unique or that made Winter Wolf stand out in the crowd. I do have the complaint that the ending was a little quick and rushed. I  also found that the overall feel of the novel was not consistent. The beginning of the novel was intense and descriptive, but the rest of it seemed mediocre if not dull. This story was nothing to write home about for sure. On, the positive side I did find Katalina and her mate adorable. They are super cute together and were nice to read about. I give Winter Wolf TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

Sing For Me by Gracie Madison (Review)

     In this novel, angels and demons are at War. In the world of angels there are special angels called Choirs. They were born for music. Their voices can can hurt. Their scream can kill. Their emotions are forbidden. They are being hunted. In this story, the Choirs are hiding as humans on earth. Who from, a ex angel and his cult following. In the process, a Choir named Madeline has to fight her attraction to her guardian, because her emotion are forbidden and can kill. *Warning Adult Content*
    I kind of enjoyed Sing for Me. It had many good moments and dynamics between Madeline and her friends and guardians, but at the same time had many dull moments. When I declare somthing dull, it does not mean nothing was happening in the story. It just means the story was not written well enough to keep my interest in the story, and I have many moments like that in this novel.
    I did find the performance scenes had me thinking of Christine by Phantom of the Opera, with her passion and power in music. Those parts I enjoyed along with the bit of romance and action in the story. The romance in this novel definitely had its moments, but I found that like the rest of the story, it got very dull at times. I give Sing for Me TWO AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!

New World Order (Sunset Rising #3) by S.M. McEachern (Review)

   The third installment of  the Sunset Rising series, the post apocalyptic action story continues. New World Order starts right off the bat with the kidnapping of Jack, causing for an interesting intro into the story. The story continues to develop with a new plot, but the same characters. After the past two books, the characters are pretty well developed before the book even starts. I did have a problem with an element with they way the story was written. In the story, the author would built up tension with one character, then switch characters, leaving the readers disappointed and annoyed at the change. This occurred for a good portion of the novel, driving me crazy. Beyond that, in my opinion, the conclusion of the novel was too short. After an entire novel worth of build up, it all ended pretty quickly. 

   The positives would be the amazing depths of love and thought in the main characters, and the awesome action/conflicts that occurred in this novel. Both are very important in the way of telling a good story, and keeping the readers attention. I find both at least partially redeeming for the cut off storytelling I mentioned earlier. I give New World Order the rating of TWO AND A HALF OUT OF FIVE STARS!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Shadow Study (Soulfinders #1) by Maria V. Snyder (Review)

        Book one of a new series, I recommend that you read the Study series beforehand because there is a lot of reference back to it in Shadow Study, and the story is a continuation of the lives of the characters from the Study series. Well, if I'm honest Shadow study was not bad, but it was not good either. Ultimately, I found shadow Study very boring. I mean VERY boring. I felt it was a task to read from the beginning to the end. I'm not saying that Shadow Study was a bad book, but I could not seem to get into the story no matter how hard I've tried. My feelings on the story are so mixed up that I have fallen into a grey zone. I do and don't like it. The characters were developed in previous novels, but it feels as if in Shadow Study was without any real character growth. I give Shadow Study TWO AND A HALF OUT OF FIVE STARS!

Beneath Scarlett Valley (Scarlett Valley #1) by Kerr-Ann Dempster (Review)

     What is the meaning of this story? Is there any? I tried to even pull out the classic "True love trumps all" theme, but the love relationship is so sparse and un-romantic that I can't. As I've said before, a good romance can go a long way to improving a story; and the opposite is true too. I believe the lack of romantic development took a lot away from the story. In addition, there was not much character development for ANY of the characters. Those were the downsides of the book, the upsides are the interesting theme of Furor's and the discussion of immortality and if it is worth it. In addition, this book was not an extremely lengthy read. There was some definite strong internal conversations and thoughts that the readers are privy to. In the end though, I still am so half and half about this book. It was not good, but it was not bad. I give Beneath Scarlett Valley the most accurate rating to match how I feel about this book. Two and a half stars.

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

The Dollhouse Asylum by Mary Gray (review)

The beginning is totally crap, it’s a miracle I continued reading past it. I personally hated how unrealistic the main character, Cheyenne, is. She is all about boys, and is horrifically gullible. She is so unobservant and submissive it physically hurts to read. If there was a meaning or a moral to this story, I didn’t catch it. This novel consists of a monstrous psychopath for a villain, a weak willed “heroin”, twisted slight romance with the psychopath and Cheyenne, people renamed after romantic tragedies by the psychopath, the potential zombie apocalypse, horrifying tragedy, horror and suspenseful, and the tragic death of loved characters all though the story. This book is definitely not for the feign of heart. On the flip side, this story is captivating. I could not put it down. It was like watching a car wreck. Traumatizing, but you cannot look away. Depending on the person this book readers reaction can range from, “THAT WAS TERIBLE!!” to “I kinda liked it”. So personally, giving slack because I was pulled into the book. I give it two and a half stars.