Cold Burn Of Magic ( Black Blade #1) by Jennifer Estep

                                  Arc provided by Kensington Teen through Netgalley

                                                         Release date:April 28 th

DNF at 13%

I give up.

Lila has just looked into... what's his name eyes... and she was struck dumb by insta love/attraction/lust/silliness.
Who cares if her behaviour _up until NOW _ was trying to portray a tough young girl? Someone who has been living all by herself since her mother died. Someone who knows what she has to do in order to survive?
___
Who cares, right?
It's love.

Also, the girl has this super uber power that allows her to KNOW what a person is thinking and feeling...and OMG, DEVON _ whose name she finds ridiculous fascinating _ is the MAN.Who cares if she just looked into his face a freaking minute ago?

-_- I just... can't deal with this. *headesk*

He's so amazing, that by the amount of adjectives she uses to describe his "amazingness", I wouldn't be surprised if she would write an ode to his awesomeness later on.
Sorry, but no can do.
Life is too short to keep reading this and my grey cells are threatening with a strike if I keep this up.

"I knew in an instant that he was the sort of guy who was exceedingly loyal to his friends. Who felt responsible for others. Who tried to help people as much as he could even if they didn’t deserve it, and he ended up being the one who got hurt instead. The sort of guy that others saw as a leader and naturally flocked to. The sort of guy who was just so disgustingly fascinating that you couldn’t help wanting to know more about him."

Ye, Gods.

Author Official Site

bookdepository.com

The One In My Heart by Sherry Thomas

                                   Arc provided by NLA Digital LLC through Netgalley

                                                             Release date: April 21

My reaction after having read this novel:

CAN I HAVE MORE... LIKE NOW?
Evangeline has friends. Bennett has a brother and sister. There's clearly a great number of people waiting to be...paired of... with their significant others! ;)

What is so great about this novel _ despite the fact that Eva does go into a stranger's house in the middle of the night... a stranger who knows how to use scalpels! _ is that they're actually perfect for one another in their own imperfections. And, trust me, there's plenty of those -_-

But let's talk about the positives aspects... well, first of all I can't point out a significant negative one!
o_O
I Know! It surprised the heck out of me.

Their chemistry... Dear Lord... it basically gets a fifteen out of ten.
                                  
                               Do not read this in public!

Their characters
They have depth. They have their issues. They're less than perfect, but they just fit.
The actual depth of the romance. This is much more than A meets B on the HEA road.

The way they connect with their respective families _ which is an important part of the story _ and try to deal with out life has thrown at them... I loved it all!

Oh, and you know how I am often complaining how the guys in historical romances are asses that should be kicked out to the curb? No... well it happens from time to time.
Well, Bennett is in fact a descendent of the Tremaine family line _ see book "Private Arrangements" _ and he is not an ASS... well, okay... yes, he had some moments when he was younger... but now, he has grown out of them it!
I am so, so happy for you Bennett. I never felt like hitting you in the head with a heavy object!:D
So refreshing.

Sorry, but as you can see this is not going to be one of those analytical reviews that I mostly write: I still have stars in my eyes, I can't stop remembering the scene with the princess ball gown. LOL IRL

And I want this in paperback.
Please let this be published in paperback format!-_-

Oh, and the synopsis?
It makes some issues seem more problematic than what they really are. The money thing for instance, is basically irrelevant to the story. It definitely isn't that type of book.

Author Official Site


@Order it! 

Defiant ( Towers Trilogy # 2) by Karina Sumner-Smith

                                              Arc provided by Talos Publishing through Edelweiss

                                                                  Release Date: May 5th

Because Radiant was my favourite book back in 2014, I couldn't resist the opportunity of getting my hands on this arc.
Also, because I tend to be somewhat OCD when it comes to favourite series, I chose to re-read Radiant before starting with this one.
What I got from the re-read?
It was still a fantastic read, the first scene is still very much imprinted in my mind. Although this time I did find that it dragged a little towards the end. But that is something that usually happens with all the stories that I re-read, so it wasn't a big deal.

As for this one volume, I can say that Xhea and Shai continue to be favourite characters.

I loved getting to know some background on Xhea: her family story... and basically how she sees herself having to deal with what is happening to her.
The dilemma that she faces in this book, was believable for someone living in her situation.
Also kudos for the author, for not choosing the magical path to solve a lot of problems, like Xhea's medical condition.
The way we get a little more character diversity in this story is also among the positives in this tale.
Then there's something in which I am somewhat divided: I do like the author's writing style, but this is a post-apocalyptic / sci-fi story, and as such, I was hoping for more action...

This writing style combined with the emotional aspects of this book, made me think of This Is Not A Test, in which most readers were probably expecting a zombie book and got a psychological drama instead (well 95% of it maybe ).
For me, Defiant would be better defined as a psychological drama. It is set against the backdrop of a sci-fi /post apocalyptic world, but it is only during the last chapters, that those elements really shine.
The explanations for some "mysteries" ended up sounding believable and  logical _ even with such a setting..or especially because of it _, and that is always positive.

Despite all that, I can't help mention that I found that there were parts in the narrative that could have been cut, so that it would have a more fluid story line.

Despite all that, I am still invested in the series and I am looking forward to the last book that I think is going to be published in October. Only six more months to go! :D

Author's Official Site

Pre-order it:
Bookdepository.com

Fairest ( The Lunar Chronicles # 3.5) by Marissa Meyer

Patient's name: Princess Queen Levana Blackburn of Luna

"Your Highness, what do you wish to talk about?"

_____

_____

She slowly turns in my direction. *Holy hell*

"Your parents' death. That was obviously very taxing. You lost them at such a young age. Fifteen, was it not?"

*were her eyes that colour to begin with?*

"I see.."*cough* "you're safe here your Highness. There's no need for glamours, Queen Levana. No one is going to judge you."

Her lips slowly stretch in a charming smile... and they continue stretching *creepy*

"There is always need for glamour... doctor. In every minute of my life. How would I be perfect otherwise?"

"But, no one is perfect Queen Levana. We all have..."

"I am not everyone. I am the Queen of Luna, and I am Perfection."

~Okayyyy... writes down obsessive compulsive disorder. Egocentric.~

"We were talking about your parents,Queen Levana: what did you feel when they died?"

Deep Breath " It was very bothersome. My sister Channary *sneer* decided she was not to be bothered with the details of their demise..."

"That must have made you feel very sad..."

"No. It was just bothersome." She regards him coldly.

~Writes down, sociopath.~

"You and your sister. You must have felt her death dearly?"

"Not really. I hated her with all the powers of Luna."

My mouth drops open. "It is not uncommon for grieving family..."

"I used her skull as a ping-pong ball..."

*gulp*

She laughs at my horrified expression, "I am kidding, after all her head was still attached to her neck."

_________

"Right. "

"If you could name one person.."

"EVRET"

"Ah, yes, of course your husband.."

"HE IS MINE."

"Of course..."

" WE WERE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER... FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!"

Yes, yes, I see here, that Prince Evret had already been married with a woman named Sols...

"DO NOT SAY HER NAME!"

__________

*cough*

"Winter then... Winter is your stepdaughter..."

"Evret loves her. It would break his heart if she died."

"So she lives... for now."
"Ah, right."

"Maybe we should continue this session some other day, Queen Levana... as much as I would LOVE to continue our session, time has run out."

_____________

Parody aside?

I honestly didn't think I would end up giving three stars to this story.

First of all, because I didn't like reading this... but that is not to say that the story isn't well written.

 Levana is more than unbalanced when the story starts... and yes, she has her reasons for it. But it was exhausting to be in her head.

Also, throughout the pages, she goes from being "solely" unbalanced, to being pure evil. That's what made me in the end, give it this rating.

For everything that happens, I guess that half the pages would be more than enough.

Recommended only for die hard fans, I guess. I was left with the feeling that were this the first book I had ever read by the author I wouldn't be following the series...

As it is, I can't wait to read Winter.

Author Official Site

Buy " Fairest"

@Bookdepository.com

Slightly Scandalous (Bedwyn Saga # 3) by Mary Balogh

(Presenting the Portuguese book cover, mainly because the other ones are simply hideous)

With all justice, this should probably get a two/ two and a half star rating, but, I did manage to read this in less than a day, so it has to get at least an half star for that reason entirely.

This is what?
The fourth or fifth book I've read by this author, and I still can't say that this is a favourite series.
This was written in 2004 _ I think _ so maybe her latest instalments are better?
I can only wonder.

So far, a pattern seems to exist: I struggle with the beginnings and I end up enjoying the last pages.

I wasn't crazy about the characters, not because they weren't likeable _ which, okay they mostly weren't _ but because they felt undeveloped. Very one dimensional.

Also, there is quite a number of eye rolling situations: I don't care if they were engaged _ of fake engaged _ some things just weren't done at those times. At least not blatantly so.

Also in one of the prequels, the whole fake engagement plot, had already been used, and two books later here it is again?

Not very original..but at least in Kit's and Lauren's case, the situation was much more believable.
What can I say?
I never felt the "love" between Freyja and Joshua, and their supposedly "hot" scenes were more tepid than anything else. -_-


Author's Official Site

Buy "Slightly Scandalous"
@Bookdepository.com

The Unlikely Lady ( Playful Brides # 3) by Valerie Bowman

                               Arc provided by  St. Martin's Paperbacks  through Netgalley

                                                      Release Date: May, 5th

I have enjoyed Jane's and Garrett's banter since day one. Meaning, since I first read "An Unexpected Duchess".
And it wasn't before long that I knew I could count on them, to help downplay things when the drama would get too much.

So you can have an inkling of what I am talking about....

Presenting the relationship between these two stubborn mules people :

“I mean you like it because I don’t. I swear if I claimed the world was round you’d say it was flat merely to be contrary,” Garrett replied.
“Are you saying the world is round, Upton? Because if so, it makes me question—”
(The Unexpected Duchess, book #1)

He gave her a slight mock bow. “Ah, off to a fine start shredding gentlemen with your tongue. Well done. It’s not even noon. But I must ask, how exactly do you know so much about gambling, drinking, and chasing ladies of ill repute?”
Her smile did not falter. “I read. A lot.”
They glared at each other.
(The Accidental Countess, book #2)

I love intelligent characters and witty repartee, and these two have it in spades. When to that, one adds a sort of "Much Ado About Nothing" retelling/parody..I was basically in book heaven!
I love that specific play.
Well, truth is I love Beatrice's and Benedict's dialogues...Hero and what's his name _ Claudio _ not so much. Too much drama for my taste...also I don't think she should have forgiven him.
Ever. o_O

So, you see where this is going, right?
I loved this story's beginning. I loved when the meddlesome friends _thy name is Lucy _ started with the "game" of basically misleading Garrett and Jane's about each other's feelings.

But then there's this obnoxious character _ well played Mrs Bowman, I don't think there was ever a single moment in which that character appears, in which I didn't wish that she had been run over by a horse....or two, or three _ who led this story to a more dramatic...route?

A little too dramatic for me, but like I said I am biased against Hero and Claudio, and all of a sudden, I felt as if the characters stopped being Beatrice and Benedict's representations, to incorporate the drama inherent to those vapid characters known as H. and C.
But at least, no one had to pretend her own death...so I count that as a blessing! ;)

My biggest issue with the story has to be the fact that towards the end, Garrett ended up sounding a little too much like "Miss" Hero, than an actual Benedict. That was a little strange.

But prejudices aside, this was a well played _ and told _ retelling, with some fun moments _ I especially enjoyed the drunk _ Garrett_ and the half  blind _ Jane_ interaction scene, lol.
My only complaints end up being the overplayed drama...but this was inspired in a Shakespeare play, so really, what was I expecting?

Also, I should probably cut them some slack, since both of them are at times the epitome of all that is geek and bookish! :)

Author's Official Site

Pre-order it:
Bookdepository.com

Arc approvals

Can you believe it that it's almost April? o_O
Where have the first three months of 2015 gone?
And what I am doing that I don't have the time or concentration to read?
Argh. This is the worst feeling for a bookworm.

I was _ well, I still am _ determined to read a couple of series that I have been meaning to read for the last couple of years. Of course there's always the new releases _ some of them at least _ that have me quite interested in reading them, but let's say that I've become much more selective regarding the arcs that I want to read.

As such, I have been resisting going into Netgalley and Edelwiss with a fury!
_______
That doesn't mean that I am not curious about certain stories..
There's this book on Edelweiss that sounds so good...and the cover is so pretty *.*
  See? Pretty! And the synopsis looks good as well..
Someone please go and request it, and let me know if it's any good!

Then there's also this one:

                                           
Of course being so reticent in requesting them, probably means that I would love them o_O

But I am trying to cut in my arc requests..so I'll have to be, you know strong!
(let's see how long that will last...)

So, arc approvals: officially only one, because the other book was on the download copy section.
Strangely, I was approved to read Mechanica:

 

Another insanely pretty cover..darn, lol -_-

And look what was available to download on Edelweiss...nothing more than the sequel to my favourite 2014 book! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

No pressure o_O

What does this mean?
It means that I am currently re-reading the first book in the series, Radiant, because it has been a couple of months since I've read it, and I want to go into Defiant remembering everything.
What about you?
What are you reading?

A Magic Dark and Bright ( Asylum Saga #1) by Jenny Adams Perinovic

                                             Arc provided by Bookish Girl Press

                                                  Release Date: April 28 th

I am going to start with what I liked in this story: The first paragraph. It was creepy and atmospheric.

A woman haunted the woods behind my house.
I used to watch her from my bedroom window. She glowed silver in the moonlight, a pale wraith in a white dress that curled around her ankles and twisted in an ancient wind that didn’t touch the pine trees around her.

The characters
Well developed, with their own story and background, they never felt flat.
Amelia is a level headed girl who is going through a hard time in her life, and I felt for her.

The romance
Despite feeling as if thwarted what I was hoping to get from this story _ something way creepier _ it never felt over the top, because Charlie is one of the "good guys". He's sweet and caring, and doesn't appear to have an idiotic bone in his body.
Of course this is the first book of...I don't know how many more, and characters are known to change, lol.

No bloody love triangles in this story: thank you!
I'll confess that when another character appears _ Ransom_ I got a little scared: OMG, a love triangle..NO! o_O
Luckily that doesn't happen.

The writing
I had no problem with it, and I can't help appreciate the little clues that were hiding at plain sight...most of which completely escaped my notice.


The setting in which the story takes place that was inspired in actual facts.

The less than positives aspects:

For more than a third of it, the story doesn't seem to go anywhere.

It has a very "young" YA vibe to it. There were times in which I felt I could be reading an Enid Blyton's story with a mystery lurking at the background...
Even when the bodies start piling up, the tone of the story doesn't change: It continues the same old self, calm and quiet.

Slut shaming, there's some instances of that. Also there were comments on how a girl became bitchy to her friends _ my words _ after "her boobs" _the author's words _ developed.
This really got on my nerves.
Could this be more cliché?

The cliffhanger
The only reason I kept on reading _ despite the fact of this not being my cup of tea _ was simply because I wanted to know what was going to happen.
Unfortunately when things started becoming more interesting...it ends. -_-
I could even see myself reading the follow up, if it had already been released.
As it is, the sequel will probably be released next year _? _ and I can almost see the heavy emotional angst that a certain relationship will entail,_something for which I simply don't have the patience or interest_ so I'll probably never get around to reading it.

Bottom Line: This is not a bad book _ in fact, it is way superior to some YA bestsellers _ it just needs a different type of reader.

Author's Facebook

Pre-order it:
Bookdepository.com

Royally Ever After by Loretta Chase

                                   Arc provided by Avon Impulse through Edelweiss

                                                           Release Date: April 7 th

4 Stars to  "Lord Lovedon's Duel"

Well, this was fun. And sweet...and unfortunately short. :/
My favourite novella _yes, of the two of them _ has to be "Lord Lovedon's Duel".
If you're a fan of witty repartee and insane characters, you're probably going to love this:

“It seems I must kill myself,” he said. “It is impossible to continue in this world without Miss Sharp’s approbation.” He put the back of his hand to his forehead. “Farewell, all. I go to a better place.”

“I think not,” she said. “I think it will be rather worse than this one and a good deal hotter.”

Insanity all around..I loved it! ;)

And since I am on the subject, why isn't there a series of which this novella could be part of?
So, I could go and you know..read it? At once.

2.5 Stars To The Jilting of Lord Rothwick

As for The Jilting of Lord Rothwick, it had great potential _not that I am saying that I disliked it _ but it ended up being really short for a novella. More like an "itsy bitsy baby" novella. And I wanted more. o_O


In the end there's a presentation of the author's new book ,_ "Dukes Prefer Blondes", release date 2016_ and it ends up having almost as many pages as the second "novella".
_____________
Yes Avon, your bookish master plan worked: My curiosity has been roused, and I would love to get my hands on Clara's and Oliver's book right this minute.
~January 2016 for heaven's sake~ mumbles to herself.

Author's Official Site

Pre-order it:
Kobo 

All The Rage by Courtney Summers

                                  Arc provided by St. Martin's Griffin through Netgalley

                                                         Release Date: April 14 th

                                                             TW's: Rape / Bullying

It would be impossible for me, to stay indifferent to what happens in this story: There's the spectre of rape touching almost everything that happens, and that is so gut wrenching, that I mostly read this while standing up.
My feet wouldn't stay quiet, and I was a nervous wreck.

There's also bullying in this story. Strong girl on girl hate, and as if all that wasn't already enough, there's something even worse..

By the middle of it, I was promising myself, that in the future I will read all the zombie books that this author may write, but I will never read anything like this again, because I simply don't have the stomach for it.
There was a point in which I started questioning and getting angry with Romy's decisions.

Things were already bad, and she would go and act in a completely irresponsible way, which would only add more fuel to an already impossible drama...
I don't know how someone who has been raped will behave. I don't know if she'll have a strong preservation instinct...but I would like to think so, and Romy here, has two unbelievably stupid moments _ especially for someone who first comes out as incredible adult and responsible _ and those situations, combined with other aspects _ some undeveloped moments _ made it impossible for me, to give it more than three stars.

I also wasn't crazy about the way the story is presented: I found the time frames confusing as hell, and I would go back and forth to see if I could make some sense of that.

Romy doesn't have a single friend, she hates her body. She hates being a girl.
Her only coping, and defence mechanism, is her makeup...which is only believable for a small part.
Basically, too much happens for this girl to keep her act together!

Then there was also the love interest _ yes, there's one in this story _ which for me had no place in this story.
Don't get me wrong! The guy is great, and he sure gives his support to Romy _even when she doesn't deserve it _ but keeping in mind all that happens, I think it was too unbelievably rushed.

Bottom Line: This is an story with a strong message, that every teen should read, at least the parts that focus on what it entails being a girl our days, being subject to rape culture, and what they go through... especially in high school.

Keep in mind however, that the story needs another blurb: there's some references to a character _ Kellan _ that actually never makes an appearance, and reading it, makes it sound as if we're in for a thriller...which mostly doesn't happen.

Author's Official Site

Buy " All The Rage"
@Bookdepository.com