ANTIGODDESS by Kendare Blake

Ok, so I missed last week.  Blame it on Thanksgiving - hope you all had a great one!  And I don't see any upcoming releases this week, so I figured I'd tell you about the book I just finished.  You all remember Kendare Blake, author of Anna Dressed in Blood, right?  When I met her last year in Decatur, she told me about this mythology-based novel she was writing and I about died.  You know me and mythology.  Well, the book is out and I've read it.

ANTIGODDESS by Kendare Blake

Old Gods never die…

Or so Athena thought. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and Hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health.

Desperately seeking the cause of their slow, miserable deaths, Athena and Hermes travel the world, gathering allies and discovering enemies both new and old. Their search leads them to Cassandra—an ordinary girl who was once an extraordinary prophetess, protected and loved by a god. 

These days, Cassandra doesn’t involve herself in the business of gods—in fact, she doesn’t even know they exist. But she could be the key in a war that is only just beginning. 

Because Hera, the queen of the gods, has aligned herself with other of the ancient Olympians, who are killing off rivals in an attempt to prolong their own lives. But these anti-gods have become corrupted in their desperation to survive, horrific caricatures of their former glory. Athena will need every advantage she can get, because immortals don’t just flicker out. 

Every one of them dies in their own way. Some choke on feathers. Others become monsters. All of them rage against their last breath.

The Goddess War is about to begin.

I admit, it was a bit difficult to relate to Athena at first.  She is cold, calculating.  What you might expect of a war goddess, but not a relatable YA lead.  Cassandra, on the other hand, I quickly identified with.  She has this awesome relationship with Aiden, a great brother, and a really cool bestie (she's captain of the hockey team and can kick some serious butt).

I really enjoyed the irony of the way each of the gods and goddesses were meeting their fate.  Kendare was clever with her death sentences and they were believable and often horrific at the same time.

What kept me going most in the story was the plot and pacing.  The stakes just kept getting higher for Athena, Hermes, Cassandra (and the others who aren't mentioned in the description, so I won't spoil it for you.  Not every god or goddess makes an appearance though - I will tell you that.)  I kept thinking, I don't know how they can survive this.  The tension kept me flipping the pages and I stayed up way late reading it.

Because the gods basically lack any power, you don't get much of a mythology feel in the classical sense, but there are plenty of references to the Trojan War and the roles everyone played there.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. I thought it was unique and fast-paced.  If you like books with loads of action, a dash of romance, and a side of mythology, I recommend Antigoddess.

PICTURE PERFECT ~ Blog Tour, Giveaway & Review

Good morning.  Today I am taking part in the PICTURE PERFECT Blog Tour.  This novel is New Adult and it's graphic, so if you're looking for a YA review, read no further.  But if you don't mind a heaping dose of steamy with your "issue" novels, then this may be the book for you.

Fashion design major Cat Mitchell has a closet full of gorgeous clothes - and not a single thing fits. After two years of runway modeling for easy cash, an accident shattered her lower leg bone and her self-esteem in just one swift fall. Ten months of no exercise, prescription steroids, comfort eating and yoga pants meant returning to campus as a size twelve instead of her former size two. When her gorgeous long-time friend with benefits sees her for the first time after her accident and snubs her in front of all her friends, Cat’s self-image hits rock bottom. Her sorority sisters all insist that she looks gorgeous, but all Cat sees is the roll of her stomach when she sits down, or the dimpling at the back of her thighs that wasn't there last year. Cat’s therapist prescribes something radical to stop the downward spiral - nude modeling for a nearby college's human form drawing classes. When Cat faces her fears and bares it all for the class, she realizes that she's posing naked in front the most gorgeous, buffest guy she's ever seen in her life. He asks her out after the class, and after one steamy night together, Cat's absolutely smitten.

Nate’s pretty close to perfect – he takes Cat rock climbing when he discovers that it makes her feel strong and becomes a great chef after he learns that the perfect pesto sauce makes her swoon. Cat starts to feel like her old self again - confident and beautiful - as long as Nate's around. Even when he discourages her from entering the Real Woman Project, a design competition for plus-sized apparel, she reasons that he's just trying to prevent old body image wounds from splitting wide open again. But when Cat goes home with Nate for Thanksgiving, she discovers something shocking from his recent past that proves that he hasn’t always been so encouraging of women of all shapes and sizes. Cat has no idea what to think, but she does know one thing - this might destroy their relationship before it's even had a chance to get off the ground.

Before Cat can figure out whether the real Nate is the sensitive, adoring guy she fell in love with, or an undercover asshole, she'll have to finally feel comfortable in her own skin - even if it means leaving him forever.

My Review:

It's hard for me to articulate how I feel about this book. It's an interesting blend of being a really important "issue" book about body image and new adult, full with graphic descriptions of sex. I must say that I've never read a contemporary "issue" book like this one and the message is SO important. As someone who hasn't (and sometimes still isn't) comfortable in her own skin, this book was very real, and often painful to read because I knew all too well what Cat was feeling and how self-conscious you can be even when others don't see you that way. 

For any woman who's ever needed reassurance that she's beautiful no matter how her body looks, this is a great book. The problem, of course, is that the younger audience (teens) will miss this message because the book simply is not appropriate for them. The characters are college juniors, doing things college kids do - like sleeping together on the first date. There is also profanity sprinkled throughout.

My only other criticism is that I would have liked to see Cat's metamorphosis unfold a little more at the end of the book. I don't feel like you can decide to love your body purely out of spite for someone else. That may be the catalyst, but the full level of insecurity wouldn't disappear that quickly IMO.

Otherwise, I really did enjoy reading the novel and it reminded me of the beauty in all women regardless of body shape. Plus, the steamy scenes were smoking hot. :)  This book is appropriate for 17+ woman who enjoy romance novels, but also want some depth to their plots.

Author Bio:

Alessandra Thomas is a New Adult writer who swears she was in her twenties yesterday. Since she's not, she spends her time looking back on her college years fondly, and writing sexy stories about guys and
girls falling in love and really living life for the first time. When she's not writing, you can find her with a spoonful of ice cream in one hand and the newest New Adult release in the other.

Links:

Goodreads  |  Twitter  |  Facebook

And now for the giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

BACK TO BATAAN Blog Tour

Don't you just love this cover?  It grabbed me immediately, and then I say the MC's last name is Dalton (my maiden name) and I was like, yeah, I've gotta read this one.  Before I get into my review though, let me tell you about the contest going on ...


BLOGGER PRIZE - Change your Facebook or Twitter profile picture to the cover of Back to Bataan and be entered for a $50 cash drawing. It could be anytime between June 26, 2012 and September 30, 2012, and must be up for at least a 24 hour period. In order to be eligible, please email info@tribute-books.com that your profile picture has been changed so that we can confirm it.

Back to Bataan Summary

New York City, 1943. War is raging in Europe and the Pacific, while Jack Dalton is stuck attending Dutch Masters Day School. What Jack really wants is to enlist in the army, to fight...


Everything changes when Coco, Jack's "fiancee," throws him over for one of his classmates. Jack sees red and does something drastic. Then he runs away. Hiding out in a nearby park, Jack joins ranks with a group of vagrants and is soon under the sway of a man called the Leader, an ex-convict who is as articulate and charismatic as he is dangerous. The Leader turns Jack's world upside down. To put things right, Jack must prove himself a braver soldier than he ever imagined.

My Review:  *Note* The publisher provided me with an e-copy of the novel in exchange for my honest review.


I've got to say that I feel a bit misled about this book.  First of all, the cover is clearly YA.  The description of a boy who has a "fiancee" and wants to fight in the war is YA.  The main character, however, is ELEVEN.  For those of you listening, eleven is not YA.  Eleven is MG and so my expectations did not match up with the reality of this book.


Which is not to say that Back to Bataan is a bad book.  It's just not what I expected.  The whole time I read it, I felt like I was back in high school, reading some classic like Catcher in the Rye.  It was a nice, short little novel and had a character who found redemption in a very interesting way (and with some unlikely allies).  


It was one of those novels that I liked more as I read it, but ultimately, it just wasn't my style of book.  When I read, I'm looking for a fun outlet, not the next classic in the making.  If you, however, have more sophisticated tastes when it comes to reading, then by all means, check it out.  Just know what to expect going in, because it's not YA, and (despite the couple on the cover), there's no romance either.


Jerome Charyn's Bio:

Jerome Charyn (born May 13, 1937) is an award-winning American author. With nearly 50 published works, Charyn has earned a long-standing reputation as an inventive and prolific chronicler of real and imagined American life. Michael Chabon calls him “one of the most important writers in American literature.”

New York Newsday hailed Charyn as “a contemporary American Balzac,” and the Los Angeles Times described him as “absolutely unique among American writers.”

Since 1964, he has published 30 novels, three memoirs, eight graphic novels, two books about film, short stories, plays and works of non-fiction. Two of his memoirs were named New York Times Book of the Year. Charyn has been a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. He received the Rosenthal Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and has been named Commander of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture.

Charyn lives in Paris and New York City.

eBook
ISBN: 9780985792206
ISBN: 9781476119076
Pages: 98
Release: July 1, 2012

• Kindle buy link - $2.99
• Nook buy link - $4.95
• iBookstore buy link - $4.99
• Google buy link - $3.79
• Smashwords buy link - $4.99
• PDF buy link - $4.95

Flutter of Luv Blog Tour: Guest Post on Harsh Realities

DRUGS? TEENS? And YA BOOKS by L.M. Preston, author of Flutter of Luv

Believe it or not, even though, FLUTTER OF LUV, isn’t about drugs, there are hints within my short story that show it as a real reality for teens.

Drugs and teens are a typical satire for many movies, shows and books. As a teen I dealt with the issues of drugs, sex, race issues, crime, gangs, teen pregnancy and diet issues. Those were real and difficult issues for me. Truth is, I really didn’t need a book to tell me about gangs – I lived where gangs were. I didn’t need a book to tell me about drugs, I lived around tons of drug addicts and alcohol.  But you know what I needed books for? To show me that I wasn’t alone, that there were other kids that handled these same issues differently. Some kids did it better, some kids suffered and failed, others succeeded. Books gave me that resource, and a safe haven to experience the things I’d seen an to process them.

YEAH, BUT REAL LIFE IS DIFFERENT

Real life is different. No book yet that I have read can really depict the things I experienced and have seen firsthand growing up. Truthfully, living it hurts. But reading it gives us insight without the pain.

I’m talking about this now since I have a young family member going through the effects of drug experimentation. The effects are being placed in a controlled environment in hopes of rehabilitation. The kid didn’t grow up seeing firsthand the effects of drugs. Bypassing crack heads as he walked to the corner store like I did. Maybe, just maybe if he’d seen that reality, he would have thought twice before he opened pandora’s box.

Writing Flutter Of Luv allowed me to  express a bit of my experiences from growing up around all of those challenges and show sho many  of us get desensitized  to those instances.

by: LM Preston, www.lmpreston.com

MY REVIEW:

My thanks to L.M., who provided me with a copy of Flutter of Luv in exchange for my honest review.  But first, the book summary:

Dawn, the neighborhood tomboy, is happy to be her best friend’s shadow. Acceptance comes from playing football after school with the guys on the block while hiding safely behind her glasses, braces, and boyish ways. But Tony moves in, becomes the star Running Back on her school’s football team, and changes her world and her view of herself forever.

This is a short story told in ten episodes similar to an anthology of short stories over the course of Dawn’s and Tony’s realization of how much they mean to one another.

  

This was a really nice short story. 

As someone who lacked both money and a chest growing up, I could really relate to Dawn. Her insecurities felt very real and some of the crap she had to endure really hit home. I applaud LM Preston for giving us a realistic view into Dawn's life, both the good sides and the bad.

And I also really enjoyed how the story was told in episodes, so we didn't have to read about the times in Dawn's life where nothing much different was happening and she was just left to pine over Tony. 

I wish I had seen a little more of the love story developing in the sense of seeing a deeper connection between Dawn and Tony though. Don't get me wrong, Tony did some cute things along the way to show us he was falling for Dawn, but being a hopeless romantic, I needed more to give this story a full 5 stars. [I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads.] If you aren't a fanatic about romanticism, then you probably won't have the same issue as I did at all. ;)

So now that you want to read the book and join LM on her launch party festivities, here's how:

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Flutter-Of-Luv-ebook/dp/B0088ELXE2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340973462&sr=8-1&keywords=flutter+of+luv#_

Twitter Party:

Friday, July 27th, 5pm - 6pm, use hashtag #FlutterOfLuv and follow @Lm_Preston

Facebook Party:

Saturday, July 28th,  12pm-9pm EST

http://www.facebook.com/events/340720479326022/?context=create

Blog Tour Stops:

LM Preston’s Ramblings - 7/13/2012

http://lmpreston.blogspot.com

Indies Unlimited - 7/13/2012

http://www.indiesunlimited.com/

A Little Bit Of R&R - 7/13/2012

http://www.alittlebitofrnrreviews.com

Doreen McGettigan - 7/17/2012

http://doreenmcgettigan.com/

Writer’s Alley - 7/17/2012

http://writersally.blogspot.com/

I Want To Read That - 7/18/2012

http://www.iwanttoreadthat.com/

Cheryl Rainfield - 7/18/2012

http://cherylrainfield.com/blog/

The Daily Harrell - 7/19/2012

http://jessie-harrell.blogspot.com/

Word Forge Books - 7/20/2012

http://wordforgebooks.com/blog/

Searching For An Escape - 7/21/2012

http://www.officialmhafh.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/MHAFH

The Write Game - 7/23/2012

http://writegame.blogspot.com/

Stephen Penner - 7/24/2012

http://stephenpenner.blogspot.com/

Black Words White Pages - 7/26/2012

http://www.blackwords-whitepages.blogspot.com

Curiosity Key - 7/27/2012

http://www.curiositykey.blogspot.com/

SomeoneWhoActuallyCares - 7/27/2012

http://someonewhoactuallycares.blogspot.com/

LM Preston’s Ramblings - 7/28/2012

http://lmpreston.blogspot.com

Tribute Books Reviews & Giveaways - 7/23/2012

http://tributebooksreviews.blogspot.com/

Tribute Books Mama - 7/24/2012

http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/

The Character Connection - 7/25/2012

http://thecharacterconnection.blogspot.com/

The Plot Thickens - 7/26/2012

http://theplotthickensbookblog.blogspot.com/

City Girl Who Loved To Read - 7/27/2012

http://citygirlwholovestoread.blogspot.com/

Advance Review: WANDERLOVE by Kirsten Hubbard

Releasing March 13, 2012

**Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me an advance galley. Receiving a free copy has in no way influenced this review.**

It all begins with a stupid question: 

Are you a Global Vagabond? 

No, but 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path. 

Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages, remote Belizean islands, and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward. 

But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. If she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back. 

Kirsten Hubbard lends her artistry into this ultimate backpacker novel, weaving her drawings into the text. Her career as a travel writer and her experiences as a real-life vagabond backpacking Central America are deeply seeded in this inspiring story.


I absolutely love the premise of this novel.  I have some wanderlust myself (but was never brave enough to backpack anywhere), so everything about this novel called to me.  I loved how Bria thought she was going to be part of this group of beautiful young people and ended up on a tour filled with old people.  Can't you totally imagine this happening?  Isn't that like one of our worst fears about a tour like that?

Anyway, I also loved how we gradually unraveled the pain Bria carries with her.  And her mistakes.  Bria grows so much during her two weeks abroad, but in a very realistic way.  We gradually see her forced out of her protective wall and learn to take control of her own life (and fate).

Better yet, her adventures along the way are awesome and authentic.  Having read this after I just returned from Belize, I recognized so many of the placed described in the novel.  And the author's/Bria's illustrations (like a sketch book), just add to the feeling that you're really on this trip with Bria.

Last, I enjoyed the slowly-developing relationship between Bria and Rowan.  This novel was not your typical girl and boy are instantly drawn to each other the moment they lock eyes love story.  Their relationship happened organically and believably.

If you enjoy realistic contemporary fiction, with a bit of travel and self-discovery, I highly recommend Wanderlove.  Enjoy!!

Review: Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson

I loved the premise of this novel, and I love travel (especially in Italy), so the premise of this story had me hooked from the get-go.

Three days before her drama club's trip to Italy, Jessa Gardner discovers her boyfriend in the costume barn with another girl. Jessa is left with a care package from her best friend titled "Top Twenty Reasons He's a Slimy Jerk Bastard," instructing her to do one un-Jessa-like thing each day of the trip. At turns hilarious and heartwrenching, Instructions for a Broken Heart paints a magical Italy in which Jessa learns she must figure out life-and romance-for herself.

The writing is wonderful and I got sucked into Jessa's world very quickly.  I loved all the details we got about the different Italian cities that Jessa's class traveled to.  As seen through Jessa's eyes, the Italian countryside has this almost magical glow that played with and impacted her moods.

While there were many times that I wanted to cry right along with Jessa (I mean, her ex keeps making out with the other girl, a/k/a"Boob Job" right in front of her after all, and she keeps following the instructions to the point of absurdity sometimes), the novel had many light moments too.  Jessa's drama club is balanced out by a companion class of rich kids who apparently came to Italy only for the fashion and ask inane questions all the time.

And Jessa isn't alone on the trip, interacting with many of her classmates in ways that enlightened her and that forced her to be a better person by the time it was over.  She also had a kick-butt best guy friend who watched out for her when she was hurting too bad to look after herself.  I thought he might end up as a potential love interest, but he stayed platonic, which was nice to see.  We don't have to have every boy-girl friendship develop into a love that lasts forever... (oh, who am I kidding -- I really like those stories).

The teachers on Jessa's trip are awesome too.  Great characters who play a meaningful role without being overbearing at all.  And they have the best One Rule ever: "don't be a jerk." We have a new credo in our family now because really, if you follow that one rule, you're pretty much going to stay out of trouble.

But really, the story is about Jessa. About how you have to mend a broken heart on your own. About how even "slimy jerk bastards" have their redeeming qualities, and the boyfriend-stealing vixens aren't as bad as you thought.  And how you have to keep your chin up if you're going to notice the good things just waiting for you to come along.  

A light and well-paced read, I give Instructions for a Broken Heart 3 out of 4 Greek Coins -- a URA* rating.

Fans of contemporary YA who enjoy reading a good emotional arc in their main characters will want to pick this one up.

Book Review: DAEMONS IN THE MIST by Alicia Kat Dillman

Finally getting the girl of your dreams; what could possibly go wrong?

I received a free copy of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review. I met Kat on twitter and really didn't know what to expect from the novel. I knew it had a super-cool cover that Kat drew herself, and that there'd be love story at the heart of it, but the rest was a surprise. And what a pleasant surprise it was!

She could have been a perfectly normal, albeit a breathtakingly beautiful girl, but she wasn’t, for I knew there were secrets hidden behind her eyes.

Seventeen year old Patrick Connolly has been drawn to Nualla ever since he first saw her, but as the years pass she seems to take absolutely no notice of him. Until, that is, he rescues her from a confrontation in the school hallway. Little does he know that he’s about to be thrust into a world of life altering secrets and things that shouldn’t exist, because the fog and mist of San Francisco is concealing more than just buildings.

Deliriously captivating and extraordinarily soulful, Daemons in the Mist beautifully weaves together two voices to tell the story of what happens when life leads you down a not so normal path.

I didn't immediately love the book because it started off a little heavy on the telling. But by a few chapters in, I was engrossed with Nualla and Patrick's story. The novel is written in their alternate points of view, which I happen to have a particular weakness for (think Destined).

In short, you have a guy who sticks up for a girl when her ex-boyfriend is bullying her, and that wins her heart. When a chance meeting at the mall brings them back together that Friday night, Nualla convinces Patrick to join her & her friends on a spur of the moment trip to Vegas. And you know what happens when teens with fake IDs get hammered in Vegas and mention marriage... Yep, everything unwinds from there. But what was really cool was that once back in San Fran, Nualla & Patrick do the whole dating/falling in love thing. So it's not like we miss that step because of a mistake the characters make. Their relationship is still very well-developed.

Another thing I really enjoyed were all the twists and turns. I love when I don't see an ending coming, and this book had loads of surprises. I also liked that there was a happy ending but not a perfect ending. I thought the author did a great job with that.

Also, the secondary characters were awesome. It bothered me a little bit that Nualla referred to her patents by their first names given how close they all were, but the parents were still great characters. I also felt like a got to know both Nualla and Patrick's circle of friends, both of which groups felt real to me.

The one thing that bothered me throughout was the typos and grammatical errors. Despite these problems, though, the story line was so engrossing that I was able to overlook the flaws.

Bottom line: I give Daemons in the Mist 3.5 out of 4 Greek coins - a URA*+rating. If you like a great YA love story with paranormal elements and a fast-moving plot, check out this novel. A sequel and an illustrated version are also due out soon.

To get your own copy, check out Amazon or Barnes & Noble (for Nook owners).  You can also explore these other links:

Author site: http://www.katgirlstudio.com/
Author page for this book: 
http://www.katgirlstudio.com/books/young-adult/daemons-in-the-mist/
The publisher's page for this book:
 http://www.koratpublishing.com/our-books/daemons-in-the-mist/

Review: SPELLBOUND by Cara Lynn Shultz

Gotta say -- I wasn't expecting all that much when I started Spellbound.  Mostly because by the time I got around to reading it (thanks, Netgalley!), I'd forgotten what it was supposed to be about.  OMG - I was in for such an awesome surprise.  I loved this book.

What's a girl to do when meeting The One means she's cursed to die a horrible death?

Life hasn't been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Conner, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she's irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks and the richest kid in school, who might just be her very own white knight.

But even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can't stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps go out wherever she walks, and Emma's been having the oddest dreams: visions of herself in past lives—visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else.

Here's what's funny... since I was just coming off reading Always a Witch (and not remembering the premise), I kept thinking that Emma was going to be a witch.  About a third of the way through the book, when there was still no indication that Emma was going to cast a spell, I started wondering what was up.  Ok, as you can probably tell from the synopsis that I've just given you, Emma is not a witch, but she's been BOUND by a SPELL to love the same person life after life. The catch, of course, is that soon after finding her soul mate, she's doomed to die.

The book largely revolves around Emma and an unexpected friend trying to figure out why all the mysterious things are happening in her life. Exploding streetlight, necklaces with ancient meanings, etc. But there's also the chemistry with Brendan, who's a great guy (and totally hot). There were definitely some toe-curling romance scenes between the two of them. So on the global level, I loved the plot, since it combined romance/reincarnation/soulmates with mystery.

On the micro level, I also really liked how the book dealt with some serious teen issues.  For example, Emma has her reasons for not liking alcohol, but it doesn't make her such a prude that she refuses a beer when offered to her. She just acts in moderation, without being preachy, and in a way that I perceived as very realistic.  There's also a case of an almost-date-rape where the victim is further victimized following the attack. I loved how Emma stood up to the bully (even if that wasn't her smartest move ever) and how we got to see some realistic high school drama and rumors.  I know these can be touchy subjects in YA, but they happen and I think it's good to see them portrayed realistically.  Certainly the alcohol wasn't glamorized, but it wasn't ignored either.  I thought it was very well-done.

Overall, I give Spellbound 4 out of 4 Greek coins -- an OMG! rating.  If you love reincarnation and romance and all that good stuff like I do, I think you'll also fall pretty hard for this book.  I'll be anxiously awaiting the sequel next year!

Added bonus -- Cara Lynn Shultz is an absolute sweetheart on twitter.  So start following her.

Review: MOONGLASS by Jessi Kirby

As you may have gleaned from the types of books I read, I'm not as big into contemporary novels as I am paranormal/UF, but I loved the past few I've read (Where She Went and Anna and the French Kiss), and since I used to collect beach glass as a teen (who am I kidding, I still do), MOONGLASS seemed like a must-read for me.

I read once that water is a symbol for emotions. And for a while now, I've thought maybe my mother drowned in both.

Anna's life is upended when her father accepts a job transfer the summer before her junior year. It's bad enough that she has to leave her friends and her life behind, but her dad is moving them to the beach where her parents first met and fell in love- a place awash in memories that Anna would just as soon leave under the surface.

While life on the beach is pretty great, with ocean views and one adorable lifeguard in particular, there are also family secrets that were buried along the shore years ago. And the ebb and flow of the ocean's tide means that nothing- not the sea glass that she collects on the sand and not the truths behind Anna's mother's death- stays buried forever.

There were some things I absolutely loved about this book.  The way Anna's mother's death was slowly explained, so we could understand the true tragedy of it right along with Anna.  The relationship between Anna and her father felt very real and I loved that they were able to grow together when Anna was finally brave enough to face the truth.  I loved how brave and strong Anna was on the surface (cliff diving, cross country running), but that she was still vulnerable on the inside and we got to see that too.

I also liked the fact that Anna really pursued the guy she was interested in, but not in the way it seems to happen in paranormal (you know, that draw where the characters can't stay away from each other).  This seemed more realistic.  She saw a cute life guard, decided she wanted to date him, and then kept putting herself in situations where they'd be around each other.  While Tyler did put her off for awhile (Anna's dad is his boss, after all), and he seemed a little cocky, it all felt very real to me.  I liked that.

The only thing that bugged me was the portrayal of Anna's first new friend, Ashley.  Now, let me just say that based on the Goodreads reviews, A LOT of people liked Ashley so I may be totally alone in this peeve.  But she was this really wealthy girl who was so clueless that she says hurtful things without realizing it's hurtful (like telling Anna she should diet in addition to exercise because imagine how good she'd look then), but turned out to have this generous heart and showered her friends with gifts. 

I'm pretty sure I get what the author was trying to do here, which is show that not all spoiled rich girls are mean, stuck-up snobs.  And that's admirable.  We see too much of that stereotype in YA.  My problem was that these two personality traits just seemed too much in conflict to me.  And this is totally based on my own personal experience.  I know a girl who says the clueless hurtful things, and I know wealthy women who love to give their friends gifts. And those two personalities do not intersect at all.  But really, that was the only thing I didn't love -- and with something so minor, it definitely shouldn't keep you from reading the book.  At let me assure you, the ending is awesome and you will love it.

Overall, I give MOONGLASS 3 out of 4 Greek coins -- a URA* rating.  If you like realistic, issue-based contemporary with a splash of romance, this is the novel for you.

Review: HOURGLASS by Myra McEntire

I'll admit -- I was spellbound by the cover and by Myra's sweet personality, so I've been itching to read this book for a long time even though I had no idea what a "time slip novel" was.  It was another awesome read that I got to soak up on my vacation and I really, really liked it.

One hour to rewrite the past . . . 
 
For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?
 

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.

Emerson wasn't a character that I immediately loved.  She was a little too grumpy and didn't seem to enjoy her cool gift of being able to see people from the past.  Then we find out why, and Emerson grows into this girl who I wanted to be friends with.  She's smart and sassy and has some really cool people in her life who support her.  Her biggest fault IMO was how headstrong she was -- if someone asked her not to do something, she barely paused before doing it anyway.

Then Michael enters the picture.  Now I know, that whole "electric charge" running between them might seem cliche, but you've not seen it like this before -- a real, light bulb-breaking charge that pulses to life whenever they touch.  I'd say break out the candles (since the light bulbs have all exploded), but Michael continues to push Em away even as we as readers sense that he wants to be with her.  We know he's keeping secrets, but we still inherently root for the two of them to get together.

I don't want to give away any spoilers, so it's hard for me to really get into the plot too much.  The bottom line is that Em is the last key needed to time travel into the past to stop a murder -- and that not everyone we meet along the way is as good or as bad as they might first appear.  The plot has some major twists at the end and while your heart will be wrenched out at times, the novel concludes wonderfully.

Even if sci-fi isn't your thing (it's not typically mine), if you like UF or paranormal, you should really enjoy Hourglass.  Since the time travel aspects are embedded into each character's personality (much like magic would be for a witch or shifting would be for a were), this novel doesn't have a back-to-the-future, load-up-the-time-machine feel to it at all. (Rejoicing!)

I give this novel 3 out of 4 Greek coins -- a URA* rating.  I'd heartily recommend it to anyone who loves paranormal YA.