Thursday, August 29, 2013

Blog Tour: The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard


The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard 
(The Danaan Trilogy #1) 
Publication date: April 30th 2013 
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult


Synopsis:
Allison O’Malley’s plan is to go to grad school so she can get a good job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She has carefully closed herself off from everything else, including a relationship with Ethan, who she’s been in love with for as long as she can remember.

What is definitely not part of the plan is the return of her long-lost father, who claims he can bring Allison’s mother back from the dark place her mind has gone. Allison doesn’t trust her father, so why would she believe his stories about a long forgotten Irish people, the Tuatha de Danaan? But truths have a way of revealing themselves. Secrets will eventually surface. And Allison must learn to set aside her plan and work with her father if there is even a small chance it could restore her mother’s sanity.


Author Bio:
Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.


My Review:
The Forgotten Ones is a light and entertaining read about a girl named Allison. Her mother is schizophrenic and her ultimate plan is to take care of her so that her grandparents won’t have to. Allison blames herself for her mother being schizophrenic because she was normal before her mother gave birth to her. Allison starts noticing strange things and all of a sudden her father comes and informs her that he will do anything he can to cure her mother.

The first part of the book was more a contemporary romance. We learn that Allison has always been in love with Ethan since they were children. Ethan also has feelings for Allison, but she has been keeping him at arm’s length, like everyone else in her life. I still don’t really understand why Allison kept pushing him away before she found out about her Fae heritage. I think the excuse was a poor one.

I thought Allison had some great qualities about her. She was brave in wanting to take care of her mother and trying to save her and the ones she loved. She did what she had to do in order to make sure everyone was ok. I also liked Ethan. I felt bad for him every time Allison blew him off. I liked the way he handled himself, he kind of made it into a game so that Allison would go out with him. But I have to say my favourite character would be Aodhan. He seems badass and I sensed he has some feelings for Allison and that’s one of the reasons he helped her. I liked how he doesn’t conform to anyone, especially not the king and queen of the Fae. He will do what he wants on his own terms. There is also this rare intensity about him. I hope we see him more in the second book.

The second half of the book is faster paced. Allison has to go the Tir Na Nog. The Fae she meets are definitely interesting to say the least. I would like to learn more about the history of some of the characters and how they got to be the way they are now. I would also like to learn more about the Fae customs and mentality. I thought the book was a little short and I found just when I was getting hooked, it ended abruptly for me. When meeting the fae, the names were hard to remember and I couldn’t remember who was who. I found I had to skip over most of the names.

The Forgotten Ones is an adventurous read with some romance. I would recommend this story to anyone who loves fantasy novels.


My Rating:
3 out of 5 stars



Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday (23)

Tandem (Many-Worlds Trilogy #1) by Anna Jarzab

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I love the cover of this book. As soon as I read the last line in the synopsis I knew I wanted to read this book. It sounds intriguing and I am looking forward to it.

Expected Publication Date: October 8, 2013

Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)
Everything repeats.
You. Your best friend. Every person you know.
Many worlds. Many lives--infinite possibilities.

Welcome to the multiverse.

Sixteen-year-old Sasha Lawson has only ever known one small, ordinary life. When she was young, she loved her grandfather's stories of parallel worlds inhabited by girls who looked like her but led totally different lives. Sasha never believed such worlds were real--until now, when she finds herself thrust into one against her will.

To prevent imminent war, Sasha must slip into the life of an alternate version of herself, a princess who has vanished on the eve of her arranged marriage. If Sasha succeeds in fooling everyone, she will be returned home; if she fails, she'll be trapped in another girl's life forever. As time runs out, Sasha finds herself torn between two worlds, two lives, and two young men vying for her love--one who knows her secret, and one who thinks she's someone she's not.

The first book in the Many-Worlds Trilogy, Tandem is a riveting saga of love and betrayal set in parallel universes in which nothing--and no one--is what it seems.


I would love to hear from you!

Raquel
xoxo

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Review: Lick (Stage Dive #1) by Kylie Scott


Title: Lick (Stage Dive #1)
Author: Kylie Scott
Release Date: July 1, 2013
Publisher: Momemtum
Pages: 286
Source: Bought from Amazon/Kindle



Synopsis: (Taken from Goodreads)
Waking up in Vegas was never meant to be like this.

Evelyn Thomas’s plans for celebrating her twenty-first birthday in Las Vegas were big. Huge. But she sure as hell never meant to wake up on the bathroom floor with a hangover to rival the black plague, a very attractive half-naked tattooed man, and a diamond on her finger large enough to scare King Kong. Now if she could just remember how it all happened.

One thing is for certain, being married to rock and roll’s favourite son is sure to be a wild ride.


My Thoughts:
Lick was an addiction for me the 2 days I read it. If I could have blown off work to read it, I would have but unfortunately I could not or else I would have finished the book in 1 day. I was reading this book all through work because I just could not get enough. It was so good.

We start off with Evelyn waking up in a strange place, hung over in Vegas. This is where she first meets David (well when she wasn’t drunk) and she notices a huge diamond ring on her finger. David then tells her that they got married. Evelyn doesn’t remember getting married and most of that night. Evelyn and David must decide if they should give the marriage a chance or get an annulment.

I think my favourite part of the story is the fact that after meeting Evelyn once and spending time with her, David knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her; something as romantic as that, hardly ever happens in real life. David blew my break away. When he cares about someone, he will do anything to make them happy. He is extremely hot, kind, sincere and persistent. Once he sees what he wants he goes out and gets it, no matter what. Also he is very romantic. I love that he takes Evelyn for what she is it doesn’t matter to him if she was fat, and have a big butt or curves. He will love her for who she is, not just her body. I liked Evelyn. She is kind, smart and knows when to stand up for herself. She is shy at times to voice her opinion but she knows how to take care of herself. I found the chemistry between David and Evelyn to be electric. Their sex scenes were HOT. They are the opposite of each other but they work. They make sense.

At about 65-70% in the book, a twist I didn’t expect happened and I was tearing up. Everything else in Lick was pretty much predictable but the book was still so good. I found that the book could also use a little bit of editing then it would be perfect.

Mal was another of my favourite characters in Lick. I found myself laughing out loud when he was around. I am really looking forward to his book and the woman that tames him. Lick is an unconventional love story that will make you swoon. I think everyone should read it.


My Rating:
4.5 stars
Raquel
xoxo