HIT by Delilah S. Dawson / RODIN'S LOVER by Heather Webb

My Review of HIT by Delilah S. Dawson:




OMG. Found this on PulseIt and devoured this in one sitting while I was supposed to be working. Fast paced and full of perfect details and so amazing. Love Patsy and Wyatt and the dog, OMG the dog. All the feels. I loved this book. I need the next one now. All the stars. All the stars. I can't recommend this book enough.

Find it on Amazon or for more link go to Goodreads for more links.




My Review of RODIN'S LOVER by Heather Webb:



Last year, Ms. Webb made her debut with BECOMING JOSPHINE and I didn't even know I liked historicals until I picked it up. It was one of my favorite books last year. RODIN'S LOVER is just as brilliantly written. She picks the most fascinating subjects and writes a perfect story. Yes, I gush. Ms. Webb weaves a compelling narrative. It shoved me into Camille Claudel's life and forced me to turn the pages. I highly recommend to reader of historical fiction, historical romance, and anyone who loves a well-told story. This one gets all the stars. *****

Find it on Amazon or go to Goodreads for more links.

As always, I hope my reviews helps books find happy grabby hands so let me know if you pick it up and what you think about it. Also, I'm always looking for recommendations. Leave me a comment if you'd like to share.

Happy reading,
Chelly

HOW TO PUNISH YOUR PLAYBOY by Mina Vaughn:

My review of HOW TO PUNISH YOUR PLAYBOY by Mina Vaughn:



HOW TO PUNISH YOU PLAYBOY is book 3 in Mina Vaughn's DommeNation series. Mistress of 'Kink with a Wink', Mina's books never disappoint. This is a fun, fast read with lots of feels and plenty of hot, hot, hot moments. Veronika is a pinup. Aston is a chef. There's bondage and did I mention the smokin' hot sex? Add a road trip to Vegas, a jealous ex, and sexy cars and you've got a recipe for a delicious read. ****

Find it here: Amazon or for more links, head over to Goodreads for more links. I was provided a free copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As always, I hope my reviews helps books find happy grabby hands so let me know if you pick it up and what you think about it. :)

Happy reading,
Chelly

P.S. Drop me a comment with recommendations.

DYING FOR HER by Kory M. Shrum:

My Review of DYING FOR HER by Kory M. Shrum:



DYING FOR HER is the third book in the Jesse Sullivan series. I fell in love with the premise from book one. Jesse is a necronite, meaning she has NRD, a condition that allows her to die and wake up again. Without giving too much away, Jesse is part of a government program where people with NRD are paired with remote viewers--people who can see the future. The remote viewers--AMPs--foretell when people will die, and Jesse takes their place, dying so they don't have to.

It's hard to define books one and two without spurting a bunch of spoilery spoilers, so I won't. Just read them.

This book takes a step back, throws us into the head of Brinkley, Jesse's handler. Gloria, an AMP, foretells Brinkley's death, and we get to see his take on the journey that placed Jesse on her current path.

Books one and two, I read for premise alone. Yes, the characters were fun and Jesse is just the right amount of snarky, but they relied a little too heavily on telling, and I found it hard to connect. The premise, the action, forced me to pound through to the end. This one, sigh. I love Brinkley's voice. Everything is there on the page. All the squishy, messy feels. I tore through this book in two days. Let it perk for a few days, and read it again. Again. It's fleshed out in the best possible way. Brinkley. Gloria. The camaraderie between them is perfect. I would say more but I detest spoilery in reviews, so just read it. *****

The first book: DYING BY THE HOUR is free right now at Amazon. If you're already caught up on the series then you need DYING FOR HER because it's the best in the series so far, in my opinion and I give it all the stars. I was provided a free copy by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Leave a comment and let me know what you think. And here are more links:

Amazon
Nook
Smashwords
Kobo
iBooks

Happy reading,
Chelly

P.S. I'm one of those people who will thank you if you point out typos. :)

THE STRANGLER VINE by M.J. Carter / EASY TOYS TO CROCHET by Claire Garland / TAINTED BLOOD by Karen Greco

Here are some of my reads for March:



THE STRANGLER VINE by M.J. Carter:

This is my favorite read this month. I picked this up because of the cover. Something about it spoke to me, and good thing since it isn't the type of book I'd normally give a second glance. Exotic location. Check. Lush description. Check. Action. Check. Mystery. Check. This one checks off all the boxes. The voice is compelling. The writing is so well done that I didn't care that there were foreign words because I could grasp from context what the narrator was describing. And the characters. Wow. So clearly drawn. Fully-fleshed and alive on the page. I got to the last page and wanted to keep reading. This one is going on the keeper shelf and gets all the stars. *****

Find it at Goodreads or Amazon. It might still be on NetGalley, which provided a free copy in exchange for this honest review.


EASY TO CROCHET TOYS by Claire Garland:

This book is adorable. The crafts are super-cute and, I've only worked up one of the patterns so far, but it worked up fast and my 3yo loves it. Next to make some clothes. The only downside, and seriously, it's not a downside, is that my girls want everything in the book. I'm helping my 11yo with the basics so she can make a few things on her own. I will definitely recommend this for crafters. The toys are perfect for keeping little ones busy and also, if I can hide them from my own kids, will make great gifts. ****

Find it here:  Amazon    or    Goodreads    or   NetGalley, which provided a free copy in exchange for this honest review.


TAINTED BLOOD by Karen Greco:

Sorry to say I didn't love this book. The premise had all the things I love. Urban Fantasy. Kick-ass chick with attitude. A different take on a genre trope. But. But. But. I make it to about 40%, hoping it would get better, and couldn't finish it. I couldn't connect with the voice and the craft just isn't there yet. This is the second book in the series, and--full disclosure--I haven't read the first, however, there is so much backstory pumped into this novel that I don't need to. There's backstory about backstory. It seems the author wants to make sure every detail is clearly stated and thus feels the need to repeat herself often. It became very tedious to slog through it. There is action, but it's mostly telling and peppered with adverbs. The premise holds a lot of promise, but I can't recommend this book. *

If you want to give it a try, you can find it at Amazon or check NetGalley, which is where I received a free copy in exchange for this honest review.

I read a lot of books and try to review as many as I can, but some books don't seem to warrant their own post, and sometimes I receive free books in exchange for an honest review and I don't love them, so I lump them together with other reviews because I don't, as a habit, like to shine a spotlight on books I didn't like. As easy as it is to write up a scathing review, someone put a lot of hard work into crafting those pages and I don't see the point in stomping all over it to get a laugh. Period.

Do you leave reviews for books you don't like? How do you handle it when you read a book authored by someone you know and you don't love it, or worse, you hate it?

On a happier note, what are your favorite reads for March? I'm always looking for recommendations. Leave me a comment if you'd like to share.

Happy reading,
Chelly

My review of GRACED by Amanda Pillar

The premise carries this story very well. The characters are alive on the page. The MC, Elle is tough and likable. The different classes, vampires, humans, and werewolves are clearly defined. Adding in a new class, the graced, makes this story stand out. The author does a good job with the romance between Elle and Clay. I liked the witty back and forth. Every now and then there was a splash of dialog that didn't work for me, but overall I really liked the story. The only major flaw, for me, obvi My review of GRACED by Amanda Pillar: GRACED is a new twist on the same old vampire/werewolf trope, where a separate class of humans, The Graced, distinguishable by their eye colors, are hiding their supernatural powers from vampires and werewolves who have a higher standing in society. I think the premise carries this story very well. The MC, Elle is tough and likable. The characters are alive on the page. The different classes--vampires, humans, and werewolves are clearly defined. Adding in a new class, the graced, makes this story stand out for me. The author does a good job with the romance between Elle and Clay. I liked their witty back and forth. Every now and then there was a splash of dialog that didn't work for me, but overall I really enjoyed this story. The only major flaw, for me, obviously, since it's entirely subjective, is that all the sex is behind closed doors, which I wasn't expecting based on the genre. Otherwise, a very good read and I will definitely recommend it. I give this 3.5 glittering stars and, in the spirit of fairness, I've rounded up my rating on review sites, since they don't do half stars and my biggest complaint was the lack of sex. So, clearly I like to see the sex. I think a well-written sex scene helps to show the relationship growing (ha. ha.) between two characters, especially during the beginning of the relationship. How do you like your romance? Sex on the page? Off the page? Does explicit sex make you cringe or do you seek out books with a super-steamy rating? How do you like your book sex? Very curious to see how everyone else feels about this. Check it out for yourself. Find GRACED on Goodreads or Amazon. It's also on NetGalley, which provided a free copy in exchange for this honest review. Happy reading, Chelly

My Review of THE AWESOME by Eva Darrows:

My Review of THE AWESOME by Eva Darrows:

Wow. Holy expletives, Batman.

Love the voice in this one. It was a wild ride from start to finish. So perfectly irreverent and plenty of feels.

The world is unique and the characters are fully-fleshed. The character's actions felt true to YA and the genre. Every now and then, there was the maybe-trying-too-hard factor--a few extra words to push the idea over the top--but it didn't detract from the story.

Research-wise, Glock's don't have safeties, but maybe that will be corrected before the official publication. Otherwise, this is an awesome read so the title is incredibly fitting and I will recommend the fuck out of it.

I give it 4 1/2 glorious fucking stars and will add Eva Darrows to my must-read list.

Find it here: Goodreads which has all the usual links. NetGalley provided a copy in exchange for an honest review and I honestly loved it, so go buy it now.

Have you read it? How do you feel about profanity in YA?

Any UF recommendations, YA or adult? I'm always looking for new authors.

Happy reading,
Chelly

BURNED by Karen Marie Moning:

Burned (Fever #7)

by Karen Marie Moning

It’s easy to walk away from lies. Power is another thing.

MacKayla Lane would do anything to save the home she loves. A gifted sidhe-seer, she’s already fought and defeated the deadly Sinsar Dubh—an ancient book of terrible evil—yet its hold on her has never been stronger.

When the wall that protected humans from the seductive, insatiable Fae was destroyed on Halloween, long-imprisoned immortals ravaged the planet. Now Dublin is a war zone with factions battling for control. As the city heats up and the ice left by the Hoar Frost King melts, tempers flare, passions run red-hot, and dangerous lines get crossed. 

Seelie and Unseelie vie for power against nine ancient immortals who have governed Dublin for millennia; a rival band of sidhe-seers invades the city, determined to claim it for their own; Mac’s former protégé and best friend, Dani “Mega” O’Malley, is now her fierce enemy; and even more urgent, Highland druid Christian MacKeltar has been captured by the Crimson Hag and is being driven deeper into Unseelie madness with each passing day. The only one Mac can depend on is the powerful, dangerous immortal Jericho Barrons, but even their fiery bond is tested by betrayal.

It’s a world where staying alive is a constant struggle, the line between good and evil gets blurred, and every alliance comes at a price. In an epic battle against dark forces, Mac must decide who she can trust, and what her survival is ultimately worth.

What I thought: 

The Fever Series is hands-down my favorite series. Period. Barrons is probably the most-perfectly written alpha male in all of forever.

Ms. Moning has mastered the art of delving deep into the layers of a character and making them come alive on the page. They're so real that I freaking dream about them. I've been dying to read this book for two years. In the meantime, there's been so much speculation as to where the series was going.

Reading some of the reviews for book #6 ICED, I see some people were unhappy where Ms. Moning took the series--making Dani the main POV character. Everyone is, of course, entitled to their own opinion, but I didn't see the problem. Yes Dani was 14, yes all the other characters (i.e. the men in the series) are college age or older, but I didn't get the inappropriate vibe at all. I really enjoyed Dani's voice, her spirit, and, let's face it, she's not exactly sheltered, right? But, to me, it didn't feel like a bunch of old dudes were lusting after a teenager.

Onto book #7, BURNED:

Ms. Moning managed to do something here that, I think, most authors struggle with after the two main characters reach their Happily Ever After: there is still tension between Mac and Barrons. A lot of it. Tension is good; it makes the reader want to keep reading. I did.

Some reviewers have raked this book, and its author, over the coals, saying making Mac the main POV character was a sell-out--caving into the almighty dollar. I couldn't disagree more. Is Mac the same ass-kicking girl from book 5? No. Did I expect her to be? No. She's facing the same problem on a different front. If she acted exactly the same, where's the story in that? Could someone else have narrated this book? Good question. I don't see how.

With the exception of one--which I can't give away--none of the story lines are neatly tied with a bow. Because the story isn't over. I like the additional POVs here. They add to the complexity of the narrative and I think they're absolutely necessary for the reader to get the big picture. Did I want more? Yes. I would've like a little more of Dani toward the beginning (no spoilers) and I'm not sure how I feel about the twist at the end, because I saw it coming and was only surprised that Ms. Moning didn't leave it hanging until the next book.

As a whole, I loved this book. I will re-read it, probably multiple times before the next book is released.

I rate it 5 STARS and highly recommend it. If you haven't read books #1 through #6, definitely read them first.

Check it out on Goodreads or BUY IT at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.


Have you read it? I'd love to know what you thought about it?

Happy Reading!
Chelly