Tag Archives: book reviews

May 12 2013
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Coming Soon: Midnight Frost by Jennifer Estep

july 30, estepTitle: Midnight Frost

Author: Jennifer Estep

Series: Mythos Academy #5

Genre: Teen Paranormal Romance

Release Date: July 30, 2013

The Overview: Just when it seems life at Mythos Academy can’t get any more dangerous, the Reapers of Chaos manage to prove me wrong. It was just a typical night at the Library of Antiquities — until a Reaper tried to poison me. The good news is I’m still alive and kicking. The bad news is the Reaper poisoned someone else instead. 

As Nike’s Champion, everyone expects me to lead the charge against the Reapers, even though I’m still hurting over what happened with Spartan warrior Logan Quinn. I’ve got to get my hands on the antidote fast — otherwise, an innocent person will die. But the only known cure is hidden in some creepy ruins — and the Reapers are sure to be waiting for me there …

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Nik’s Notes:

Fans of House of Night should definitely check this series out – it’s a neat hybrid of mythology and paranormal. While book 3 let me down a  bit, I absolutely devoured books 1 and 2 (and thus far, book 4 seems to be redeeming itself). Anyway, it’s a neat concept and I’ve categorized it in my personal “beach-read” favorites list.

May 11 2013
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Book Review: Walking Disaster by Jamie McGuire

A oneTitle: Walking Disaster

Author: Jamie McGuire

Series: Beautiful Disaster (Companion Novel)

Genre: Romance/Fiction

Rating: 4.5/5 stars!

The Overview: Travis Maddox learned two things from his mother before she died: Love hard. Fight harder.

In Walking Disaster, the life of Travis is full of fast women, underground gambling, and violence. But just when he thinks he is invincible, Abby Abernathy brings him to his knees. Every story has two sides. In Beautiful Disaster, Abby had her say. Now it’s time to see the story through Travis’s eyes.

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The Review:

After reading this novel, I’m convinced Jamie McGuire is someone I’m eager to read more from in the future. Her writing style makes you want to stay up all night devouring and her characters make you feel like you’ve known them for years. Walking Disaster was grabbing, and that’s saying something considering I already knew what was going to happen (for those of you who don’t know, it is meant as a companion novel to Beautiful Disaster, following the exact same storyline but from the male lead’s perspective).

Both novels illustrated McGuire’s exceptional writing skills. Not only was the voice in this one a complete contrast, but the observations and emotions she chose to highlight gave it a totally different spin. Even though it was the same basic plot, each character went into situations with different sets of perspective and inner turmoils. All of the issues I had with Abby’s conflicts in the first book were practically nonexistent here because Travis was focused on different things. McGuire managed to make it just as fresh and exciting as the first one, if not more. It kind of blows my mind.

Character development was probably my favorite element of the book. She doesn’t hit you over the head with matter-of-fact statements of each character’s temperament but rather lets them develop organically through their actions. It was really subtle, and she achieved it through compelling dialogue mixed with superb body language and facial expressions. It sounds odd, but the little nuances of physical description really spiced up the characters and overall story.

This is probably the best companion novel I’ve ever read. If you haven’t read the first book, however, it would not be near as compelling. Readers got to know Abby intimately in book one and were able to understand her rationale behind her actions. Not much of that inner dialogue is represented in this book, however, which makes her come off as a self-centered brat. If I didn’t already know and love Abby from her story, I would’ve had a difficult time trying to figure out why Travis found her so appealing.

Recommendations: these books are a little more robust than your average romance novels but I would probably still recommend them to fans of that genre. I would also hand it to anybody looking for a fun, fast read. Fair warning: these books contain a great deal of language and sexual content.

by Niki Hawkes

Other books you might like:

May 10 2013
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Dragon Obsession – The Visual Files

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Cadmus and the Dragon of Ares

by Ciruelo

 I’ll admit that the first couple of times I saw this painting I didn’t even notice the dragon – that sense of discovery I felt when I finally saw it is probably why this is one of my favorites. Not only is it visually stunning, but it evokes in me feelings of everything I love about dragons and fantasy, indicating that magic is all around us even when we aren’t aware of it. The inspiration from this photo is actually the starting point from which I developed a new breed of forest-dwelling dragons in the novel I’m working on. It always gets me in the mood to write when I see it.

My Dragon Obsession files would not have been complete without this one, and it probably won’t be the last Ciruelo picture I post, either – he has some of the best dragon paintings out there. This is the book I snagged it from:

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May 9 2013
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Coming Soon: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

Nov 19Title: The Fiery Heart

Author: Richelle Mead

Series: Bloodlines #4

Genre: Teen Paranormal Romance

Release Date: November 19, 2013

The Overview: In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her. . . .

But the struggle isn’t over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there’s still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure—and re-education—looms larger than ever.

Nov 19

Nik’s Notes:

How excited is everyone else that we don’t have to wait a full year to read this one? This is about the point in the series where the arc of the story takes you on that can’t-catch-your-breath ride to the finale (at least if the VA and Succubus series are anything to go by). These highly character-driven novels are fantastic and I’m betting this is going to be the best one yet! The countdown has begun…

Also, be on the lookout for her latest series (Age of X) available June 4th:

(click the cover to read my review)

Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead (June 4th)

May 8 2013
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Book Review: Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

A oneTitle: Indigo Spell

Author: Richelle Mead

Series: Bloodlines #3

Genre: Teen Paranormal Romance

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch–a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood–or else she might be next.

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The Review:

Okay, okay, I promise this is the last Richelle Mead book I’ll review for a few months – but only because I have finally read everything she’s written. It’s a shame I’m all caught up, too, because these books make my job as a reviewer a whole lot easier. Indigo Spell was so absorbing and well written that I didn’t have time to worry about anything other than just enjoying it. I never once stopped to see how many pages I had left (as I often do with books) and in fact could have continued reading long after the book ended – it was fantastic.

This is a highly character driven novel, and honestly, not much happens with regard to action. Events in this book are more like vehicles to get our characters from one emotional point to the other. Well, that’s not strictly true. Stuff happens, but that stuff is just nowhere near as important as the effect it has on the characters. And what awesome characters they are! Mead always finds a way of developing well-rounded, yet flawed characters that you can’t help but love despite their imperfections. Take the main heroine, Sidney, for example: she’s uptight, controlling, and downright ornery on occasion but she is one of my favorites in any series because she feels real. And she’s found her perfect match in Adrian – his affection and interest towards her is a great writing tool to make them both more appealing.

Speaking of Adrian, the romantic tension in this book is by far my favorite element. It’s been a love story that has been developing over the course of the last three books and I feel like its momentum is getting ready to snowball (in a good way). The love story is not the only thing that is gaining momentum, there were a few discoveries in this book that point towards one heck of a finale. Mead’s ability to carry excitement from one end of the series to the other is why she is my all-time favorite author. She simply doesn’t let you down and I devour her books much faster than I want to (note to self for the next one: read slower – savor it).

Overall, this is an excellent book that has me impatient to pick up the next one.

Recommendations: I would recommend this to those looking for great character development and a sweet love story. For fans of Vampire Academy, this is an absolute must as it’s so much more than a simple spinoff. I would also hand this to someone who enjoys paranormal but doesn’t want to be hit over the head with the supernatural.

by Niki Hawkes

Other books you might like:

May 7 2013
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Top Ten Tuesday – Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun (5/7/2013)

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 As you know, this is a feature hosted by The Broke and The Bookish once a week where all of us geeky book bloggers get to stare at our libraries and figure out which books fit that week’s topic. It’s really fun, so if you haven’t joined in yet, maybe you should. ;)

 This week’s topic:

Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun

#1 Goose Girl: this is the most charming love story i’ve ever read, and it made me smile the whole way through.

#2 Eli Monpress: this series doesn’t excellent job at capturing whimsy and fun without being stupid (i’m not pointing fingers, but it happens). The whole thing is incredibly memorable, and it has one of the coolest magic systems ever. Read full review

#3 Wild Magic: this is essentially about a girl who can talk animals – what’s not to love?

#4 Redwall: an awesome saga where woodland creatures take on the personas of humans, elves, dwarves and other Middle Earthian creatures and take you on one grand adventure after another. These are so epic in places that you forget you are reading about mice. Read full review

#5 The Selection: this is the Hunger Games meets the Bachelor. all the vicious backstabbing in the world, but without all the blood (well, maybe there was a little).  I enjoyed the snot out of this book, but be warned – as light and fun as this one was, the second one stressed me the F out.

#6 Wings: the only way i can describe this one is that it was a very “pretty” read. The plot was relatively simple but it was done in such a way that made you not care. It was also an interesting take on Arthurian lore. Read full review

#7 Sword – Dancer/Sword – Singer: don’t read this one if you’re looking for a compelling and complex plot. If you are interested in hilarious exchanges of man versus woman told in a very cheeky manner, this might be the tale you. There might be some sword fighting involved, too. Read full review

#8 Poison: although it had a couple of flaws, Poison was definitely a fun read. I liked the pig.  Read full review

#9 Hounded: this urban fantasy was unique and awesome and fun and one of my favorite books that i’ve read this year so far. Read full review

#10 First Truth: this book was written by Dawn Cook, which is Kim Harrison’s alias, so right there you know it’s awesome. I loved every minute of it – it was the the epitome of a “fun” read and it just kept getting better and better with each book.  Read full review

Well, there you have it – my top 10. What are yours? Leave a link to your site in the comment box so I can come check out what your fun read books are.

If you’re feeling really helpful, you can click here and nominate a book or two for our “Your Pick for Nik!” book club. Thanks! :)

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