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The Scent Keeper
The Scent Keeper
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Scent is the strongest sense tied to memory. One smell can conjure up a whole moment in your life, that you thought you had completely forgotten about. "When you change a scent, you change the memory..."(Quote taken from advanced copy)

Emmeline and her father live on a remote island. It's just the two of them and Emmeline has learned all she knows from her father, but the greatest thing she has learned, is how to use scents to determine what is going on in the world. Cut off from the rest of society, people are just objects in books, and her father is the only other physical person she knows. When she turns 13 and is forced into the "real" world, she quickly discovers that it's more than scents that she will need to make it in life.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

When I first heard about this book, I was quite intrigued. A whole book about a cottage filled with drawers of scents. How was this going to play out? Would it hold my attention? Boy did it ever. will admit, when I started reading, I was skeptical about which direction the book would take me. The journey was exciting and thrilling and it left me wanting more.

The Scent Keeper is the first book I have read by Erica Bauermeister, but I do look forward to reading more books by her. This is the type of book that is kind of hard to review without giving too much of the story away. This is a story that you will feel in your heart. You will start to understand and smell scents in a different way.

This book has something for everyone in it. A little bit of magic, thrills, just a touch of romance, and scents from all over. I think that if you pick up this book you will enjoy it. I wasn't sure after the description and reading the first couple of chapters, but this story really grew on me and it will stay with me for a while.
  
Heartbreak at Roosevelt Ranch (Roosevelt Ranch #2)
Heartbreak at Roosevelt Ranch (Roosevelt Ranch #2)
Elise Faber | 2018 | Contemporary, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Heartbreak at Roosevelt Ranch is the second book in the Roosevelt Ranch series, and this time we get to know more about Miss (Melissa), Kelly's sister. She is married to Rob who had recently had a promotion at work, but the cost of this appears to be their marriage.

I was a bit worried about this book before I started it. Call me sappy but I hate to read stories about a marriage gone wrong although I don't mind if they're already divorced or separated. Consider it one of my quirks! Instead, what I found was a story that had me invested from the very beginning. Yes, Miss and Rob's marriage was in danger. Yes, they BOTH had work to do to put it right. And yes, Rob did make some stupid decision's to do with his career. NEITHER of them was blameless, and it took both of them to see it and to try to work it through.

Celeste was the other woman and all I saw was a woman trying waaaay too hard. Every moment that Rob was thinking about her, he was comparing her to Miss, and Miss always came out first. Rob is married, that doesn't mean he stops seeing other women around him, or can appreciate their qualities. So long as he doesn't touch and doesn't wander, I don't see the problem. I can't remember who said it, but "I can look at the menu, honey. I just don't order anything anymore!"

There are some questions left after reading this, questions that Miss also has, so you never know, they may be answered in future books. I'm sure Miss and Rob will play a part in those, just like Justin and Kelly played a part in this one.

The pacing was smooth and the writing intricate enough to keep my interest. The characters build up from the previous book, and I loved the internal thoughts of both Miss and Rob. This was a great addition to the series, and I have no hesitation in recommending it.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Silver Moon (The Silver #7)
Silver Moon (The Silver #7)
Cheree Alsop | 2013 | Paranormal, Young Adult (YA)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Silver Moon is the final book in the Silver series, and let me tell you, this book has ripped my heart out, thrown it on the floor, stamped all over it, picked it back up again, only to do it all again, before finally leaving me needing a new series!!!

Things come to a head for Jaze and his pack and he has to make decisions no young adult should have to. I really won't say too much as I don't want to give out any spoilers. All I will say is be careful! Your heart will racing, your mouth dry, as you try to figure out just how he gets out of certain situations. And also, for the last quarter of the book (at least) I was sobbing as I read. Not just crying, oh no. We're talking great big f'ugly crying!!!

There's so much I want to say but I can't without giving away spoilers! I want to talk about certain characters and what they went through and how it made me feel. I want to talk about that spectacular ending that just about killed me. I want to talk about the aftermath which made me cry again. But I can't.

What I will say is this series is simply outstanding. I have loved all of the books in this series for one reason or another. They all fit together perfectly. The writing is unsurpassed. The pacing is smooth. The characters are all lifelike and behave just as you think they should, before they turn around and surprise the living daylights out of you.

This book killed me. I love and hate it so it will be kept and re-read, again and again. So sad to see this series end but it does lead me nicely onto the next series, which now I just HAVE to read.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Calling Mrs Christmas
Calling Mrs Christmas
Carole Matthews | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance
9
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A fantastically festive romance (3 more)
The perfect book to read as the festivities begin
Cassie Smith is a great leading character
Reading about lapland made it all the more enjoyable
As with all Carole Matthews books, I found myself clinging to every page drawn in by Cassie Smith and her new venture and the up and downs it would bring to her.
For me personally, I found the obvious research for characters and locations and consequence details used within the book, made it even more appealing and heartfelt to read and certainly added to my overall enjoyment and high rating for Calling Mrs Christmas.
This is a book I could read again and again and I would definitely recommend for anyone looking for a festive read with some fun-filled, heartwarming Christmas spirit.
  
A Court of Mist and Fury
A Court of Mist and Fury
Sarah J. Maas | 2016 | Young Adult (YA)
10
9.3 (54 Ratings)
Book Rating
Character Development (0 more)
Don't Let the Hard Days Win
The amount of love I have for this book is insane!
At the beginning, I wondered how weird it was that I was falling in love with Rhys only to discover that it wasn't weird at all. He legitimately cares about Feyre and that's all she ever wanted. He couldn't handle seeing her slowly disappear and lose weight and he definitely couldn't handle knowing she threw up her guts every night.
Then there's Tam-the-Tool. When these books become movies and all my friends love him, I'm going to want to rip my eyes out. Yes he was charming in book one but this book shows his shitty side and I would love to cut off his balls and feed them to him.
  
Marella (Wraidd Elfennol 1)
Marella (Wraidd Elfennol 1)
Morgan Sheppard | 2016 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
8
8.8 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Marella (Wraidd Elfennol 0.5) by Morgan Sheppard
Marella is the prequel novella where we meet her for the first time. You find out a bit more about her childhood, her relationship with her parents, Daren, and also you are with her when she meets Nixie for the first time. This novella shows how important some things are to Marella, giving her the basis for the woman she becomes in Water Weaver.

I would recommend that you read this one first, before Water Weaver, just so that you get the rounded picture of Marella. Saying that, if you haven't, I don't think it would spoil anything. Definitely recommended for all fans of Wraidd Elfennol.

* I received this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
40x40

Hazel (2934 KP) rated Die of Shame in Books

Jan 12, 2018  
DO
Die of Shame
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I am a huge Mark Billingham fan and am at the front of the queue when a new book comes out so it is with massive regret that I have to say that this one just didn’t grab me by the neck like his other books have - you have no idea how upset this makes me feel. It’s not that it is a bad book - it’s well written, has interesting characters and a good story line - but I found myself being rather indifferent about reading it and it took me a little longer than it normally does to read it when I compare it to others written by the same author.

Review at <a href="https://readingstuffnthings.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/synopsis-from-goodreads-from-british.html">Reading Stuff 'n' Things</a>
  
Jenny Pox (The Paranormals, #1)
Jenny Pox (The Paranormals, #1)
J.L. Bryan | 2010 | Paranormal
10
9.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
[Jenny Pox]by [J.L. Bryan] is a different twist on teen paranormal. No stupid sparkly vampires here! Instead teens with special powers all in the same small town.

Jenny can kill with a touch but does her best to protect everyone even though it brings her ridicule and bullying.

Seth can heal people with his touch.

Ashley can control people with hers and she does for her own benefit.

No one knows about these powers except the person with them until an accidental encounter between Jenny and Seth. All the pieces begin to fit.

This was a really enjoyable story and the fact that the teenagers had normal teenage personalities and issues made it all the better. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.
  
[No Safety in Numbers] by [Dayna Lorentz] is a well written YA novel along the common theme in this genre lately. The concept of survival has always been in literature but recently there has been a huge upswing in YA lit for dystopian and disasters. I personally enjoy it since that is what Ilike to read.

This book is the first of a trilogy that follows four different teenager as they try to survive and protect those they care about during a biological attack on a mall. I like how [Lorentz] gave voice to the main characters by alternating chapters. I can also see how three of the four characters are interconnected.

I look forward to reading the second and third books. I will be adding this book to my classroom library and recommending it