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Under the Never Sky (Under the Never Sky, #1)
Under the Never Sky (Under the Never Sky, #1)
Veronica Rossi | 2011 | Young Adult (YA)
6
8.2 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
Original Review posted on <a href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/2013/09/review-under-the-never-sky-by-veronica-rossi.html">Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>

Note: Formatting may be lost due to copy and paste.

    When there's a bit of hoopla and excitement going about a book (even it's the sequel), I always tend to be curious as to why everyone loves the book. I'm literally asking, “What's so great about it? I want to know!”

      And then my TBR list grows by a book.

      But Under the Never Sky is about a girl named Aria who lives in a futuristic world of Pods and Realms. In that world, she's never seen what's outside the Pods aside from the stories she heard – everything is basically in virtual time. She gets kicked out one day and meets an Outsider named Perry who teaches her the basics to surviving the outside world and needs her help as well.

      I like the concept and general idea of the book. Pods? Realms? No one gets hurt in the Realms and you can see your friends without even moving at all with a cool gadget called Smarteyes? Sounds great.

      But... I didn't really like it. I was pretty bored from the end of Chapter One and probably would have stopped reading the book from then on out. But there was something there, and I decided to read on to see if my boredom status changed by a magnitude. I was hoping that between the end of Chapter One and the end of the book, my opinions would be a whole lot better.

      It didn't change that much, unfortunately. It was just... insipid.

      Another thing that I didn't really like? The romance between Aria and Perry. It was too fast.

      No, scratch that. Actually, allow me to backtrack by two sentences, before “It was too fast.”

      It was perfectly paced for about 80% of the book. But then about 7% or 4 chapters later away from their first kiss, it was just simply too fast for my taste. Much too fast.

      Overall, I liked the concept, but Veronica Rossi's debut novel just isn't very right for me and I don't think I'll be continuing on with the next book in the series, Through the Ever Night.

      Though I am a bit tempted to.

      Convince me well enough to do so and I'll think about it? But the cover is pretty.
  
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Christine A. (965 KP) rated Broken in Books

Feb 20, 2019  
Broken
Broken
Betsy Reavley | 2019 | Thriller
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Suitable for over 18’s only. It contains graphic scenes some readers may find disturbing.
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

The blurb on the cover of Broken by Betsy Reavley says "the most disturbing book you will read this year". I tend to be sceptical when a book has a claim that it is the best book ever or something similar printed on its cover. However, "the most disturbing book you will read this year" is probably an understatement. It is probably the most disturbing book I have read this decade.

In chapter 19, one of the characters says, "I felt like the driver who stops to look at a fatal accident on the motorway". That is a great description on how I felt reading this book. It was like an accident that I just could not look away from.

The author grabs your attention and makes you feel the story. You can hear what Annabel hears. You can feel what Annabel feels. It is a well written story that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

It is NOT for the weak of heart and is recommended for people over the age of 18. It contains graphic scenes and intense acts of violence. Do not take this warning lightly.

The only word I keep repeating is ""wow".

Review published on Philomathinphila.com, Smashbomb, Goodreads, Twitter, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble on 2/18/19.
  
The Dark Web Murders
The Dark Web Murders
Brian O'Hare | 2019 | Crime
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Couldn't guess the ending (0 more)
Some things were shocking (0 more)
I like the twists and turns in this book and the motive. You can guess the motive from the beginning of the book but you can't guess the true ins and outs. There were a couple of different stories going on which helped the story unravel.
I usually read this kind of genre - crime. It was one of the good ones which you couldn't guess.
I was hooked from the first chapter and sometimes crime books take me a few chapters to get into. I couldn't put the book down.
The story flowed really well. The only thing I didn't like was the descriptions of people at the beginning of the book - some of the information was not relevant and never came up in the story. Also I get a feeling for the characters and learn about them as I read. With so many characters described I quickly forgot the information about each character. I understand the author had done this as people had commented that they would prefer this but me personally I didn't like it.
Some of the information that came to light in the book shocked me and the book is definitely not for the faint hearted. Although it is fiction it does remind you that this stuff really does go on.
The audience is definitely adults due to the content which was shocking.
I would 100% read the other books in this series.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author via Voracious Readers Only.
  
Two Steps Forward (The Deacon&#039;s Family #3)
Two Steps Forward (The Deacon's Family #3)
Suzanne Woods Fisher | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Have you ever been caught off guard, that you got emotional from a book? Well if you did not know Suzanne Woods Fisher books. This one made me get emotional in a good way. Though I was in tears trying to read a few chapters. I would wipe them away and try and continue reading the book. Well, this did not help. It just keeps happening. Though I can say they were happy tears over sad ones. What triggered them I do not know.

It was something that the author wrote in the chapter that made me start the tears. This book “Two Steps Forwards” is written well. The storyline behind Issy in this book is done well. Sylvie King and Jimmy Fisher's storylines were decent. It was not that much that it made me emotional. That does not mean that it was written well.

I do enjoy it when there is a repeat of characters that come from previous books. The storylines do flow well. You can read these books out of order. They can read as standalone. The background does get explained a bit as you read.

I have read “Mending Fences” which is the first book of this series. Two Steps Forward is better than the first one only because it got me a bit more emotional. I would still read the first book as well of this series as I would love to pick up the second book of this series which is called “Stitches in Time”. If you would like to you read my review of Mending Fences.
  
Lake Season (Bluebell Inn Romance, #1)
Lake Season (Bluebell Inn Romance, #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was a classic feel good, and make you warm inside type of a book.  From the first chapter little by little Denise Hunter drew me in, she fed me little nuggets of information about the characters, arousing my curiosity about how the book would end. It was great getting to meet a famous author and a new innkeeper and her family. Plus, Denise Hunter threw in a bit of a mystery with an ending I totally didn’t see coming. All the characters (not just the main ones, as this book is the first in a series) were developed in such a way that I felt personally invested in their lives. By the end of the book I felt like I genuinely knew the characters and their struggles, which doesn’t always happen in books. It was also interesting to see how Denise Hunter weaved in a dual plot-line; I really loved the glimpses into the past. I think I am already looking forward to learning about the rest of the family in Bluebell, NC.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars for the hint of mystery, the end I totally did not see coming, and for leaving me in want of the next book in the series. Personally, I think that the best books are about what really happens in life and the ways that God can use anything for His good. In Lake Season, Denise Hunter put this into perspective for her characters and for anyone who reads Lake Season.