Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Flashes in Books
Sep 6, 2019
This is something like my sixth/seventh, maybe even eighth, book by the author and I've liked some more than others.
He always writes different stories, stuff I've never seen or read before, and blends paranormal, a bit of horror/gruesomeness and a splash of romance. His books tend to be very English in language and setting, and being from England and reading most books set in America, they're a nice change.
Now for the story. I had an inkling as to who it might be from about the 60-70% mark. Things just started to add up. <spoiler>Child crying. Mum being dead. It suddenly clicked</spoiler> so I wasn't too surprised by who was behind it but the lengths he was going to go to was quite disturbing.
It was a good story as usual but because I kinda figured out the bad guy before it was revealed at the end it wasn't quite as good as some of Tim's other works which keep you guessing.
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Eleanor Luhar (47 KP) rated City of Lost Souls (The Mortal Instruments, #5) in Books
Jun 24, 2019
First of all, I would like to complain about the cover. If I hadn't heard so many great things about this series then I probably would have avoided it, simply because it looks like a typical teen paranormal romance atrocity. The story is actually way more action-based with a sort of hint of romance, but I just don't think the cover portrays that very accurately.
Moving on to the actual book, it follows on from the last novel where Sebastian is sort of reintroduced. He is a massive character in this, after disappearing - along with Jace. It turns out there's some sort of bond between them thanks to Lilith, and the only things that can separate them are the weapons of either angels or demons. Which, unsurprisingly, results in some rather reckless acts on the part of Jace's friends and family, including the summoning of an angel and a demon. Nice.
Alec and Magnus have some pretty serious difficulties in this book, which actually really upset me because they're currently my favourite couple. There's also romantic plots following Maia and Jordan and even Izzy and Simon, but nothing major.
In the end, the Institute receives a disturbing gift, Clary stabs Jace, and Magnus kicks Alec out of his apartment. Maureen is seen again, claiming to have killed the woman Alec was out to murder, and Luke's sister is taken and turned dark by Sebastian. I think that's everything?
As for the writing, I love it! The books are all quite long, but they don't feel it when you read them. I don't understand how the feel so timeless and exciting all the way through!
Of course, this is a YA paranormal novel with typical romance lines and so on, but it is as unique as a book in this category can be. It has a nice mix of surprise, suspense and plain old action, and the diversity of the characters is fantastic. I'm really looking forward to the next novel in the series, yet I don't want it to be over!
Simply because it is a somewhat generic book (there are just so many angel/demon YA novels these days) I can't put my rating any higher than 4 stars. But the writing is fab and the plot always interesting, so there really isn't any true fault.
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Spells (Wings, #2) in Books
Apr 27, 2018
(Spells is the sequel to Wings, so I’m not going to include a summary to keep it spoiler free.)
I’m going to try really hard not to say anything to spoil this book for you. Let’s just say this—read it.
Spells was better than Wings. Though both were equally addictive (what? no! I can’t sweep, I’m in the middle of chapter twenty-one!) Spells just had more meat to it: more complications, more plot, more drama, and more romance. There are twists and unexpected surprises that spring out of nowhere and have you sitting on the edge of your seat forgetting to breathe. There is heart pounding and heart shredding romance that makes you grin and cry. And like every good book, there is a surprise at the end that leaves you saying, “Wait… what?”
Spells is a fantastic sequel to Wings. I’m anxiously awaiting the third book in the series, and I hope to one day have the whole collection sitting on my bookshelf where it belongs.
Content: clean romance, mention of sex, no language
Recommendation: Ages 12+. I would recommend reading it soon after Wings, since for the first chapter or so I was a little lost (I read Wings almost as soon as the ARC was sent out for review, some time last May or June) and even throughout the book I kept thinking “wait, who is that?” and “wait what happened again?”
This book was part of the Borrow My ARC Tour from Bloody Bad. Check out the other tour stops for more reviews.
Merissa (11935 KP) rated No Easy Catch (Cleat Chasers, #4) in Books
Jan 20, 2020
This is an enemy to lovers story, set in the world of college with a whole host of dodgy dealings going on. To begin with, Jeff doesn't trust Ambar at all, even thinking she has been involved with it all. He soon learns she is innocent of all charges apart from being related to one of the men involved. This was a lovely tale, with a slow-build romance threaded through the mystery. As the reader, I got to see Jeff's first moments of realisation that Ambar was more than he had previously thought.
Although this is classed as a sports romance and Jeff plays baseball, it didn't take over the story, and there wasn't much there where he was actually on the field. The world is well established, with individual characters adding highlights to the story, or moving forward where necessary. The pacing was smooth and punchy when needed. I did find some words or phrases were used slightly repetitively but that's probably just me.
On the whole, I enjoyed this book and have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone who enjoys a coming-of-age romance with sport elements.
* 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
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