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Those Girls
8
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
So the third time is the charm. I have really been in a book funk lately and haven't picked up a book in a very long time. I checked this book out three times from the library before I was able to finish it. <B>BUT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS BOOK!</B>

My mother introduced me to Chevy Stevens a few years ago and ever since, I try to read whatever she has put out. So far I think I am missing one maybe two. This book was so exciting and a thrill to read, I was made that my mood made it hard for me to pick up a book.

Jess, Courtney and Dani live with their father in Canada. Their father is usually gone for weeks at a time working and the girls are left to fend for themselves and work the ranch they live on to survive. When their father returns home late one night after drinking and finding out some disturbing news about his middle daughter Courtney, he is quite upset and hurls all of his anger on the girls. When the unthinkable happens, the girls know they must escape before they are thrust back into the foster care system. On the run from their father and their past, they make a stop in a small town when their truck breaks down. Only things here only get worse for the girls. Trapped for days with no one knowing where they are, they manage to escape again, running for their lives.

Now almost 18 years later, life is very different for the girls who are now women. They have changed their names and tried to move on from the horrific events that have plagued their past. When one of the sisters is gone for a few days, they don't think much of it, but when her niece goes missing too, there are many questions in the search for these women. Haunted by their past the remaining sisters travel back to the small town that changed their lives to try and find their sister and niece, but will they be able to find them before it is too late?

Chevy Stevens knows how to write a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat. She draws you into the story and keeps you captivated from the start. Whenever I did pick up this book I would read until I could no longer keep my eyes open. I will let you know, not as a spoiler, but the end of this book had me in tears. I mean full out running down the face tears. I hope it will release the same emotions in you. Highly recommended.
  
Iced (Fever, #6)
Iced (Fever, #6)
Karen Marie Moning | 2012 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
7
9.0 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
I loved the original 5 books in this series and when I discovered this book with Dani as the lead character I was a little wary. It had been quite a few years since I read the books and I'd forgotten quite a bit of what happened other than Mac and Barron's relationship. But when this popped up at 99p on Amazon several years ago now I just had to buy it. I also managed to snag Burned - book 7 - for 99p too.

Anyway, back to this.

First off, I really liked Ryodan in this. He is a bad-arse and I And Dani grew on me a lot, too, for a 14 year old know-it-all/think-she-knows-best teenager.

Second, I should probably point out that this is NOT a romance book as such. Two men have designs on her but are willing to wait until she grows up - since she's just 14. But I've always liked this series, so I had to read this.

So Dani is coerced into working for Ryodan, as an investigator, after turning him down several times until he finds someone as leverage against her. Something is happening at various spots around Dublin, with people freezing in the middle of whatever they're doing, dying instantly. With Dani's abilities - super speed, super hearing, etc - Ryodan thinks she could be helpful in figuring out what's happening and so the story begins.

I liked the camaraderie between Dani and Ryodan, whether he was threatening her half the time or she was royally winding him up. They made me smile like a lunatic for most of the book. I also enjoyed seeing bits from both of their POV. We know Ryodan is willing to wait for Dani to get older before he tries anything with her but he does see something in her worth keeping her alive - because he is a bad-arse and could kill her quite easily if she annoyed him enough, let's face it! - so I'm looking forward to that bit in future books.

Now Christian, he freaked me out a bit. Fair enough, he's not quite got control of himself but the Unseelie Prince side of him is creepy as. He's the other guy who's after Dani but if she's got any sense she'd run a mile.

Lor was another character I grew to like. He's one of Ryodan's men whose job it is to keep an eye on Dani for a lot of the book. He's certainly a character and I'm looking forward to reading more of him.

I think I may have to read book 7 - Burned - straight after this one to see what happened next with this group of...friends? Especially with Mac and Dani at the end!
  
The Prince of Asgard (The Nine Worlds #2)
The Prince of Asgard (The Nine Worlds #2)
Saga Nansen | 2026 | LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
the emotions creep up and I loved watching them fall!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 2 in The Nine Worlds series, and it can be read as a stand alone. I would recommend, however, that you read book 1, The Magic of Vanaheim. It will give you a better understanding of this world, the Norse mythology and the wonderfulness that is Ms Nansen's writing!

Thori kills a dragon a few years ago, and now he finds himself sold, as a thrall, to the man who loved that dragon. He just needs to kill that man too, and he can be free. But there are other things at work, and Thori needs to work WITH Njord to save the world they live in. He's just not sure he can let Njord go, once they have.

I loved book one, Hakon and Talvi do pop up here. But you don't need their story to follow this one. There is a little overlap between the two, because I wrote in that review: But the biggest question is just what is going on with Talvi's uncle and the thrall??

Well, now I know!

I loved this book, I really did. Thori and Njord (Talvi's uncle) butt heads right from the start, but it's the way they grow closer that I loved. It's a proper slow burn, and it was right and proper that these two took some time to become fully invested in the other.

Lots and lots of Norse and Viking mythology and lore and again, some I knew of, some not. But I've given up trying to match my (very limited) knowledge to what's on the page because I'm fairly certain, what I think I remember from wherever I picked it up, is wrong and I'm getting mixed up. So once I stopped, I was able to fully engross myself in this book, this world and these people.

Some violence, but hey! Vikings and witches and all manner of deadly beings, so to be expected. I found the smex a bit lighter (than book 1) but no less powerful and steamy. The emotions creep up on both Thori and Njord and I loved watching them fall.

There was a sort of third act break up, sort of, but Thori remedies that beautifully! And with such a gift!!

I don't know who might be next, I'm sure there were clues here, but I might have missed them, concentrating on Thori and Njord as I was but I WILL read it. There is clearly a bigger picture I'm yet to see, but my book brain is screaming at me, that something bigger is going on that is already clear!

5 full and shiny stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
The Bronze Horseman
The Bronze Horseman
Paullina Simons | 2001 | Fiction & Poetry
6
7.8 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Well, the Bronze Horseman started off well enough. The love story between Tatiana and Alexander was beautifully written and engaging for the first two parts of the book. Then in the third part, entitled Lazarevo, the book fell apart. Barely any plot, I could have skipped it and not missed much at all. Not to mention Alexander took a turn for the worse. He always was a bit short-tempered before, but he was ten times worse and became way too possessive of Tatiana for me to consider this romantic at all. Truthfully, it didn't feel like it belonged in this book and nearly made me abandon the book altogether. Nevertheless, I trudged through the 157 pages and got to the fourth part. Finally. After reading the first page, the writing and story already appeared better, more like how the book started, but it didn't really catch my interest again until the last sixty pages. That was the turning point and now, after thinking I wouldn't, I probably will pick up the next installment of their story.

As far as the characters and plot, Tatiana will not be for everyone, she's pretty much a saint throughout the whole book. I mostly liked her, and yeah, sure she was a pushover, but hey, different time, different culture, I could accept that. What I had a hard time with was how Alexander kept seeing her (selfish, irredeemable) sister. What the heck? Why couldn't he have just broken it off with her? I never understood that, as it didn't seem to be a cultural thing, and it just ended up being a weak plot device. The war-time scenes were very good though and I could feel their hunger, their numbness, their fear, all of it was well done. So, as I said, I will read the next book and hope it continues with all the good this book had and very little of the bad.
  
Controller&#039;s Obsession (Obsessions #2)
Controller's Obsession (Obsessions #2)
JP Sayle, Lisa Oliver | 2024 | LGBTQ+, Paranormal, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
it suits this book, that it is low on the steam factor!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 2 in the Obsessions series, and you should probably read book 1, Demon's Obsession before this one. It sets the scene as to why Merihem is banished to Earth, but also tells how RARE the Blissful Ones are. And you know, it's bloody good!

Now, this is IS good, but it doesn't quite hit the spot that Demon's did and I've no idea why! *insert wailing!*

What I DID like about it, though, was the beautiful way that Merihem, quite literally, flipped on a Peni (oooh see what I did there!), and was devoted to Peni, from that very first meeting, even if the goat kicked him in the nuts!

Merihem takes his pleasure when and where he wants to, but meeting Peni? No one else will do. Once Peni bites Merihem, and he can hear Peni's thoughts and, more importantly, his GOAT'S thoughts, Merihem is able to modify his behaviour to suit Peni, even if he wants to do all sorts of dirty things to his little pygmy mate!

I found it relatively low angst, and so flipping cute, and low on the steam factor. It suits THIS book that it is written that way, given Peni's past and his aversion to full on smex. The smexy times that are here, are wonderfully written, and absolutely perfect for these two.

I loved that we caught up with Dakata and Silas, and their news! We get a bit of Wanda's book, who is Silas' sister and of Scott's book, who is Dakata's assistant. I was surprised at the route that Wanda's book takes, and I look forward to seeing how Sayle and Oliver deal with that, given they write MM rather than FF books!

A thoroughly delightful addition to the series, I really did enjoy it!

4 very VERY good stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
Eden Summer
Eden Summer
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I keep falling behind on wiring my reviews, sorry! I really need to get back on track. I finished this on Tuesday I think? I really enjoyed it, although it isn't quite worthy of five stars.

I'm going to put in a trigger warning as there are mentions of substance abuse, physical abuse, death, adoption and suicide.

Jess's best friend has gone missing. Through interviews with the police and Jess's personal recollections, we begin to build up a picture of Eden's life before her disappearance. Her sister had recently been killed in a car accident, and her seemingly perfect relationship with Liam was more complicated than anyone realised. Bit by bit, Jess - and we - begin to piece things together and discover where Eden has gone.

The girls are only young - 15 I think? - and very much have the all-consuming passion that young teens feel. As in, every little issue feels huge, and things feel far more serious than they might to an older person. I remember feeling this way. I think it was portrayed so accurately, the way fighting with your best friend feels like the end of the world and a family argument overwhelms you with guilt. It was a bit annoying in some ways, though; no fault of the author, of course, I just get a bit annoyed at kids taking things too seriously. I look back at myself and think how stupid it was to get so caught up in such little issues. So the things that Jess gets so worked up over just seemed a bit trivial to me, like she was exaggerating too much. But as I said, this creates the teenage voice really well in my opinion.

The things that both these girls have gone through are massive, though - Jess was attacked and Eden's sister killed. That's pretty hard for a young girl to deal with, and these are not the problems I'm saying are trivial. These are hugely important and emotional issues and I think it's great to talk about. I love books with these real, albeit sad, events. I think it is so good to discuss all the feelings and situations that follow, and also emphasise how it is not the end of the world if something bad happens. life will continue. Eden says how she feels her sister's death becoming more distant, more bearable, and how she doesn't want that to happen. She feels guilty, as if she's forgetting her and moving on. This is so important. She also thinks about killing herself due to guilt - which I won't ruin too much - but then realises how she shouldn't take life for granted. Her sister would've given anything to be alive still, and she shouldn't be throwing that away.

It was a really good read and I found myself wondering what was going to be revealed next. It was wel written and perfectly captured the young voice of Jess. If I read this when I was younger, I think I would've adored it. I would've understood it and connected to Jess more than I did now I'm older. 4 stars, definitely worth a read.
  
Awakened (Vampire Awakenings #1)
Awakened (Vampire Awakenings #1)
Brenda K. Davies | 2012 | Young Adult (YA)
4
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
www.diaryofdifference.com

Awakened is the first book from the Vampire Awakening Series and it is written by USA Today bestselling author Brenda K. Davies. This is a book where a guy meets a girl. Girl has a secret and tells it on their first date. Boy is a vampire, but we are 80% in the book until it’s mentioned (even though title clearly states it, and you keep expecting it to happen). When secret is told - boy gives girl a choice to escape. Girls chooses to stay, and boy becomes possessive because he wants her too much. Then he does something to her, kind of against her will. And then they live happily ever after.

If I was a few years younger, I would have loved this book, probably because I wouldn’t have noticed all the glitches in it. But right here, right now - I didn’t enjoy it as much I wanted too.

Strong, sexual language and sex scenes can be found throughout the book. This was a book from my sister Tea’s Wishlist Challenge - and I was embarrassed to tell her I am reading this book - because I knew what kind of scenes she has read…

Apart from that - the characters were unrealistic. And unlikable. I liked their friends and their enemies more than I liked the main characters.

Sera - a girl that doesn’t talk to men, and has her own opinion on things, suddenly meets this guy, and he becomes possessive of her, and her character development stops right here. She keeps nodding at him, and obeys his every command. Not much of a heroine, is she?

Liam - a guy that is actually a vampire, but doesn’t tell Sera until things get really serious. He lies to her, is possessive, wants to kill everyone that touches her, and loves her and wants her so much that he has to turn her into a vampire, otherwise he’ll kill her. Really?

Now, if we take the fact that this is a vampire book - firstly, we don’t get to read about vampires until the book is almost finished. And when we do, it is unfinished, and barely even described. I don’t know anything about the way they become vampires, how they survive in the world, how they feed, how they die, but apparently, they can have children, so I guess the author covered everything. Oh, and, also - vampires can walk into the sun, but the more they kill, the more the sun hurts them. So believable - and FAIR.

The only thing that I liked was the ending - the point about how children are possible seemed to have worked out well. Not believable, but it was nice to see that as a theory. And it was also a great layout for the next story to come - which I will be reading, just to see if this writing will improve.

What is your favorite vampire book?
  
Show all 6 comments.
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Leah (: (569 KP) Sep 13, 2018

Yeah I enjoyed it more than the original series. Basically Sydney the alchemist is forced to protect Jill at a boarding school, that’s the least spoilery I can put it (:

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Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) Sep 13, 2018

that sounds amazing! I'll have a look at it!

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Sensitivemuse (246 KP) rated The Widow in Books

Jan 24, 2018  
The Widow
The Widow
Fiona Barton | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
8
7.9 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
Good mystery/drama
***Possible spoilers ahead. You’ve been warned***

For just one split second I almost thought Bella was alive somewhere because a part of me was hoping she was. Nope. What it was, instead was Jeanie’s poor tormented mind and the result of being emotionally manipulated by Glen all this time.

You couldn’t help but feel for Jeanie throughout this book. You could already tell from the beginning that she was being mentally and emotionally abused by Glen. That takes its’ toll and added with the fact that she wanted children and Glen’s got some pretty sick and twisted tastes, well that’s not going to work out now is it. So I do sympathize with Jeanie. It wasn’t until the last third of the book where she finally starts becoming her own person away from Glen, but by that point the damage is already done to her mentally. It’s sad to see. I can see why people were hating on her since she’s could have spoken out and told the police everything. Thing is, since Glen had this emotional power over her, it’s hard to overcome. You can’t help but feel frustrated but helpless at the same time when it comes to Jeanie.

I enjoyed reading the different points of view throughout the book although Jeanie takes up the bulk of the novel. The other point of view from the Police was also well done and you can see how much it takes it’s toll on everyone emotionally and mentally.

The only character I don’t have much of a like for is Kate. I understand she’s doing her job but it just seems heartless at the same time since it feels like she’s doing it at the expense of Jeanie. So I’m glad Jeanie finally grew a backbone - albeit a bit too late.

The plot was good and well done. I can’t imagine how it would feel for those that have gone through this similar ordeal. It’s tiring on all sides and by the end of the book you’re also feeling the emotional and mental drain. It was an enjoyable read though. It definitely had me turning the pages and I do recommend this to those who like a good mystery/drama.
  
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Merissa (13956 KP) rated Kaden (The Hawks #0) in Books

Mar 15, 2022 (Updated Jul 3, 2023)  
Kaden (The Hawks #0)
Kaden (The Hawks #0)
Jennie Lynn Roberts | 2022 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
KADEN is the prequel novella to The Hawks series in which you learn where the Mabin and Tarasque people come from. As the author's note says, it is also a "sexy fantasy romance with plenty of adventure, a courageous heroine, and a brooding hero." I ask you -- does it get better than that?

Kaden has kept his secret for years, knowing it is not safe for him to share. He has grown up alongside Ava and his beast loves her. Fearing for her safety if he reveals his secret, Kaden does the big, strong, silent hero thing of making a decision for her, instead of speaking with her. Now, I do understand his reasons, but I still shook my head! Kaden doesn't realise that Ava has her secrets to keep though. Secrets that aren't hers to tell. But it helps with her understanding in immeasurable ways.

I was warned by the story itself that it is a novella but that didn't help. This is a JLR book for crying out loud. I ALWAYS need more!!! It gave me everything I didn't know I wanted and more besides. It gave me a backstory to the events that lead to Tristan and co. It showed me what it was like for the last dragon. It gave me a mother's dying wish.

This is a free novella you can get by signing up for the newsletter. The question I'm asking is why wouldn't you? If you like fantasy romance, then I highly suggest you get yourself some snacks, prepare a flask of whatever your favourite beverage is so you don't have to move and get comfortable. Start with this novella and then treat yourself to Tristan and the other Hawks. You won't regret it, I promise!

A cracker of a prequel and absolutely recommended by me.

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* 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!
Mar 15, 2022