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I haven't seen the anime of this yet, and I'm not sure which was released first. I'm definitely interested in seeing the show now though, and am certainly going to read the rest of the manga volumes (if I can find/afford them all!).

As usual, I will try not to ruin the plot for anyone who wants to read it. I'll just say that Ichigo can see ghosts, and one day comes across a soul reaper - who accidentally gives her powers away and is stuck in a temporary human body. Together, they work as soul reapers to rid the world of "evil" hollows - which takes them through some pretty sad memories.

The writing is great - I found this so so comedic, and just enjoyable to read all the way through. I read all 500+ pages in one afternoon!

There's also some.seriously sad stuff in there - dead family members make guest appearances, and I actually found some of the scenes so touching and painful. The entire volume was just written so fantastically.

The art is amazing, too - I especially liked the odd blank page with just a small illustration that peppered the book. It was artistic, yet still presented the story well.

This is probably gonna be a favourite of mine for a long time. I cannot wait to read on - the end of the third volume in this collection is very intriguing! 5/5 stars.
  
All Your Perfects
All Your Perfects
Colleen Hoover | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance
8
7.8 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is the first book in my #atozchallenge! I'm challenging myself to read a book from my shelves that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Let's clear those shelves and delve into that backlist!

Quinn and Graham had the perfect romance and marriage. But now, that marriage is on the rocks and all those perfect memories threatened as their union is about to implode. If they can't talk to each other and work things out, they're done. Can they get past their problems and find that perfection again?

Wow, I picked a doozy for the first book in my challenge! This book was almost physically hard to read at times! It's a brutal look at a struggling marriage, as Quinn and Graham--once a perfect couple--can barely look at or talk to one another. Told in a then and now format from Quinn's perspective, we see how the two fell head over heels in love. And, conversely, we see how they fell apart. It's an emotional and tense read that's often bitterly sad and heartbreaking. Hoover makes you feel as if you're in the book, part of the characters' dissolving marriage.

This one hit home, as Quinn and Graham battle with infertility, something I know quite well. If you've struggled with this, this will be a hard read--yet you'll be able to find many parallels with the couple. It's not necessarily a happy book, yet it's romantic and sweet too. It presents a very realistic portrayal of marriage and one of the best portraits of a (straight) couple grappling with infertility that I've ever read.

This isn't an easy book to read, but it's really quite good. It packs a sucker punch, but in a good way. You'll find yourself lost in Quinn and Graham's world--I certainly recommend this fierce, touching look at love, marriage, and how far we will go for the ones we care about. 4+ stars.
  
The Witch's Dream (Knights of Black Swan #2)
The Witch's Dream (Knights of Black Swan #2)
Victoria Danann | 2012 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Witch's Dream (Knights of Black Swan #2) by Victoria Danann
My word this is a dream of a book! It continues straight after My Familiar Stranger and takes you straight back into the lives of B Company. The whole book is a joy to read and I am so glad that Elora now has company in the "women with spirit" category. Litha and Song look like they are going to keep the baton going :o)

If you are expecting a vampire romance, you can forget it. They don't even really get a mention in this book, apart from ex-vampire Baka (who's story I can't wait to read!) but what you do get is demons, a look at Kay's berserker side, and magic of the practical kind.

I love the way these books are written and often find myself laughing out loud as I read. The characters continue to grow and as an added little extra you get an interview with Ram at the end of this book.

5 out of 5, 10 out of 10 - whichever way you want to look at it, these books are fantastic.

* Verified Purchase ~ February 2013
Reviewed on Goodreads ~ February 2013 *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
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Merissa (12346 KP) rated A Reckless Soul (Secrets of the Zodiac, #2) in Books

Apr 6, 2023 (Updated Apr 10, 2023)  
A Reckless Soul (Secrets of the Zodiac, #2)
A Reckless Soul (Secrets of the Zodiac, #2)
Elizabeth Cole | 2014 | Mystery, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A friend of mine recommended this book to me via GoodReads and as I occasionally read Historical Fiction, I thought I'd give it a go, especially whilst it is still at the promotional price on Amazon. I'm very glad that I did. Although this is Book 2 in the Secrets of the Zodiac series, you don't have to have read the first one (although I will be now, plus any others I can get!).

The story is very well-written with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing throughout. I got the mole wrong but I'm so very glad that I did. I loved how it was written and all fell into place. This book swept me away to the Regency era where life for a woman, let alone a lady, was so very different, with different rules and regulations that she was supposed to follow. Put an independent woman in the mix who knows how to look after herself, along with a male who thinks that she isn't capable, and you're in for an explosive combination which makes for a terrific read.

I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the lookout for more in this series. Definitely recommended to all History Fiction fans out there.


September 11, 2016
  
Don't Look for Me
Don't Look for Me
Wendy Walker | 2020 | Mystery, Thriller
9
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
One of my favorite thrillers this year
Five years ago, Molly and John Clarke's youngest daughter died. It changed their family forever, devastating Molly and John. Molly blames herself. Their son, Evan, is now at boarding school and eldest daughter Nicole, 21, has a fractured relationship with her mom. Then Molly disappears coming back from visiting Evan. Everyone says she left on purpose, backed up by the note they find. The police call it a "walk away." Molly's car was abandoned by a gas station, the note discovered at a nearby hotel. But what really happened to Molly? Nicole is convinced her mother wouldn't just walk away from them, no matter how bad things had become.

"This was her fault and now she had to make it right. She had to find her mother."

Oh my gosh. I read this book in one breathless day, despite working for 12 hours. It's an utterly and completely spellbinding thriller. I read the last half in one sitting, desperate to know what became of Molly. Walker gives us a twisty thriller that is filled with surprises. It's dramatic, beyond readable, and heartbreaking at times. Told from Molly and Nicole's point of views, it's amazing. I love a book that can shock me, and this is that book.

I'm not going to offer much more, as it's best to go into this one blind. Just know that, hands down, it's one of the best thrillers I've read this year. 4.5+ stars. Pick up this book!
  
Fear For Me (For Me, #2)
Fear For Me (For Me, #2)
Cynthia Eden | 2013 | Contemporary, Romance
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I read the first book in this series a few years ago and it was ok - judging by my review on Goodreads of it - but I wasn't overly in to it. This one has been on my Kindle for a few years now so it's about time I read it.

This starts with the "Bayou Butcher" serial killer - Jon Walker - breaking out of prison and setting out to kill the people who put him there starting with Lauren Chandler, the DA that made sure he went down for life, as well as the judge and those on the jury. In comes Anthony Ross, a Marshall, who tracked Walker down the first time and Lauren's ex.

I was equally drawn into this when they were hunting Walker and freaked out when we had scenes from Walker's POV as he went about killing. The more I read, though, the more I was convinced that Walker wasn't doing everything alone and then it was the mystery of just who Walker was in league with that had me reading. I thought I had it figured out but I was so wrong.

The romance reignited between Lauren and Anthony as neither had really gotten over the other in the five years since they'd parted ways. It was nice to see inside both of their heads and what their feelings were towards the other. I'll be honest. I wasn't that interested in the romance so I skipped the sex scenes in this, totally uninterested.

I don't think I'll be reading the last book in the series. I'm not that into Romantic Suspense anymore.
  
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Christine A. (965 KP) rated Mayhem in Books

Aug 25, 2020  
Mayhem
Mayhem
Estelle Laure | 2020 | Young Adult (YA)
7
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
YA feminist mash-up inspired by The Lost Boys and The Craft.
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.

A YA feminist mash-up inspired by The Lost Boys and The Craft. That's the first line of the description of Mayhem by Estelle Laure, which meant it was a book I just had to read. It was later changed to describe it as The Lost Boys meets Wilder Girls. I am glad I saw the earlier description because I probably would not have been so eager to read it.

When Mayhem Brayburn and her mom flee from an abusive stepfather/husband and return to Roxy's family home, Mayhem hopes to discover her mother's secrets and more about herself. What she learns is magic runs through the female lineage in her family, and the Brayburn women are responsible for keeping the town safe. Now, it is her generation, Mayhem and the kids who live with the Brayburns, to find the serial killer responsible for the missing girls.

Many reviewers rated the book low because it resembles The Lost Boys. Mayhem does pay homage to it. The Frog brothers make an appearance, and a few famous lines from the movie are included. However, Mayhem stands on its own.

Mayhem contains adult themes including rape and should be read by older YA readers.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 7/15/20 and updated on 8/24/20.
  
Broken Souls (Primani #4)
Broken Souls (Primani #4)
Laurie Olerich | 2014 | Paranormal, Romance
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is the fourth book in this series although it can be read as a standalone. I have already read book 1 but none other until now.

I got a bit confused with the synopsis of this one. I was expecting the story to be set in 1969 as that is how it sounded. As you might have guessed, it's not. It is, however, a fast-paced and intriguing novel as you try to figure out just who is doing what. For the first half of the book, I thought Raine was the demon!

I don't know if it is the copy that I received or not, but I found the timeline and places to be quite jerky and off-putting. One minute, you were here with this happening and in the next sentence, you were somewhere else, with someone else, saying something else with no idea of who was saying what. I'm thinking that I am the only one who feels this way due to the amount of 5-star reviews this book has but for me, I found it quite jolting.

The storyline is good and it is well-edited, with no grammatical errors that I could see. I think this series is going to be one you either love or just don't quite get. I would definitely recommend giving it a go to see which camp you fall in.

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

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jul 27, 2015