Abandon by Meg Cabot

At the age of 7, Pierce met a mysterious, dark man who was able to bring a bird back to life.

At the age of 15, Pierce hit her head and drowned in her pool, causing her to die and go to the underworld. There, she saw the mysterious man and sought his help to go back home.

While he didn't help her escape, he gave her a rare necklace that tells Pierce when evil is near. Then she ran away and went back home.

Now, at the age of 17, Pierce has had more horrible events happen to her than she prefers. Her best friend died, she was cornered by a teacher and a jewelry shop owner, and she's now moved to her mother's homeland, the name which translates to "Island of Bones".

And Pierce's mysterious man? He's on that island as well.

The more Pierce learns about John, the more bad things start to happen around her. But she also feels a connection with him - and she wants to help him because he seems troubled.

Pierce is always helping any living thing, but will this time kill her again...and keep her dead?

Read the first in Meg Cabot's new trilogy, Abandon, to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I absolutely love Meg Cabot's books! I have been reading them since I was little and I'm glad she is still writing amazing novels today for me to read!

I also love mythology, so this book could not have been more perfect for me to read!

This is the story about Persephone and Hades, and if you look at the characters names (Pierce and John Hayden) we can see that there is a connection. A little bit.

Pierce is very selfless. When she died at 15, instead of being concerned about her own safety, she confronted John and told him that he should give everyone else in line warmer clothes, fix their phones, etc.

I also loved how she wanted to help John, especially when he had scars and she wanted to fix it somehow.

This was very beautifully written and I was sucked into the story almost immediately! I've read another Persephone/Hades story rewritten (Radiant Darkness by Emily Whitman) which I really enjoyed, but this story is very unique and I can't wait to read the other 2 novels in this series!

(I actually don't mind that there are more novels to come - which is saying something since series are starting to get tiresome for me!)

As soon as I can order the second novel from the library, I will be reading it immediately and will just have to be impatient until the third one is released.

I would definitely recommend this series to others, especially teen girls and older. Pierce is a strong female character and there's enough romantic tension in here to keep most readers happy and entertained!

Tempest by Julie Cross

After living a decent, normal life for 18 years, Jackson gets a rude awakening when he finds out that he can travel through time.

With the help of a science geek, Adam, Jackson has been practicing going back into time and take notes, doing experiments to try and figure out how and why Jackson can move through time.

Being with Adam to do all of this time traveling stuff is a hinder on his relationship with Holly though.

However, one day Jackson's supernatural life and his normal life meet up when other time travelers find Jackson and shoot Holly. When that happens, Jackson transports back two years - into 2007 - to try and change Holly's death.

Only now Jackson can't seem to go back to 2009 where he left Holly, maybe for dead.

But as Jackson spends more time in other time zones than the one he needs to be in, he finds out secrets about his past, including secrets about his father's life style, his childhood, and grows more knowledgeable about his gift.

Will Jackson be able to go back to 2009 and save Holly? What side will Jackson choose: the government or the other time travelers? Read Tempest by Julie Cross to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
There was a lot crammed into this novel! I always love a good time travel story, so I thought this novel would be perfect.

However, as much as I tried to keep up with this novel, I just couldn't. This isn't your typical time travel story. In fact, there are new rules with new terminology and almost too sciency. I'm not a science person, so when they started describing with scientific words, I was pretty much lost.

I did finish the story, though, and I liked the ending, even if it wasn't the happiest. Although, there is another book in the series coming out spring 2013, but I don't think I'll be picking it up. I'd be too lost from not knowing exactly what happened in this novel to pick up in the next one.

Now, even though I didn't enjoy this novel, I'm not saying it was a horrible novel. It just isn't my thing.

For anyone who likes science or CIA/governmental issues, this is the book for you! And if you can follow what the home base is, different timelines are, etc. you can feel free to try and explain it to me with my very normal brain :)

If that happens, then maybe I'll be excited for book #2 to come out! Insaner things have happened!

Cover Reveal - Tiger's Destiny by Colleen Houck

I think I'm behind on this cover! But I just saw it so it's new to me and I'm going to feature it on my blog because I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS TO RELEASE!!! Okay, no more caps :)

If you've read my blog before, you might have seen that I've reviewed Colleen Houck's other novels in her Tiger Saga and that I love these novels. If you HAVEN'T seen my posts, you can read them here:

Book #1: Tiger's Curse
Book #2: Tiger's Quest
Book #3: Tiger's Voyage

And now, time for the Cover Reveal (and the blurb from Goodreads)!!

Summary: With three of the goddess Durga's quests behind them, only one prophecy now stands in the way of Kelsey, Ren, and Kishan breaking the tiger's curse. But the trio's greatest challenge awaits them: A life-endangering pursuit in search of Durga's final gift, the Rope of Fire, on the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal. It's a race against time--and the evil sorcerer Lokesh--in this eagerly anticipated fourth volume in the bestselling "Tiger's Curse" series, which pits good against evil, tests the bonds of love and loyalty, and finally reveals the tigers' true destinies once and for all. 

Another great cover to add to the series and it's a phoenix! Can't wait to see how this adventure will turn out!

This comes out September 4, 2012 and I will be one of the dedicated fans who will be at the store to buy it that day! Can't wait!

If  you haven't read these, I would definitely recommend them. The story is great, the writing is fantastic, and Houck will suck you into her world full of magic, mystery, love, adventure and so much more!

Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann

The town of Cryer's Cross is not very big. There are less than 250 people. Most of the families are farmers, and the high school consists of 1 room - where all 4 years sit and have one teacher. Think of it as "Little House on the Prairie" if you will.

At the end of Kendall's junior year, a girl, Tiffany Quinn, went missing. They searched for her over the summer, but was unable to find her.

When coming back to school to start her senior year, the news about Tiffany started to die down. Now the buzz was about the new kids: Marlena and Jacian Obregon.

Kendall still did her usual routine at school: put the trash can the right way, put the markers in rainbow order, open the windows and straighten the desks. She has OCD and needs to have things in an exact way, or she starts to get jittery.

After a few weeks at school, Kendall's best friend Nico starts to act odd. He spaces off, doesn't have a conversation, and wanders away.

Then a few days after that, Nico disappears just like Tiffany did...

There was a search party, but just like Tiffany, no one was able to figure out where he went.

When Kendall started hearing voices coming from the desk Nico sat at, she thought she was going crazy. A desk can't talk to her. Later on, though, Kendall forgot about the weirdness of the talking desk and decided to listen to what it was saying.

She could help Nico. But at what price?

My Thoughts/Reflections
I think Lisa McMann is starting to be my new favorite mystery/suspense YA author! She did a fantastic job with this story, weaving mystery and supernatural together to create a great story.

I read another novel by her, (I reviewed Dead to You here) which was a little different than this novel, but just as suspenseful.

I've never met anyone who has OCD (not that I know of, anyway) so while I couldn't relate to Kendall, I thought she had a handle on her disease. She didn't announce it to everyone. In fact, Nico was the only one who really knew about it, so when he disappeared, it made hiding her OCD habits hard for Kendall at first.

Jacian was by far my favorite character. He was the silent, stay-away, moody new guy who was mad about moving during senior year to a town-but-really-country/town-area from a big city. When he found out about Kendall having OCD, he didn't make fun of her, but let her be herself.

The mystery and supernatural aspect of this story could have been stronger. The reader didn't really get answers until the end of the book and it seemed almost rushed.

Lisa McMann did leave this book open for a sequel to come out, with the "ghost" factor after the last few pages. It will be interesting if she writes another one and where she would go with it.

I really enjoyed this story. I read reviews that said they didn't like Kendall and thought this story gave them goosebumps, but I found it a quick read that kept my attention until the very end.

For anyone looking to read a suspense/mystery story with a little paranormal, I would definitely recommend this novel. With the above cover, it could appeal to guy readers, even though it's a female narrator, so I would say any audience could enjoy this novel.

I also think reluctant readers would like this novel as it's unique and dark in some areas. It's very easy to read and, once you get into the story, very fast paced.

Cover Reveal - Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

The new cover for Tahereh Mafi's book Unravel Me has been released! This is the sequel to her novel Shatter Me, which I reviewed here.

And now, here's the cover:

I'm really excited to read this and can't wait until February 5, 2013 for it to come out! I know it's a long time, but I'll be at the store to get it!

If I Should Die Before I Wake: Anthology by Nadège Richards

If I Should Die Before I Wake by Jana Boskey: All her life, Evie's mother made sure that Evie and Callie never went outside after dark. Evie didn't believe the fairytale about the dark elf until he showed up for his "posession". Then Evie had to do anything to protect her little sister...

(Suspenseful story that kept the reader on the seat of their chair, and an ending that was unexpected.)

A Brush With Something Otherworldly by Jennivie Wirries: Jessie thought the item she took out of the time capsule at school was boring - an old Japanese hair comb. But when the comb showed magical abilities, Jessie realized she got a one of a kind object.

(It was alright - not my favorite and a little odd. Although it was unique and something I've never read about!)

The Winter Storms Have Come and Gone by Nadège Richards: Bethany says goodbye to Maxwell. Breakups happen all of the time, but not too many have a permanent ending like theirs...

(What many ex-girlfriends probably want to do, even if they never do so. Very short, but well written and it compels the reader to find out more!)

The Little Sister Who Cried Vampire by Brittany Hiester: Having to babysit her younger sister on Halloween was not part of Rosa's plans. So when Leah kept saying she saw a man in her window, Rosa chalked it up to Leah being annoying. Too bad she didn't believe Leah right away...

(Rosa complained too much for my liking, but that made her realistic as she's 14. A lot of punctuation errors, but the story was very action based, which I liked.)

3:00 AM 'Fun' by Ashley O'Donnell: After leaving her house and small town for 5 years, Abigail comes home when her mother passes away. The thought of staying for awhile crossed her mind, but that was before 3:00 AM came around...

(Was very shocked to read that a 16 year-old wrote this! Very well written and very disturbing. It will keep the reader asking questions after reading this story!)

The Tornadoes are Beautiful by Rhian Parry: Natural disasters are happening all over the world, destroying any sense of civilization. Xavier has been hearing voices all of his life, voices that tell him to do things. When it says to kill his sister, Xavier takes the ultimate risk to save her life.

(This has a mix of "Day After Tomorrow" but with a depressing atmosphere of no hope. There wasn't too much dialogue, which made the story slow for me, but it was a good story.)

I AM by Cody Jonathan Godown: A narrator who reflects on the past, looks at the future, and wishes for changes during the present. About a narrator who states, "I am cautious and curious".

(This is a one page verse story, written in the format of a poem. I'm horrible at reading poems and can't understand them, so I didn't enjoy this story as much as I should have. For readers who like verse, they might like it better than I did.)

They Speak To Me by Melissa Somoza: When she was nine, Rose was forced to leave her parents because The Society was trying to kill Rose. She's half clairvoyance and half necromancer, one of the darkest supernatural being in the world. At the age of 18, she's now on a mission to kill the members of The Society for revenge of her parents death. She is the ultimate assassin. The ultimate weapon.

(My second favorite story in this anthology! It reminded me of Kelley Armstrong's series "The Darkest Power" and I found myself loving Rose. She's sassy, tough, and smart. The ending was disappointing, but different and unexpected.)


A Faery Tale Nightmare by Christina Worrell: All her life, Ebony Frost felt unwanted and in the way. When he mother abandoned her, Ebony was sent to a foster home. Little did she know that was the best thing that could have happened to her. Now she has a new, caring foster mother and new foster brothers - 7 to be exact. And she's also found herself in a relationship! But when things get out of control with her new boyfriend and his cousin, she takes a step back and focuses on her new family. When she gets caught up in another romance, along with a battle for the most magic, Ebony needs to fight for what she wants, hoping that it's not too late.

(A spin-off tale of "Snow White" and a little twist with magic and werewolves, Christina Worrell did an amazing job! I was hooked from the beginning and couldn't stop reading until I finished the story. I loved the conflict Ebony had with her feelings, and her struggle with the magic building inside of her. A great read, my favorite in this bunch, and I would definitely recommend it to any reader in love of fairy tales and happy endings!)

My Thoughts/Reflections
I received a PDF of this novel for free to review by Nadège Richards and the staff of "My Home Away from Home". To find out more about this group, you can visit their facebook page, My Home Away From Home, where I have liked to keep up with their updates, or their blogsite: MHAFH.

I have not read any works by the numerous authors of this anthology, so the content and writing styles were very new and refreshing to me.

I really enjoyed this anthology! There were a lot of unique styles in the Paranormal/Supernatural genre that were refreshing and different than what has been written lately, making the stories fast paced and usually leaving me wanting more.

There were some punctuation and grammatical errors in each story, which is common for a self-published novel. Since I've had editing experience, my fingers were twitching to edit and fix the mistakes. However, even with the common errors, the stories were very well written and engaging to the reader.

I put my immediate reaction for each story after a small summary of the stories, saying what I liked or disliked about the individual short stories.

The last two stories were, by far, my favorite. They were also the longest in this anthology, which could be a factor as to why I like them.

There is a variety of writing styles in here. One is verse/poem format, while others are very short stories or longer stories. There's also various narration point of views to keep any reader happy.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good, short story to read, where they can stop after each story if they have a busy, hectic life.

I would also suggest this to anyone who likes supernatural topics (though you don't have to be a hardcore supernatural reader to enjoy this story). I tried to tag the different story subjects (vampires, faeries, etc.) that is located in this anthology to make it accurate for interested readers.

Overall, a great read that will entertain many readers, whether you are a lover of supernatural or just if you want to try something new to read!

Right now this anthology is available as an eBook on Amazon for only $0.99! If you are interested in purchasing it, click here to buy your own copy!

And thank you for letting me review this collection of works! I wish all of the authors luck in their future stories/novels!

When It Happens by Susane Colasanti

Sara: Decent grades, two best friends, senior year in high school applying for her dream college. All that is missing now is a boyfriend to make her life complete.

The new boy, Dave, has everything she wants in a guy: looks, popularity, sincerity... Or so she thought.

But when Sara finds herself daydreaming more about a different guy than Dave, she needs to rethink about why she wants to be with Dave, or if she should be with Tobey instead...

Tobey: Ever since junior year, Tobey has been secretly crushing on Sara. However, he doesn't think he's good enough with his average grades, his band, and he's not going to college next year.

At the beginning of senior year, though, Tobey makes a goal for him to talk to Sara and see if they could have a real beginning together.

Even when Sara starts to see Dave, Tobey creates plans and scenarios between Sara and Tobey to see if they could have a shot, or if they just weren't meant to be together.

Want to know what happens with Tobey and Sara? Read When It Happens by Susane Colasanti to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was a cute novel. Takes me back to senior year when applying for colleges and sticking to my own "clique" at school.

This is the first novel of Susane Colasanti's that I've read, and I loved how she did alternating narration between Tobey and Sara. The reader got a chance to see inside of both characters and their insecurities/thoughts throughout their senior year.

I was also really glad to see character development in this novel. Many authors do that during series, but Colasanti was able to develop both characters within this book and learn from one another.

Tobey learned how to be studious and Sara learned to live a little.

I think many high school readers would enjoy this novel. They would be able to relate to either Sara or Tobey and they could relate to the pressure of senior year and college applications.

The only thing that I wish was different was the cover. Because this is in alternating gender narrations, I think teen guys would like this novel, but the cover is definitely for a female audience.

I don't foresee too many guy readers picking this up, which is unfortunate because Tobey's story is really compelling, especially for aspiring musicians.

I might have to pick up another novel by Colasanti and see if she's the next "Sarah Dessen" or "Maureen Johnson"!

Honey, Baby, Sweetheart by Deb Caletti

Being known as the "Quiet Girl" or the girl who reads has been Ruby McQueen's life. It didn't happen normally - there were certain...embarrassing events that happened to make Ruby quiet and observant, rather than the popular, loud girl.

But at the beginning of summer, something changed. Ruby met Travis Becker, bad-boy, motorcycling, adrenaline junkie.

And Travis wanted to hangout with Ruby because she acted like a different person around Travis. She was adventurous, smart alecky, and rebellious. Travis was infatuated with her and put her in situations that Ruby was not used to.

However, when Travis puts Ruby in a situation where she is betraying a friend, Ruby stops to consider what she is doing.

She tells her mom what's been going on, and her mother takes her to the book club at the library she works at.

With the random group of old ladies and men reading a romantic suspense/love story, Ruby tries to find her way back to the real Ruby, not the Ruby that Travis brings out.

Add some adventure, stealing, get away car action and this novel will take you on the ride with Ruby that seems so extreme, you'll wonder if you made up the story by the time you've finished!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was an interesting novel. It wasn't what I was expecting. Quiet girl, librarian mother, bad-boy love interest.

But the bad-boy is really bad, not the "bad on the outside, but good on the inside" like other novels I've read.

Ruby is trying to find her place in life, and she thought a little adventure during the summer was what she needed. That was before she met Travis though.

One thing that I'm not good at as a reader is reading narrative. I love dialogue, and seeing huge paragraphs with no talking makes my eyes glaze over.

Which is what happened in this book. Ruby reflected a lot. And she went on tangents about random things before getting back to the topic at hand.

Needless to say, it took me awhile to get through this book that I thought I would fly through.

I'm not saying it was bad. Or that I didn't like the author. I actually loved Deb Caletti's novel, The Fortunes of Indigo Skye. I just had a hard time sticking with this book during long periods of time.

This would be a great book for teen girls who are lost in life or who have a crush on a boy they should not be liking. It also has some adventure, risk-taking events that will make the reader laugh and enjoy.

This isn't my first recommendation for other readers, but it is a nice story that will keep some readers entertained for a summer reading.

Cover Reveal: Soul Screamers Vol. 2 by Rachel Vincent

The new cover for the second volume of the Soul Screamer collection by Rachel Vincent is out! Here's what it looks like:

This volume contains two novels and a novella from the Soul Screamer series:

#3: MY SOUL TO KEEP
#3.5 REAPER 
#4 MY SOUL TO STEAL

It is also the first time that Reaper is in print, previously an ebook novella novel.

According to Goodreads, this is to come out November 13, 2012, so very soon! I can't wait to add it to my collection of the Soul Screamer novels :)

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

After waking up in the hospital, Mara Dyer has no idea what has happened in the last few days. She finds out she's been in a coma for 3 days, and before that she was found trapped in the abandoned asylum building.

Mara also finds out that her best friend, Rachel, along with her boyfriend, Jude, and his sister, Claire, were with her in the building. And the old building had collapsed while all 4 of them were inside.

Mara was the only survivor.

No matter how hard Mara tries to remember, she can't recall any events leading up to that day. But after leaving the hospital, Mara begs her mother to move out of Rhode Island. She can't go anywhere without remembering Rachel.

So Mara and her two brothers, Daniel and Joseph, along with Mara's mom and dad move to Florida and enroll in a private school.

Things should get better, right? Except Mara keeps having hallucinations and nightmares. She sees Jude and Claire in her sleep, during the daytime. Only, it's just Mara's brain playing tricks on her.

What's the one thing that Mara didn't see coming her way throughout this whole mess? Noah Shaw, the playboy of her school. He's showing a lot of interest in Mara only she doesn't want any part of his "next conquest" agenda. Only he won't go away.

With Mara's father taking a case for a murder suspect, Mara has a feeling of deja vu and is reminded of Rachel and her friends' death.

But when horrible things start to happen around Mara, she has a terrible suspicion that things are not as they seemed and maybe has the answer to how Mara survived the collapsed building but Jude, Claire, and Rachel didn't.

And Mara does not like the answer that she has come up with. Not one bit... To find out what happened, read The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Ohhh! I really enjoyed this book. I wasn't sure what to expect by just reading the back blurb, and some of the reviews on Goodreads weren't very appealing to other readers, but I was sucked into this story from the very beginning and couldn't put it down!

I could not imagine what Mara went through when she found out that her best friend was killed in the accident that Mara had been in - and Mara was the only one who survived. I think I would have left town as well, running away from the ghosts of her past and guilt.

Mara is a very tough girl. She assumed she was seeing things but kept a brave face on for her mom, since she was very sensitive to Mara and finally gave in to seeing a psychiatrist when things were getting too far out of control.

And Mara's resistance to Noah!! I don't know how that girl did it - I would have given in to him in a heartbeat, but she fought against the undeniable attraction to him to the end! And boy did he make it hard for her.

Even though this book kept giving me unexpected situations that I was somewhat confused about throughout the novel, I would definitely recommend this book to other readers!

There is mystery and suspense, romance to make your toes curl, and supernatural events that leave the reader wondering what happened, but still wanting more by the end of the novel.

This is the first novel in a series (not sure of how many books yet) and the second novel, The Evolution of Mara Dyer, will be coming out in October 2012 - so just a little while to wait! I will definitely be reading this next book to finds out what happens to Mara!

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

This is the second book in the Unearthly series.

I've reviewed the first book at this link: Unearthly.

After Clara failed her purpose that all angels have at the end of Unearthly, she doesn't really know what to do anymore.

She is dating a human boy named Tucker, is friends with another angel-blood Christian, and gets a strange vibe from her mom every so often after their encounter with the Black Wings.

When Clara starts to have dreams, she realizes that they are visions of the future, and might be another purpose for her since she failed the first one.

What bothers Clara is that she can't see Tucker in these dreams. But Christian is there and that makes her worried, especially because the Black Wings are coming back to get Clara and her mother.

Life is going as well as can be expected until Clara's friend Angela discovers that angels can only live til the age of 120... And someone very close to Clara just turned 120 a few weeks ago.

Now with the looming doom of losing a lost one and her conflicted feelings between Christian and Tucker, Clara is unsure what to do. Add to the fact that the Black Wing knows more about her history than Clara and is still coming after Clara and her mother, Clara is ready for a time-out.

And that's not even touching on the subject of where to go to college in the fall...

Who will Clara choose? Who is going to die that is close to Clara? And what is the mysterious secret that her mother has kept from her all of these years? Read Hallowed by Cynthia Hand to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
It's really great to be back into this series again, if only for a short time allowed in a single book.

I've always had a special place in my heart for one of the male characters (Tucker/Christian). I'm not going to say who because I want to express my love for the ending of this novel, and if I say who Clara choose, I'll ruin it for everyone else!

Clara definitely grew more into a mature adult during this novel. After what happened when she moved to Wyoming and the events that followed, she realized that not everything is set in stone and not everything is fair in life.

With losing a loved one, Clara realized that angels don't get to live forever and they need to live their life to the fullest. But that didn't make losing someone any easier.

Now I'm sorry that I took so long to read this novel! But even sadder? I have to wait until January 2013 for the third novel... Guess I'll just have to reread the first two novels in preparation :)

I would definitely recommend this novel to anyone in love with angel stories and a triangle love story. I would highly urge you to read the first novel, Unearthly, though, in order to understand this novel.

Fracture by Megan Miranda

It was just another cold winter in Maine where 17-year-old Delaney and her best friend Decker were racing to play outside in the snow with their friends.

Only it wasn't. When Delaney fell through the frozen lake, everything for her changed. 

She was inside of the lake for 11 minutes. Enough time that she actually died. Only with the help of Decker giving her CPR did Delaney live - even if the doctors couldn't figure out how she came back to life. 

After two weeks, though, Delaney realized that not everything is the same as what it once was. First, Decker is acting strange - almost as if he wants to be more than friends with Delaney. 

Second, a strange boy, Troy, starts hanging around Delaney who says that he knows her, when in fact she has never met him before. 

And third, Delaney gets an odd sensation in her body, a tingle, whenever she is near someone who is about to die. 

Troy is like Delaney - he can sense when others are going to die too. When Delaney finds this out, she feels connected to him in a way she can't feel toward Decker. 

Things start to go downhill for Delaney, though. Troy is not who she thought she was, Decker has moved on to another girl, and everyone in town is treating her as if she is "fine" when in reality, she's not. 

But can Delaney figure out what her new "ability" is? Or will she be trapped in this life she doesn't know forever, fearing being around people who are sick? Read Fracture by Megan Miranda to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections

I was blown away by this book. I read it in one sitting, having to know what was going to happen next and how the story ended. 

I didn't think it was going to be supernatural. I thought it was contemporary, which is is a little bit but with Delaney's new "gift" it definitely changed the storyline. 

I could not imagine what Delaney went through. Having been in the hospital for 2 weeks and finding out that she literally died would make any sane person a little scared. But then getting tingles next to anyone that was about to die? Yeah, I would have clung to Troy as well since he knew about the "gift" from the start!

Ah, Decker. The boy next door, the boy who befriended Delaney, the boy who is always there. He was my favorite character in this book even if he started dating another girl and ignored Delaney. I don't blame him - Delaney wasn't telling him what was going on so he was very much out of the loop. 

Drowning is a huge fear of mine, because I don't know how to swim, so I understand Delaney's turmoil toward the lake. At the end of the book, when she's back on the lake, I thought she was very brave and somewhat stupid to do that again, but she did have an overall goal for that. 

I really liked this novel! It's about heartbreak, confusion, misunderstanding, romance, and life. 

I think many other readers will fall into this story like I have and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a darker tale of mystery and survival. 

Black Heart by Holly Black

This is the third book in The Curse Worker series by Holly Black.

Here is my review of the first book: White Cat.

Here is my review of the second book: Red Glove.

After forcing his brother into working with the government, Cassel is now training with Barron during the time he has off from school.

Since he has nothing better to do, right?

When the government needs Cassel's curse magic, though, Cassel has to make a decision. Work for the Feds, or they will find his mother and put her in prison again for another con she pulled - this time with a politician.

Since Cassel really had no choice, he's doing a job that seems very familiar to a job he would have done with the mob. So in reality, both sides of the coin are pretty much the same thing, only one thinks they are doing "good".

Along with the governmental issues Cassel has, he is also heartbroken by the way things went with Lila. The curse his mother put on her has finally gone away, but now she's angry at Cassel and has been ignoring him.

Things are also going badly for his roommate, Sam, and his girlfriend, creating chaos for both Sam and Cassel that is keeping them distracted from other things.

And since Cassel never seems to get a break, a girl from his school came to him for help because someone is blackmailing her. Only he gets a strange vibe from her, knowing she is lying but not knowing what about.

When Cassel and Lila finally talk about their feelings and find out that the love each other, Cassel has a decision to make. Will he stay with the Feds, on the "good" side, or will he go with Lila, the love of his life?

And, because this is Cassel, he'll also have to get himself out of a mess he created with another con act.

My Thought/Reflections
Another great novel in The Curse Workers series, and a great ending! There was more con acts to follow, more mystery to unfold, and enough romance to keep the reader engaged in this continued story.

I really was very happy with this ending. I don't want to give too much away, but Cassel finally opened his eyes to what he really wanted and forgot about everything else, which is what a teenager should do every once in awhile.

The thing that I loved about this series is Cassel. He was the main character, the main narrator, and it was nice and different to get a guys perspective in a novel rather than a female.

I think that this would be a great book for guys. I just wish that the covers were more appealing to guy readers - maybe show Cassel do a con act, or a "mysterious" vibe to the cover that might get more guys to pick up these novels.

I'm also really happy that while there was a romantic story included, it wasn't the story itself. There was magic, mobs, government, politics - events that happen in the "real" world and what grown ups usually deal with.

Only Cassel was stuck in the grown up world.

I really enjoyed this story and will be finding out if there is more to come or if this is the end to Holly Black's series.

If it's the ending, I'd call myself a happy camper. If there is more, I will definitely be picking up the next novel ready to delve into Cassel's next adventure, because I'm sure his life will never be boring haha.

Red Glove by Holly Black

This is the second book in The Curse Workers series by Holly Black.

To read the review of the first novel, click here: White Cat.

Cassel is starting his senior year at his preparatory school, but things are very different than last semester. First, his roommate and his girlfriend know Cassel is a curse worker, though they don't know what kind yet.

Second, the girl Cassel loves, Lila, was worked by his mother to fall in love with Cassel. Now that she's at his school, he can't ignore her as much, and resisting her is becoming harder and harder.

When Cassel is confronted by two FBI agents informing him that his oldest brother, Phillip was murdered, Cassel finds himself in a very compromising situation.

Zacharov, the crime boss and Lila's father, wants Cassel to use his curse magic for him. The FBI wants Cassel to be a part of a team for the government.

And Cassel? He just wants Lila not to be cursed to love him and to get through his senior year in school.

However, the FBI gave him an ultimatum: find out who killed his brother, and the killer of unsolved cases Phillip was working on, or they will frame his mother since she's been working older, elite men since she got out of prison.

But when Cassel finds out who killed the men of the unsolved cases and finds out who Phillip's killer is, he has to pull out all of his con abilities to protect those two people.

Once again, Cassel will need to use the tricks and tools he's grown up with to get everyone out of trouble. Hopefully his luck stays with him throughout this investigation.

My Thoughts/Reflections
Now that I've been introduced to Holly Black's world in the Curse Worker realm, I really enjoyed this novel!

Cassel is stuck in so many worlds and so many lies, I don't know how he can keep them all straight! I also love how he comes up with his cons and how detailed he is before he reveals his story to anyone. That is a great gift; conniving, but great!

I had to chuckle when reading about Cassel and Lila. I know it's not funny, having a girl be forced to love you because of a curse, but the intense work he put into avoiding her did nothing to stop the attraction between the two.

This was a great novel and a great addition to add to the first novel of the series. I also liked how Cassel started to trust more people with the real truth, and not the version that he decided to give to his friends and associates.

Being part of so many circles can be a burden to one person, but Cassel managed it throughout this novel and I was very impressed with how much his character had grown.

I'm anxiously waiting to read the third, and final, book in this series to see what is in store for Cassel at the end.

Cover Reveal: Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick

I am a huge fan of Becca Fitzpatrick's series, Hush, Hush, and the new cover for the final book is now revealed! Check it out:

I'm glad they stayed with the original colors and font print! And I think it's absolutely gorgeous! I can't wait to read it!

This book is coming out October 23, 2012, so just a few more months to find out what happens to Nora and Patch! I have done reviews on the first three novels of the series, which you can view here:

1st novel: Hush, Hush
2nd novel: Crescendo
3rd novel: Silence

I know that angels seem to be popping up more in books now, but this is a great series and I think many will like the story so if you haven't read them I would definitely recommend them!

Easy by Tammara Webber

This is an eBook which you can buy on Amazon.com for $3.99!

Also, the synopsis is located in this blog post, along with a free sneak peek through Amazon that I blogged about last week.

Starting college is always a struggle. Jacqueline had it pretty easy, though, since she went to the same college as her boyfriend of 3 years, Kennedy, and was automatically accepted into his circle of friends.

That is, until he broke up with her, saying that he wanted to "live a little" and "see other people" before he went into politics after college.

When he broke up with her, Jacqueline had a couple of weeks where she didn't go to her econ class since Kennedy was in that class with her. It was a class that she didn't really want to take, but it was too late to drop it when they broke up.

After her two week break-down, Jacqueline found out that she missed the midterm and might be close to failing her first class, ever. The teacher, feeling pity on her, gave her the econ tutor's email address to try and catch up.

Turns out that Jacqueline couldn't make it to any of the tutoring sessions so Landon, the tutor, gave her the notes and they communicated solely through email. And some of the email exchanges seemed a little... flirty?

While somewhat flirting with the econ tutor, Jacqueline was also paying attention to a guy in her econ class she hadn't noticed before: Lucas. He didn't seem like the student to fit econ as he was always drawing in class and never paying attention.

And to top off having certain desires toward Lucas, whose smoldering stare kept Jacqueline's attention far more than it should have, and flirting with the tutor, a frat brother of Jacqueline's ex was starting to show unwanted advances to Jacqueline.

Jacqueline didn't want to be anywhere near Buck, the frat brother, and found herself in a position she didn't like, so she took up a self-defense class on Saturdays - where Lucas happened to volunteer at.

With all of these boys in her life, Jacqueline isn't sure what to do. She's even more lost when Kennedy decides he made a mistake by breaking up with her and wants to get back together.

With so many choices, what will Jacqueline decide to do and who to pick? Read Easy by Tammara Webber to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Right when I read the synopsis to this book, I knew I had to read it even though I don't read too many eBooks since I don't have a real Kindle.

And boy am I sure glad I decided to buy it! If you've read my review of Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire, you know how much I love that book and this novel is very similar to McGuire's work. So it undoubtedly means that I loved this book as well!

Jacqueline is like any normal teenager girl who has followed a boy over her own dreams. And, as much as I hate to admit it, her reaction to getting dumped by a boyfriend of 3 years is pretty realistic.

I definitely like Jacqueline though. When she was forced in a horrible situation, she took action with the help of her roommate, Erin, to make sure she would never be that vulnerable again.

I also loved Lucas. He was a loner in some ways, but very popular in others. Add the fact that he was very attractive but never seemed to be with the same girl and you have the typical bad-boy character. And his infatuation of Jacqueline, which would normally seem stalkerish, was in fact flattering and will make any female reader want his attention.

This is a great novel and I would definitely recommend it to any female reader, no matter how old they are. It's fast paced, lots of relateable events that the reader can connect with, along with a strong leading female character that will make the reader cheer her on silently and out loud.

The Book of Luke by Jenny O'Connell

Emily has always been the girl who was "nice". She did nice things and said the right comments at the right time. She grew up in that sort of household - especially because her mom wrote novels about etiquette and related topics.

But then things happened to Emily that weren't very nice.

For instance, she had to move from Chicago to Boston half-way through her senior year of high school. She was a shoe-in for valedictorian, but once she transferred she wouldn't be able to do that at her new school. Her father, who wanted to move in the first place, ended up staying in Chicago. Emily's boyfriend decided to dump her the morning she was leaving.

Emily was tired of being the "nice" girl. When reunited with her old friends from freshman year, they decided to do something about guys being, well, guys.

Every year the senior class creates a class capsule. Emily decided she's making a guide for guys in the future on how to treat a girl they way they should. Tell them what the guys are doing wrong and what doesn't appeal to girls.

Before they were putting it in the capsule, though, Emily's friends Josie and Lucy wanted to test out the guides to make sure they work. Who better than the school's bad-boy, cocky senior Luke to try it out on? And only Emily could do it since she hasn't been at that high school for 2 1/2 years.

But when Emily starts to really fall for Luke and not just using him for the guide, she finds herself in a huge mess. Josie still liked Luke and wanted to get together with him after the experiment, so Emily couldn't tell her about her newly developed feelings.

And Emily couldn't tell Luke because he would get angry.

When everything gets out in the open, though, Emily finds that she really isn't the nice girl anymore. While she thought that she would be happy, it had the opposite effect.

Will Emily be able to fix all of her broken relationships, or will she finally be known as the mean girl? Read The Book of Luke by Jenny O'Connell to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This is a typical book about high school drama and revenge. Overall, it was a good story, but I found myself very frustrated at Emily. She seemed almost selfish and she never really talked about her problems but wanted to know everyone elses, which didn't seem fair.

I really liked Luke. He was a shy, awkward 8th/9th grader when Emily knew him before, but when she came back he was gorgeous, athletic, and everyone bowed at his feet.

He didn't necessarily ask for it, but he wasn't telling everyone to stop either - when you are an awkward person who becomes popular it's a kick that I can understand why he might have acted like that.

For Emily, lies never came easy but reading this novel the reader would never know that. She lied constantly and after awhile it came back to bite her - hard. In the end, she realized that she needed to be HERSELF not someone that her family or friends wanted her to be.

This was an alright book. For any teen girl who has been scorned by a male, they would definitely love it. I found it a little juvenile in some places and was almost glad to finish it, but I think it could appeal to other, younger readers.