Review: The New Guy

The New Guy by Amy Spalding
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Meh. I didn't really enjoy this. Jules is awkward in the sense that she thinks she knows everything and has a perfect pristine life, but really she's just playing by the rules hoping that she will get what she wanted. Like being the editor for the paper. She was so stressed out because she thought she might not get it, but when the other student who would have been a shoe-in dropped out, instead of Jules being happy about it, she was upset. Because it wasn't a fair win... Umm, girl, just take the win and be happy about it and do the job justice, okay? Because you don't get many freebies like that so you better take it while you can. Trust me.

And Alex. Just because he used to be a pop star does not mean everyone needs to fawn over him. I mean, get over it. I understand this is high school and that these kids are always in awe over celebrities, but gah, talking about it as much as they did would have killed me if I went to their high school haha.

So this book was okay. It wasn't for me and I really didn't enjoy it too much, but it had a good storyline and I think high school students will enjoy this novel when it is released. I just couldn't handle all of the juvenile actions that were going on, sadly.

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Review: Silent Hearts

Silent Hearts by Melissa West
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a huge fan of Melissa West's, and was extremely excited to be approved for this novel. I've read the previous two books in the series and really enjoyed the Hamilton brother's journeys. Nick was always the disconnected one, always apart from his other brothers and was very quiet. I never knew what he was up to. And I didn't really get too much into Nick's head now that I've read his book. He's always paranoid that things are going to go south and be devastating for him, which is the opposite of his brothers who dive head first in things. So Nick was definitely not my favorite of the Hamilton brothers.

Becca, on the other hand, is awesome. She decided that she wanted more for her life and instead of just hoping and dreaming like most do when they want more, Becca actually went out and did it. She took a class to learn how to scuba dive. She applied for schools to continue her schooling to be a nurse. She dived into a more intimate relationship with Nick, even though he's her best friend. And she is so selfless. Always helping her sister when she needs money. Ending school 10 years ago to take care of her grandmother. I seriously adore Becca and aspire to be like her someday.

I enjoyed this book. I didn't like it as much as the others in the series, but it was definitely still a great novel. I'll be interested to see if Melissa West will write about the Littleton brothers, because I think that would be a great series to read about :)

So glad I got this novel early and, as always, I will be looking out for more novels by this author! Definitely read her stuff!

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Review: Fly With Me

Fly With Me by Chanel Cleeton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I am a huge fan of Chanel Cleeton so I was really excited to get this novel early! And I definitely enjoyed it. I loved the references to Top Gun even though it's a bit different than that movie, and I totes love that movie. I may even have to watch it now since I read this, haha!

Noah is awesome. He's such a manly man, but such a sweetheart and so self-conscious when it comes to his relationship with Jordan. He doesn't want to mess up and is always trying to figure out how to do the right thing.

And Jordan is a bad ass. She is running her own company, living life the way she wants, and is always looking for a challenge. So when Noah comes into her life, she takes life by the horns and goes with it.

The reason this only got 3 stars (which means I liked it! Really!) is because of the ending. It was rushed, it was pressured, and I felt like it should have had a little bit more ...meat...to the ending. I dunno, it worked for these two characters, but I think after reading their viewpoints for the novel that they would have wanted more and for it to not be so rushed.

I was able to relate to this story a little bit with the relationship I'm currently in, so it gave me a sense of a foretelling perhaps. Not sure if I should have read it like that, but oh well, that's what happened.

I think Cleeton's fans will enjoy this refreshing novel, and I am definitely looking forward to the rest in the series!

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Review: Trial By Fire

Trial By Fire by Chris Cannon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

So, I adored, I LOVED the first two novels in this series. I sucked them up and finished them without taking a breathe it seemed like. But this book?? Yeah, I didn't have the same intense feelings for this novel in the series...

Bryn used to be a badass and she knew what she wanted. Now, she's a timid, rule abiding girl and I really don't care for this new personality she's got going on. And she's so ...meek... now. She's with Valmont now and she's become such a whiner almost. I dunno, for some reason, Bryn got on my nerves a lot during this novel, which is a shame because I actually admired her during the first two novels.

And while I don't need a lot of action to keep me happy in novels, I thought that there would be more in this book because of the previous two. There were a few moments, but not anything like the others. Also, the whole thing with Bryn being in the Blue clan. I know she did it because her grandparents went out of their way to help her, but I didn't think that Bryn would start to become like a Blue...cause they are the biggest snobs I've ever seen!

As much as I complained about this novel, I did enjoy it. It just wasn't up to par compared to the other novels and I was a little bit disappointed with it. I'll probably still stick with the series at least for another novel to see if it will get better, but I hope I am alone in my feelings and that other readers will think it is phenomenal. I'm glad I got a chance to read this early and will look forward to more works by Cannon!

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Review: The SEAL's Rebel Librarian: An Alpha Ops Novella

The SEAL's Rebel Librarian: An Alpha Ops Novella by Anne Calhoun
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC novel from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a sucker when it comes to books with "Library, Librarian, Books" or anything else remotely similar to that in the title so I requested this book. And I actually enjoyed this one, because usually I find most of the novels like this annoying, fake, or just dull.

Erin wants to live again after her divorce and she's got her list all figured out. When SEAL Jack comes around, he's the perfect person to her her with them. Plus it doesn't hurt that he's hot as sin. I think it was brave of Erin to do what she wanted to do after hearing negative things for 8 years from her ex on her wants and needs. And I think helping Erin helped Jack, but also made him realize that he might want more than he thought he did.

As a librarian, I could relate to a lot of the scenes that occurred in the library atmosphere. Not so much the sexy times with Jack, but just the normal every day things. I'm not a risk taker or a dare devil, but maybe later in life I'll do what Erin did :)

I'm glad I got an eARC of this novel and I will definitely keep Erin's goals in mind if I ever need to live a little later in life!

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Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was chosen for my book club, so I re-read it again and still loved it. Doesn't hurt that I'm always watching the movies and getting all kinds of Harry Potter related stuff for myself!

It's been awhile since I've read it, though, cause I forgot about some things. Like at the beginning? J.K. Rowling actually starts with a narration of the Dursley's and their life before Harry arrived. Very interesting to me since we all know this is about Harry. And it also refreshed my memory of what Vernon does for a living.

I liked that we got to read about all of the Quidditch matches again, rather than just the one that is in the movie. Little things like that made me smile and realize that the book really is better than the movie!

I was debating if I was going to read the rest of the books, but I think I am. I'm craving the Harry Potter books so I might as well do it now that I've just finished the first one, right? :)

If for some strange and abnormal reason you haven't read these amazing books, you need to finally jump on the train to Hogwarts and find out why they are so great. The story is fantastic and Rowling is a phenomenal writer!

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