Review: Alpha's Queen (Havenwood Falls #6) by Lila Felix

Alpha's Queen by Lila Felix
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC novel from Red Coat Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

Atlas is not happy that she is in an arranged mate with the black bear prince of Havenwood, but she is willing to sacrifice 90 days of her life to guarantee that her people of the cinnamon bears will have a better life. What Atlas wasn't expecting was to be so attracted to Harrison. From the moment that her blindfold was taken off, she was stunned and hooked.

Harrison so does not want to be the Alpha of his people. He has it all planned out that after the 90 days, him and his mate will part ways, and he can live a normal life while his cousin takes control of the clan. Then he sees Atlas and his world was tilted. Not only is she a looker, but she is also kind, strong, passionate, and really makes his bear happy.

The more Atlas and Harrison are around each other, the harder it is to avoid the attraction between one another. But forces are out there to try to separate them, because not everyone is happy with the things that are happening in the bear community. Atlas and Harrison are going to have to figure out what it is they are wanting, and they they are going to fight like hell to stop the forces against them before it's too late.

This was great! I love shifter stories, and I haven't read one about bear shifters, so I was really excited about this one! And I wasn't disappointed! Atlas is a badass and she is so brave to go through this terrifying event of an arranged mating for her people. And Harrison is so naive when it comes to his life, so I'm glad that Atlas was there to open his eyes and make him take a step in the right direction to fix the problems in his clan.

The attraction between Atlas and Harrison was just exploding off of the pages. I can't believe they lasted apart for as long as they did, because I would have caved in a lot faster than they did, haha!

This was a great novel and I am so glad that I was able to get a chance to read this! I'm going to have to look into this series, and this author's other novels. I think a lot of readers are really going to love this book!

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Review: Tarnished Crown by Erin Watt

Tarnished Crown by Erin Watt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

You can read this story for free on Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/394937742-tar...

Gideon has always taken care of his family being that he is the oldest brother of 5 boys. When his mom and younger brother Easton were in trouble, Gideon was the first person to be there and fix it.

When he saw Savannah for the first time, he knew that he wanted to be with her. But because of the craziness that is his life and what events unfolded with his parents, he ended up hurting Savannah rather than being her hero and her one true love.

Now, three years later, he has a chance to fix things between them, but only if Savannah wants Gideon still.

Savannah was extremely hurt by the things that Gideon did three years ago, so she is going to start off fresh when she goes to college next year. Sure, Gideon will be there too, but she is not going to let him stop her from attending one of the best schools in the subject that she wants to study.

But Gideon is determined to win her over. Savannah has built a wall around her heart and she is so much tougher than what she was three years ago. Savannah can handle anything that he throws at her, but she wasn't expecting him to want to tell her the truth. That is a curve ball that she wants the answers to, which may just melt the wall around her heart enough to let him back in.

However, the nightmare that is Gideon's life is still following him, and he needs to figure out the right way to handle everything before he loses his last chance with Savannah.

I love the Royals series. Ever since the first book's synopsis was roaming around and I caught onto it, I realized how much I love the situations that all of the characters are going through. Because even though the books were focused on Ella and Reed, all of the characters were dealing with an issue in their life in some way. And in this short novel, we got to see Gideon come into a full circle in the end.

Being able to get the story firsthand from Gideon and Savannah was great. It really hit hard core how they started off and how they ended. We always heard about the terrible break up, but seeing the events unfold on why they broke up was just gut wrenching.

I'm very proud that Savannah stuck to her guns and really made Gideon work for a second chance, even though she really wasn't going to give him one. But once she realized the whole story, she realized that things were not as they seemed, and life was about to get rough now that she was included in the roller coaster ride of the Royal life.

I'm so glad that I got a chance to finally read this, and as always I'm looking forward to more novel by Erin Watt :)

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Review: Somewhere Within (Havenwood Falls HIGH #4) by Amy Hale

Somewhere Within by Amy Hale
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this free eARC novel from Red Coat Publishing in exchange for my honest review.

Zoey has been moving from one place to another since she was 7 years old. Each place is in a big city for her dad's work and Zoey is always the outcast at school. With her pale skin and pitch black hair, she tends to get bullied and pushed around by the other kids.

When her family moves to Havenwood Falls, CO, things are turning out to be the same thing when it comes to bullies at school. But some things are pretty different. Now she has a great friend, Meredith, who sticks up for her when she's being pushed around. And Havenwood Falls is a very small town, not a big city. Oh, and the other change? Her grandfather that she never really knew about lives there and is a very big deal in this small town.

When Zoey finds out that she is a frost dragon and will be transforming soon when she turns 16 in a couple of weeks, she never saw that coming. Zoey is the weird, shy, awkward girl - not some badass frost dragon.

The more time Zoey spends in Havenwood, the more she realizes that she belongs there. Some people have issues with supernatural people, but she may be able to find her place in this new home. And she may have caught the eye of a certain popular human boy, but there are many forces in place that are trying to keep her away from him.

Zoey has a lot to learn about being a dragon, but she is sure going to have a fun time figuring it all out!

I have never read any of the Havenwood Falls novels - normal of High alike. So I was interested in what these were all about. I love dragon novels, so this seemed like a great place to start!

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I've read other dragon books that I love so much, but because this was a novella novel I feel like I wasn't able to connect as much with the characters as I would have liked to.

Also, Zoey was way too understanding and accepting of being a frost dragon. I don't care how cool you are, anyone who hears they are a dragon will freak out, but Zoey really didn't do that too much.

And the transformation scene with her aunt? That totally would not have gone as smoothly for her very first time changing into a huge DRAGON!! There would have been a lot more hiccups than she had, but she was able to fly within a few minutes after changing. Totally not realistic.

The romance was flat for me. I felt more excitement with Kai, even though I knew that it wasn't going to happen, but that would have made for an interesting novel, haha.

There were things that I didn't quite believe as much as I could have, which made me not love the book so much, but it was a great short story that kept me entertained until the last page. I will definitely be interested in more novels in this series to see what other authors have come up with and whether the series is something to fall in love with. I'm very grateful that I was able to experience this series that many readers love, and I know that they will love this next installment to their collections!

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Review: Brave by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Brave by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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

Publication date: Dec. 11, 2017

After everything Ivy's been through, she's not sure if she will survive the mental and physical torture that she went through. Sure, she's alive, and she's not near the Prince anymore, but that doesn't mean that she is back to her normal self. Now she is guarded. From the strangers that she is staying with, to even Tink and Ren. Because as much as she would love to fall back into her normal routine, Ivy's life has changed forever, and she's not free and clear yet.

Not only that, but she is changing on the inside. She has cravings and darkness inside of her, and Ivy has no idea how to control it. It's driving her crazy.

And on top of everything else, she is surrounded by people who she doesn't trust, and also who don't trust her changes either. There is no way for Ivy to release this tension and frustration that she has rolling around inside of her, and she's going to crack.

The Prince is out there, and he's still looking for Ivy to be able to carry out his final plans. Ivy is going to have to figure out how to control herself, before it ends up costing her her life. And she's going to have to find a way to communicate about what is happening to her, before she ends up losing the two people in the world who mean the most to her.

Gah. This was a killer book. There was so much in here! At one point, I thought that everyone who has read this so far was lying and saying it was "done" with this book, because there was no way that things were going to get resolved when I only had 20% of the book left, and then I was going to be PO'ed!

But Armentrout gave a phenomenal book that was full of laughs, tears, heartbreak and an ending that will do. For now. :)

The title for book 2 was on par: Torn. Because Ivy and Ren were torn with their feelings throughout the novel. But it could have been the title for this book as well, because Ivy was torn between different cravings and urges and thoughts that she had with herself. If you thought that Ivy was having a mental breakdown during book 2 like I thought, you just wait until this novel because Ivy is going through a lot of emotions and she can't figure out a way to get past a lot of crap that she went through.

This book was about Ivy, completely. She had to find a way to push herself past her comfort zone and get back to the ambition of the Old Ivy. There were many great scenes with Ren and Tink, but this book is Ivy, from start to finish. And I loved that, because as much as I love the sexy or hilarious scenes, seeing Ivy be able to find herself again and to love herself was the best part. It shows the reader that you can go through anything, and still be able to find a way to be okay with yourself in the end.

There were a lot of twists and turns, a lot of surprises and OMG moments in this novel that will keep the reader on the roller coaster ride until the very last chapter. I think readers are going to be so happy with this last novel in the series, and we will be able to get a novella to see additional characters in fall 2018! Yay!! We will all be waiting on pins and needles for that!

I am so glad that I got a chance to read this book earlier, and I am so grateful that I get to read amazing books by Jennifer L. Armentrout because she has such amazing messages hidden in her books that can be completely relatable to us normal humans. ;)

I think everyone will love this book, and I cannot wait until the next JLA book comes out! (Because I am a greedy reader who takes, and takes, and takes :D But they are just so good!)

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Review: Torn by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Torn by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After Ivy was betrayed by one of her best friends and found out a very dark and dangerous secret about herself, she didn't know what to do. The information that the Fae Prince let loose has changed Ivy's entire world, and now she has no idea who she can trust now.

She wants to trust Ren, because she is love with him, but if he ever found out about this secret, he would be torn. Torn between his duty, and torn between his feelings for Ivy.

Ivy can't talk to the Order about this, either, because they haven't believe anything else she has been telling them, but with this secret they would take it very seriously. And she's not sure if they would try to protect her or kill her.

Then Ivy goes to Tink - who, by the way, has SO MANY secrets he's kept from Ivy - and finds out more about the Fae world than anyone else knows.

Soon, though, the Fae Prince catches up with Ivy, and by blackmailing her has captured her with no rescue in sight. Ivy is a strong woman who fights fae all day, every day, but after being mentally tortured by this group, she may just give up in the end.

I am so disappointed in myself... I should have read this book WHEN IT FIRST CAME OUT!!! But alas, I didn't because I couldn't handle another cliffhanger from the infamous JLA. And then to find out that this one DOESN'T have a cliffhanger?? I'm hanging myself right now. Sigh.

Oh well, it's done and overwith, and I have finally gotten to this book and loved every minute of it. Ivy is such a strong character, and to have watched her get hurt and bullied and tortured to the point where she is a shell of herself is just gutwrenching. But it was so real, because anyone in her situation would have gone through the same thing. In fact, they would have given up a lot earlier than Ivy did, so even though she was being broken over and over again, she was still being strong.

And it wasn't just the Fae breaking her, but also her own brain. She was torturing herself with thoughts that she didn't confirm - only things that she herself believed - and they were breaking her spirit even more. Ivy was too hard on herself and she should have been hoping for the best outcome, but too many things in her life have broken around her and she finally gave up, I think.

Tink is awesome. Ren is awesome. And Ivy is a badass who I would love to have a fraction of her strength in my life. These characters are so real and JLA makes you feel so much for them, that the reader feels like they are real. They have so many flaws and emotional rollercoasters that it is hard not to imagine yourself in their shoes and feeling their emotions.

I am so glad that I read this, and I'm going to dive right into the 3rd and final book *cries* to see how it all pans out. As much as I'm glad I have the third book, I'm getting so emotional that it is almost over!

So the moral of this review is: Don't wait to read JLA's books. Dive right in, knowing that you will have your heart wrenched out of your chest, because it will be an amazing adventure. :)

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Review: Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have the whole trilogy in my possession, so I decided to re-read this amazing book again! And I was so not disappointed. In fact, I'm just going to re-post this book review that I wrote the first time that I read this novel :)

This is my original review from December 2014:

OMGOMGOMGOMG. As I was reading this book, I texted all of my friends and went, JLA is a God! She really outdid herself in this novel. I mean, I'm a JLA fan til I die, but I really loved this book. Ivy tried oh so very hard to resist Ren, but it was not to be. Besides, why would anyone want to resist Ren?

I've read numerous novels about fae and this definitely followed the stereotype, but that's good in my book because I didn't have to figure out the new rules of this storyline. It was nice to see that there can be kick ass girl fae hunters as well as guys.

And seriously, if you have never read JLA you don't know that she is the reference queen. No, I'm not kidding. She references everything! And to make ya'll understand, I'm going to list everything she references. Be prepared for a long list...:

Daryl Dixon/Walking Dead
Merida/"Brave"
Twilight
Games of Thrones
Harry Potter/Dobby
Tink/Peter Pan
"Rule" by Jay Crownover
Braveheart
Ariel/The Little Mermaid
Belle/Beauty and the Beast
Theo James
Jensen Ackles/Supernatural
Resident Evil
Dr. Who

And I'm sure that there are a ton of other references, but these were either the obvious ones or the ones I know about.

So I totally called the ending. It was one scenario or another because I think I've finally figured out JLA's writing style, but I definitely was not surprised by what happened. But I'm so excited to see how everything pans out, I'm just upset I have to wait until Spring 2015!! It's too far away!

So glad I bought the kindle version so I could devour it and I cannot wait to get my physical copy to look at the cover and pet it and smell it and gaze adoringly at it... Yeah, I do that. Oh well. You would too if you had it.

Read it. You will not be disappointed!

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Review: Dear Fahrenheit 451: A Librarian's Love Letters and Break-Up Notes to the Books in Her Life

Dear Fahrenheit 451: A Librarian's Love Letters and Break-Up Notes to the Books in Her Life by Annie Spence
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I didn't think that I would like this book as much as I did, but after I read the Introduction - the INTRODUCTION - and was laughing my ass off, I knew that this was going to be a great book. Especially for librarians because we can relate to a lot of these stories and thoughts that Annie has working at a library.

And sure, there were some books that I didn't know, but the stories that Annie had in association to these books were hysterical.

But I think my all time favorite was Grey by E.L. James. I don't think I will ever forget the story she had with that book, because I am SO GLAD that I have never had that happen to me working in a public library so far, haha!

This was a great comic relief for me to be able to realize that working in a public library and having emotional ties with inanimate objects is perfectly normal. Or, I'm going to believe that anyway, but it was a great book and I'll be interested if she will write any more compilations in the near future :)

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