Category: Book Reviews

2016 Book Challenges Update: Month Four

So, I have a little bit of news….

Hiya, Guys:

So as I mentioned, my birthday is early this month (next Monday, to be exact) and things have kind of been a bit hectic (what with Mother’s day being Sunday). This reading challenges post, along with the book reviews will be brief and straight to the point because who likes to read/hear me ramble all the time? (To the pair of hands in the back of this vacant imaginary auditorium, I thank you. 😉 )

In all seriousness, I also thought I’d take the time to mention here that aside from the two (?) book tours I have scheduled for this month, I will be taking a break from book tour blogging for a while. Sadly, I’ve found that it’s taking too much effort to like a large majority of the books I have come across during the tours. Out of the 30 books I’ve read so far this year, I can name a handful (from blog tours) that were absolutely, full-stop fantastical.

Yes, I do enjoy the non-fictional, historical and comedy material better than general fiction and the romance/YA books, but I’ve been proven wrong a few times (and happily so) by a few romance/YA books this year. Now that I’ve just gotten back into the swing reading more fiction books, I’m desperate not to grow tired of the genre again.

So, from this point out, I will be exploring as many non-romantic centric books as possible, particularly with the books for my three reading challenges. Organized in the order I signed up for each challenge.

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Audiobook Review: Soundless by Richelle Mead

Soundless

By: Richelle Mead
Narrator(s): Kim Mai Guest

Rating: 2 stars

Genre: YA Fantasy, Romance, Mythology
Publisher: Listening Library Audio
Format: Unabridged audiobook
Length: 8hrs & 18 mins
Released Date: November 10th 2015

Goodreads | B&N | Amazon | Audible

Synopsis:

For as long as Fei can remember, there has been no sound in her village, where rocky terrain and frequent avalanches prevent residents from self-sustaining. Fei and her people are at the mercy of a zipline that carries food up the treacherous cliffs from Beiguo, a mysterious faraway kingdom.
 
When villagers begin to lose their sight, deliveries from the zipline shrink and many go hungry. Fei’s home, the people she loves, and her entire existence is plunged into crisis, under threat of darkness and starvation.
 
But soon Fei is awoken in the night by a searing noise, and sound becomes her weapon.
 
Richelle Mead takes readers on a triumphant journey from the peak of Fei’s jagged mountain village to the valley of Beiguo, where a startling truth and an unlikely romance will change her life forever….

 

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Book Review: Half-Breed Queen (Skatia Narratives #1) by L.A. Hendricks

Half-Breed Queen (Skatia Narratives #1)
By: L.A. Hendricks
Genre: YA Fiction, Sci-fi, Action, Adventure
Rating: 4 stars
Release: March 2015

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Synopsis:

Devastating tragedy puts 14-year-old high school freshman Marla Owens, on a fast-paced journey of survival, revival and coming of age. Driven by a force she can’t begin to understand and a burning need to find out the truth, she heads toward her mother’s home in North Dakota. She soon learns more about herself and her family than she could have ever imagined — her mother was royal heir to the powerful Skatian throne! And now the Skatian people need her to protect their world from those who wish to conquer it.

In a classic tale of good versus evil, set on Earth and beyond, a young girl fights to survive to become a young woman—and the reluctant queen of Skatia. Who can she trust? Will she be able to control her own immense abilities and justified anger to do what’s right? One thing’s for sure: Marla’s not in Texas anymore!

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Book Review: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

 

Eat, Pray, Love
By: Elizabeth Gilbert
Genre: Autobiography, Spiritual, Travel, Non-Fiction, Adult Contemporary
Rating: 4.2 stars
Release: January 30th 2007

Goodreads | B&N | Amazon

Synopsis:

In her early thirties, Elizabeth Gilbert had everything a modern American woman was supposed to want–husband, country home, successful career–but instead of feeling happy and fulfilled, she felt consumed by panic and confusion. This wise and rapturous book is the story of how she left behind all these outward marks of success, and of what she found in their place. Following a divorce and a crushing depression, Gilbert set out to examine three different aspects of her nature, set against the backdrop of three different cultures: pleasure in Italy, devotion in India, and on the Indonesian island of Bali, a balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence.

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FIT (FIT Trilogy #1) (+18) By: Rebekah Weatherspoon Book Review

FIT (FIT Trilogy #1) +18 readers
By: Rebekah Weatherspoon
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, BDSM, Interracial
Rating: 4 stars
Format: ebook
Release date: June 23rd 2014
Goodreads | Amazon

Synopsis:

Violet Ryan loves the delicious food she gets to eat on the reality shows she produces for The Food Channel. What she hates is her expanding waistline. Determined to drop the pounds, Violet hatches a plan to kick-start a fitness regimen. But when her determination isn’t enough to get her through even one intense group class without breaking down into tears, she knows she needs a new approach and possibly a new trainer—one with a lighter touch.

Grant Gibson has always managed to mix business with pleasure, but now this trainer by day, and Dominant by night, is bored. Bored and lonely. Even though he owns one of L.A.’s hottest private gyms, his personal life is sorely lacking. After his last submissive tried to kidnap his dog and the contents of his bank account, he’s in no hurry to take a new lover under his wing. Not until the voluptuous Violet falls into his lap.

She may be wary of his unorthodox approach of using sexual gratification as a reward, but even before her initial weigh-in Violet can’t seem to stay away from the sexy fitness god. She may have to let Grant show her there’s more than one way to get in shape…

**This story contains light acts of bondage and a feisty submissive who gives her Dominant a run for his money.**

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Friends That Still… (F*THS Book #2) (+18) by G.L. Tomas Book Review

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Friends That Still… (Friends That Have Sex book #2) (+18 readers)
By: G. L. Tomas
Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Interracial
Rating: 5 Stars
Format: ebook
Release date: March 24th 2016

Goodreads | Amazon

Synopsis:

Teddy’s back in Miami with her mind made up. Live like it’s your last day. Love like it’s your last day.
The moment those steel-blue eyes gazed back into hers, there was no question. Asher wasn’t just the only one she wanted, but the only one she needed. This time around there would be no more room for regrets, but would they ever be more than friends that still…?

 

Book Review

Picking up where we left off in book one, (F*THS) in this duology, we get caught up on Teddy and how her treatment in Minnesota has gone.

I really liked the focus and pace of the story this time around. Teddy was not only trying to make an actual effort to establish a life for her self and accomplish something like with school and working to pay for her tuition. I also liked that she seemed to stay focused on the real and important relationships in her life. i.e. Reggie and Asher.

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That Thing Between Eli & Gwen by J.J. McAvoy Book Review (+Giveaway)

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April 19th Blog Tour Date

That Thing Between Eli & Gwen blog tour organized by Indiesage PR. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour here. 🙂

 

That Thing Between Eli & Gwen
By: J.J. MCAVOY
Genre: Comedy, Romance, New Adult, Drama, Multicultural, Contemporary
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Format: ARC ebook
Release date: April 21st 2016

Goodreads |  Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo

Synopsis:

Eli Davenport thinks he’s found the perfect woman to be his wife. She’s a doctor, like he is. She’s brilliant, like he is. And she’s wealthy, like he is.

Guinevere ‘Gwen’ Poe thinks her fiancé is the perfect man. He’s handsome, successful and he was her first…

But when Eli’s bride runs off with Gwen’s fiancée on his wedding day, they are left to pick up the broken pieces of each other..

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Dragon Scale Lute (Legends of Tivara, Princess of Cathay #1) By: J.C. Kang Book Review (+Giveaway)

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April 11th Blog Tour Date

Dragon Scale Lute Book Tour hosted by: CBB Book Promotions, so be sure to check out the rest of the tour stops 🙂  Also, For a limited time The Dragon Scale Lute is on sale for only .99 cents for Kindle!

Dragon Scale Lute (Legends of Tivara, Princess of Cathay #1)

By: J.C. Kang

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Magic, Epic Fantasy

Release date: March 2, 2016

Format: eBook

Rating: 3.95/4 stars

Goodreads | Amazon

Synopsis:

Kaiya’s voice could charm a dragon.

Had she lived when the power of music could still summon typhoons and rout armies, perhaps Cathay’s imperial court would see the awkward, gangly princess as more than a singing fool. With alliances to build and ambitious lords to placate, they care more about her marriage prospects than her unique abilities.

Only the handsome Prince Hardeep, a foreign martial mystic, recognizes her potential. Convinced Kaiya will rediscover the legendary but perilous art of invoking magic through music, he suggests her voice, not her marriage, might better serve the realm.

When members of the emperor’s elite spy clan– Kaiya’s childhood friend and his half-elf sidekick (or maybe he’s her sidekick?)– discover mere discontent boiling over into full-scale rebellion, Kaiya must choose. Obediently wedding the depraved ringleader means giving up her music. Confronting him with the growing power of her voice could kill her.

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