Review: Beautifully Broken by Sherry Soule - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

Thirteenth daughter. Heritage witch. Demon slayer.

They say every town has its secrets, but that doesn’t even begin to describe Whispering Pines. The townsfolk are a superstitious lot and the mystical disappearance of a local teen has everyone murmuring about a centuries old witch’s curse.

Sixteen-year-old Shiloh Ravenwolf is a heritage witch from the Broussard family, a family both destined and cursed. After she takes a summer job at Ravenhurst Manor, she discovers a ghost with an agenda. That’s where she meets the new town hottie, Trent Donovan. But Trent may be the next victim on the supernatural hit list, and Shiloh is the only person with the power to save him. Complicated much?

After receiving cryptic messages from a creepy wraith and frightening threats from a demon, Shiloh finally begins to understand the mysterious significance of the strange mark branded on her wrist. Now Shiloh must decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice to protect the other teenagers in town.

Unfortunately, for Shiloh, not all ghosts want help crossing over. Some want vengeance.

*A copy was provided by the author for review purposes*

With a thought provoking beginning that includes an unforseen encounter with a man masked in shadows, Beautifully Broken sets the stage for an intriguing book. Told from the perspective of 16-year-old Shiloh Ravenwolf, we experience the chilling events that originate from the tales of a curse placed upon the town of Whispering Pines. 

There is a distinct eerie atmosphere present throughout this book that lingers within the mystery Sherry Soule fuels into the imponderable plot. Twists and turns are constantly being thrown in our direction so you have no idea what's going to happen next. 

Let's skip to the romance, shall we? Trent Donovan is typical of most boys populating our planet today - undeniably gorgeous with an unappealing personality. You can't help but be sympathetic towards him though because of his broken past (a dead mother and a father who pretends you don't exist would definitely bruise the ego, right?).

His relationship with Shiloh was realistic due to its uncanny similarities with everyday teenage relationships. Their romance took a backseat to the main aspect of the plot but not extensively and it intertwined perfectly with Shiloh's task at hand. Lust was the fuel for their relationship for the majority of the book however, but once we reach the climax we can sense that they truely have fallen in love with each other.

Shiloh is strong and determined yet filled with fear to the brink of breaking down, but her growing powers gives her the added courage that pulls her through to the finishing line. Her tendency to quickly accept and forgive left me a little frustrated with her however. I mean, there are various deaths throughout the book but a few tears are shed and suddenly it's the next chapter with little reminiscences to follow. Despite this flaw, Sherry did a remarkable job of capturing the essence of a teenager's frame of mind.

The supporting characters made little appearances but they contributed to the plot accordingly rather than hang about like party decorations. Even with their lack of presence I appreciated what they individually brought to the story.

Darkness fills every crevice within the story that is wonderfully described once it releases itself onto the pages. My only problem is the grammatical mistakes that occasionally appear throughout the book but I could easily forgive this due to it's high quality. 

The chilling conclusion was impeccably done with loose strings neatly tied up and new ones cheekily left hanging. I wouldn't neccessarily call it a cliffhanger but the final words make you thirst for the next book.


Stop by tomorrow for the blog tour for book two in the Spellbound series MOONLIGHT MAYHEM and get a chance to win an ebook copy of BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN!

Blogaversary!

From Leona:

It's so hard to believe that it has been an entire year since I started blogging. In that year I have met so many wonderful people.

After a rather slow start, I really started in December. I felt lonely so I got my best friend Megan to help me. Thank you Megan!

This week we also reached 100 followers! We cannot thank each and every one of you enough for taking the time to visit us here and then to go one further and follow us.

From Megan:

I would firstly like to thank Leona for introducing me into the blogging world and to all you wonderful people! Ever since joining the blog last month I've been having the best time reading, reviewing and meeting all you fellow bloggers. 

I was worried that I wouldn't be kindly received because I was a late edition to the blog but yous welcomed me with open arms and for that I am grateful! I'd also like thank everyone who has read and appreciated my reviews. I hope to continue getting to know yous all in the future.

To thank all you wonderful followers we are having a huge giveaway!

One of you awesome followers will get to choose one of these books. This giveaway is international so that you all have a chance to win! To enter just fill in the Rafflecopter form below!

Across The Universe - Beth Revis

Ashes - Ilsa J. Bick

Under the Never Sky - Veronica Rossi

The Forest Of Hands And Teeth - Carrie Ryan

Glow - Amy Kathleen Ryan

The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer - Michelle Hodkin

The Immortal Rules - Julie Kagawa

Matched - Ally Condie

Partials - Dan Wells

Fateful - Claudia Grey

Deadly Cool - Gemma Halliday

Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers

Starcrossed - Josephine Angelini

Rapture - Lauren Kate

Forgotten - Cat Patrick

The Iron King - Julie Kagawa

My Soul To Take - Rachel Vincent

Insurgent - Veronica Roth

Eve - Anna Carey

Torn - Cat Clarke

You Against Me - Jenny Downham

Legend - Marie Lu

Unravelling - Elizabeth Norris 

Pushing the Limits - Katie McGarry

Deadly Hemlock - Kathleen Peacock

172 Hours On The Moon - John Harstad

The Girl In The Steel Corset - Kady Cross

Fated - Alyson Noel

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Intangible by J. Meyers - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

Twins Sera and Luke Raine have a well-kept secret—she heals with a touch of her hand, he sees the future. All their lives they’ve helped those in need on the sly. They’ve always thought of their abilities as being a gift.

Then Luke has a vision that Sera is killed. That gift they’ve always cherished begins to feel an awful lot like a curse. Because the thing about Luke’s ability? He’s always right. And he can’t do anything about it.

Intangible proved to be an enchanting read that incorporates various groups of paranormal enitities bound together in a race against death. I was pleasantly surprised once I realised that this was a self-published novel because it soars high above the standard set by most traditionally published authors.

The story is told from multiple POV which helped build the characters' personalities without making the story distracting. The third-person narrative knocked me a little because recently I've been reading a lot of books spoken in the first-person but this isn't an issue that deteriorated the novel's overall quality.

The plot progressed at a steady pace with no unnecessary interruptions from impatient bad guys or idiotic protagonists. The written transition between the characters' viewpoints flowed with pronounced elegance.

Luke and Sera's relationship was portrayed exceptionally well and I was deeply satisfyed with how it went from strength to strength as their journey progressed. Their synchronized personalities in addition with their devotion to each other is heart-warming and projects a realistic connection with the reader.

Each chapter felt like a story of its own and the continuous twists and turns will leave readers gasping between pages. The ending feels like a massive cliffhanger and it will have you begging for book two.

 

 

Review: Blood On My Hands by Todd Strasser - Leona

Summary from Goodreads:

A powerful and uncompromising thriller – not for the faint-hearted.

Some girls are glamorous, beautiful … and deadly. Found kneeling by a dead body, with a bloody knife in her hand can only mean Callie Carson is guilty of the brutal murder of Katherine Remington – can’t it? Joining the in-crowd is tough; leaving is a killer. 

First line: 'In the dark woods behind the baseball dugout, I'm kneeling next to Katherine's body, my heart racing, my breaths shallow and fast, my emotions reeling crazily at the sight on the ground before me.'

This was the first book I had read by Todd Strasser. I absolutely adore it!

The story of it was so intriguing and it was hard not to be captivated. We are thrown straight into the action with our main character, Callie, found standing above her dead friend with a knife in her hand. So naturally, Callie runs.

Callie gets a lot of help throughout this book from her ex-boyfriend. There is a lot of tension in the book and you have to keep reading to see what happens. It is extremely addictive.

Todd Strasser wrote this book wonderfully and each character was brilliantly developed.

I love many shows that are based on the police, this book was right up my street. There was a heavy involvement from the police with Callie constantly listening to the police radio to hear if they have found her or not. I loved the twists and turn that carried on throughout this book. I was completely shocked when we discover a lot of things. It was brilliant.

I admit that the ending left me rather emotional. It was an ending that left me thinking "This can't be the ending. There has to be a sequel!". Unfortunately, that was not the case. To my dismay this is part of a series but the next book does not carry on from this one.

I enjoyed every aspect of this book, except the ending.

The book trailer:

Review: Hourglass by Myra McEntire - Leona

Summary from Goodreads:
One hour to rewrite the past . . . 

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents' death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back. So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he's around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

It took me a few chapters to really get into this book, but then Myra McEntire had me firmly in her grasp! This was a truly amazing debut novel that I really enjoyed.

The idea of the book had me hooked and I had to keep reading to find out more about the characters and their stories. Emerson "Em" is an irresistible lead character, from her witty comments to her attitude there was nothing I didn't like about her. It would be really hard to not get captivated by her story and I couldn't stop reading. I had to find out everything I could about Em.

In Hourglass we have an amazing little love story. Their really is a chemistry between them and you, as the reader, will feel every single emotion that Em feels towards her interest. It's so hard not to love him. He's caring, smart and so many other things. We even get another love interest later on in the book, and let me tell you that he is just as amazing as the first.

Myra has got time travel nailed. It was brilliantly written about, easy to understand and well developed. I haven't read many, or any, books about time travel so it was fun to read something new. It was also a nice break from my usual books that involve vampires, werewolves or, my personal favourite, witches.

Myra McEntire has a wonderful writing style that simply flows off the page and it really helps to get a good image in your head of what's going on. The entire concept of Hourglass was very original.

Also, what an amazing cover! It really blends in with the original story line. The only real problem I had was with Emerson's family. Frankly I thought they were way too lovey-dovey. 

Having said that, I loved this book and cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel Timepiece.