Cover Reveal: Reaping Me Softly by Kate Evangelista - Leona

Book description: 

Ever since a near-death-experience on the operating table, seventeen-year-old Arianne Wilson can see dead people. Just as she’s learned to accept her new-found talents, she discovers that the boy she’s had a crush on since freshman year, Niko Clark, is a Reaper.

At last they have something in common, but that doesn’t mean life is getting any easier. All while facing merciless bullying from the most powerful girl in school, Arianne’s world is turned upside down after Niko accidentally reaps the soul of someone she loves. This sends them both into a spiral that threatens to end Arianne’s life. But will Niko break his own Reaper’s code to save her? And what would the consequences be if he did?

 Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15988916-reaping-me-softly

The cover for Kate Evangelista's next book is stunning. Having loved Taste I look forward to reading Reaping Me Softly. What do you think? 

Review: Desert Rice by Angela Scott - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

Samantha Jean Haggert is a beautiful twelve-year-old girl—but no one knows it. All they see is an awkward boy in a baseball cap and baggy pants. Sam’s not thrilled with the idea of hiding her identity, but it’s all part of her older brother’s plan to keep Sam safe from male attention and hidden from the law. Fifteen-year-old Jacob will stop at nothing to protect his sister, including concealing the death of the one person who should have protected them in the first place—their mother.

Sam and Jacob try to outrun their past by stealing the family car and traveling from West Virginia to Arizona, but the adult world proves mighty difficult to navigate, especially for two kids on their own. Trusting adults has never been an option; no adult has ever given them a good reason. But when Sam meets “Jesus”—who smells an awful lot like a horse—in the park, life takes a different turn. He saved her once, and may be willing to save Sam and her brother again, if only they admit what took place that fateful day in West Virginia. The problem? Sam doesn’t remember, and Jacob isn’t talking.

*An ebook copy was provided by the author for review purposes*

Desert Rice is intense, chilling and emotionally captivating. With an estranged father and a recently deceased mother, Sam and Jacob are thrown head-first into a world they haven't learnt to trust yet. Struggling to make ends meet, their attempts at survival and escaping the seclusion of foster homes crafts this novel into a journey that is guaranteed to break your heart.

Angela Scott does well to keep us in the dark about these two characters. Bits and pieces are tossed into the mix to give us an understanding of what is going on but I'd advise you to have a box of tissues at the ready for when the truth is revealed. The pace at the beginning of the novel seems to be rather slow because of the lack of information we're given but the consistent twists and turns will keep you on your toes.

Jacob is exactly the type of big brother that every girl needs. His undeniable love for Sam is heartwarming although his overprotective nature towards her is slightly erratic. He made various decisions that left me in a state of confusion but I understood they were based purely on love. Honestly, I was surprised by his maturity and determination especially during the more intense moments of the book. You almost forget that he's only 15 years old which is why I appreciated the scenes where you get to witness Jacob's vulnerability. 

Sam's distraught about having to dress like a boy was understandable. The pressure placed upon her shoulders is almost unbearable to fathom at times because her innocence just makes you want to curl up into a ball and cry. Experiencing these events through Samantha's eyes pulled on my heartstrings and watching her grow and come to terms with the reality of her situation was wonderful.

Angela Scott has a beautiful writing style that was easy to follow and possessed the power to pull emotions from me. She brought her characters to life and delivered a thought provoking novel that deals with serious themes in a professional manner. I strongly recommend this book to everyone who hasn't yet read it and I can't wait to see where the plot continues in the next instalment, Desert Flower.

Author Bio

Blog |@whimsywriting | Facebook

I hear voices. Tiny fictional people sit on my shoulders and whisper their stories in my ear. Instead of medicating myself, I decided to pick up a pen, write down everything those voices tell me, and turn it into a book. I’m not crazy. I’m an author. For the most part, I write contemporary Young Adult novels. However, through a writing exercise that spiraled out of control, I found myself writing about zombies terrorizing the Wild Wild West—and loving it. My zombies don’t sparkle, and they definitely don’t cuddle. At least, I wouldn’t suggest it. 

I live on the benches of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains with two lovely children, one teenager, and a very patient husband. I graduated from Utah State University with a B.A. degree in English, not because of my love for the written word, but because it was the only major that didn’t require math. I can’t spell, and grammar is my arch nemesis. But they gave me the degree, and there are no take backs. As a child, I never sucked on a pacifier; I chewed on a pencil. I’ve been writing that long. It has only been the past few years that I’ve pursued it professionally, forged relationships with other like-minded individuals, and determined to make a career out of it.

You can find me at my website, where I blog obsessively about my writing process and post updates on my current works. I’m also on Twitter and Facebook, but be forewarned, I tweet and post more than a normal person.

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I am a member of Reading Addiction Blog Tours and a copy of this book was provided to me by the author. Although payment may have been received by Reading Addiction Blog Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for this review. There was no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, publisher, publicist, or readers of this review. This disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commision’s 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning Use of Endorcements and Testimonials in Advertising*

 This post was part of the Desert Rice blog tour

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Review: Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout - Leona

Summary from Goodreads:

Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. 

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. 

If I don't kill him first, that is.

This book should come with a warning. It would go like this: WARNING This book is highly addictive so do not read if you have things to do as you will forget about everything except this book. It would probably be shorter but I think you get the idea. 

Obsidian is absolutely brilliant. I honestly cannot praise it enough. Jennifer L. Armentrout did a wonderful job in creating the plot and the characters. As soon as I began reading I was pulled in. I have never read a book that involved aliens and I honestly expected it to be like an episode of the X-Files. It was a wonderful break from werewolves and vampires and witches. 

Jennifer Armentrout is a phenomenal writer. She creates addictive story lines and characters that you can't help but love. She also incorporates wittiness in her characters that is sure to make you laugh. Just don't read it in a public area that's quiet because you will get stared at. 

Obsidian's protagonist is Katy, a blogger (yeah!) who has just moved with her mom to try and get a fresh start after her dad's death years before. Katy was a wonderful lead character that knew exactly how to handle herself, well sometimes. She is quick with comebacks and is rather fiesty. Her interactions with Dee and Daemon were brilliant and entertaining. I loved when the three of them were together as there was never a dull moment. 

Daemon. How does one describe Daemon? In Katy's words: "Beautiful face. Beautiful Body. Horrible attitude. It was the holy trinity of hot boys." Thank you Katy for putting that in simple terms. I was always waiting for Daemon to say something because you knew it was going to be good. He is deffinately one of my favourite male characters EVER! 

Obsidian's ending left me hungry for more so as soon as I had finished it I quickly went on Amazon and bought the sequel. And so begins the agonizingly long wait for it to arrive!

If you haven't read Obsidian then go, right now, and get it!

Review: Exiled by RaShelle Workman - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

Worlds divided them. Chance brought them together. Only love will save them.

Stubborn, sixteen-year-old Princess Venus of Kelari wants one thing, to become immortal, that is, until someone exiles her to Earth, kills her irrihunter and takes her family.

Now she wants revenge.

First she’s got to get home. But before she can return to Kelari, the Gods have commanded her to help an arrogant boy named Michael find his soul mate.

Only she doesn't know the first thing about love.

Rather quickly, her inexperience with human emotion is obscured by other matters--alien-controlled psychotic teens that are out to kill her, and a government group that is set on capturing and dissecting her.

Worst of all, Venus will suffer a painful death-by-poisoning, thanks to Earth’s atmosphere, if she remains on the planet longer than one week.

Still, Venus is a Princess and she's got a plan. Surely, with her help, Michael will fall in love with a human.

But time is running out and Michael is falling for the wrong girl--her.

Let's all just take a moment to admire the cover, shall we? I mean, that is one beautiful cover! Unfortunately, the contents of this novel didn't quite amaze me as much. Although I inexplicably enjoyed this book, RaShelle Workman failed to balance all the key elements of a good story - world-building, characterisation and realism - which majorly deteriorated from the book's overall quality.

After reading the first page, I immediately wanted to stop reading because I couldn't connect with Workman's writing style. I honestly don't know how to describe it but it just didn't flow with any sort of elegance that coincided with the plot's incredibly fast pace. What made it worse was the alternating POVs. The way they keep switching at random without any significant indication of doing so made the entire plot the epiphany of confusion.

Venus was a rather interesting character with a complex personality that was a challenge to dissect. Her ignorance of human emotions became quite endearing yet I couldn't find a suitable excuse for her shapeshifting perceptions of humans in general. Plus, constantly switching between anger, lust, determination and despair every few sentences made Venus quite unbearable at times. Her uncontrollable human emotions towards Michael and Zaren - her Formytian (an immortal guardian) - had me on the edge of my seat because it was impossible to figure out who she was in love with and who she was simply physically attracted to. (TEAM ZAREN!)

Michael's character wasn't much of an improvement. One minute he was a sleazy, shallow jock and next he was some cartoon hero that's got a playground crush on Venus. I struggled to believe that what he felt for Venus was genuine love because, although he takes big risks for her, he didn't hestiate to help turn her into a science project or violently dismiss her in their several ecounters after their first meeting. Workman also squanders precious words in an attempt to make us sympathise with Michael by mentioning his violent upbringing but this adds nothing effective to the plot and doesn't dismiss his erratic behaviour.

Dervinius - aka Vinny - creeps me out. He has some sort of evil plan that is so top secret I don't even think the author knows what it is. Him and Zaren have an ability to read minds while they're on Earth - probably because they're Kelvieri's - but while Zaren tries to surpress his new talent for invading people's minds, Dervinius just carelessy takes a ride on everyone's thought train. His manipulative and deceiving nature is his greatest weapon and, if his character was developed a little more, he would make the perfect villain.

One thing that majorly confused me was the different stages of Kelarian life. I mean, there's Kelni (which I assume is the toddler/child stage), Kelphi (adolescence?) and Kelvieri (immortal/adult). The word 'Kel' was also used frequently but I think that was just a slang term used to describe Kelarians in general. Basically, the society on Kelari wasn't explained in enough detail so when these terms kept appearing I couldn't help but be flustered by it all.

Mystery was the key element in Exiled and it was fluently weaved through essential parts of the plot. Unfortunately, it lacked in consistancy - only making significant appearances at the beginning and end of the book. As I continued reading, I was torn between the strong urges to stop reading and continue reading. It was rather bizarre. I wanted desperately to see what the outcome would be but I was also desperate for the story to end. 

All criticisms aside.. I did enjoy this book. Call me crazy but there was something about it that just clicked with me. I'm definitely eager to read the next instalment, Beguiled, in hopes that it will improve where Exiled has failed and ultimately, offer a better view of what life is like on Kelari.

Review: Deadly Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

Mackenzie and Amy were best friends.

Since then, Mac's life has been turned upside down. She is being haunted by Amy in her dreams, and an extremist group called the Trackers has come to Mac's hometown of Hemlock to hunt down Amy's killer:

A white werewolf.

Lupine syndrome--also known as the werewolf virus--is on the rise across the country. Many of the infected try to hide their symptoms, but bloodlust is not easy to control.

Wanting desperately to put an end to her nightmares, Mac decides to investigate Amy's murder herself. She discovers secrets lurking in the shadows of Hemlock, secrets about Amy's boyfriend, Jason, her good pal Kyle, and especially her late best friend. Mac is thrown into a maelstrom of violence and betrayal that puts her life at risk.

There is no doubt that YA has had it's fair share of vampire and werewolf novels during recent years so initially I began this story thinking, what originality could Kathleen Peacock possibly derive from this genre? Of course, the majority of what you read is basic Werewolf 101 but there was mystery and suspense oozing out of every single word. It was impossible to put down.

What makes this plot stand out is obvious from the beginning: the werewolves are loose. Everyone has been made aware of Lupine Syndrome and everyone has grown accustomed to fearing for their own mortality. Throw in a group of bounty hunters - the Trackers - then quickly murder the protagonist's best friend - Amy - add an addictive love-triangle and voila, you have a page-turning book that twists and turns and tangles your thoughts more expertly than a pair of headphones.

Mackenzie Dobson: Hemlock's answer to Agatha Christie. For a girl with a lot of issues, she sure has the mental strength equivalent to that of ten oxes. Mac, understandably, is struggling to come to terms with Amy's death and when Amy's boyfriend, Jason, decides to drag himself down an alcohol-fueled path of self destruction, Mac instinctively steps in. Ignoring her advice, Jason brands himself a Tracker while Mac's best friend, Kyle, avoids her completely. Poor Mac is left alone playing Twister with the disturbing nightmares her late best friend plagues. But what is Amy trying to say?

Tension, torment and tears rip Mac's reality apart. Lies, secrets and betrayal stitch it back together because it's the only thing Mac knows to be true. Her entire life has been a struggle, it's a wonder how she can maintain self-control especially in her current situation.

Love triangles always manage to frustrate me but then again, most YA boys aren't Kyle and Jason. Kyle is my dream guy written on paper, wrapped up with a bow and sprinkled with perfection. Jason is the bad boy but he's a sweetheart underneath, it's so adorable. (Don't expect me to pick teams though, I refuse to choose!) The romance is always present throughout but it never takes the lead. The plot keeps within the spotlight and never falters on Mac's task to discover the truth behind Amy's murder.

Basically, Deadly Hemlock is perfection on paper. I honestly couldn't list a single fault. The mystery and suspense was consistant; the romance was sensational; the plot was impeccably structured and; Kathleen's wonderful writing style just enchants the entire reading experience.

Why aren't you already reading this? Go now. Before the white wolf gets you!