Review: The Witch is Back

Title: The Witch is Back (Jolie Wilkins ~ Book 4)
Author: H.P. Mallory
Publication Date: July 31 2012
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0345531566
Length: 368 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

Started The Witch is Back at 9:30am and finished at 4:00pm.  I could not put it down!

It starts off exactly where Witchful Thinking left off...  This book was everything I had hoped it would be. There was plenty of Sinjin and boy were some of those moments steamy! I've been waiting a long time for those momentsand I was not disappointed.

I have to admit that this is the only series I have ever read with a 'love triangle' where I find it had picking a 'team'.  I love Sinjin. I love Rand.

Although... Deep down I know I love Sinjin more. I know what he does in this book is not for power. He loves Jolie and I was so excited to be able to see him happy.

I can't say too much as I do not want to give any of this wonderful book away... But trust me when I say this is an amazing series and if you haven't read them, then please do.

I am now on countdown for September 25th. I've already booked my day off from work so that I can read the next and final book in the series. I can only hope that the confirmed spin-off will be about Sinjin. I am not quite ready to say goodbye to him yet.

Review: City of Bones

Title: City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments ~ Book 1)
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publication Date: March 27 2007
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
ISBN: 1416914285
Length: 485 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

Love. Love. Love.

Honestly I knew very little about this series or author before I started reading City of Bones.  I have now read a little online about the 'Cassandra Clare Controversy' and I couldn't care less about any of it. All I know is that I loved this book and will be reading all of the books in this series and any other books this author writes.

I love the World she has created. I love the characters. I love the pace. I love it all.  And that is all that matters at the end of the day. If you like Fantasy and Paranormal then I would strongly suggest this book and series.

Review: The Ghoul Next Door

Title: The Ghoul Next Door (Larue Donavan ~ Book 3)
Author: Rose Pressey
Publication Date: July 7 2012
Publisher: Self Published
ISBN: n/a
Length: 280 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 4 Stars

I really do love Larue and I love Callahan!  However, I just didn't love this book as much as the first two.  I liked it, just didn't love it.

There were a few parts where I just had an overwhelming feeling of deja vu.  I just felt like it was the same story... again.

Then there were parts that I just couldn't wrap my head around. At one point Larue thinks about how she could really use her own set of binoculars. Uhhmmmm.... You bought a pair for yourself in book two, don't you remember? Then Larue in one chapter is saying that she and Callahan haven't really been able to spend much time together and that they don't really know each other very well yet... but in the next chapter we find he has given her keys to his shop?! That is very trusting...  And why has she started saying "y'all" all of a sudden?

I read these three books all in a row which is maybe why I have picked up on things that I may not have if there was distance between them.  This should really not be an excuse for lazy writing though.  An author should know their story and what has been written before.

I know it may look like I didn't like this book but really I did and I have suggested them to my friends. I just didn't find myself loving it like the others which was a bit of a shame. I hope the author can surprise me in the next instalment.

Review: Ghouls Night Out

Title: Ghouls Night Out (Larue Donavan ~ Book 2)
Author: Rose Pressey
Publication Date: September 27 2011
Publisher: Self Published
ISBN: n/a
Length: 261 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

Another fun entertaining read by Rose Pressey. This book started off exactly where we last left Larue and Callahan, which was on one of Larue's ghost hunts. As before there are always tag-a-longs that follow her home. My favorite was Anthony, he was so sweet. I also loved Seth, he really helped to look out for Callahan also.

Again, as with book one, I felt there wasn't enough time with Larue and Callahan together. I hope finally in the next book they can spend some quality time with each other. It's time to give the poor guy a break from the magic spells I think.

I love that Larue is a 'Ghost Hunter' and would like to see more of that part of her life, but I have a feeling the next book will be more about her learning witchcraft. Also, I am so happy she finally opened up with Callahan about her special talent. There was no chance for a future without him knowing.

A few things unanswered leave me wondering... Why did Anthony appear so much brighter than other ghosts? And why when he touched her was it warm? This really never got answered and it has left me guessing.

I am looking forward to reading book three, The Ghoul Next Door.

Review: Me and My Ghoulfriends

Title: Me and My Ghoulfriends (Larue Donovan ~ Book 1)
Author: Rose Pressey
Publication Date: October 6 2008
Publisher: Self Published
ISBN: n/a
Length: 308 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

This was such a fun book! I felt the story started immediately and I never found myself bored. I really like Larue and I felt the supporting characters were really strong. I loved Mindy her best friend and Larue's 'ghoul' friends were a hoot. I can't wait to read the next in the series to see how Larue and Callahan's relationship grows. There were a couple steamy moments together and hopefully he will be in the next book a bit more.

The only thing that let me down was when the ghosts decided to finally go to the light we didn't get to be there. She had grown quite close to each of them and I feel it would have been a good chapter on them saying goodbye. Instead a chapter starts and we are simply told that they had finally gone.

Even without these goodbyes I felt this story was a great fun read and I will be reading the next two and checking out the other novels by Rose Pressey.

Review: Shadowfever

Title: Shadowfever (Fever ~ Book 5)
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publication Date: January 1 2011
Publisher: Dell
ISBN: 0440244412
Length: 671 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

What an outstanding series of books this turned out to be. I will be honest and say that after the first book I wasn't quite sure about them... Yes I enjoyed book one but at that point in time I could not tell if I was going to get that emotionally involved. Boy have I been shocked by how much I ended up loving every last detail of each book. I tend to read rather quickly and when I get really involved I can't book it down. However this afternoon from around 85% I found myself reading a little then putting my Kindle down, then going back to reading a little more. Not because I wasn't excited about what was happening. It was because I never wanted it to end. I will miss Mac, Barrons, Dani, Mac's parents, The MacKeltars, Barron's men, the girls at the Abbey... I will miss them all! Then at the end what do I find? "The End" (turn page) "For Now..." I could not have been happier! Sad my time in their world is finished, yes. The hope of more time in their world at a later time, YESSSSS!

Shadowfever starts off exactly where Dreamfever left off. I was so excited to start reading it that I didn't even complete a review for Dreamfever before starting it. I had to know how it continued, who was there in front of Mac? Then when I read it.. I put my Kindle down and was scared to continue. Honestly scared. I refused to Google anything about the book and forced myself to continue. Then the next day at work over lunch I found out what I had feared most had not happened [well...] and I again had to put the book down because I felt myself almost crying and I didn't want to look like a complete idiot with my co-workers sitting around me.

This book [in fact this entire series] has so many ups and downs, twists and turns, shockers, tender moments, hot moments and so on... I was a complete bundle of emotions while reading and it was a wonderful feeling.

I hate giving too much away in reviews and I feel if I say anything more it will give away major plot points so I will leave it at this... I wholeheartedly suggest that you read the Fever series as soon as possible. If you find yourself not investing in the characters after book one please take my word for it, you will very soon! And then you will think back and wonder what you were so worried about to begin with.

Oh yeah.. and I *heart* Jericho Barrons! But I'm sure this is a view held by a many people that read this series.

Review: Dreamfever

Title: Dreamfever (Fever ~ Book 4)
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publication Date: August 18 2009
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
ISBN: 0440338786
Length: 388 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

This series just keeps getting better and better.. is that even possible? Yes it is! Although writing a review for this or any book in the series has been quite difficult as there are so many plot twists and turns I am afraid to give something away in the review.

As with the previous books they all run into each other and little to no time is lost in the transition. With many series books I have to say again, I am so glad I read these once they were all released. I would have died a few times already if I actually had to wait around for the next book to be published.

The first 15% of this book is.. HOT. There is other way of saying it. Just wow. I didn't want it to end but sadly it did. But then I was full of so many different emotions throughout and the end!?! Talk about a cliffhanger. I even had to start book five before I could come back here and write this review. Couldn't stop for a minute.

I would strongly recommend this series to anybody.

Review: Faefever

Title: Faefever (Fever ~ Book 3)
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publication Date: September 1 2008
Publisher: Delacorte Press
ISBN: 0385341636
Length: 327 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

I think this has been my favorite book of the Fever Series so far. The ending left me completely shocked and if I had been reading them when they were originally coming out I would have gone insane with the wait. Thankfully I can immediately start book 4!

I still don't understand why Mac does not trust Barrons more. It's the only times I get really frustrated with the series. Yes he is closed off and doesn't reveal a lot about himself but still... He has saved her on a number of occasions and it is obvious to me at least that he is not really bad. So why hide so many important details from him?

Maybe she will finally learn to trust Barrons in the next book...

Review: Bewitching the Werewolf

Title: Bewitching the Werewolf
Author: Caroline Hanson
Publication Date: September 25 2011
Publisher: Self Published
ISBN: n/a
Length: 81 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

A very quick fun little read. My only complaint is that the actual story ends at around 50%, the rest are excepts of her other books. This was free and can see it is just to get a bit of her work out there... It worked! I will be checking out Caroline Hanson's other books based on this.

Review: Shadow of Night

Title: Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy ~ Book 2)
Author: Deborah Harkness
Publication Date: July 10 2012
Publisher: Viking Adult
ISBN: 0670023485
Length: 584 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

This is the moment I dread the most... When I have finished a wonderful book and realise that the next instalment is more than likely several months if not a year away.

Shadow of Night has not disappointed me. It picked up immediately where A Discovery of Witches left off and I was enthralled from the first word to the last. I read a lot of books and those books cover a lot of different genres. I can honestly say that these books have fast become my favorites.  I am enamored with the world that Deborah Harkness has created.

What I find the most fascinating is that my love does not simply lie with Matthew and Diana. The side characters are just as enchanting as the main. I would in a heartbeat read any spin-off novel which featured any of Matthew and Diana's friends or family. This says a lot about the level of writing that has been achieved. Yes you can like other characters and want to see more of them in the main story... but to have such characters so loved that people would read entire novels of their own story? Like I said before... amazing writing. I simply adore Marcus and Gallowglass, I am very excited to see what the future has in store for these two in book 3.

I loved being able to get to know a bit more about Matthew's life. Him being able to spend time with his old friends, the new friends Diana made and of course the children in their care while they were in 1590. This also gives Diana a small glimpse into the loss that Matthew feels as he has had a lot of goodbyes in his long life. But I do not want to say too much about the story itself... as Matthew would say "This is not my tale to tell..."

I will be reading these books again in the wait for the final book in the trilogy. Now that I have completed book 2 I already feel a depression starting  as though I have lost a good friend.  I can only imagine how I will feel after the final book is read.

Review: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

Title: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner (Twilight ~ Book 3.5)
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Publication Date: June 1 2009
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
ISBN: B003GZ4YYY
Length: 193 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 4 Stars

This was a very enjoyable little read.  I was needing a smaller book to read today while I waited for the release of a different book tomorrow and since I never managed to read this when it eventually came out, it made perfect sense to read it now.

Of course Bree had such a small role in Eclipse, if you blink you would miss it.  It was very nice to see the newborn's side of the 'army' that was being created to take on the Cullen's.  Reading this actually made me want to go back and read the Twilight books again.

Review: Bloodfever

Title: Bloodfever (Fever ~ Book 2)
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publication Date: October 1 2007
Publisher: Delacorte Press
ISBN: 038533916X
Length: 303 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

I really liked Darkfever, but I loved Bloodfever!  There was some major character development that took place in this book. Of course there is a lot of story to go and way more to learn but I feel much closer to Mac now. Yes she still daydreams of her previous life but you can tell how much she has grown up. Even Barrons referred to her as a woman.

I do wish Mac would trust Barrons a bit more. Yes I know he has secrets and I know that scares her but he has saved her so many times. The fact she still has the thought in her head that he is only keeping her around as an OOP locator is ridiculous. He has kissed her (or so she thinks she remembers), pushed his obvious attraction onto her and nearly crumbled when he thought she was close to death. That's a bit more than just wanting somebody around for their locating skills.

I know a lot of people's reviews of book two seem to mention that it was at this stage that they had figured out what Barrons is... Well I must be thick because I still don't know.  But I am going to really enjoy reading more to find out.

Review: Darkfever

Title: DarkFever (Fever ~ Book 1)
Author: Karen Marie Moning
Publication Date:  October 1 2006
Publisher: Delacorte Press
ISBN: B000MAH7SQ
Length: 342 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 4 Stars

This book did take me a little bit to get into but in the end I was really enjoying it and am eager to continue on with the series. I think a lot of my reluctance was coming from two areas.

First would be the writing style. In a lot of instances the author would add something to the effect of "I didn't know this at the time but would find out years later..." or "Barrons and I didn't discuss it then but we would weeks later." It is said quite a lot and was starting to grate on me a little.

Second is Mac in general. I think this is just because I am coming off a few books where the lead is a strong and confident female. I know she has been thrown into a world she didn't know about and didn't want to know about but you are knee deep now, buck up! Too many times she would refer to her 'old life' of bartending, fashion magazines, sunbathing, clothes, her long blood hair or her pink nails. She is just very superficial. Even toward the end when she finally kicked ass she thinks about her three broken nails and after she was applying her new coat of nail polish. I hope she is over the little lamb lost act in the next book and has finally accepted what she is and what she needs to do.

There is so much to learn about Barrons and I have a feeling I am going to enjoying finding those things out.

Review: A Discovery of Witches

Title: A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy ~ Book 1)
Author: Deborah Harkness
Publication Date: September 1 2011
Publisher: Headline
ISBN: 0755374045
Length: 690 Pages
Link to Synopsis: Goodreads
Source: Purchased (Kindle Edition)
Buy It: Amazon US / Amazon UK

My Rating: 5 Stars

A Discovery of Witches was an absolute joy and pleasure to read. This will be a book and series that I can easily say I will read multiple times over.

The blend of history, science and magic was breathtaking. I never once got bored and was riveted each time I picked up my Kindle to where I never wanted to put it down. I love that it is a longer book, normally in a new series the first book is smaller with the end books being larger. So much was able to take place and as mentioned previously, I was never bored. There were moments when I got tears in my eyes, I laughed and one particular moment where I actually screamed out 'NO' and drew my hands up to my face unable to continue reading for a few minutes. My heart was honestly pounding in my chest.

Diana is such a smart, level headed woman. I will be the first to say I loved Twilight but I can honestly say Bella at many times annoyed me. Far too much the 'Damsel in Distress' in a lot of the earlier books. Diana is strong. Yes there are moments of despair as there would be for anybody that faced some of the challenges she must face but she is brave and honest.

Matthew is... simply wonderful. Yes he is protective over Diana as it is his nature as a vampire but you see how he realizes she is a strong woman. She is his 'lionne' and 'coeur', this meaning she is his lioness and his heart.

The history and science in this book intrigued me. Matthew is Scientist and a very old vampire, who in his long life has known many fascinating people. Diana is a Witch and an Historian. You learn much about Matthew's life and the people he knew and the science that he is currently working on when trying to determine how and why the creatures of their world were created and why they now seem to be dying out. Those creatures being Witches, Daemons and Vampires, they share the world with humans who are oblivious to their existence. A world where creatures do not normally mix or even become friends, let alone fall in love.

My head is filled with thoughts of how book two will play out and all of the wonderful people Diana and Matthew will come into contact with and the many mysteries they will start to unravel when Diana learns to harness and control her magic.