Mini Review: First Night by Lauren Blakely

First Night
by Lauren Blakely

An erotic novella from the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Lauren Blakely...

It was only supposed to be one night…

When the sinfully handsome man walks into her bar in San Francisco, Julia Bell simply wants a break from the troubles that keep chasing her. That escape comes in the form of sexy, confident and commanding Clay Nichols, who captivates her mind AND turns her inside out with pleasure. The attraction is electric and they share one scorchingly hot night together, but they also discover there is more than just off-the-charts chemistry; the connection between them runs deep. Clay never thought he’d return to New York with this woman still on his mind. But he can’t get her out of his system, and he needs more of her…He wants more than just the first night…

*This is a prequel novella to the erotic romance NIGHT AFTER NIGHT.*

Mini Review:
I started with this novella to see how I would take to the series, and sadly I'm not impressed.

Even though I guiltily enjoyed this book, it reads like beginner/intermediate fanfiction. The writing seemed blocky, and I felt like someone had a thesaurus sitting next to them trying to expand on the vocabulary usage. Let me tell you that this can be a good and bad thing.

I'm still trying to decide if I'll give the actual series a shot, but if I do I'll be sure to post a review.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Review: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Title: Seraphina
Author: Rachel Hartman
Published: July 2012 by Random House
Pages: 480 Kindle Edition
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Summary via goodreads:

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift - one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

*****

Mild spoilers?

Seraphina was an entertaining read; even with it's somewhat rocky opening. I'll get my petty arguments out of the way first. Ms. Hartman opened the novel with mild confusion and a need for more explanation of the Saints and religion in my opinion. After a couple of large info dumps things begin to pick up and from there, I was quickly swept away in the story that I found it hard to put down.

Fans of high fantasy novels should enjoy this enthralling tale of dragons and the new mystical world they live in. Rachel Hartman built a beautifully enchanting world that will confuse the hell out of you and maybe even  turn you off after all the talk of Saints, Heretics, and how their way of life is completely intertwined in their religion. It is a mystical period piece of sorts...  Seraphina herself was a likable enough character after you got over how much she hated herself and her messed up priorities. She's intelligent, but for someone that's suppose to be so alone, she was always surrounded by people who cared about her, even if she was hiding what she is. Not to mention the garden of people she housed in her head. Seraphina has an amazing talent for music that draws people and attention to her.

I had problems with Prince Lucian Kiggs. For a man that is engaged to the future queen, he sure did spend a lot of his time following Phina around, obsessing over her so called bravery, and sharing all these moments with her that one day she comes to the realization that she's in love with the man.

I can say that as I was reading I wasn't as caught up in how absurd this man was until I sat down to write out a review. So I think I have a right to express how this novel could have been amazing, but the disjointedness of it all kind of ruined it. I'll give Hartman the benefit of the doubt with her first published fantasy novel. I'm somewhat invested in the storyline now that I will be purchasing Dracomahia when it's released, but I won't settle for the holes and incompleteness I felt during Seraphina. 

Review: Forever Black by Sandi Lynn

Title: Forever Black
Author: Sandi Lynn
Published: February 2013(self published)
Pages: 278 (Kindle)
Rating: 2 out 5 stars
Summary from goodreads:

When Ellery moved to New York with her boyfriend, she thought they’d live happily ever after in their small New York apartment. She never thought he’d pack his bags and leave because he “needed space.” With her newfound single status and fear of being alone, Ellery buries herself in her artwork and paintings until one night she helps a mysterious intoxicated stranger get home safely. Little did she know the mysterious stranger is none other than CEO and millionaire Connor Black. After finding Ellery in his kitchen the next morning and assuming she broke his #1 rule about sleepovers, he becomes intrigued, not only by her stubbornness and defiance, but by her kindness.

Connor Black, emotionally dead and damaged, that stemmed from a personal tragedy, made a vow to never love or fall in love with a woman, until Ellery Lane walked into his life by accident. After she opens up and shows him her world, Connor starts to feel emotions and feelings he never knew existed. Despite the rumors and warnings regarding Connor Black and his use and misuse of women, Ellery finds herself being drawn into his world.

Ellery knows they can never be together because she is harboring a deep secret that could destroy Connor emotionally forever.

Join Connor and Ellery as they embark on a journey of courage, love and strength. Will it be enough to save them?

**18+ For adult situations and language**

*****

This contains mild spoilers.

This has possibly got to be the worst thing I've ever read in my life, but like a train wreck, I just couldn't look away. How could anyone publish a book and charge $3.99 for all the world to see when it needs so much work? I'll admit that I only picked it up because I'm on a New Adult kick, Goodreads, as well as Amazon suggested it, and the rave reviews that were associated with the book(They had to be raving freaking mad). I should have known better because I skipped the important step where I look for the negative in everything.

Forever Black opens with a very dry, unbelievable break up scene and a typo(angered instead of anger). The " douchebag boyfriend" barely gives a reason as to why he's leaving after being together for four years and Ellery Lane(I really hate her name. It sounds like a street name, doesn't it?) stoops to slut/whore slamming. Enter the best friend that has a vocabulary that barely consist of more words that OMG and douchebag boyfriend. Can we get some more adjectives, please?! The writing could use some serious work and a professional editing team. The step by step actions were not needed, but contractions and more description, not telling would be useful. There also seem to be a problem with spelling out numbers under ten. You NEVER, EVER BEGIN A SENTENCE WITH A NUMERAL! Oh, but a least everyone politely greets everyone else...

So... Why is everything perfect in her descriptions? Examples:

"-he lay there almost perfectly naked-"

"He was lean, muscular, and perfectly defined from head to toe"
Can somebody get a thesaurus stat?! 

All in all, Forever Black irritated the hell out of me so much! Ellery Lane is such a boring character that showed no growth or personality, and her thoughts were so freaking repetitive that I want to use the "R" word in reference of her stupidity. The "Oh, how perfectly beautiful" everything is, how she shouldn't feel attracted to Connor because they're "only friends", this, that, and the other were all getting on my -expletive- nerves that I dropped so many f-bombs it was insane!

This novel had pretty much a generic and overused plotline of: rich man meets average girl, they jump stupid hurdles, have silly arguments, have sex(bad and totally un-erotic sex that I'm sure a junior high student could have written better), and live happily ever after.

Strangely, somewhere around 57% of the book I was too hooked to not finish this disaster of a novel; even though I wanted to smash my kindle and burn it to pieces. So I'll end this rant with bullet points of more ranting about everything else that I found wrong; including the plotholes.

• Who addresses someone with their full name all the time? They're friends and intimately involved!
• Things are instantly forgiven when they were the end of the world as we knew it not too long beforehand
• A single short chapter of Connor's POV that gives absolutely NO INSIGHT to his feelings, motivations, or anything at all
• "more deep"  That should explain itself
• Elle lies about being on her period, then they have sex that same day
• The characters cope with death in completely unbelievable ways(no emotions and even a fight at the funeral)
•  "perfect heartbreak" -WTF?
• "to" When it should be too
• Then the author pulls out the sympathy card- I totally saw this coming since Elle revealed her past
• Can people stop living in the fantasy world where women always come on command
• And last but not least, I didn't feel that 50 Shades of Grey was a good book so I'm sick of watching people try to remake it in one way or another

Favorite quote time!(Insert sarcasm here)

"OMG they have sex hair, they just had sex somewhere" -Mason (I feel that it's another example too.)

I'm sorry that I really disliked Ms. Lynn's book. So I gave it two stars because I tried to get over everything and like it, but I couldn't close my eyes to all the bad spelling, grammar, and other issues...

Review: Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Apollyon (Covenant #4)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
To Be Published: April 2013 by Spencer Hill Press
Pages: 360, paperback
My Rating: 5/5 stars
** I received an ARC from the publisher
Summary from Goodreads:

Fate isn’t something to mess with… and now, neither is Alex.

Alex has always feared two things: losing herself in the Awakening and being placed on the Elixir. But love has always been stronger than Fate, and Aiden St. Delphi is willing to make war on the gods—and Alex herself—to bring her back.

The gods have killed thousands and could destroy entire cities in their quest to stop Seth from taking Alex’s power and becoming the all-powerful God Killer. But breaking Alex’s connection to Seth isn’t the only problem. There are a few pesky little loopholes in the whole “an Apollyon can’t be killed” theory, and the only person who might know how to stop the destruction has been dead for centuries.

Finding their way past the barriers that guard the Underworld, searching for one soul among countless millions, and then somehow returning will be hard enough. Alex might be able to keep Seth from becoming the God Killer… or she might become the God Killer herself.

*****

Maybe this is spoiler-y(Yes, I know that isn't a word). Especially for those who are just beginning the series. And excuse my excessive fangirling, but I wrote this a soon as I finished the book.

Deity was such a wild ride that I thought nothing could compare, but Jennifer just keeps surprising readers with more awesomeness. Elixir opened eyes and made me love Aiden all the more with his point of view, but it wasn't enough at the same time in all its short novella glory. It was to the point that I couldn't wait to get my hands on Apollyon that I prayed to any deity that would listen, tried to auction off my organs, and even offered my first born child- And oh my gods did it ever give me everything I was hoping for and more...

Firstly, let me tell you that there is nothing like being sucked into a world created by the one and only Jennifer L. Armentrout. The descriptions have you feeling as if you're right there and sometimes the very embodiment of the characters.

Ah, the Alex and Aiden moments were amazingly hot(even with all of Alexandria's smart ass comments that will constantly keep a smile on your face)! I don't think we should really call them moments since they were together the entire novel. I loved the fact that their romance stepped up before the series ends, but most of all the relationships grew with this installment of the story. Old enemies became friends, friends became closer, and family got to know each other better and come to new understandings.

The characters all experienced so much growth, hardships, and pain that it made them stronger, believable(even in a paranormal novel), and on so lovable. I can most likely count on one hand all the characters that I didn't like or more accurately put; those I loved to hate and they were all our villains- the ones we're suppose to hate(BUT NOT SETH).

OH TEH SETH!!! We learned things- lots of things, but never the whole story of Seth's past. I love that he shared his upbringing with Alex. He seriously opened himself up to her! I want more of that Seth.

I have so many feeling about this volume that I can't put them all into words or express them at all without spoiling the entire book. So I'll leave you with my final thoughts and some of my favorite quotes before I close this out.

JLA did an amazing thing when she acknowledged that homosexuality actually exist in the world.

Not only that, but two prominent side characters are in a homosexual relationship that is openly accepted- Viva la DEACON and LUKE Forever! Kudos to Jennifer for adding to young adult literature.

Favorite Quotes:

"Wasn't that a season finale on Supernatural?" When the boys nodded, my eyes rolled. "Seriously? Are Sam and Dean going to be there?"

"What is it with the St. Delphi brothers and their attraction to halfs?"

"No matter how convoluted my life got, one thing remained consistent- my hair looked like a baby opossum had taken refuge in it, invited some friends over, and thrown a party."

Series Review: Covenant by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Half-Blood (Covenant, #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Published: September 2011 / My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

AND THIS IS A DEBUT AUTHOR?!

I was completely and utterly blown away by this book. Everything about it was great; the pacing, character development, settling, atmosphere... Ms. Armentrout has a way with words that just can not be matched.

I love Alexandria Andros as our heroine. She's strong even through her weaknesses and her sarcastic, smart-ass mouth is hilarious. Her mindset is something to be revered. She's one bad-ass chick and girls always need someone to look up to. And the love interest, Aiden... For the love of daimon babies, that boy is hot.

I tend to shy away from things that people try to change when it's awesome all on its own, but Jennifer L. Armentrout has made me see the light. JLA took Greek Mythology and flipped it on its head as she twisted it and made it her own, and frankly I loved every minute of it. I'm so excited to see what she has in store for this series and any other upcoming works.

---

Pure (Covenant, #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Published: March 2012 / My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Ever since my best friend, Aj started my obsession with Half-Blood, I've been one hooked fish; and that was just the beginning. Pure started off with a fight and keep me enthralled through out the story.

There is so much I want to say, but I can't with out spoiling the book! Alex is as strong as ever and the newest developments have me in desperate need of the next book in the series, Deity.

First of all, my heart was truly thrown into turmoil because Seth open up somewhat and we got to see the sweet side of who he could be(I'm rooting for this underdog). I totally fell in love. But there are storms brewing, especially with the things going on in Aiden's head and heart. I'm beyond confused now!

I cried. I laughed. I screamed. And I nearly had multiple strokes while hiding at my part-time job so I could sneak in some reading time. *wink wink*

An over all awesome read that I ate up and marinated on for days. If you haven't read a JLA book yet, you don't know what you're missing.

---

Deity (Covenant, #3) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Published: November 2012 / My Rating: 5/5 stars (Can we make that a 10/5?)

** I received an ARC from the publisher

I'm trying my best, but this isn't going to be spoiler free. Mild spoilers ahead.

I have to start off with saying that Deity is the best book I've read by Jennifer L. Armentrout to date! It's that "Oh My GODS". Let's say it together now: OH... MY... GODS!

JLA opens Deity with a dream sequence which gave us a twisted flashback to Pure, then we're pretty much back to sharing a bed with Seth, Alex wanting him out of her bed, and all the things that she'd left behind during her trip to New York returning to haunt her.

And let me tell you that the 'Ish' hit the fan majorly.

Alexandria is feeling even more alone with Seth always lurking(I've given up on him now) and Marcus becoming even more creepy than usual. But we got what we had been begging for since the beginning of the series- Aiden St. Delphi, hotness galore. It's entirely too much to handle that the entire world implodes on itself.

Jennifer doesn't seem to know what she's doing to her loyal fan base, because my life completely stopped for the release of Deity. The wait until the next book is slowly killing me and I have no idea how I'm continuing on... The ending of Deity is more than anything anybody expected and I'm sure to hear the outrage and rioting fans soon.

I'm ready to read everyone else's opinions as soon as possible. I hope you ladies enjoy the ride as much as I did...

Welcome My New Co-blogger!

Hey all! Alexa, aka A.J., here. I'm happy to introduce my new co-blogger! We've been friends for over 10 years, ever since middle school. (I wouldn't have survived 8th grade without her!) I'm so glad she wanted us to blog about books together. Wish we had done it sooner. Give a warm welcome to my BFF and new co-blogger BRIE! :D

Hello friends and fellow bookies! I'm Brie, short for Brittany and I just wanted to introduce myself. I am a twenty-five year old newlywed with many passions in life and a round the clock schedule. I spend most of my days working, trying to fit a book in here and there, video gaming, editing for fanfiction writers, playing with glitter and rhinestones(I make things for a boutique I want to open), and just looking after my family. My life is 'action-packed' so I don't get as many books read as A.J. but I listen to her suggestions. I'm so excited that A.J. invited me to be her co-blogger even if we've been best friends since forever!