Tag: overdrive

Friday YA: Blog Tour! Watching You by Shannon Greenland

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Book details:
Watching You
by Shannon Greenland
Published by: Entangled Publishing
Publication date: July 2nd 2018
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
Synopsis:
Viola’s always been that girl from thatfamily, so a scholarship to a prestigious private school in Florida was supposed to be her ticket out of poverty and into a brand-new life. But Viola’s secrets have followed her. Her relationship with the intelligent and gorgeous Riel should have been the salvation she needed—he understands her troubled past better than anyone. But then weird things start to happen.
Frightening messages.
Missing personal items.
The unsettling feeling that she’s being watched.
Viola’s never been one to give her trust easily, but she’ll need to trust in Riel if she’s going to survive her stalker. Because she’s not fighting for a new life anymore—she’s fighting to stay alive.

WC Teaser 4

REVIEW:

Viola was such a sympathetic character. She comes from a tough neighborhood, yet excels at school and has huge goals for herself. She wants to go to this exclusive private school and get into MIT so she can better herself and help her family. When the novel starts, we realize that even though she did get the scholarship that allowed her to get into private school, she may have not been quite as truthful as she should have to do it.

We meet her love interest Riel almost immediately. When Viola realizes that he was the previous scholarship recipient we know that their future relationship may have a big conflict to overcome. Before we even have to worry about that though, strange and scary things start to happen to Viola. Is it her past catching up to her? Or is this a new threat?

I thought the mystery was just as solid as the romance. I liked Riel a LOT. I wasn’t sure how they were going to overcome the whole I stole your scholarship plot line, but it definitely kept me reading. When it was apparent Viola had a stalker, I was totally surprised by who it was at the end. My only criticism was when the perspective changed at the beginning of each chapter to the stalker’s thoughts. It was cheesy and a little too dramatic? I think the book would’ve been just as good without those intro’s. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I was given an ARC of this book for an honest review and I was honest!

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AUTHOR BIO:
Shannon Greenland is the award winning author of several novels including the teen spy series, THE SPECIALISTS, and the YA romances, THE SUMMER MY LIFE BEGAN and SHADOW OF A GIRL. She also writes thrillers under S. E. Green and lives off the coast of Florida with her very grouchy dog.
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This Chick Read: Becoming a Vincent (The Wild Ones #1) by C.M. Owens

Tomahawk, from it’s description, is a rather simple town. People are just folks, cousins are kin, and hi-tech means you drive a speedboat instead of a fishing boat. Lilah and her two brothers are Wild Ones. There are four families of Wild Ones on each corner of the lake in Tomahawk. The Wild Ones are exactly like their moniker, pretty dang wild. They are not allowed at the same party unless it’s a wedding or a funeral of one of the wild ones. Truly, I can’t remember all the rules, but if there are two families at the same party there’s either a fight or something blows up.

For the past nine years, all of the men of Tomahawk have been bearded  because of a bet and all of the ladies are just grossed out. You’d think if you weren’t getting any action because your beard got in the way I wouldn’t think a bet would be a strong enough reason to keep it, but these men are stubborn! Lila’s best friend Benson (also bearded) has been a constant for the last three years. Even though on drunken nights he gets kind of handsy, they never cross that line. When the beard rule gets broken and Benson trims down, Lilah is wishing for that line to be crossed, and soon!

This novel was absolutely hysterical! It had such a fun sense of humor and plenty of tension between Lilah and Benson. I loved how he was just hers, and she was his, even though they had never crossed that friendly line. He was just waiting for his chance. If you are looking for a kind of crazy, fun romance buy this book. I bought it awhile ago on my sister’s recommendation but sat on it. I wish I hadn’t! It’s the perfect pick me up for a down day, a great summer vacation novel, and really just the right book for any mood you may be in. I’ve already purchased the second… ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Becoming a Vincent

Click this link to purchase! Becoming A Vincent (The Wild Ones) (Volume 1)

Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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Friday YA: Renegades by Marissa Meyer

This super hero world is set in Gatlon City after the great war between Anarchists and Renegades. A super power police force of sorts  of Renegades has been created to hold peace and keep evil at bay. Nova, our main protagonist, was orphaned at a very young age, pre war, when violence ran amok. Her parents and little sister killed by a gang. She was raised by her uncle Ace Anarchy the leader of the Anarchists and opposing force to the Renegades. When he was killed in the war Nova was left with a few remaining Anarchists to be raised in an old subway system. Needless to say, Nova is not a fan of the Renegades. During a parade celebrating Renegade history the Anarchists decide to act, sending Nova out as her alias Nightmare (because with a touch she can put people to sleep) to assassinate one of the Renegade leaders, Captain Chromium. The mission fails, but not before everyone knows of Nightmare and she becomes one of the most wanted, her face pinned to every light post.

Adrian is the adopted son of the two most famous heroes in Renegade history. He is known as Sketch (because he can draw things to life), the leader of one of the Renegade patrol teams, but Adrian wants more. With his alter ego secret identity he starts to investigate the death of his real mother and thinks that Nightmare has the answers to his questions. Nova ends up under cover as a Renegade as Insomnia (because she can’t sleep) and ends up on Adrian’s team where she “helps” him try to find Nightmare while working her own agenda.

I really, really wanted to like this book! I love comic books and am a fan of all things super hero. I think my biggest issue was that Marissa Meyer had too deft a touch at making Nova sympathetic. She tried to balance her internal struggle of her parents death and blaming the Renegades for it with her dislike of the actions of some of the other Arnachists. Her hatred always won over her softer feelings. In contract you have the golden child Adrian who is a Renegade by day, and yet wants his mothers killer to come to justice so bad that he’s willing to break the rules a bit to find them. I believed his character more than hers, and because of this his developing feelings for her felt too faked. If I couldn’t like her, how could he?

There were elements in this novel that I loved. The world building was phenomenal. The super powers were pretty cool and I liked the characters, with the exception of Nova. I’ll clarify that statement by saing that I didn’t hate her, I just didn’t care what happened to her. Apathy for your main character is just not a good thing for a reader. If not for the big twist at the end of the book I wouldn’t even think of reading Archenemies (Renegades #2) when it comes out in November. That ending made me curious so I’m on the fence, but my feelings for this first novel are pretty black and white. Meh.

Renegades

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and will receive a small stipend if you purchase this book through the above link.

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This Chick Read: Neanderthal Seeks Human (Knitting in the City #1) by Penny Reid

I have never had a friend like Janie Morris, you know, that friend that delivers too much information? OK, now that I think about it I may have had a few, and it’s usually really personal stuff that you just shouldn’t be sharing. Janie also has that TMI disease, however when she starts talking it’s usually extraneous facts and figures. She does this when she gets uncomfortable and no one makes her more uncomfortable than Quinn Sullivan. Quinn is that hot security guy at work that all the women whisper and steal glances at, and Janie is guilty of doing just that. However, when you are having the absolute worst day of your life, you find out your boyfriend cheated on you and you break up with him, you have to move out and you have no where to live, and you lose your job? You do not want THAT guy (aka Quinn Sullivan) to witness it. Just her luck, he’s the one who helps her pack up her things and escorts her out of the building. Obviously this is not the end of Josie and Quinn’s story, it’s just the beginning!

Recently I finished Beard in Mind (which I loved!) and was again entranced with Penny Reid’s style of writing. It’s engaging and funny but also packs an emotional punch. I didn’t want to let go! So, I thought I’d start a series that I hadn’t read of hers, and has a ton of books. That is the Knitting in the City series. Just as with the Brothers Winston, this book had kooky characters that while flying solo may be a bit nutty, but when together make the perfect matched set. Quinn and Josie were Salt and Pepper, that matched set.

Quinn played the straight man to Josie’s kooky mess. When she was spouting information he followed her train of thought, asking her questions to keep the conversation rolling. Who knows what was going on in his own mind at times, he was so stoic, but she seemed to bring out an inner light in him that seemed to be missing.

This novel was so much fun to read. Light, fun, and had all the emotions you would want in a romance. The best thing? There are seven more in the series! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

Neanderthal

Click this link to purchase! Neanderthal Seeks Human: A Smart Romance (Knitting in the City) (Volume 1)

Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and receive a small stipend if you purchase through the above link.

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This Chick Read: Rough Justice (Cainsville #8) by Kelley Armstrong

Rough Justice is a novella revolving around Olivia’s first Hunt as Matilda for the Cwn Annwn. The Hunt provides justice to those who have killed descendents of the fair folk and the Matilda leads that hunt as witness when justice is served.  Olivia’s day job is as an investigator for her boyfriend lawyer Gabriel, so admittedly it’s hard for her to accept their prey’s guilt without proof, and because of that he goes free. Olivia investigates the murder and finds that the solution is not as clear cut as portrayed.

Kelley Armstrong has written another great novel in this series giving us just a taste of being back with our favorite characters. The mystery traversed a path that was unexpected and I enjoyed that journey, however the tension that filled the other novels was missing from this one with only a mild segue into the current status of Gabriel and Olivia’s relationship. Maybe I’m nitpicking but that tension was a big part of why I felt the series was so gripping.

If you need a Cainsville fix this novella will give you one, but I hope she is writing another one quickly because this is just an appetizer and not a whole meal.

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this novella through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest.

Rough Justice

Click this link to purchase! Rough Justice

Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and will receive a small stipend if you purchase this novel through the above link.

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Friday YA: Once and for All by Sarah Dessen

Louna is working her final summer before she goes off to college as an assistant in her mothers bridal planning business. Growing up in the midst of bridal madness has given her a rather jaded view of true love and the one relationship she’d had ended tragically. When she spots Ambrose, the gorgeous son of a client, she distantly notes his looks but is disgusted with his laissez faire attitude towards life as she has to reign him in to walk his mother down the aisle. He is a fly in the ointment of her life, and she is the challenge he is determined to win. When her mother hires him for the summer, Louna’s animosity towards Ambrose disappears but she is still afraid to let go and live.

Once and for All took me on a journey into a world of love, loss and friendship. Louna’s one and only love ended abruptly and because she never had the chance to conclude this teenage love she doesn’t know how to move on. When she meets Ambrose she is just disgusted by his good looks, charm, and easy goingness (is that a word?). However, she soon begins to admire that same casual charm. The same things that aggravate  her day to day he seems to deal with effortlessly and with a smile on his face. Finally, of course, women LOVE him. He dates multiple women at a time and Louna only goes out when dragged and set up by her best friend. Then one day, standing in line to get coffee, they make a bet. She needs to become a serial dater and he needs to have a relationship for seven weeks. Winner gets to pick the next date for the loser.

I liked so many things about this story! We take a parallel journey with Louna as she remembers her previous boyfriend and as she starts to live her life again dating. The use of flashbacks effectively delivered the color of Louna’s emotions in the past as a direct contrast to the dull gray emotional world she is living in now. As she learns to move on her world slowly builds in color until Bam! she realizes how she truly feels about Ambrose and how wonderful life is while living it fully. It was very deftly done, and a really enjoyable novel to read.

I want to talk Ambrose for a minute. Did anyone else really dislike him for the first two thirds of the book? I’ll admit, when I started reading I didn’t read the synopsis so I wasn’t sure he was her love interest. It took me a long while to see through that persona into the depths of him. Once I looked hard, I understood where the book was going and then read the synopsis to make sure I was right. Yep! But, I’ll admit I was worried!

There were some other great characters in this book. I loved William, the gay father figure with a spine of steel, her best friend Jilly the oldest sister and wrangler to a million little brothers and sisters, and her mom who went through her own metamorphosis right along with her daughter. I understand why this book touched the hearts of so many people and received great reviews. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Once and For All

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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This Chick Read: Rhythm, Chord & Malykhin by Mariana Zapata

Gaby Barreto doesn’t know what she’s going to do with the rest of her life. She just finished college and her boyfriend broke up with her. When her twin brother calls from the road to ask if she’ll come on tour and sell their merchandise for them she says yes and gets on a plane to live in a bus with her brother Eli and his two bandmates. Oh yeah, she’ll also live on the bus with 4 more guys from another band. Gaby has always been fun, funny and one of the guys, but when she meets Sacha Malykhin she wants that friend zone to turn into something else but she’s determined to play it cool.

Gaby is that girl you’ve always wanted to be. Self assured, funny and pretty. The girl that everyone is comfortable around. She grew up listening to her brothers music and has even toured with their band before back in the days when they got around in a beat up bus. I loved her camaraderie with all of the guys, but especially with Sacha. She had just broken up with her boyfriend but when she and Sacha meet there’s laughter and a twinkle to their connection. It just seems to be really easy for them. Even though they don’t get together for a really long time, you can tell that the connection between them, even as friends is real.

This is not your typical rock star romance. There isn’t any drama (well only a tiny bit) and there’s tons of laughter. These people really don’t have a lot of baggage. Maybe that’s why I could relate to them so well? They were an easy couple to see together. I also really enjoyed Gaby’s interactions with all the other guys on the bus, especially Eli and Mason. Eli is her twin so they have that special connection, but Mason is that brother from another mother. He was hysterical!  I’d love to see him have his own story, but he’ll probably have to live in my fantasies instead. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

Rhythm Chord

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and receive a small stipend if you purchase through the above link.

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This Chick Read: Vampire’s Faith (Dark Protectors #8) by Rebecca Zanetti

Vampire’s Faith is the eighth book in the Dark Protectors series, but is really the first book in it’s own series, also set in the Dark Protectors world. Ronan Kayrs was sacrificed to live in an alternate dimension that was supposed to last for an eternity. His sacrifice was part of a key that would hold the ultimate enemy. When Ronan wakes in a hospital, he realizes his part of the containment has collapsed, and that evil is closer to being released back into this world. However, there is a bright side for Ronan. When he awakes he also sets sight on the woman he has been dreaming of for centuries, his mate Dr. Faith Cooper.

The Dark Protectors series is my favorite of Rebecca Zanetti’s. It uses the time honored theme of good vs evil, but with a paranormal twist. Vampire’s Faith adds another twist in that Ronan is a King from centuries ago. His brothers descendants are the current time Kayrs family who rules their vampire nation and are the heroes of the earlier books in this series. A clever way to tie the stories together and keep this thrilling series alive.

I had a really easy time enjoying Ronan. When he entered the story he was kind of goofy, after all he was dropped into current technology, clothing, etc. He was charming and self deprecating as he wooed his mate. As the story moved forward, he became more demanding and reverted to the “I am male therefore you should listen to me” ways of the past. Luckily Faith was not going along with his program. It made for a tension filled  love story where both of their eyes were being opened to unusual things and they had to rely on each other to be their anchor in an unfamiliar world. The highlight was that the attraction between the two was sizzling and their passion jumped off the pages.

Where I felt the story slow down was when the Kurjans and Cyst were bigger players in a scene. I guess I needed a little more back story for this hidden sect that showed up all of a sudden as the big evil was closer to being released. I’m sure their part in this story will get fleshed out a little more in the next novel, which looks to be a good one. The story set up nicely at the end of this book to tantalize the reader.

If you love paranormal romances this series is great. You can start with book #8 and jump right in, but to get a better picture of this world start at the beginning with Fated. It’s one of my favorites in the series. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest.

Vampire's Faith

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reseved

I am an Amazon Associate and will receive a small stipend if you purchase through the above link.

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Friday YA: Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett

Starry eyes weaves the story of Zorie and Lennon. Two ex best friends who decided to take their relationship to the next level. Sounds pretty simple, right? It should be but family drama, miscommunication, and teenage emotions cause Zorie and Lennon’s relationship to shift from young love to not speaking. When the two of them get stranded camping they find their way out of the wilderness and back into each others hearts. I read very few teen romances but this story was very well done and I was intrigued by all of the different aspects of these characters. Zorie and Lennon were as unique as their names and Jenn Bennett’s Starry Eyes an intelligently written vehicle for their story.

This was my first Jenn Bennett novel and was rather surprised by the adult subject matter. Lennon has been raised by two moms who own an adult sex shop. As wild and crazy as that may sound the scenes in the shop were subtle yet filled with humor. Most of the early emotional drama came from Zorie’s father who hates Lennon and his parents. As the novel goes on we are clued into the why’s and wherefore’s but in the beginning this hatred seems filled with bigotry.  Zorie’s emotional growth is displayed by the way she deals with her father and his irrational anger and marital problems with her step mother. Also, I feel I should give a warning, the teens in this book are all sexually active which I guess is not uncommon today but I found myself trying to double check their ages a couple of times. At times I forgot I was reading a YA novel, so if you have kids, be aware of the adult content.

Lennon was a perfect blend of nerdy cool. He had two moms, worked in a snake shop and had a b-level rock star for a father. What’s not to like? Even though the novel was written from Zorie’s perspective you could feel Lennon’s emotions and really identify with his character. I can totally see YA readers being easily captivated by him.

I really enjoyed this novel in large part because of all of the surprises revealed through the story, but also because of the unique setting. Most of the novel takes place while Zorie and Lennon are hiking through the wilderness. Seeing nature and the night’s sky through their Starry Eyes almost made me want to pack a bag and a book and go on a hike. Almost. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Starry Eyes

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and receive a small stipend if you purchase through the above link.

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This Chick Read: Awakened by Fire (Dragons of Bloodfire #2) by Erin Kellison

Samantha Vine is home to see her grandfather and to be a reluctant bridesmaid in her cousin’s wedding. She hasn’t been home for years because it’s hard for her to hide what she is, and if she gets found out both she and her grandfather’s lives will be forfeit. She is a Tempus, someone who can travel through time. She was saved as an infant by her grandfather who fed her the blood of Warrick Voclain, dragon and Bloodkin Triad member, an act that also created her Tempus status. Samantha’s family has always served the Voclain’s and when she finds out that her grandfather and Warrick are in danger she stays in New York to go back through time to find out who is trying to harm them.

Warrick is a very strong dragon and when Samantha uses her magic in his presence he knows immediately what she has done. It’s against the law, but she has done it to help him which intrigues him.  After putting her own life in danger, he falls prey to the attraction they feel for each other and is willing to lay his life on the line so that she can keep hers.

I read the first novel in this series a couple of years ago and immediately purchased the second intending to read it immediately. Of course, time got away from me but this weekend I saw it on my kindle and picked it up. Wow, it was good! Even though the cover has the whole naked chest thing going on (not my favorite type of cover) this book had a great plot. It was a mystery first and relationship building story second. I loved how the author took her time to let the reader get to know these characters and let the characters get re-acquainted with each other. By the time the two of them became romantic I was all in, rooting for him to forget the fact she was human and her to also give his dragon brooding self a chance. There was a lot of action, fight scenes, and subterfuge with the romance lifting the story to the next level. A very fun weekend read! I will  definitely not wait as long to pick up the third novel in the series.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

Awakened by Fire

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Copyright 2018 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

I am an Amazon Associate and receive a small stipend if you purchase through the above link.

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