The Juliet Spell - Douglas Rees

The Juliet Spell by Douglas Rees

 

RATING:  3.5 Stars

FORM:  eBook, NetGalley, ARC

 

SYNOPSIS:  Miri is up for the lead role in Shakespeare’s most famous play, Romeo and Juliet.  While she thinks that her audition went okay, there is no harm in taking a few extra precautions, right?  Casting a spell from a book she had gotten a while back, Miri chants, “Make me Juliet...”  What she gets instead is a bright light, slight earthquake, and a scared teenager sitting on her kitchen table.  A teenager who turns out to be Edmund Shakeshaft, aka Shakespeare – William Shakespeare’s younger brother, from the past.

 

Stuck in the twenty-first century, Edmund does what he can to adapt to the culture, learn it’s dialect, and make himself useful.  Of course this means trying out for the part of Romeo in Miri’s school play.  With Miri and Edmund cast as Romeo and Juliet, perhaps the love story that has entertained people for centuries will repeat itself, that is Miri's hope, at least.

 

REVIEW:  The Juliet Spell had me wanting to go back to high school and read Shakespeare again.  Or at least,  to get a book and read with a little more appreciation than I had when I had the chance.  The book as a whole, however, has given me mixed feelings.

 

On one hand, I loved it.  The putting together of the play was entertaining, and did take me back to High School quite a bit.  The camaraderie between the drama kids is exactly how Marching Band in High School was for me; there were clicks, but also we were a unit that did quite a bit together, including long grueling rehearsals and after parties.  I feel that Douglas Rees was right on in capturing the atmosphere of a High School Drama Club. Character development and interaction was great within the story, both are very important in my opinion.

 

Then there is the other hand.  I can’t say “on the other hand I hated it,” that’s not true.  There were just parts that didn’t sit well in my mind.  This book walks the line of science fiction and just plain ole fiction.  I think the biggest turn off for me was the way the sci-fi parts were presented.  Miri is going to do a spell, as if it is the most normal, natural thing for a seventeen year old girl to do.  The setting of the book does not give off anything but a normal, typical town in the United States, and while paranormal/science fiction/fantasy books are popular, I’m pretty sure any normal, level-headed seventeen year old is not off casting enchantments expecting any kind of result.   Of course, it has been over ten years since I was in High School…so who knows. 

 

The other thing was the level of acceptance of Edmund and his situation.  First Edmund himself, while he cried like a baby…more than once might I add… did not have a mental breakdown.  In fact, his adjustment to the modern world wasn’t even funny – and let me tell you, the scenario has SOOO MUCH “funny” potential.  That was a letdown.  But then, as the book moves forward, an additional four people are added to the “in the know” crowd when it comes to where he has come from, and not one of them really acts shocked, appalled, distraught, or even unbelieving.  They act as if crazy things like this happen every day.  Once again, this does not sit well with the, “this is a normal town” scenario. 

 

Mostly, the book was a great read; entertaining and fun.  I absolutely love all the Shakespeare talk, banter and references.  I really want to read Much Ado about Nothing, right about now because of this book. 

 

WHAT I LOVED:  I loved that the romance in The Juliet Spell was not over the top.  I had a clue on how the book would end from the very first few chapters, but watching the entire thing unfold was so satisfying.  It was romance muted down in a way I’ve found that many male authors write it.  I love books that are heavy on the passion and tingly feelings, but this circling around each other method is more like real life, and I enjoy it just as much. 

 

NOT SO MUCH:  I know I’ve got an entire paragraph above, and while those things I mentioned made the book kind of weird for me, but they weren’t the parts that really stuck out to me as…eh.  Miri’s Dad holds that position.  I don’t mind having a sappy, happy ending, I’m just not so sure Miri’s dad deserved one.  I don’t get it.  I don’t know why that whole part was in the book – and played such a prominent part.  I’m sure the author had a purpose, but I would have been just as satisfied if the opening of the book explained how he took off, and left well enough alone where he was concerned.  Just my opinion of course.

Wanderlove - Kirsten Hubbard

TITLE:  Wanderlove
AUTHOR: Kirsten Hubbard
RATING: 4 Stars

GENRE: Young Adult-Fiction, Romance, Travel
FORM: eBook, Netgalley, ARC
RELEASE DATE:  March 13, 2012

SYNOPSIS: On a quest of self-discovery and independence, Bria decides to take a guided tour of Central America the summer after her senior year. She wants to use this time to really see the world, but also she is using it as a distancing tool from the betrayal of her ex-boyfriend, Toby, and her constantly fighting, under protective, not concerned parents. She has given up the one thing that makes her truly happy, art, so now she is out to have a great time and let loose a little. That was the plan at least. The discovery that her tour group is made up mostly of people in their middle-age or older who are constantly griping at and protecting her, is when her plan first starts to go out the window. She decides to take a step out on her own when she meets Starling and her very cute brother, Rowan, both of which are well-traveled experience backpackers. Stepping out, Bria gets the trip she was hoping to get in the first place, and with a travel companion who is just as bent on leaving his past behind him.

REVIEW: Reading books about travel, especially spontaneous and outrageous travel, makes me want to pack my bags and go. Through the eyes of Bria, even the bad and ugly seems to shine in a brighter, more attractive light. She is able to see the beauty of the world in practically everything, and living this trip through her voice was wonderful. The traveling, however, is only the surface of the book. Both Bria and Rowan are working through their own issues. No matter how much they try and keep their past lives from one another, little by little things slip out and start unraveling.

I loved Bria’s unwavering respect toward Rowan’s privacy. Even when she didn’t have much of a reason to trust him any longer, she still refused to let people talk about his past without his say so. I loved Rowan’s pension for quoting books he’s read. Both have let the world around them and their experiences impact who they are in away, that despite the issues and trouble they’ve been into in the past, I was almost jealous. I wanted to be one of them, and to see and experience the world like they do.

The conversations about judgment and being judged were impacting to me as well. Their conversations were mostly about travel; just because you’re a backpacker doesn’t mean that you’re poor; and just because you travel on guided tours doesn’t mean you aren’t well traveled. I think their opinions and conclusions are applicable in many areas. They were also very human about it as well. Even once reaching these conclusions about not judging, Bria still struggled with it, misjudging Starling from beginning to end.

Of course there is the budding relationship. I loved the pace that Bria and Rowan moved at. Both of them were going through some major healing, dealing with their own issues. I loved that much of that healing was done together, and that made their relationship seem all that more real and sweet.

WHAT I LOVED: Rowan and Bria were both down to earth, believable characters. They were easy to relate with. I know I wanted to be their friend, and to go backpacking with them for the rest of my life. I loved the descriptions of Central America as well, even the big nasty bugs didn’t seem all that bad.

NOT SO MUCH: I felt Bria’s water fear went a little bit too far. I got the impression that what made her not want to get in the water was a result of something that took place outside of the water, in a car. She gave into drawling again before she went into the water, and to me, art was a much bigger deal, it was her life and what brought her joy. It was the area in which she was attacked repeatedly in, and then in the end what sort of broke things in the first place.

Love Story - Jennifer Echols

Love Story by Jennifer Echols
RATING:  4 of 5 Stars

GENRE:  Young Adult Fiction, Romance
FORM:  eBook - Nook

SYNOPSIS:  Erin Blackwell has abandon all hopes her Grandmother had for her to study business in college and eventually take over the family horse farm business.  Instead, Erin is studying creative writing with hopes on becoming a published author of romance novels; writing happy endings that she never seems to get in real life.  This decision does come at a cost though, as her Grandmother has cut her off entirely and given the farm and inheritance to Hunter Allen, the handsome stable boy of the farm, and the one boy she has been in love with for as long as she can remember.  Taking her first step as a writer, Erin writes a fictional happy ending for herself and Hunter as her first assignment in her first creative writing class, a story that is to be read and critiqued by all the members of her class.  Unfortunately for Erin, Hunter has transferred to her class and her secret love is out of the bag.  In response to her story, Hunter writes a story of his own geared at getting under her skin, thus beginning an "on paper only" relationship between Hunter and Erin that is, in real life, filled with lies, distrust, and misunderstandings. 

REVIEW:  This book sucked me in and then spit me out, all in less than 24 hours.  I loved the ideas based around this story, Hunter and Erin writing stories about their life and ultimately about their love for one another, ever since I read the books synopsis, I was captivated by the idea.  It has so much potential!

And for the most part I was not disappointed!  Erin and Hunter had so much chemistry and heat.  The tension between the two of them make waiting seem impossible, thus the fact that the book was completed within 24 hours.  The supporting characters were very strong and mostly likable.  There was no real bad guy outside of Erin and Hunter's perception of each other, and their misunderstandings.  Even Erin's Grandmother, however over bearing and controlling she was, didn't seem all that bad, but then I didn't really get to "know" her very well.  Her part of the book was mostly 2nd hand, she only really had a few lines of actual dialog, nothing that I could draw any real conclusions on.

I found Love Story to be a good easy read, entertaining and sexy.

WHAT I LOVED: Ultimately, I found the best part was the building tension between Hunter and Erin.  They circled around each other like starving wild dogs for so long, that when they (their lips) finally met, the fireworks were there for them as well as me.

NOT SO MUCH:  I felt like the book didn't really conclude.  I know this is somewhat by design, but I'm not used to having loose strings left untied I guess.  There was so many decisions, so many things that could happen.  The one scene at the horse race, where Erin won all kinds of money for the fraternity made it obvious that Erin didn't just have one talent or love.  This was eluded to by Hunter many times as well, but we see nothing really more of it.  Then there are things with her Grandmother that were left up in the air just hanging there.  I realize that this book was about Erin and Hunter, and really just about them, but there is so much to life that makes up a person, that even in the end all of the other stuff seemed important enough for me to sit and wonder on.  It was a little bit frustrating, like having this awesome love song only for it to end before the chorus.

SONG DEDICATION:  I may have used this song before, I'm not sure, but I think Maroon 5's She Will Be Loved is a good one for Hunter to sing to Erin...

Unlovable - Sherry Gammon

Unlovable by Sherry Gammon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

GENRE: Young Adult – Fiction, Romance
FORM Book; ARC/First Reads
SERIES:  The Port Fare Series

SYNOPSIS: Maggie Brown looks the part of a Heroin addict; skin and bones, pale almost translucent skin, dark circles under her eyes. It is for these reasons, and the fact that her alcoholic mother is also triggering some alarms in the recent Heroin traffic sting that is currently going on, that under cover METs have started focusing their attention on her. Simon, an undercover agent currently enrolled at Port Fare High School as a senior, does not believe Maggie is involved with any of the drug trafficking, but because it’s his assignment and partially because he is drawn to her, he begins to get to know Maggie. At first Maggie is timid due to the way she is treated and always has been treated, she doesn’t trust anyone, people are always out to use her to get what they want or they just walk all over her. Eventually, though, she gives in to her emotions and little by little Maggie begins to let Seth in. The more Seth gets to know Maggie, the more he falls for her; but his attention and regard for her suddenly puts Maggie in more danger than she already was in.

REVIEW: I won this book on one of the Goodreads “First Reads” giveaways. It came signed by the author, a happy surprised – if it was listed as a signed copy, I missed that part. The cover of Unlovable, drew me in straight away even though the synopsis made me want to pass it up and keep browsing, because the book sounded a little too much like real life for my taste. I live real life daily, including people around me who abuse alcohol and drugs, therefore I like to read books will take me away, but there are always a few that slip through the cracks. So that first day I noticed the book I did in fact pass up the opportunity, but I came across the book again on another day and thought, ‘what the heck, I probably won’t win it anyway. And then I did.

This book is Sherry Gammon’s first published work, and as a breakout novel, it is absolutely awesome. The story is captivating, you get to know Maggie and Seth, as well as Booker, Cole, and even a few nasty students at Port Fare. The book almost makes you feel like you are a part of the crowd, watching the action as it unfolds.

Maggie and Seth’s relationship is a fun, light-hearted one. They make fun of each other, tease, play fight, tickle, get in arguments; all the things you expect out of a newly-in-love relationship. Seth is very honorable, and able to give Maggie space when she needs it, instead of being over bearing and constantly in her face; but this is mostly an illusion. At the same time that he was giving Maggie her space, he was still keeping an eye on her, protecting her, and at times was able to materialize many times at the blink of an eye. However, he is very loving and sweet, and gives lots of very sexy kisses!

WHAT I LOVED: As I said, the story captivated me. Once I got within the first couple of chapters it was very difficult for me to put it down. There was plenty of action and suspense. Not to mention love and kissing.

NOT SO MUCH: The book, however captivating and suspenseful, was predictable. From the onset I could tell you exactly what was going to have to happen in order to get to the end. In fact, I did tell my husband everything that was going to happen. Not in specific details of course, but the main outline of the book.

When I first picked up Unlovable, I found the writing a little bit stiff and awkward, especially the dialogue. This straightened itself out most of the time, but there were still some parts throughout when that awkwardness returned. I’m not even sure how to explain it, except that it came off as though the characters were saying what they were suppose to say instead of what they wanted to say – like they were trying to fit into a mold that they previously busted out of. That being said, there were also a few character inconsistencies. Mostly with Maggie, I think. The book started off sounding as if she was friendly and had friends, but the further you moved forward in the book, she was extremely shy and shut off and just had people around her who used her.

One last thing, and then I’ll shut up, because I actually really liked this book. I feel like prior to writing the book, Sherry Gammon read a bunch of books and pamphlets on drug/substance abuse, and after gathering all this information, she wrote the most extreme characters and circumstances she could think of. Every single “bad” character in the book had no redeeming qualities, including Maggie’s mother, who was suppose to have a little bit of redemption. The "bad guys" were some of the worse cases of drug addicts/pushers that you can think of. Then, when Maggie was being described as being “codependent,” it felt like I was reading directly out of a text book. I feel like books should paint the picture instead of presenting the information. The picture was mostly painted, but then all the cards were laid out on the table and listed. Once again, this presented another one of those awkward moments in the book I was talking about before.

I really enjoyed the book, and the characters despite it all. Even now, almost twenty-four hours since I finished the book, I continue to think about the characters, and am a little disappointed when I remember I actually did finish. I look forward to reading the next installments of The Port Fare Series!

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Ten Things I Love About You - Julia Quinn

Ten Things I Love About You by Julia Quinn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

GENRE: Adult, Historical Romance
FORM: Audiobook
NARRATOR: Rosalyn Landor
SERIES: Bevelstoke Series

SYNOPSIS: Annabel Winslow has been sent to her Grandparents house for no other reason than to find a husband that can support her, her mother and her seven brothers and sisters. Right off the bat, she has a prospect; the Earl of Newbury. The Earl is a man older than her grandmother, is disgustingly overweight, and extremely overbearing, but he is determined to have Annabel, not only for her lush curves but also her promising childbearing hips. He is determined to get an heir so that his nephew, Sebastian Grey, does not inherit his title when he dies. Annabel is not happy with this prospect, but is willing for the sake of her family.

Sebastian is a man who is known for his passive personality, and rakish ways with the women; especially married women. He enjoys his easy life, and has no immediate intentions of marrying. However, when Annabel Windslow shows up on the scene, there is something about her personality and laugh that draws him to her. His attention to her ends up becoming a scandal and a much gossiped about love triangle between the Earl of Newbury and the heir of the Earldom, with Annabel trapped in the middle.

REVIEW: This is the first book that I have read by Julia Quinn, and I must say I enjoyed it thoroughly. I became instantly attached to the characters she created; especially to Sebastian, the charming, silly, sarcastic, rake. He really has stuck with me the last few days while I was listening to these books.

I really enjoyed her storytelling abilities. She made both Sebastian very three dimensional, both having fun personalities, but also having a lot of depth in their characters. The scandal in society was amusing, and many of these scenes were breathlessly sexy.

WHAT I LOVED: Sebastian's character. He was just an outright, honest and good person. He was amused frequently by Annabel, and he himself was amusing. I really enjoyed watching him fall in love. I also loved when we finally got to hear the 10 things he loved about Annabel.

NOT SO MUCH: Too much of the Earl. I continued to think we were "rid" of him, and then it seemed like he kept coming back, which made the ending feel like it dragged on and on.  I also am not a big fan of the cover of this book.  It makes me think the book is contemporary instead of historical. 

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

 

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Starcrossed - Josephine Angelini

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

GENRE: Young Adult Fantasy; Greek Mythology
FORM: AudioBook
NARRATOR: Devon Sorvari
SERIES: Starcrossed

SYNOPSIS: Helen has always been different, extra strong, extra fast among other things. She’s also tried her best to not be noticed by anyone except her small group of friends. When a new family moves to town, she does her best to avoid them, despite the fact that everyone is talking about them and how cute and great they are. When their paths finally cross, Helen is filled with the unavoidable desire to kill Lucas Delos. This is just the beginning of a long series of strange things that happen to Helen that begin to unravel the mystery of who she is, where she came from and what happens next.

REVIEW: This is one of those books that consume your thoughts even when you are not reading it. You want to go back and see what happens next. I do not have the luxury to spend hours upon hours reading (listening), but if I did I would likely have completed this book in one day. I have never enjoyed Greek Mythology so much, and Starcrossed also has me thinking about going and brushing up on the subject outside of reading Young Adult novels. The book is a perfect blend of romance, action, and interaction of characters.

I will admit, I almost stopped listening to the book when it seemed like it was going to be another Twilight copy; girl in high school who does not like attention, abnormally attractive family moves to down, strange events…getting the picture? I honestly DID stop reading a book recently because of it being so closely related to Twilight. It’s becoming a bit of a pet peeve of mine. I LOVE that series, and have been deliberating on going back for a re-read recently, but I absolutely hate when a different book uses the same framework. I don’t mine books that are closely related (Hunger Games and Divergent are pretty close in framework, and I like them both very much) but when there are more similarities than differences, I feel like I’ve just gotten a hold of a cheap knock off. HOWEVER, Starcrossed is NOT a cheap knock off. In fact, the similarities start ending pretty soon after Helen and Lucas first meet. And I’m so thankful I didn’t put it down!

WHAT I LOVED: If you’ve read my blog/reviews much at all, you all know that I am always up for a girl who can kick-butt. One of the best things about Starcrossed is that Helen is a very strong character. She doesn’t even know how strong she is. But it doesn’t just come to her one day. She isn’t helpless one minute and a butt-kicker the next. She has to learn about herself, her history, her abilities. Even at the end, she still hasn’t reached her full potential. She must rely on the Delos family for help. This book was a perfect framework for who Helen is going to be in the upcoming books. Anticipation is sweet!

NOT SO MUCH: Once again, the very thing I “loved” also becomes the thing I didn’t like. While I love that this book provided so much set up for action and contained a lot of action as well. The book, however, did start to get a little bit long. I actually misjudged the climax a couple of times before actually reaching it.

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:
Coming in 2012:  Dreamless

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When Passion Rules - Johanna Lindsey

When Passion Rules by Johanna Lindsey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

GENRE: Adult-Romance
FORM: AudioBook
NARRATOR: Rosalyn Landor

SYNOPSIS Alana thought that the most important decisions in her life was who to marry and when, and whether she wanted to continue to teach at the orphanage her Uncle “Poppie” own and ran. Her life is instantly turned upside down when Poppie reveals that he was once an assassin who was given the assignment to kill the heir to the throne of Lubinia, which was her. Now she has to deal with the fact that she is not an ordinary girl, but a princess; and one that is direly needed to return to her country in an attempt to prevent a war. Upon arriving in Lubinia, she is faced with the complication that many girls had come forward in the past eighteen years saying they were the long-lost princess, and is instantly taken in as a prisoner by the captain of the palace guards, Christoph Becker. When word gets out that it is possible the princess has returned, suddenly Alana’s life is in danger once again, and is left with the sexy, handsome, barbaric Christoph to protect her, and figure out the puzzle of Alana’s birthright.

REVIEW: I have continued to read Johanna Lindsay’s work because I so loved her Malory Family Series. I knew going in that this book wasn’t a part of the series, but since I did enjoy them so much I figured it was worth a shot. Lindsay does know passion, I will say that. Her books are sexy, and tender. She is always reliable when you just want a little bit of (especially in this case) princess-esc romance. The hero of her novels are always protective, and end up being swept off their own feet in love. He is usually a bit overprotective and always possessive over the female. Both are characteristics I love in books, but would detest in real life. The heroine is always a very strong character who is cleaver and usually a bit funny. There is always a tiny bit of helplessness; even with Alana, who was trained to protect herself in many ways, needed Christoph’s protection and support.

WHAT I LOVED: I loved Christoph. I felt like many times that Alana was judging him very harshly, but Christoph was very honest with himself and his feelings. He wasn’t wavering or unsure. I also loved the story behind what happened to Alana as an infant…I almost saw what happened coming, and thought I would be annoyed by it (because it was a back and forth story-line), but once it played out entirely it all made sense and I ended up enjoying that part of the story.

NOT SO MUCH: Alana’s back and forth assessments of Christoph. Instead of judging him by his actions, she looked too much at what he was saying. She was always offended. Also, she was suppose to be very well trained with weapons to be able to protect herself, however she didn’t seem to come off that way whenever the need arose. I didn’t like that the orphanage and teaching options seemed to be completely off the table for Alana in the end. It wasn’t addressed really. For something that was so important to her, it seems like it would have been touched upon at the end. (And I don’t think I missed it.)

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Lord of the Vampires - Gena Showalter

Lord of the Vampires by Gena Showalter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

GENRE: Adult – Fantasy/Romance
FORM: eBook – Net Galley
SERIES: Royal House of Shadows


While I was granted permission to read this book by a Net Galley affiliate publisher, Harlequin Nocturne, I have received no compensation for this review other than the joy of reading!


SYNOPSIS: Nicolai has no idea who he is, outside of his name. He knows that his memories have been taken from him, that he is meant to be very powerful, and that he has been a sexual slave to the Princess Laila, and before her Princess Odette. What he does know is that he has a plan. Jane is a human who has been having reoccurring dreams about a vampire who has been taken captive. There is no talking in the dreams, she just sees him bound in chains. She knows that she feels compassion for him, and desires him. Dream becomes a reality when one day Jane receives a book that seems to be written by her captive vampire, and after reading it she finds herself waking up in a castle, and everyone around her believes her to be the Princess Odette. After succeeding in escape, Nicolai and Jane not only try and figure out who Nicolai really is and also do whatever they can to stay out of the grasp of Laila and her guards, but they explore the curious possessive nature each has for the other only to discover that their relationship began earlier than either realized.

REVIEW: This is the first time I’ve come across a Mini-Series where each installment is written by a different author. I’m not sure if there are more like this, but I think it’s a wonderful idea, a great way to read a favorite author or two and perhaps discover others. It all results in more great books to read!

Lord of the Vampires, was a very sexually charged story. Straight from the beginning, Jane and Nicolai exhibited a desire to own and possess one another without reason, even in their own minds. They have no idea that their relationship and attraction for one another had actually developed earlier, as both of their memories have been wiped. The story takes us on an adventure of passion, love and danger. Whether it an evil witch princess, over bearing trolls who have only one thing on their mind (their “little” head), or the sporadic flashing from one place to another that happens every time Nicolai gets a flash of his memory back, he and Jane are constantly battling one issue or another. The story is exactly what you can expect from Gena Showalter. I was a little bit afraid that this was going to be a little too similar to The Vampire’s Bride which was an installment of her Atlantis Series. a few years back. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was nothing like that series. The story line and premise are all its own!

WHAT I LOVED: The entire concept of the series is appealing to me. I’m excited for the other installments. I believe Gena Showalter kicked it off with a bang, and it will be interesting to see how this story will continue to play out.

NOT SO MUCH: I almost felt like there was more sex and sexual tension than there was story. The story that WAS there was excellent, don’t get me wrong, but I think there could have been more. And this is a rare ‘complaint’ (not that it’s really a complaint really), usually what is desired is the opposite, but it just goes to show, the story is very important.

OTHERS IN THE SERIES:

   

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Eona: The Last Dragoneye - Alison Goodman

Eona: The Last Dragoneye by Alison Goodman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

GENRE: Young Adult Fantasy
FORM: Audio Book
NARRATOR: Nancy Wu
SERIES: Eon

SYNOPSIS: Eona is no longer hiding the fact that she is a girl. Times are too unstable and life too unpredictable to keep up the pretense. What is most important now is that Eona learn how to use her powers. This isn’t as easy as it sounds, as it means rescuing Lord Ido, the Rat Dragoneye, so he can help train her. In addition to the well being of the land and people resting on her shoulders, and helping Lord Kygo retrieve his Emperor status; dethroning the nasty tyrant, Emperor Sethon, Eona is also in a constant battle of deciding the right and wrong ways of using her Dragon’s power, and which of her friends are true and which are just out to use her.

REVIEW: I was on the edge of my seat, “please do not bother me,” mode while listening to this book. I felt like it was unrelentless action, drama and romance. In the first book, the story is set up and played out well, but here in Eona, this is where the true heart of the story really takes place. It is very rare that I love the second book of a series better than the first. I typically favor the first encounter, even with books, the most. This book is an exception!

A love triangle, if you can call it that, has never played out so well. Fire and passion, confusion and betrayal – all are involved. I had strong moments of actually rooting for the wrong person, however the ending was beautiful and sweet and just right.

Alison Goodman writes a fantastic story, filled with beautiful imagery and so much suspense it’s nearly impossible to put the book down. The combination of romance and action was perfect, and this is a Fantasy Novel in every aspect as well. So even if you are not a big fan of the popular Romantic Fantasy/Paranormal novel, but prefer a Fantasy in its purest form – I really think that you would enjoy this series. It’s worth a shot anyway!

WHAT I LOVED: The story was so beautifully told, and complete without being over the top or too wordy. I didn’t even realize how long the book was, because I was too sucked in to the story to care.

NOT SO MUCH: I am not normally a huge “love triangle” fan, and while I said that this one was the best one I’d ever read played out, I am still a tiny bit put off. Eona gave so much of herself to each side, that I feel like, no matter who ended up with her heart in the end, the other would have been severely betrayed. As a person, I wouldn’t have put up with it at all.

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

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