Home by Rachel Smith- 4 Stars!

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‘Home’ by Rachel Smith was an exciting, action-packed story about a young girl who dreams about becoming a country music singer. When her dreams come true, she finds out that her dream wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.

The main character, Lily, is very likeable and extremely realistic. She might be a big star, but she wasn’t made out to be this all-powerful, perfect woman. She has flaws, she has problems, she has a thousand things to overcome. She also has strength, and a willpower to overcome all the obstacles in her way. A tight-knit, close family and a group of strong friends helps her along her journey.

Then there’s Justin. Oh… my…. goodness! He’s a hunk and a half, and I literally drooled over him. He’s supportive, kind, generous. He’s an Alpha male, but with a soft side and a tendency to let Lily take charge in certain things. PERFECT mixture, because I hate the super-bossy Alpha male types you see in a lot of romance novels these days.

I hated the antagonist with a passion. I both loved and hated the dynamic character who was such a big part of the story. The sex scenes were hot, but with a level of realism in them that made me want to… well, never mind. My husband wouldn’t like me spreading our news all over the place. Haha. It was very easy to get wrapped up in this story.

Do I recommend it. Yes, definitely. You won’t regret grabbing a copy of this book for yourself, but be warned you won’t get much work done. I know my poor house and job have suffered tremendously at the hands of this book.

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‘Shiri’ by D.S. Taylor- 4 Star Review!

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‘Shiri’ by D.S. Taylor is a book that drags you in from the second you start reading. The plot flows smoothly, and the word choice is perfect. It’s a heart-wrenching story that had me crying… buckets…. buckets upon buckets of tears. At points, the story also made me laugh, gasp, and get extremely angry. It was an emotional roller coaster all the way around, which is what I – personally – enjoy. The book would have easily been a five star read except for the ending. I don’t do spoilers, so I’m not going to tell you why the ending lost the book a star. It wasn’t even the whole ending, just one single point that had me going “AH! NO! THAT’S NO FAIR!” Otherwise, I could easily say that this book was one of the best I’ve read in quite some time – I was enthralled from start to finish.  I will definitely be reading more from D.S. Taylor in the future, for she is an extremely gifted storyteller.

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An Element of Time by Bebe Knight- Four Star Review

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I got this book from the author, free of cost, in exchange of an honest review from my side.

Firstly I would like to thank Bebe Knight, for giving me this opportunity of reading and reviewing this book.

Well, this book is quite awesome and the concept is portrayed very well though the concept is not fresh and has been used several times before but I liked the various twists that the author added here and there making the read interesting and intriguing. I liked the writing style as well and felt it comfortable and it was enriched too.

The characterization is great and the characters are well developed and not sketchy. Veronica’s character is my favourite in this story, I liked her kick-ass attitude and her bravery, she is confident and swift in her killing skills. Mackenzie’s character was also well portrayed but Veronica’s charm seemed to overshadow him, at least for me.

The action scenes are breath-taking and are vividly described which helped me visualize the scenes while reading. There is suspense and mystery which kept me hooked in the story till the end and the passionate romance touched my heart. The struggle for achieving their love and fighting against your own people – this concept impressed me quite a lot and the emotions have been portrayed perfectly so that it touched the heart of the readers.

Over all a great read and I would recommend it to you all and hope that you guys will love it as well. Enjoy!!!

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18335990-an-element-of-time?ac=1

Amazon: http://amzn.com/B00FDXZYIM

*This review was done by Satty*

Aimee and The Bear, By Toby Stone- Four Star Review

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“Aimee and the Bear” by Toby Stone is, to say the least, heart wrenching. It’s…difficult to explain, but the story in it’s entirety is very much like what Alice in Wonderland would have been had Stephen King written it while on a very bad acid trip. I know, it doesn’t sound promising, but the book was good… it was just very dark, very trippy, and absolutely depressing. At times it was difficult to understand where the story was going, but it’s very easy to relate the child’s imaginings to what must surely be happening in her real world if you take the time to analyze it. The book is not a light read. It is a good read, but it is certainly nothing which will make you feel warm and happy and safe. You fall into a child’s delusional mind. A child who you know from the story has been abused in numerous ways by her ‘witch’ of a mother. She creates a fantasy world in which to shelter herself until her brother, too, begins to be abused in unimaginable ways. I won’t give away the ending. Despite the way my review seems to flip flop a bit, I did enjoy it. I couldn’t put the book down. I just wish there could have been something better for poor Amy. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dark tales wrought with hardship, who enjoys books with twists and turns, or who might like a peek inside of a mind that is surely insane. I do not recommend this book to anyone who is easily disgusted, easily frightened, or who is unable to read books with child abuse triggers in them. Definitely not suitable for children under the age of eighteen.

*This review was written by Chelsea*

Wings of Emotions, by Euphonos- Four Star Review

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Wings of Emotions by Euphonos is a book of poetry which has it’s ups and downs. Personally, I didn’t much care for many of the poems strictly on love, but poetry is, of course, subjective. In all honesty, I prefer the more morbid stuff. There were several poems which I thoroughly enjoyed and which created a lasting impression on me, however, and that is the mark of a good poem. “Dream,” “I Walked By To Find You,” and “Before I Met You” are three such poems. All in all, it was an enjoyable read and the poems held a lot of raw emotion in them. If you enjoy the brighter side of poetry (versus the dark, morbid side), I would definitely recommend reading this.

*This review was done by Chelsea*

 

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Songstone by Lina Goldfinch- 4 Star Review

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BOOK SUMMARY

One girl who, against all hope, yearns for freedom.
One boy determined to be more than he’s meant to be.
The desperate journey that will leave them both forever changed.

“…an original fantasy world inhabited by superstitious tribal nations and intriguingly developed characters.”– SERENA CHASE, USA Today HEA

Kita can meld song into stone. In a world with no written word, storytelling—the ability to meld (or magically impress) song into stone—is greatly honored. The village honors her master as their medicine man, but Kita knows he’s secretly a sorcerer who practices black magic using drops of her blood. She fears he’ll use her beautiful gift for a killing spell, so she conceals it from him. Each day, his magic tightens around her neck like a rope. His spells blind the villagers, so they can’t see him for what he really is.

Not that anyone would want to help her. She was found in the forest as a baby and would have died if a village girl hadn’t brought her home. But the villagers saw Kita’s unusual coloring and decided she belonged to the mysterious tribe who lives in the forests of the volcano, a people feared for their mystical powers. So they fear her too. Now seventeen, she can barely admit her deepest longing: to know who she really is and where she belongs.

Then Pono, a young journeyman, arrives from the other side of the island. He’s come to fulfill a pact between their villages: to escort a storyteller back to his village–a storyteller who’ll be chosen at the great assembly. Finally, in Pono, Kita sees her one slim chance at freedom and she’ll risk her life to take it.

A dark, twisty tale of sorcery, tummy-tingling romance, and adventure, inspired by the folklore of New Zealand’s Māori people.

SATTY’S REVIEW:

I got this book from the author, free of cost, in exchange of an honest review.
Firstly I would like to thank Lena Goldfinch, author of Songstone, for giving me this opportunity of reading and reviewing this book.

This story revolves around Kita and her quest of escaping from the clutches of an evil medicine man because in reality he is a dark sorcerer who uses Kita’s blood to make spells and perform ritual and enslaves her, he even controls the tribe with the help of his evil spells. Kita is special, she can meld song into stone, has green eyes and red hair and thus she is feared by the other tribal people. She was brought by a tribal girl from the forest when she was a baby thus she is an outcast in the tribe. Then we meet Pono who came from across the island to escort a storyteller to his village. Finally in Pono Kita finds her salvation and freedom. Will Kita succeed in escaping? Will she discover her true identity? Will she be able to rid the tribe of the evil sorcerer and bring him down? Will the relationship between her and Pono get established?

A lot of unanswered questions right? I would love to suggest that you guys definitely read the book to gather the answers and you won’t regret it. A great and intriguing read which I really liked and enjoyed. Kita is a perfect main character and she always remains hopeful and tries hard to get her goal even if there are many challenges to face. I liked the fact that the author made her strong rather than weak and whimpering. Pono is great and supports Kita character very well. The struggle that Kita does really reached my heart and I felt sorry for her. The secrets were well kept and the slow and steady revelations made the story gripping. The suspense was eerie and there are quite a few twists that I didn’t expect. The writing style of the author is remarkable and she presented the whole story in such a way that it became real and believable and the readers got connected with the characters and the plot as well. The characters are developed and fit well within the well thought out plot. All in all a great and must read for ya all. Enjoy, folks!

*This review was written by Satty*

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Dancing With Bulls, by Alan Cook- Four Star Review

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“Dancing With Bulls” By Alan Cook is a cute young adult book based strongly on Greek history and mythology. It involves two boys traveling back into time and landing themselves directly in the myth about the Minotaur in Crete. Of course, myths are always based on reality but the story reveals the truths the myth was founded upon, which isn’t exactly the story you know and love. The book is well explained, well written, and beautifully illustrated. The illustrations, in fact, I was truly in awe of. Just gorgeous! The ending was a little blunt. Anyone who follows my reviews know that this is a deal breaker for me. However, I will say that although the ending is a bit blunt, it still manages to wrap up the story nicely. Maybe I’m just rather picky. Either way, I was intrigued and am seriously debating on reading some of the other stories in this adventure series. I would highly recommend this book to young adults between the ages of 13 and 16. Adults who enjoy mythology, history, or who need a short read to pass some time will probably also greatly enjoy the book.

*This review was written by Chelsea*

 

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Passions, Strengths, & Self Esteem, by Dr. Orly Katz- Four Star Review

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“Passions, Strengths, and Self Esteem!” by Dr. Orly Katz is basically an essential guide to surviving junior high. I enjoyed the book, and thought it contained some very good information. Although I haven’t been in junior high for many years, it hasn’t been so long that I don’t remember what it was like. This guide would have helped me tremendously during those years where instead, I sort of went it alone and figured it out as I went. My only issue with the entire book was that it seemed slightly more repetitive than necessary. That’s just me though, and remember that I’m a grown woman looking at this. I loved the personal stories and thought it made this a more insightful, personalized self help guide. I also thought the ‘worksheets’ made the point very clear, and it also gave kids a chance to really make the book personal- to think about what they were going to do, how they were going to do it, and why they were going to do it. I would recommend this book to anyone with children in junior high, and to junior high students, whether you think you/they need it or not.

*This review was written by Chelsea*

 

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A Woman’s Voice (Volume One) by Dolores Ayotte/ Four Star Review

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When I first began reading this book, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I knew that it would be a series of short stories, but I didn’t think that they would be told in a first-person manner, through the eyes (and experiences) of the author. I’m very glad that it did turn out that way, however, because I truly enjoyed reading it. It gave me the opportunity to reflect upon some of the things in my life, both good and bad, and think about ways in which I could either change or move on from the bad, and turn it into good as well. In the strangest way, I experienced a feeling much like those I felt when my own mother used to talk to me about the past experiences in her life. I have always enjoyed learning from the wisdom of my elders, and this book was just that. I highly recommend this book to any woman who needs a few words of wisdom in a way that doesn’t make you feel ‘talked down’ too. I’m glad I had the opportunity to read this compilation of short stories, and I think that you will be too.

*This review was done by Chelsea*

 

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Rikke and the Lost Viking, by Nikolina Nilsen/Four Star Review

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This is a very cute book about a little troll who finds a lost viking. The little troll is at first afraid of the viking, but then tries to help this lost person of history in finding his way back. The moral of the story is very clearly understood, which I feel is always important in children’s books. This book also offers you and your children a great way to also learn some new Norwegian words in a way that is both easy and fun. My daughter really liked it, and was especially thrilled because she loves learning new languages. Knowing that there are more books in this general series, I will probably end up reading all of them to my daughter.

*This review was done by Chelsea*