Kill Me Softly by Sarah Cross

Rating: 4
Writing: 3.5
Plot: 4
Characters: 4

Worth the buy?  Worth the read, and I would re-read it, but I would only buy it in e-book format.

Theme: fairy tales


Mirabelle's past is shrouded in secrecy, from her parents' tragic deaths to her guardians' half-truths about why she can't return to her birthplace, Beau Rivage. Desperate to see the town, Mira runs away a week before her sixteenth birthday—and discovers a world she never could have imagined.

In Beau Rivage, nothing is what it seems—the strangely pale girl with a morbid interest in apples, the obnoxious playboy who's a beast to everyone he meets, and the chivalrous guy who has a thing for damsels in distress. Here, fairy tales come to life, curses are awakened, and ancient stories are played out again and again.

But fairy tales aren't pretty things, and they don't always end in happily ever after. Mira has a role to play, a fairy tale destiny to embrace or resist. As she struggles to take control of her fate, Mira is drawn into the lives of two brothers with fairy tale curses of their own . . . brothers who share a dark secret. And she'll find that love, just like fairy tales, can have sharp edges and hidden thorns.


I am so excited to review this book!  I was really great--a nice, original story.  I loved how the author actually did her research on the original fairy tales, the Grim fairy tales.  I loved the concept of the book; it was kind of unoriginal topic-wise, I mean, there are thousands of retellings, but the way the author did it was great.

Mira was a really great heroine because I never felt like she was helpless or a damsel in distress cliche.  While three boys pine for her affections (sort of), she never loses her edge.  The other characters are great, too, and they all stand out to me because of their curses.  Freddy is a slight Gary Sue, but I think that was intentional.  It made the book funnier and better, because Freddy was not the main character or love interest.  Felix was a little creepy though; I didn't like how he and Mira were obsessed with each other.  And he has a dark past that Blue keeps trying to warn her about, but she doesn't listen.  Then again, he could just skip to the point instead of being all ominous.

The pacing was a bit iffy but the end was fantastic and this could seriously be a companion series.  I love the way this author writes.  I am sad that this book isn't more popular, but I really liked it.  Sometimes, the small books that no one notices are much better than the ones everyone raves about.  Like, this was better than the book Innocent Darkness, and a ton of people liked that book.

Eve by Anna Carey

Rating: 4

Writing: 4
Plot: 4.5
Characters: 4

Theme: Distopian society

Worth the buy? Read it first, then buy it in paperback!

The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her. 

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

This book was fantastic!  First off-the characters were well-developed.  I felt like Eve was an actual character I could root for.  It was definitely a page-turner.  I thought Eve was a well-thought-out book, but I think the cover and title should be something different.  I don't like the fact that the author used the main character's name in the title and the cover shows a red-head when Eve is a brunette.

The characters were great and well developed, and I loved how the author showed how Eve changed through the book.  I also loved Caleb; he was a great male lead because he's caring and kind and he and Eve work well together.  Some characters were more annoying than others, and sometimes I was think how stupid Eve was, but other than that I liked the characters.  At times they became annoying, though.

The writing was good, but there was a little too much detail.  That didn't really bother me as much as the pacing did.  I thought some parts were boring while others were jam-packed with excitement.  And the ending left me reeling!  I cannot wait for the next book, Once, out now!  I didn't get a chance to grab it, but I'll get to it....eventually....

Destiny and Deception by Shannon Delany

Rating: 1 star
Writing: 2
Plot: 1
Characters: 1

Theme: Werewolves

FOURTH BOOK IN A SERIES!

Worth the buy? Look at the rating.  If you like the series, then just get the book from the library, but I wouldn't seek it out.  If it's there, it's there.  If it's not, oh well.


The sensational fourth novel in the 13 to Life series sees Jessica and the Rusakovas fighting to overcome their biggest challenge yet.

With the threat of the mafia seemingly gone and the company's headquarters in Junction destroyed, Pietr Rusakova is adjusting to being a normal teen and Jess is realizing normalcy may not be what she wanted after all. But both Jess and Cat know the truth--that normal can't be taken for granted. Their precious cure isn't permanent--and when a new danger stalks into their small town, Alexi decides he must overcome his issues with the mother who abandoned him to be raised by wolves and make a brand new deal to save his adopted family.

Okay.  So this book was, as most books in a series are, disappointing.  My favorite character, Pietr, is now a loser!  No, I'm not even joking.  The romance between Jess and Pietr are gone to leave an awkward relationship and don't even get me started on how annoying the new characters are.

Yes, there is a new pack in the book.  Pack of werewolves, of course.  I hated the girl, though.  She was a whiny jerk and an Alpha.  She gets what she wants and boys fight over her, but her POV was horribly boring and I felt like skimming it.  I like Jess MUCH better, though, and Sophie.  Sarah rarely showed in the book, and of course, this wasn't the final one.  The author really should have just left off with the last book, closed all of the lose ends and be done with the whole thing.

The only thing I liked about this was Amy and Max, and Jess being a bit more independent.  She should just leave Pietr, get telekinesis and defeat the big bad werewolves herself, with maybe the help of Amy and Sophie.  The thing that made this book so bad, I think, was Pietr.  He was, as I stated before, a loser and stripped of all of the cool qualities that I liked about him.  

I was, overall, very disappointed, but I must continue the series as the book leave off with a cliffhanger.  I feel as though I am invested in Jess' well being.  Yes, Jess and I connected in this book.  I liked her and I liked how she saw the changes in Pietr.  She should have left him, though, but I still like her.  Oh, and now the author is bringing yet another thread into the story.  The Russian Mafia.  As if the story wasn't complicated enough, that was just thrown in for good measure.

Arcs: the Links for a non-blogger

A.R.C. : Advanced Viewer's Copy; a rough, sometimes unedited copy of the book.  You can get these before the actual book comes out.  Also called Publisher's Copies.

Hi!  I am doing yet another post on Arcs! This time for the non-blogger.  

I love arcs--if only I could get more!  One of the main reasons I started a book blog, besides my love of reading and writing, was to get Arcs!  Little did I know I did not need to be a blogger.  So, for all of you non-bloggers out there, this post is for you.  :)

Usually, to get an arc, you to post your review on a blog.  This is now not the case.  As hard=copy Arcs get rarer and rarer, a new type of arc has come into light: in e-book format!  Try Netgalley.com.

Library Thing's Early Reviewer's Program. 

You don't need to be a blogger, but you must have an account.

Goodreads First Reads

This is also an excellent source, but keep in mind that you will be competing with other readers out there, so there's no guarantee you will get the Arc.

Amazon Vine

You'll have to get invited into this one!  You can be invited by getting an Amazon account and posting tons of reviews on already published books.  They should get a few helpful ratings, though. 

The Saturday Swap

Book swapping is another good way to get rid of old books and  get arcs!  You could just buy good condition bargain books at a book store or publisher's copies at Barnes and Noble to swap.  Remember: as the popularity of the book goes up, so does your chances of swapping it for and arc!


Shelf Awareness

Just sign up and get a daily newsletter!  Click on the Pro account when signing up and you can get ads for arcs!

Random Buzzers

I love Random Buzzers.  You can get free arcs and already published books by earning "buzz bucks".  It's free and fun!  Al you have to do is review books, take quizzes and polls and participate a lot.

Work at a Library or bookstore?

 Librarians usually have arcs, as do booksellers.  JUST ASK NICELY!  You probably don't even have to work there.  You could also go to a library convention, if you know any librarians or publishers willing to take you.  My aunt's a publisher. :)

Just Plain Luck

Every time I go into Barnes and Noble or any other bookstore, I look at the bargain books.  Why?  Because I got my first Arc in that section.  It hadn't come out yet, and I bought the arc upon impulse.  Sometimes Barnes and Noble may put their arcs there.  You never know!


I hope this helps!