Cinders

Sorry no picture for you! This book is by Michelle Davidson Argyle who is a friend of my old college roommate, and it is her debute novel.

This is the story about what happens after "Happily Ever After"...

Cinderella has married her prince, but questions how much of that love is real and how much is from the spell her fairey God mother cast. She wonders if she really loves Rowland, and that is only made harder by a mysterious stranger who haunts her dreams. She is determined to find out who and what he is. As she steps into her role as Princess she begins to discover her love for Rowland, but it may be too late. Cinderella discovers that happily ever-after isn't as long as you thought.

This was an amazing book! I really enjoyed the story about what might have happened after Cinderella married her prince. It also made me realize...be careful what you wish for...it just might come true!

I give this book 5 stars!

Cry Wolf

When they say looks can be decieving they were defiantly talking about this authors covers...DON'T JUDGE THE BOOK BY THE COVER! Patricia Briggs is one of my favorite authors! I LOVED her Mercy Thompson books and I loved this one as well.

I will tell you that her books bring in all sorts or the supernatural...witches, fairies, trolls, werewolves, shapeshifters...you name them they are in there! This book is no exception!

Anna finds herself in a suddenly changing world. Her alpha and his mate who tortured her for years are now dead, and the man/werewolf responsible says that she is his mate and not only that but she is a valuable and rare Omega. Anna's not sure what all that means, but she is sure that she feels safe and protected for the first time around Charles. Moving to Montana to be closer to him, she finds herself on a hunt for a rouge wolf that is draped in a magic so dark it could threaten the entire pack. She also discovers her love for Charles and the power that goes with being an Omega.

I so love Patricia Briggs! Her writing is so fluid it's easy to emmerse yourself in the story and find yourself as one of the characters. Her stories are so engaging that you can't help but fall in love with them as well as the characters! She instantly transport you to a world where werewolves can be your neighbor and if your lucky enough your protector. I can easily see her world intertwined with ours.

I give this book 5 stars. I am very excited to read the next book in the series "Hunting Ground".

Guardian of the Gate

This book is the second book in the "Prophecy" trilogy by Michelle Zink. In this installment we find ourselves along for the ride with Lia and her companions as she tries to uncover all about the prophecy. Sixteen year old Lia searches for a way to end the prophecy that has brought so much pain to families and herself. As she searches for a way to end it, her sister Alice is busy honing her skills that she will use to try to defeat Lia. Alice will stop at nothing to reclaim her sister's role in the prophecy. They always knew that the prophecy would turn those closest to them against them, but they didn't know what betrayal would lead them to do. All they know is that in the end, only one sister will be standing.

I often wonder why it is that second books are more often better than the first. I LOVED this next book in the trilogy! It was full of suspense, heartache, romance, and yes even sometimes fun. We follow Lia on her travels to find Altus and her Aunt Abigail who can hopefully answer much needed questions. Along the way we meet new friends...some hotter than others :), and some enemies that will shock you. Nothing in Lia's life is going to be easy. She had to leave James her beloved behind, only to find that her sister Alice is now after him...and not likely for good. Never fear...enter Dimitri Markov (I must interject here and say...YUMMINESS) who will take over as Lia's protector. Everything in Lia's life has been turned upside down and it will continue to be that way for a long time it seems. Who can she really trust to help her in her journey? Will she find the missing pages? Will she ever be able to tell Dimitri how she really feels, or will she die at the hands of her sister and Sameal first?

Well unfortunatly we have to WAIT until August of 2011 to find out the answers to those questions. I for one will be waiting...and not very patiently either!

I give this book 5 stars...and really...must we really wait til August?

The Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

Twin sisters Lia and Alice Milthorpe have just lost their father to a freak accident. They have also become enemies. As they discover their roles in an ancient prophecy they find themselves deep in a mystery that involves a tatoo like mark, their parents' deaths, a boy, a book, and a lifetime of secrets. Lia and Alice don't know who they can trust, they just know they can't trust each other.

Lia knows what part she plays in the propheccy, but what if she is wrong? Is she strong enough to do what is asked of her, to end everything once and for all, or will she give in and watch the destruction of the world? And what about her twin Alice, to what extremes will she go to make sure that Lia fails? It seems as if Alice knows everything about her role and Lia knows nothing, why is that? Two sisters literally hold the balance of mankind in their hands...

I loved this book! It was one of those Ihad a hard time putting down once I started...no matter how exhausted I was. Lia is an amazing character with so much love, detemination and yet a softness that you can't help but love. Not that there weren't times I got frusterated with her! From the very first page I knew that Alice was not to be trusted, there was just something about her that didn't feel right. There are so many 'quiet' characters in this book...DON'T OVER LOOK THEM! They have some serious importance to Lia and the story, and quite frankly I wish they had bigger parts....maybe in the next book!

This book is not for those who may get queasy about witchcraft or talk of fallen angels. There is some reference to those things, but it is a mere mention. However some may find it disconcerting.

I gave this book 4 stars...and I can't wait to read the next one!!!

Fate

Once again I couldn't find a cover picture of this book. This is the sequel to "Tattoo" by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. In this installment we find Bailey and her friends two years after their last adventure (I won't say what in case you haven't read it yet...I hate it when reviewers do that). Now seniors in high school they are facing lots of changes...some of them are dealing well with that and some not so well.

Bailey meets the rest of the Sidhe, a powerful ancient race who are as beautiful as they are deadly, and they stop at nothing to get what they want. Before she knows it Bailey is drawn into an Otherworldly web more compilcated than anything she weaves as a mortal Fate. Senior year is a time of choices, a time for temptation, a time for Bailey to figure out once and for all who she is and who she wants to be. But she may have no choice at all in that matter.

Once again the story is a great idea, but there was a lot of nothingness for me in the middle of the book. I felt like we could've gotten to the end of the conflict if we hadn't wasted so much time on more mundane things (where they were going to eat, the whole geek chic bit). Sometimes I wanted to smack Bailey and make her see that the answer was so dang obvious...even she couln't miss it! I like that the gang was all there again, but was a bit put out that Bailey questioned the strength of their friendship. I do have to say that the end was awesome! I won't tell you...but I really liked it!

I gave this book 3 stars.