We'll Always Have Summer

WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!!!From the jacket cover:

Belly has only ever been in love with two boys, both with the last name Fisher. And after being with Jeremiah for the last two years, she's almost positive he is her soul mate.

Almost.

Conrad has not gotten over the mistake he made when he let Belly go, even as Jeremiah has always know that Belly is the girl for him. So when Belly and Jeremiah decide to make things forever, Conrad realizes that it's now or never-tell Belly he loves her, or lose her for good. Belly will have to confront her feelings for Jeremiah and Conrad and face a truth she has possibly always known. She will have to break one of their hearts.

First of all let me just say Jeremiah annoyed the he** out of me in this book. Talk about a typical frat boy! Even once he asked Belly to marry him...really?!? Time to grow up Jere. I was frustrated with Belly too. How in the world do you say yes to marrying a man who cheated on you? I liked this book, but I wanted to slap each of the characters...at least once...if not twice!

Jeremiah was just being himself (which is not a bad thing), but I wanted to see him grow up! And Conrad...he missed so many chances to tell Belly how he really felt...oh...until the night before her wedding?!?!? I think that has been overdone in movies and books now! And as for Belly...I loved seeing her grow up and trying to take responsibilty for herself, and her wedding, and Jeremiah. My heart broke for her knowing that she loved them both and would have to make a heart wrenching decision. I wanted her to be honest with herself though, and quit brushing her feelings for Conrad under the rug.

I am sad that this series is over! I would love to have more Belly and Conrad..especailly Conrad! I really did like this book...I read it and the one before it in a day...totally got sucked into the story! I LOVED the way it ended...sigh...nothing better than happy ending! This is a great relaxing read that will make you swoon!

I gave this book 4 apples!

It's Not Summer Without You

WARNING: DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE REVIEW FOR THE FIRST BOOK...IT WILL HAVE SPOILERS!!!! From inside jacket cover:
It used to be that Belly counted the days until the summer, until she as back at Cousin's Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come.

But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way it used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it all started-at Cousin's Beach.

When we left Belly we all thought everything was going to be great and wonderful and she and Conrad would finally get together...I guess all good things that should be...come to an end before they begin! I have to say I found Belly a little irritating in this book. I felt like when Conrad needed her most she was too busy freaking out that he was going to break up with her. He was hurting...his mom died and his dad was trying to take the one thing that he had left of her. On that same note...if a guy loves a girl...flipping tell her! Don't give your brother permission to go for her...chances are...she's gonna go for him! I realize that Conrad was completley innocent in the whole debacle of their relationship...but come on...he was hurting!

The end left me completly speechless and and wondering what in the heck just happened! I know that whatever happens in the next book it will be exactly as it should be!

I gave this book 4 apples!

Once a Witch

From the jacket cover:
Tamsin Greene comes from a long line of witches, and on the day she was born, her grandmother proclaimed she would be one of the most Talented among them.

But Tamsin's magic never showed up.

Now, seventeen years later, she spends most of her time at boarding school in Manhattan, where she can at least pretend to be normal. But during the summers, she's forced to return home and work at her family's bookstore/magic shop.

One night a handsome young professor from New York University arrives at the shop and mistakes Tamsin for her extremely Talented older sister. For once, it's Tamsin who's being looked at with awe and admiration, and before she can stop herself, she agrees to find a family heirloom for him that was lost more than a century ago. But the search - and the stranger - prove to be more sinsiter than they first appeared, ultimatly sending Tamsin on a treasure hunt through time that will unlock the secret of her true identity, unearth the past sins of her family, and unleash a power so strong and so vengeful that it could destroy them all.

I really enjoyed this book...alot! I seriously read it in like four hours! I am not much of a reader of witches (I admit...their little ceremonies and rites can get a bit freaky for me), but this was an origianl story with characters you can't help but like...or fall in love with.

Tamsin is a witch whose Talent hasn't shown up yet...and it makes her feel like a failure. So when Professor Callum shows up and needs her family's help, she doesn't think, she just does. She loves her life in New York, and yet deep down she wishes that she was more a part of the family and something to offer. Then the arrival of Gabriel, her life long friend, complicates matters...in a good way. I LOVED Gabriel! He was so down to earth, and even though Tamsin didn't catch on to his flirting, he didn't stop....not to mention that he is a cutie pie!

I was hooked from the first chapter and found myself completely ingrossed in the story. It moves fast and there is lots of action. Parent's will be glad to know that there is no sexual content...just a few savory kisses. I can't wait to read the next book "Always a Witch"...the ending left me wanting more...a lot more!

I gave this book 4 apples!

Halo

From the jacket cover:
Three angels - Gabriel, the warrior; Ivy, the healer; and Bethany, the youngest and most human - are sent by Heaven to bring good to a world falling under the influence of darkenss. They work hard to conceal their luminous glow, superhuman powers, and, most dangerous of all, their wings, all the while avoiding all human attachments.

Then Bethany meets Xavier Woods, and nether of them is able to resist the attraction between them. Gabriel and Ivy to everything in their power to intervene, but the bond between Xavier and Bethany seems to strong.

The angels' mission is urgent, and dark forces are threatening. Will love ruin Bethany or save her.

I wanted so badly to love this book...and I didn't! There were so many flaws that it is hard to figure out where to start! The story is not new...not by a long shot...boy and girl fall in love only one of them happens to not be of this world...but it could have some potential. The characters are hard to love let alone like. The only two I found endearing were Xavier and Molly...the others were cold and stilted...not what I would think of when I think of angels! Bethany was sent to fulfill a mission, and yet I found her to be the epitomy of a crushing teen girl...clinging and insipid, and acting stupid! I really wanted to like her...really I did!

I would never have thought there was a time where I would say there was too much description...but alas it has happend. Some of the descirptions of Heaven and angels were not needed (seriously they were PAGES long), and I felt like they took away from the story. It didn't help it flow...at all!

I can normally read a 400+ book in two or three days...it took me a week to read this one (and yes I nearly quit...but I am not a quitter). It is very slow going! The last 80 pages where there was finally some action...not the greatest! This is where more description would have been favorable. I felt jilted out of the battle a bit.

I read the synopsis for Hades (the next book in the series) and that was what got me initially wanting to read this one. I will read Hades...I do want to see what happened, but I am just saying that if it is as slow as Halo, I will more than likely not finish it or the series...sad I know!

I gave this book 2 apples!

Circle of Fire

From the jacket cover:
Lia Milthorpe's determination to end the prophecy that has divided her family for generations is stronger than ever. With time dwindling, Lia sets out on a journey to locate the missing pieces of the prophecy needed to close the Gate, and to persuade her sister, Alice, to help - or she will have to risk her own life trying to close it herself. Lia has Dimitri by her side, but Alice has James, the man who once loved Lia - and maybe still does. James doesn't know the trught about either sister, or about the prophecy that divides them. And Alice intends to keep it that way.

There are some things sisters aren't meant to share.

And some secrets that could destroy them both.

Once again we are taken on an amazing journey in the final book in the Sisters Trilogy. It has been amazing to watch throughout the last couple of books how much Lia has matured. In this book it was nice to see Lia come into her own...make her own choices...figure out what was best for her...grow up basically! It was very depressing though that Lia let Sonia's betrayal nearly sabatoge their friendship...and that because of that, she felt like she didn't have anyone she could trust. She shoulders a huge responsibility, and do it alone was tragic!

I would have loved to see more Alice...in all the books...but this one the most. She is an invisible main character which is kind of frusterating! I loved Dimitri in this book! He is the strength of the book, and Lia as well.

I thought the ending was a bit predictable, but it wraps up the series in a great way...just the way I like it :)!

I gave this book 3 apples!

Wolfsbane

From the jacket cover:
When Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the searchers, her sworn enemies, she's certian her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer - one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack - and the man - she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must figure out whcih battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.

I am so in love with this story! I got hooked in Nightshade and have become fully submerged in Wolfsbane! Andrea Cremer has woven a story that is enticing, gripping, and compeling!

Calla finds herself in more than one battle in this book. She is battling her feelings for Ren and Shay, whether or not to team up with her enemies, and just what all that might mean to her and her pack...if she can save them. As an Alpha, you expect to see Calla constantly in control and knowing exactly what she should do and what she wants to do...not so much in this book. It was refreshing to see her softer more sensitive side. Shay still kind of bugs me...he is not bad...but he is still pushy! I felt like he was constantly trying to force Calla to choose between him and Ren...even if that wasn't what he was trying to do. I missed Ren in this book!And when Calla unknowingly makes her choice for her mate...I felt the betrayed for the other...in a BIG way!

There was lots of great forshadowing in this book. There were moments where I wondered one thing, and then convinced myself I was wrong....only to find out...I was RIGHT! The secrets that are revealed will leave you breathless! I loved hearing the story of how the Gaurduans, Keepers and Searchers all came to be...I even felt the loss of Calla of knowing that everything she had ever been told about her life was a lie. Slome readers felt like this was too slow for the book...I personally thought it was great, and it was something that plagued me since Nightshade so I enjoyed it immensly!

Of course Cremer couldn't leave us without a cliffhanger and she is one of the best at those! It left me wanting Bloodrose, the final book in the trilogy RIGHT NOW! Unfortunatly like all good things, we have to wait until next year...sigh!

I gave this book 5 apples!

Supernaturally

From the jacket cover:
Evie finally has the normal life she has always longed for. But she's shocled to discover that being ordinary cane be...kind of boring. Just when Evie starts to long for her days at the International Paranormal Containment Agency, she's given a chance to work for them again. Desperate for a break from all the normalcy, she agrees.

But as one disasterous mission leads to another, Evie starts to wonder if she made the right choice. And when Evie's fairie ex-boyfriend Reth appears with devastating revelations about her past, she discovers that there's a battle brewing between the fairie courts that could throw the whole supernatural world inot chaos. The prize in question? Evie herself.

So much for normal.

I LOVED Paranormal so I was so exctied to read Supernaturally, and I wasn't disappointed!

Evie's sarcasm and humor stayed firmly in place which I was very glad about. It's one of those qualities that makes her "bleepin'" endearing! It was a painful roller coast ride with her reluctance to tell Lend the truth, and her conflicting emotions over the IPCA...not unlike what we experience in lives ourselves.

I didn't however enjoy all the fighting with Lend. I find it frusterating that authors always make the couple happy in the first book and then fight in the second...but I guess it sells right? I was also sad that there wasn't a whole lot of Lend...her seemed almost secondary in this book.

The storyline was a nice surprise. I never expected it to take us where it did! I really enjoyed learning about Evie and who she was...but of course I would like more answers to those still unanswered questions about her! Jack was a nice addition to the story...even though I found him incredibly irritating! I LOVED Arianna...I hope to see more of her in the next book! Her story was really moving!

I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to finish the series up soon!

I gave this book 3 apples!

Moonglass

I read this book awhile ago and thought that I had reviewed it...OOPS!! This is a touching story about confronting the past in order to move ahead. There is humor, romance, and that all encompassing battle to find oneself in this crazy life. Read with Kleenex...there were parts that made me tear up and tore at my heart in a huge way! If you are looking for a nice, quiet, uncomplicated read this is it!

I gave this book 5 apples!

Possession

From the jacket cover:

Vi knows the rules: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.

But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she is wary of joining the rebellion, especially since it means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charasmatic, and dangerous-everything Zenn is not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.

This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

This book was absolutly AMAZING!! From the very first page I was hooked! The story is so intriguing and moves incrediably fast!

Vi is a perfect heroine! She is a fighter...even if she is not sure what she is fighting for. So many lines have been blurred that she isn't sure who to trust...Jag who seems to know everything, or Zenn...her match and who is under the control of the Thinkers. All Vi wants is to be free to think for herself, make choices that she wants to make, and live a happy life. Someone wants her to use her ablilities to control her friends and neighbors...the hard part...who are the good guys and who bad guys.

Jag...what can I say about Jag except...WOW! He is like Vi...wants to be free to think for himself, and just like Vi someone wantes to use his abilities to control the population as well. There is so much chemistry between the two of them, and yet nothing goes their way...ever!

THere were so many amazing twists and turns in this book it will make your head spin...in a good way! TO me none of it was what I predicted...and the cliffhanger ending...it's going to keep you up at night...I promise!!

I gave this book 5 apples!

Matched

Cassia has always trusted thier choices. It's hardly any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate. So when her best friend appears in the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one...until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. Now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she has ever known and a path no one else has ever dared follow - between perfection and passion.

Everything is fine in Cassia's world until her Mathcing that is. When Ky's face flashes for a mere moment Cassia's life is forever changed. She should be happy that Xander, her best friend is her match, and she is...kind of. There is something about intriguing about Ky and his past, and how the Soceity was formed. Cassia's curiosity will come at a price. She will be forced to make a decision that could cost her everything she loves and values.

Blurring the lines between right and wrong, and good and bad, Matched is a breathtaking and powerful read!

I gave this book 3 apples!

Graveminder

Three sips to mind the dead...

Rebekkah Barrow never forgot the attention her grandmother Maylene bestowed ipon the dead of Claysville, the small town where Bek spent her adolescence. There wasn't a funeral Maylene didn't attend, and at each one Rebekkah watched as Maylene performed the same unusual ritual: She took three sips from a silver flask and spoke the words "Sleep well, and stay where I put you."

Now Maylene is dead, and Bek must go back to the place she left a decade earlier. She soo discovers that Claysville is not just the sleepy town she remembers, and that Maylene had good reason for her odd traditions. It turns out that in Claysville the worlds of the living and the dead and dangerously connected; beneath the town lies a shadowy, lawless land ruled by the enigmatic Charles aka Mr.D. If the dead are not properly cared for, they will come back to satiate themselves with food, drink, and stories from the land of the living. Only the Graveminder, by tradition a Barrow woman, and her Undertaker - in this case Byron Montgomery, with whom Bek shares a complicated past - can put things right once the dead begin to walk.

Although she is still grieving for Maylene, Rebekkah will soon find that she has more than a funeral to attend to in Claysville, and that wait awaits her may be for the worse: dark secrets, a centuries old bargin, a romance that still haunts her, and a frighteningly new responsibility - to stop a monster and put the dead to rest where they belong.

I loved Melissa Marss YA series The Wicked Lovely books, so I was interested to read her first adult novel. I must admit that for an adult novel it was really quite clean...there was some language, but there was not in your face sex scenes (finally)! And I have to admit that when I first started reading I got a little creeped out...and then I couldn't stop reading!!

Bek is as dysfunctional as they come! She has an insane fear of commitment, and is in denial of her feelings for Byron. Ah, Byron...Bek has a guilt complex over her feelings for him because he was her older half sisters boyfriend...that is until she took her own life. Bek thinks it is because of a kiss that she and Byron shared that Ella took her life...if only! There were a few times where I found Bek annoying and overly angsty, but the rock steadiness of Byron more than made up for it.

The story was interesting and intriguing! A town with an ancient bargin that if that dead are taken care of properly they can rise again...yes were talking full fledged ZOMBIES!! Bek and Byron are more than surprised by these revelations and by their new responsibilities as Graveminder and Undertaker...not to mention the whole relationship thing!

I am glad to know that there is a sequel to this book...there were a lot of things left to make you wonder about! The mysterious Mr.D...the bargin and can it be broken...and of course the relationship between Byron and Bek.

I am not really a fan of ghost stories or zombies AT ALL! But this book was really too good to put down!

I gave this book 5 apples!

Blood Red Road

From the jacket cover:
Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried up wasteland ravaged by the constant dust storms. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother, Lugh, is around. But when a monster dust sandstorm arrives bearing four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on a quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she is a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. Teamed up with a handsome
daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revoltuionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, relentless action, and an epic love story.


At first I wasn't sure I was going to like this book. I struggled with the way it was written...not one speech mark graces a page in this book! That and the dialouge...it is written exactly as Saba speaks. The language compliments the dystopian world created by Young though. What I first struggled with I cannot now imagine any other way!

Saba is a flawed character. She loves her twin brother Lugh, but hates her sister Emmi. However, Emmi and Saba's relationship grows as they are thrown into a quest to save Lugh. It doesn't happen over night though, which makes the relationship all the more human.

On her journey to save Lugh, Saba is kidnapped and forced to be a Cage fighter. There she meets another cage fighter, Jack, who she is instantly drawn to, and she has no idea why. When she is finally able to escape, she knows she can't leave without him. Her own feelings frusterate her as much as Jack's comments do.

Jack is cocky, arrogant, and good looking, and he rubs Saba the wrong way...BIG TIME!! She can't understand how she can love him and hate him at the same time. Their relationship is intense and adds just enough romance to the story.

This isn't a "romance" by any means! It is an adventure! It is a story about friendship, love, loss, trusting others and finding oneself! The characters are easy to identify with, which makes them easy to love!

If you are a fan at all of dystopian books this is a MUST READ!!

I gave this book 5 apples!!

Hourglass

One hour to re-write the past...

For seventeen year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn't there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plauged by phantoms since her parents' death, she just wants the apparations to stop so she can be normal. She's tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well meaning brohter brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emeron's willing to try one last cure. But meeting Micheal Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he is around? ANd why is he so insistant that he needs her to prevent a death that should have never happened?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult series.

This book was a pleasant surprise! It was one of the best time travel stories that I have read in a long time. I was hooked from the time I started reading until I put it down and even then the story kept lingering in my mind!

What is not to love about Emerson? She is a fighter for sure! Her life has been anything but fair, losing her parents and having been commited to an institution is just part of it. Then along comes Micheal who tells her she is not crazy, but special. The chemistry between Micheal and Emerson is sizzling...literally! Emerson has a way of saying all the wrong things, in front of and about Micheal...thank heavens for her "edit button" (wish I had one)!

I enjoyed some of the secondary characters as well. Kaleb is a sweet boy who you can't help but cheer for! I can't wait to read the next book in this series...it is one of those that I borrowed from the library, but I will definatly be buying for my own personal library!

I gave this book 5 apples!