Monday's Review of Beasthood By Author A.Z. Green

 

Blurb:

The bloody, raw meat was tantalizing her; calling to her. She hated it and yearned for it all at once.
Stop, she ordered. What are you doing?!
So hungryyyyy, snarled a primal voice deep within her.
Don’t you dare! she screamed back.
But the primal hunger ignored her pleas and took over her body, forcing her rational voice deep within the crevices of her mind.


What would you do if you discovered you weren't human? That you turned into a bloodthirsty monster against your will?
What if your instincts, emotions and desires were torn between your own and the dark, dangerous animal lurking inside of you?
If it could make you yearn for someone you shouldn't, make you say and act in ways you wouldn't and overwhelm your whole existence?
If everything you'd ever known about your life was a lie?

In a world where a deeply hidden community is swathed in mystery, deadly secrets, betrayal and murder, Jaz Barker struggles to fight against the dangerous Beast within her and the emotions and desires it thrusts her way.

When tensions ride high and people she cares about are put in danger, she will have to decide how much of her newly awakened animal-side she's willing to let in.

And if it is worth the risk...

 

 

About the Author:

A.Z.Green was born in 1989 and raised in Chesterfield, Derbyshire. She met the love of her life aged 16 and moved to London, finally settling down near Brighton.

She has written various novels and short stories in her lifetime but has only recently decided to publish. She writes a wide range of genres such as dark fantasy, romance, thriller, historical fiction, dystopian, horror and paranormal. Her books tend to fit better into the New Adult genre as they usually have a more mature theme. Beasthood is her first published novel.

Besides writing she also loves designing blogs, websites, covers for others' books as well as her own and various graphics. She has four blogs/websites and counting. Pinterest and Tumblr keep her busy, as does reading, drawing, painting and watching films. That's if she gets time to do any of these things with a three-year-old jumping around.

When asked in an interview, 'What books have inspired you to write?' she replied, 'I write books I wish existed, not because I'm inspired by a book that already exists.'

           

 

 

Review of Beasthood

Rating: 3 stars

 www.reviewoffantasy.com

Jaz is the main character in the story, and she seems like a normal girl who suffers from an iron deficiency. But when she suffers a terrible dream that feels real to her she gets therapy. An aunt she didn’t know she had comes to take her off on a holiday to a spa and she goes feeling excited until she steps outside and a limo is waiting for her with its own driver.

When Jaz’s eyes lock with the driver who calls himself Driver she feels a sudden pull.

From that moment the story takes off, as it’s told through everyone’s perspective and we get to know what everyone is thinking and feeling.  I much prefer a story to be told in first person, that’s me I always enjoy them better, gauging people’s reactions from facial expression and not knowing what they are thinking, so straight away it kind of pulled me out of the story. As I know what everyone’s agenda was as such was.

Once Jaz reaches the “SPA” I got confused when she was chased, she was going there willingly yet she got out of the car to get sick and then all of a sudden she’s racing down a dirt road, with men on her heals, Driver being one of them. She’s taken and placed in a sealed room where she spends a few days’ terrified and confused. I was as confused as she was, but even as I read the story I still can’t for the life of me understand why she was chased. I re-read it three times thinking I missed something but I am still as confused. She believed it was a spa, why not let her walk to the room and shut the door behind her if they wanted to keep her locked up, why all the drama. Just didn’t get it.

Anyway she soon learns what she is but it’s all in small doses and her acceptance is pretty realistic, she has zero trust in everyone including her aunt, I don’t blame her. But she accepts her new life and starts to fall for Driver who was mated to her Sister, who died. It wasn’t weird as she wasn’t his true mate, but Jaz is.

For me it didn’t do it, but others may feel differently and should give it a read.

Monday's Review of World After By Author Susan Ee

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan Ee is the bestselling author of the Penryn & the End of Days series which takes place in the San Francisco bay area. The first book, ANGELFALL, is being translated into 20 languages around the world. The second book, WORLD AFTER, was recently released in Nov. 2013 to international acclaim. The film rights to the series have been optioned by Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, and Good Universe. Susan used to be a lawyer but loves being a writer because it allows her imagination to bust out and go feral.

                  

Review of World After

Rating: 4 stars

www.reviewoffantasy.com

Angel Fall the first book was outstanding for its originality. World after was outstanding for its horror.

Some of the horror was towards the end of book one, but in World After it was on full throttle. Angels are experimenting on humans, turning them into monsters the fact that they don’t just do this man (not that it’s okay) No they take women and even children. This is tough to read especially with Paige being only seven. She’s stitched like a doll, her teeth sharp – made of steel and she’s a cannibal, yet she is only a little girl on the inside who wants to be loved, but  Penryn struggles with this. I don’t blame her Paige sounds freaky. But when Paige runs away Penryn realises it’s still her little sister and tries to track her down.

Raffe thinks Penryn is dead so she’s on her own with her “crazy” mother and Clara a women who was used to feed scorpion angels in book one. But Penryn saved her but Clara is not right she’s a shadow of her former self and has aged rapidly from her horrible experience in the lab.

While searching for her sister, Penryn her mum and Clara end up in Alcatraz and we see how the angel scorpions are been made, the most disturbing part was the amount of humans helping. While there Penryn watches a tape of her sister from the day she was taken and I think it takes another chunk from her heart, it broke mine. As Penryn continues her search her responsibility of people to save keeps growing and her family are pushed further away from her. It’s not until Raffe shows up that Penryn can take a breather but not for long as both of them go after Biebel. Raffe for his wings and Penryn for her sister once again.

An amazing yet horrifying journey that’s not over and I can’t wait for the next book.

Monday's Review of Break my Fall By Chloe Walsh

Blurb:

I was drunk but not drunk enough not to notice him. Good Lord, he was beautiful. Did boys like him really exist? I thought I might be imagining him. “You wanna have a shot with me sweetheart?” he smiled crookedly and lifted the bottle up. The huskiness of his voice made me him sound dangerous, yet he was soft spoken…an enigma.

When eighteen year old Lee Bennett moves in with her childhood friend Camryn, the last person she thought she'd meet was Kyle Carter. Kyle is everything Lee's been warned to stay away from, yet everything she's drawn to. His boldness, flirtatious nature and jaw dropping good looks have Lee's head in a spin, and she cant seem to stay away.
But the secrets of her past still haunt her, which makes her attraction to Kyle all the more scary...
Kyle Carter can't keep his eyes off his hot new roommate, or his hands. Lee is fresh and innocent, and everything Kyle knows he can't have. But that doesn't stop him from wanting her.The pressure of living together combined with the sizzling chemistry fuels an unstoppable liaison.
Both know they shouldn't be together, yet can't bear to be apart. They fall into a twisted affair of love, passion and deceit. Kyle's on/off girlfriend, Rachel has a hold on Kyle. She hold a dark secret of his past over him, that threatens to tear apart his relationship with Lee apart. The first girl he cared about. Lies, deceit, passion and first love fuel together in their tumultuous relationship.
Can Kyle break free from the bonds that hold him to Rachel? Can Lee forgive the indiscretion and lies. And will Kyle Carter be the man who can break her fall.

About the Author:

Hi, my name is Chloe Walsh and I'm a twenty-four year old reader/writer/stay at home mammy. I was born and raised in the rebel county of Cork, Ireland and love reading all different genres, especially new adult and paranormal romance. My husband and I have two children who are my absolute world. :)

         

Review of Break My Fall

Star rating: 5 stars

www.reviewoffantasy.com

I don’t normally read this genre, but I am glad I did. I just loved Break My Fall.

Lee moves in with her high school friend, and straight away you can see her innocence and fear. Her first night there she drinks a little too much and finally gets to meet another roommate, Kyle, who is drop dead gorgeous. Something sparks between the two of them, and Lee acts out of character by kissing Kyle back when he kisses her, only for the kiss to end by his kind-of girlfriend Rachel, who is pissed to say the least.

Lee dies of embarrassment the next day when she comes face to face with Kyle, and spills her coffee; it’s pretty funny how she gets around him. But as the story continues and we watch their love blossom for each other, so much more comes to the surface. I can tell you one thing, this book is drama, drama, drama, and I loved every second of it. I found myself laughing non-stop, or giving Lee a high five when she stood up to Rachel.

The part that got me the most is when Lee and Kyle have a fight in the Kitchen and he grabs her while screaming, it’s at the moment I could see the depth of Lee’s issues, she crumbles and I crumbled too. I had to put my book down, as I cried. It tore me apart; it was so well written I could feel every ounce of Lee’s pain. After the episode we find out exactly what happened to Lee and it’s so sad, but we also see why Kyle is the way he is too and what hold Rachel has on him.

The story is two people with messed up back grounds, both fighting the odds, and both falling for each other.

The sex scenes in the book where very heavy in my opinion, and once again it isn’t something I would normally read, but overlooking them, the story itself was brilliant I finished this book in one sitting and would highly recommend it to others.

Monday's Review of The System By Teshelle Combs

Blurb:

1 + 1 = Dead.

That’s the only math that adds up when you’re in the System.

Everywhere Nick turns, he’s surrounded by the inevitability of his own demise at the hands of the people who stole his life from him. That is, until those hands deliver the bleeding, feisty, eye-rolling Nessa Parker. Tasked with keeping his new partner alive, Nick must face all the ways he’s died and all the things he’s forgotten.

Nessa might as well give up. The moment she gets into that car, the moment she lays her hazel eyes on her new partner, her end begins. It doesn’t matter that Nick Masters can slip through time by computing mathematical algorithms in his mind. It doesn’t matter how dark and handsome and irresistibly cold he is. Nessa has to defeat her own shadows.

Together and alone, Nick and Nessa make sense of their senseless fates and fight for the courage to change it all. Even if it means the System wins and they end up…well…dead.

About the Author:

Teshelle Combs is the award winning author of the YA action/romance novel, 'The System," and contemporary fantasy novel, "Core."

She's one of those crazies who majored in English in college and works as a full-time writer. 

Teshelle grew up in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and currently lives with her musico hubby, Nate Combs, and their soon-to-be born baby boy, Jaxter in Cape Coral, FL.

If you'd like to be interviewed, featured, or reviewed for Teshelle's blog, email her at teshellecombs@gmail.com.

         

Review of The System

Star rating: 4 stars

www.reviewoffantasy.com

Nessa Parker is the main character and she’s strong, loyal and witty. I just loved her. Taken from her normal life she’s into the system. The system wasn’t really what I expected the violence that Collins delivers to them, had me shocked to the core and their reason for being in the system was even more appalling. They had to assassinate certain people, if they failed their lives where over. Nessa isn’t normal but has a rare gift as such, she can kill you without touching you. She finds out some horrible truths about her parents and about herself but she stays strong through it all. I cried when I read a certain part with her dad, it just broke my heart; it was unfair, cruel and heart-breaking. But it fuels Nessa’s reason to fight the system and with Nick at her side she has everything to fight for.

Nick O god, he was messed up, silent and deadly but I loved him, and I loved the chemistry between him and Nessa it was electrifying. Their moments together were so real for two people in such a messed up situation.

The book was very faced paced and never slowed down. I loved Adam and his power to heal. At first I wasn’t sure of him but towards the end I just felt for him so badly. This book is very violent and the conditions in the system where atrocious. But overall I loved it. It was something different and new, I have never read a book like it. I would recommend this to all paranormal readers.

Monday's Review of The Bone Season By Samantha Shannon

 

It is the year 2059. Several major world cities are under the control of a security force called Scion. Paige Mahoney works in the criminal underworld of Scion London, part of a secret cell known as the Seven Seals. The work she does is unusual: scouting for information by breaking into others’ minds. Paige is a dreamwalker, a rare kind of clairvoyant, and in this world, the voyants commit treason simply by breathing.

But when Paige is captured and arrested, she encounters a power more sinister even than Scion. The voyant prison is a separate city—Oxford, erased from the map two centuries ago and now controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. These creatures, the Rephaim, value the voyants highly—as soldiers in their army.

Paige is assigned to a Rephaite keeper, Warden, who will be in charge of her care and training. He is her master. Her natural enemy. But if she wants to regain her freedom, Paige will have to learn something of his mind and his own mysterious motives.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine—a young woman learning to harness her powers in a world where everything has been taken from her. It also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Samantha Shannon was born and raised in West London. She recently finished her degree in English Language and Literature at St Anne's College, Oxford, where she specialised in Emily Dickinson and Principles of Film Criticism.

In 2012 she signed a book deal with Bloomsbury Publishing to publish the first three books in a seven-book series, beginning with The Bone Season. Film rights to the novel were optioned by Andy Serkis's London-based production company The Imaginarium Studios in 2012, and acquired by Twentieth Century Fox and Chernin Studios in October 2013. 

                  

Review of The Bone Season

Rating: 4 stars

www.reviewoffantasy.com

This story is told through the eyes of Paige, she’s a dreamwalker and a rare kind of clairvoyant. In London any type of supernatural is executed, or they just simply disappear.

Paige works in the Seven Seals for a master criminal and seems content in her role, yet her father has no idea just what Paige does as she pretends to work at an oxygen bar.

I read this book a while ago and should have written my review then as this one seems difficult and now I remember why. The first 40% of this book, I needed the dictionary that was placed at the back of the paperback book

Some sentences had so many new words that I really couldn’t make it add up, so I was back and forth like a yo yo. To make matters worse I remember my head was spinning, with so much information and then it settled a bit when Paige is arrested and taken to the clairvoyant prison, which is not what all clairvoyant believed it to be. Controlled by a race of Rephaim, immortals they use clairvoyant for their gifts. On arrival Paige is assigned a keeper and he is called Warden, he is feared by most. I think straight away I could see something different in Warden, and soon we do see a mutual respect blossom between these two. But no matter how much Warden tries to protect Paige, she is always on the war path, trying to protect the ones she cares for, and trying to get home to the Seven Seals.

The story was very unique, but also very confusing as in the terms that once Paige arrives at this prison a new set of rules, new words, and a new way is told to us, making you scrap everything you just learnt at the start of the book.

Overall I really did enjoy this book, it was something new and refreshing. With the style of writing and the complexity of words I’m not sure that I would read book two, or maybe I just need to give my head a rest for a while.  

Monday's Review of Onyx By Author Jennifer L. Armentrout

 

Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…

Thanks to his alien mojo, Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off, even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got bigger problems.

Something worse than the Arum has come to town…

The Department of Defense are here. If they ever find out what Daemon can do and that we're linked, I’m a goner. So is he. And there's this new boy in school who’s got a secret of his own. He knows what’s happened to me and he can help, but to do so, I have to lie to Daemon and stay away from him. Like that's possible. Against all common sense, I'm falling for Daemon. Hard.

But then everything changes…

I’ve seen someone who shouldn’t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I know he’s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them—from me?

No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies…

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hey Guys! Please note: I don't send out ARCs for review. If you're interested in reviewing a book of mine before release date, please contact the appropriate publisher. I also do NOT check my Goodreads email.

To email me, please use the below addy.
jenniferlarmentrout@live.com

# 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Jennifer L. Armentrout Lives in West Virginia.

All the rumors you heard about her state aren’t true.

Well, mostly. When she's not hard at work writing, she spends her time, reading, working out, watching zombie movies, and pretending to write.

She is the author of the Covenant Series (Spencer Hill Press), the Lux Series (Entangled Teen), Don't Look Back (Disney/Hyperion) and a yet untitled novel (Disney/Hyperion), and new YA paranormal series with Harlequin Teen.

Jennifer also writes New Adult and Adult romance under the pen name J. Lynn. The Gamble Brothers Series (Tempting the Best Man/Tempting the Player) and Wait for You. Under her pen name, she is published with Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins

                  

Review of Onyx

Rating: 4 stars

www.reviewoffantasy.com

After reading Obsidian I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the second book, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Katy is now connected to Daemon after he heals from an attack by the Arum. They keep up their usual sarcasm but Daemon wants Katy to see that he wants her, because he those and it’s not the connection. Katy being Katy doesn’t believe a word of it. So we watch Daemon try to swoop Katy off her feet.

Soon after Blake shows up and I must say straight away I didn’t like him I just got bad vibes, but when he freezes time in the café when their attached by an Arum, we learn more about the connection that Katy has formed with Daemon.

In book two we get to meet members of DOD who we believe are there to keep an eye on the Luxian’s but soon we learn that isn’t the case. The plot in book two delves deeper and soon it’s not just the Luxian’s lives on the line but Katy’s also.

I must say she makes some stupid calls, like with BLAKE I really wanted to smack her across the head, but it just makes the story more intriguing and I must say it kept me on the edge of my seat. Once again the love story was amazing. My favourite thing in this book, was when every time Daemon either spoke to Blake or spoke about him, he would call him every other name then Blake, I really thought it was hilarious. I was giggling away to myself no matter where I was, earning plenty of weird stares. But I just loved it.

The end leaves off at a very high point and now I need book three. Here we go again.

Monday's Review of Throne of Glass By Sarah J. Maas

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another.

Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series (Heir of Fire, Book 3, will be out in September 2014). Starting in Spring 2015, her New Adult Fantasy series, A Court of Thorns and Roses, will be published by Bloomsbury as well.

Sarah lives in Southern California, and over the years, she has developed an unhealthy appreciation for Disney movies and bad pop music. She adores fairy tales and ballet, drinks too much coffee, and watches absolutely rubbish TV shows. When she's not busy writing, she can be found exploring the California coastline with her husband.

                  

Throne of Glass

www.reviewoffantasy.com

Rating: 5 Stars

It took me a while to get into this story. Celaena the main character wasn’t easy to warm too, I was very conflicted about her and it took me to have read 40% of the book before I fell in love with the person she was.

Her story is so sad the more you get to know her and for nineteen years old, she has seen far more than anyone her age should have seen. Her freedom has never existed she has always been controlled by someone, but now an opportunity arises being the Kings champion for four years and then she gets her freedom. But she must win the contest first before she can be crowned the winner.

Her journey while training in the castle to compete is chaos emotionally and physically for Celaena, as the most deadly assassin in the world she’s never trusted. At times she is a frightened young girl who never had family or friends and who craves for freedom, but she hides the little girl inside herself and sarcasm and anger cover it up along with an amazing amount of self-confidence that isn’t completely real. As Chaol the Kings guard and Dorian the Crown prince get close to Celeana they see glimpses of what lies under her façade and soon a friendship with Chaol, and something more with Dorian blossoms only to come with dire consequences, and as the bodies of the competitors pile up and Celeana meets Elena, a goddess from another world her purpose to win and become the kings Champion doubles. It’s not just her freedom that’s at stake but the people of her world who will suffer if she doesn’t banish the darkness that lurks in the castle.

Chaol was my favourite he reminds me of Valek in poison study, and I want Celeana to pick him. Dorrian is sweet but he’s in fear of his father the King, and he just isn’t man enough. But Choal O god, I loved him he’s cold, moody, and hard yet in the smallest gestures he does for Celeana he makes my heart flutter. He’s as tortured as she is, and I just loved him. I can’t wait to read the second book and see if my wish will come true and Celeana picks him or even kisses him.

Overall this book was outstanding if you like Poison study by Maria V Snyder then this is the one for you.