The Bursting Bookshelf

Dakota Halifax loves to be in love. In fact, as one of Las Vegas’s premier wedding planners, she’s built a whole career around romance. Which is why her own wedding has to be nothing short of perfect. And then her fiancé jilts her. While she’s waiting in her wedding dress. On a cruise ship already out at sea.

Once back on dry land, Dakota tries to pour her heart into her business and weekly wedding advice column, Get Ready to Wed. But how can the heartbroken celebrate others’ true love? When she reconnects with her childhood best friend, surprisingly sexy and all-grown-up casino bouncer Brendan West, Dakota wonders if maybe she can fall back in love with being in love.

But then her ex reappears, begging for another chance, and suddenly Dakota questions if she’ll ever understand love. Can someone once-burned and twice-shy ever find her way down the aisle again?

Review:
I'll admit, I bought this book mostly because it was 99 cents on the iBooks store and I liked the cover. Ever since I started reading on my iPad, I have been a sucker for the sale section of the store. I can't even count the number of impulse buys I've made that are collecting digital dust because I bought-and-forgot. The reason this one really stood out to me is because it sounded like a modern spin on The Wedding Planner (a classic J-Lo rom-com movie).

From a plot point of view, this book was basically what you would expect by reading the back cover. Girl gets left at the alter, girl meets (or in this case, is reintroduced to) cute new potential beau, girl's ex realizes his mistake, girl has a tough choice between the two guys, everyone lives happily ever after. It's a story that's been told a million times before, but this iteration is just cute enough to keep a reader from thinking too hard about how many versions of this story they've read. There are a few small twists, but it's a pretty straightforward, predictable read.

Dakota was a fun character to read about. It was easy and fun to see her journey after being jilted. Reading about her reevaluating her life and choices actually seemed realistic and fresh. It was nice to read about a capable woman who didn't fly to extremes when her life got turned upside down. Grant (the ex) was infuriating in all of the best ways. He was fun to hate and had a few manipulative tricks up his sleeve that kept him from being too much of a stereotype. Finally, there was Brendan. He was a tad bit two dimensional and predictable, but he was fun to read about and was a good competitor to go against Brendan. I found him to be the breath of fresh air in this book: he said what Dakota needed to hear and said everything I was thinking about how awful and manipulative Grant was.

Was this a fun read? Yes! I would definitely recommend this book to someone looking for a cute new romance book on the fly. It's got heart, it's got fun characters, and it has little moments that will make your heart swell. Just Jilted is a good example of a diamond in the overwhelming sea of eBooks that are constantly on sale on the iBooks store, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a summery fun-while-it-lasts read.

 
Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.

When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.

Review:
This is a book that I have been meaning to get to for quite some time. When it initially came out there were a lot of mixed reviews, you either loved it or hated it. I finally dug into when HarperTeen announced their 10 eBooks for 99 cents deal, I couldn't resist the opportunity to finally get to read it. I read it fairly quickly, but when I had finished I was very disappointed with it. To start off, there was so much slang used that it really took away from the story because not much of it was explained to the reader. Another point that was not good for the story was the lack of parents or people who were against the teenage pregnancies, only those obsessed with making money off of them were featured. The story was a little too fast, not ever really getting into the details of things or the society, not providing the reader with necessary information. The book was set in two points of view, that of Harmony and Melody, the twins the story follows. I found both to be rather indecisive and never quite sticking to their beliefs. Overall I give Bumped a 2/5 for being a book that did not hook my attention very well at all.

Sixteen-year-old Laurel's world changes instantly when her parents and brother are killed in a terrible car accident. Behind the wheel is the father of her bad-boy neighbor, David Kaufman, whose mother is also killed. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Laurel navigates a new reality in which she and her best friend grow apart, boys may or may not be approaching her out of pity, overpowering memories lurk everywhere, and Mr. Kaufman is comatose but still very much alive. Through it all, there is David, who swoops in and out of Laurel's life and to whom she finds herself attracted against her better judgment. She will forever be connected to him by their mutual loss, a connection that will change them both in unexpected ways.

Review: Minor Spoilers Below!!
This was a book that caught my eye when I first saw it. I loved the concept, because I had not read many non-paranormal books as of late. This novel really appealed to me because it seemed so real and raw from the description and when I received this book for review, I knew that I was in for a treat.

The cover of this book is beautiful. It demonstrates the emotions that Laurel might have felt after the accident. It shows her in grief, and how no matter what her setting, she could not stop thinking about the ruins of her life. The cover also makes me think of  how she thought of all the what-ifs of the accident. On this cover I really like the font colour and the all around colour theme. I like it because it is not dark or black, but rather it features some colours that I see as hope in Laurel's future.

The characters in this book were very easy to fall for. I immediately fell for Laurel and her entire family, including the members she lost, in just a few pages. I really felt attached to Laurel's family after they died, just as she did. It was the characters that came later that I did not care for as much. They seemed more superficial than Megan, Laurel's best friend, was when she was established in the early pages of the book. As for Laurel, I liked her as a character and I found that I could relate with her, even though I have never been through what she has been through. And love interest wise, I was definitely Team David.

The story of The Beginning of After was good in theory, but I found it just did not deliver. I found some of the events to be a bit repetitive, such as when David would come back. An aspect of the story that I loved was that the book got going into the action very fast, and the back story was given through the action. The writing of this novel was very good, it was what kept me hooked to the book. It was very descriptive and it really let you into Laurel's head. You got to understand why she committed some of her actions and how she dealt with the tragedy. I really enjoyed being in her head and learning about her as a person.

Altogether, this book was an fairly good book, I'm giving it a 4/5 for being a well written book.

Review:
I first spotted this title on Goodreads and admired how unique it sounded. A reluctant necromancer? The only books on necromancers I had read were Kelley Armstrong's Darkest Powers Trilogy, so I was very excited to read this book. When I saw it on Netgalley, I knew I would have to read it. After reading it however, I was confronted with some conflicted thoughts.

The cover of Ward Against Death did not play into my decision to read the book as much as usual. Usually, I am choosing a physical book and I am drawn to those which catch my eye. This book was online though and I did not see the cover every time I read it. For these reasons I am unsure of how I feel about this cover. On one hand, it is not the kind of cover I am usually drawn to. On the other hand, this cover does have a sense of uniqueness that can be lacking in many covers. Altogether I am unsure with this cover and how much I like it.

Ward Against Death is set in multiple points of view. At times I found it to get a little confusing trying to remember who knew what and who was keeping what from others. As for the characters specifically, I did not find them to be all too great. I thought Celia was too pushy, always bullying Ward around. Ward on the other hand, I felt was not too strong, and he let himself get pushed around by Celia too often. I didn't like how he never put his foot down on anything with her. As for other characters, I did not find any stand out characters, mainly because for a good portion of this book, the characters were on their own.

The story line of this novel was okay. It was not my favorite because at times it just felt too slow for my tastes. By the end of the book, the plot had sped up. The writing in Ward Against Death was a weak point for me as well. I found myself feeling lost and confused about recent events. Also, there were quite a few terms used that I didn't understand, because I felt they weren't quite as well defined to the reader as I would have liked. Apart from these factors, the rest of the writing and plot were fairly good.

Though Ward Against Death was not my favorite book, I would recommend this book to anyone who likes books with a historical feel and a twist of fantasy thrown in. I give Ward Against Death a 3/5 overall.

Review:
I saw Ultraviolet on Netgalley, not knowing what it was about, but wanting to find out after seeing the gorgeous cover. When I got accepted to review it, was I ever reading it quickly. Well, you know that feeling you get when you finish a really good book and you wish it wasn't over? This book will definitely give you that feeling!

The first time I saw the cover of this novel, I lost myself in questions. Who is this girl? Why is everything I believe wrong? What does Ultraviolet have to do with the plot? Why is the character on the cover so sad? Apart from these questions, I also began to admire the colour of the cover and how the text is partially the purple of the cover and partly white. And it comes together so nicely that it is sure to catch the eye of anyone who walks by.

The characters in Ultraviolet could truly make you feel anything. They slowly earned your emotions as the book goes on. I loved Alison as a character because she was so real. Her insecurities were realistic and acknowledged throughout the book. I also liked how the love and feelings between her and love interest (which I won't name to avoid spoilers) were not instant. They developed throughout their time together, not just when they first met. As the book went on and the characters developed, I began to feel attachments to most of the secondary characters, making the cast of Ultraviolet a very well built group of characters.

The writing of this story is great at describing what Alison goes through on a daily basis, it's almost unbelievable. And the story is so effectively told, informing the reader with all the information they need through seamless flashbacks and conversations with the other characters in the story. You really feel as though you are a part of this mysterious novel from page one, as it drags you in and won't let you go until the last page.

Overall, Ultraviolet was an astounding read with a huge surprise twist that will have you gripping the book long after you have finished it. I give it a 5/5 for being just that spectacular.

It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.
 
Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.

Review:
After reading tons of raving reviews about this book, I finally decided to buy it, as my first ever eBook for my Kobo. Now I am left to wonder why I took so long to buy it. I have really liked mythology based books for a while now and this one did not end that streak. The story of this novel is incredibly unique- it takes the story of Persephone and retells it in a way that is fresh and relate-able for teens. Plus, there are some awesome twists and turns around every corner in this book. One of the most refreshing aspects of this novel was that there was no instant, head over heals love involved. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy that sort of book, but I come across that theme quite frequently in all the books I read. The book was very well written and I really enjoyed reading about the characters and seeing the Greek gods with personalities that made them feel much closer to being human. This book gets a 5/5 for living up to all the hype that surrounds it.