Review: Lex and Lu

Lex and Lu by J. Santiago

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Complete heart-throb, utterly bittersweet, undeniably real!!

The beautiful cover caught me at first sight. the synopsis was soul-catching, literally got me hooked to proceed on to reading the book. This was a beautiful story of two childhood sweethearts who've went through so much so young and having to once again come together to be able to see it all through.

In the very beginning, I felt really confused. It was obvious that I was left out of knowing what was going on. It was totally mind-boggling. The main female character, Lu, was the one with the secret, that every one else knew about. And when mentioning the male character, Lex, it was absolutely clear that he took some part in what happened, but obtuse about the secret. I was put into his shoes. Completely ignorant of what everyone was hiding, but completely aware of being left out.

I was able to relate and understand Lex; his behavior, and thought-process. I was also able to understand Lu and her struggle with letting the truth out as well as feeling deserving of whatever Lex lashed out on her. They were complete opposites. He was a famous soccer player, she was admirably intellectual and just about to graduate with a PhD while still in her early twenties. All of the characters were their own person and struggling with their own part in this family dilemma, even after so many sentences adding up how much they took off their parents.

I felt equally happy and sad, giddy and annoyed, chipper and irritated, angry and gobsmacked at all the things that occurred.

The secrets.
The sex.
The lies.
The love.
The hate.
The regret.
The grief.

It all turned for the better I can assure that, but it does take time for Lex and Lu to gain equilibrium with everything turning on its axis.

This bittersweet love story was marvelously written. Every single page spoke volumes. Many times were fun, hilarious, melancholic, shocking, and beautiful.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this wonderful story, and really appreciate the author's hard work.


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Review: The Bars That Hold Us

The Bars That Hold Us by Shelly Pratt

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Such a beautiful, beautiful heart-felt story with strong passion and forbidden love. Never read anything like this before!.

I just knew this book was going to be good, and the cover (not the alternative one :/) just caught my eye with the hot and sexy man and the colors (mostly because it was green!. tee-hee) and I immediately fell for it, and knew I had to read the book.

It starts off with our main character, Mercy Cole who is from a family with a long line of Blue Bloods. Cop Family. And usually the case is to more than likely keep it in the family. Her fíance was a cop too. Was. She is still wallowing in sorrow and just down in the gutter since her fíance, Daniel look a bullet for her and unfortunately didn't make it. Her Dad tries to get her to overcome it all and take better care of herself and to basically come back to the world of the living. He tells her about a job offer at a penitentiary. Just so that she can get out and do something. She takes it. This is where she meets Saxon Miles. *squeals* Lord have Mercy *grins*

Cue the forbidden romance!!! :D

No, he's not her boss.
No, he's not her brother.
No, he's not a billionaire.

Yes, he's hot.
Yes, he's sexy.
Yes, he's a bad boy.

He is also an inmate, charged for manslaughter.

Hence the forbidden romance. Duh. *cackles*

I have never read anything with this type of situation before so it was very refreshing and exciting, I mean, just so much anticipation, was having me anxiously biting my nails, siting at the edge of my seat. At the same time I was trying to close myself off, and not get my hopes up because it all felt so surreal. But just like Mercy and Saxon, I fell in love, and felt scared for letting myself. The love scenes really got me fired up! Just the thought of getting caught... *SQUEEEEEEEEEEEE* You'd think I was the one with Saxon. *giggles* (Boy, did I wish!.)

However, I knew something was going to happen. T_T

They are surrounded by criminals for crying out loud!!!

When it turned for the worst, what happened was not what I was already contemplating. It was twisted around. It totally caught me off guard, as well as Mercy and Saxon. In that tragic moment, I felt sucked into both their roles and vividly experienced the fiasco from their point of view. I felt the shock, the anger, the regret, the yearning and longing. It was so heartbreaking and heartwarming and the same time. Like watching something undeniably beautiful break like glass, but even in pieces, still just as beautiful. In the end, my heart really went out to Mercy's father. Even the man that helped Saxon, old man Jessop. I never thought Mercy's father and Saxon were gonna meet.

I really wished the author wrote about resolving the suspicion of who was letting the inmates out and about. Saxon even mentions that he wanted to know who the guy was doing favors for for getting let out at night.

Overall, this story took me to the moon and back, I don't even need NASA ;P Nevertheless, had a blast reading. Great writing. Easy flow. Highly recommended!!!!!


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Review: Cop Town

Cop Town by Karin Slaughter

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

WOW. Just wow...that was freakin' AWESOME!!!!!!!!

This book had it all, it was just great! It's the 70s baby!.

Lying.
Cheating.
Drinking.
Fighting.
Smoking.
Swearing.
Killing.
Discrimination to the fullest.
Jokes.

In the smack dab center of Atlanta, Georgia. The Atlanta Police Department.

This whole story is basically about civil rights for certain individuals. Blacks, whites, foreigners, homosexuals, women.

The prologue kicks off with some action aftermath. A cop, James 'Jimmy' Lawson is carrying his practically dead partner down many blocks to the hospital.
Next is when it switches to Jimmy sister, Margot 'Maggie' Lawson, who is also on the force. It's the morning after Jimmy bad night. She wakes up wanting an update on her brother. She hears what her Uncle Terry, who is also on the force, says about what happened. She then goes on her own to figure things out. Things don't add up. She questions her brother and still doesn't get anything to make sense.

Along comes newbie, Kaitlin 'Kate' Murphy. Widower, and glamorous rich. What the heck is she doing showing up at the station? Straight from the Academy, Kate shows up, a bit hesitantly, to work. The whole force is tasked to be doing whatever they can to catch this cop killer. A few things they have to go by are fact, but the rest is questionable, and Maggie isn't the only one not believing the load of crap they're being fed. With the help of a mentor, Gail, and a push and shove, Maggie starts to investigate on her own. She ends up partnering up with Kate along the way and together, they move on forward.

These characters all had flaws, all had something about them I didn't like or absolutely hated. But they each played a part in this story. It was very well thought out and organized. I can't think of a better way. I had a strong sense of disgust for the antagonist, utterly revolted and gobsmacked by their way of thinking, their beliefs, and for the most part, their actions. it was extremely creative and completely realistic. As well as too surreal at times for the rawness of the details and how I would imagine how things were. Truly vivid.
The protagonist would get on my nerves a lot. However, they were extremely entertaining. The jokes and sarcasm were hysterical, as we're the fore play and flirting, but I was a bit okay with the way things played out.

The details really got me, I was literally cringing when something relatively gross or shell-shocking happened.

The plot and storyline: INSIGHTFUL. UNNERVING. MIND-BOGGLING. EYE-OPENING, even the characters, although some more than most were effected with things going on. Many changes. A whole lot of new things. That is what the whole situation revolved around. Some embraced it, others fought against it...and things usually don't end well once that tug-of-war starts.

Overall, this was an amazing crime novel, the first I've read. Such a great way to start. Looking forward to more books by Slaughter.

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Review: Until Alex

Until Alex by J. Nathan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Beautiful, outstanding, lovely, fantastic!


I absolutely recommend this book!

Beautiful, beautiful well rounded story, extremely heart-felt and filled with many different aspects. The ups and downs were extremely realistic, and each event or occurrence in this story fit together very well.

She's the billionaire.
He's the bad boy.
She's innocent.
He's a player.

She's lonely.
He's lonely.
She's suffered.
He's suffered.

She just can't stay away, and neither can he...

Outstanding characters, with all the right characteristic traits. It made them seem more real than just a depiction from an imagination. A bunch of sass, quirky, and smart-ass comments that not only kept things flowing, but superbly entertaining. The soft moments and mushy-gushy comments were just full of passion, not one ounce of corny-ness/porn-y-ness. Sexy in all the right places, gorgeous inside and out. The main characters complemented one another perfectly. It was really easy and refreshing to be able to sympathize with them for their past experiences and the current situation.
The antagonist was extremely well described and the characteristics were on point. I could feel the negativity, and sense the evilness from the character and literally felt utter disgust and resentment toward them, as well as pity.
A close call for the hero and heroine. The comprehension of the situation was about high school/college level.

Lovely plot!. Cannot think of a better way for this story to turn out. Loved both the pros and cons and everything in between. Very well balanced with the protagonist and the antagonist. Felt strong emotions from both sides. Great choice in vocabulary, easy flow and written with utmost care. The plot never strayed.

Overall, this was just a fantastic read and thoroughly enjoyable. Hope to read some more fantastic work in the near future.

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Review: When It's Love (When It's Love #1)

When It's Love by Emma Lauren

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Titillating. Mind-boggling. Pure sin.

Such rich, and utterly sensual material.  [The story] really got my full attention and kept me at the end of my seat. Loved how the reader kept the reader guessing and a bit in the dark about Sydney's tragic past. Finding out who she really is and why her mom is the way she is. Most writers explain it all in the beginning, but Sydney's backdrop gradually came to light whenever certain things would trigger memory.

It gave the writer the chance of elaborating the main character's situation with a better understanding for the reader. I, honesty, was able to put two and two together in the very beginning and new the truth behind the emails Sydney received and Henry's behavior and need to stake claim whenever he got the chance. I feel sorry for Sydney having a past without much needed love and nurture, even her grandparents were a bit stand-offish, much less her mother. The words were so raw with emotion that I felt it all coming off at me in waves. The love scenes were extremely well written, for some it is hard to not come off and corny or porn-y, but rest assured it was enticing to read and flowed deliciously.

In the end, I wondered what Sydney was going to do about Henry, and if she will be able to overcome what he did, but it seems that the answer will be in the sequel.

Overall, I really enjoyed this quick read and totally recommend it. I'm looking forward to the next step Sydney takes in the sequel When It's Over. Thank you Emma Lauren for allowing me to read your story, keep up the good work!


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Review: The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the funniest saddest books I've ever read. Never really read anything like this before, but proud to say that I could relate, understand, as well as agree, disagree along side these characters. The people in the story were awfully bright, very intelligent. But in real life not many people might ask those questions on a regular basis, maybe only when they!re on the verge on dying or know they are dying. But we all know that we are dying, its just the matter of when.
In my family's medical history, there was traces of breast cancer and was what most of the older woman in my family died from. But some time ago, when I was younger, my older cousin was diagnosed at 13 years of age with a rare type of cancer (I won't go into details but if you want to know then message me) but lived to be 14 then soon after passed away. And she was only 2 yrs. older then me. And this made me think of what am I doing in life, what am I doing for my life, an do I love or hate what I'm doing? I'm now 18 yrs. old, and wondering what could I be doing, what should I be doing, and how am I doing it? Then I wonder what my cousin would be doing, what could she be doing, and would she like it? Was she just like the characters in the story? Was she damning the universe for its unfairness, calling bullshit on people who she thought were someone else, falling in love, egging somebody's car? I don't know. I do know that I laughed with these characters, cried with them, and fell in love with their story.
And like Hazel Grace, I would like to know what happens later on. How long does she last, does Isaac ever stop being so cynical, and get over Monica, truly? What happens to Gus' parents, do they become another statistic in people that divorce after their child dies? Same for Hazel's parents, does her mom become "a Patrick"? Does her dad still cry alot. Does Hazel still think of Gus. Is Gus really watching over her now, or could it be just a metaphor to help us deal with the grief and loss of a loved one? What would Gus have to say for himself? He probably say, "I'm grand, I love you Hazel Grace."


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Review: White Is for Magic (Blue Is for Nightmares #2)

White Is for Magic by Laurie Faria Stolarz

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fan girl squeals throughout the whole time!. Tripped out A LOT since I read this at night. In the dark. *Chills* Really got my heart pumping, crazy-awesome!.

Really liked the story line. The past, present, and future clashes all together and come into question. What is happening? Why it's happening? What is real and what is not? Stacy cannot answer these questions without the help of her friends and mother, and add in a mysterious new face boy. Is he telling the truth? Can she trust him? Stacy already is feeling physically under the weather caused by night terrors, now she has to remember something from the past, because its effecting the present, and mystery boy dreams of her fututre. The cherry on top of it all is that there are crazy-obsessed weirdos trying to reenact what happened the year before.

I don't know how many times I had to read about Stacy's dreams with one eye open and laying in bed with the covers high above my chin. The details were so good. I was literally sucked in to their world and experiencing everything right along with Stacy and her friends. The clues made me think so many things about most of the characters and shed a light on them that will forever let me see them differently and not really as fond of them as before

I love when PJ talks, so goofy. Drea just made me dislike her even more. I just wanted to punch Chad in the face. I wanted to do even worse to Cory, Tobias and their gang, ugh!..

I wanted to run away with Jacob, the new mystery boy that kept scarying Stacy almost every time the met and giving her a heart attack. Yep, he his my favorite character for this book. Stacy's mom made me fustrated at first, but then she became tolerable after she began opening up to Stacy.

I still want to run away with Jacob. Body paint!. Haha

Overall, I had a blast gasping and laughing all with one eye open people (Ha! Beat that!). Not so much when I had to look over my shoulder when I got up to go to the restroom. The characters were lively and enjoyable, never a dull moment. Thanks to the author for their hardwork, keep writing!.

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Review: Letting Go (Surrender Trilogy #1)

Letting Go by Maya Banks

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Repetitive. Corny. Dragging. I was hanging from a thread. Not my cup of tea.

First of all, this took me way too long to finish, and this isn't even that long!!. The reason why it took me so long to even finish was that is repeated a lot of things the characters said. They even repetitively thought about it and the dialogue was either worded differently or the same, nevertheless, I just couldn't take it anymore. So, I would stop torturing myself and read a different book. Whenever I felt confident enough that I could read it carefully, I'd pick it up again. But at times the corny wording became too much so, again, I would have to put it down, however, I was determined to finish. Even when I felt forced to read it, I would take a break, and maybe read something else to spark some interest. After that, than I would go back and continue reading.
The only time this book sparked my own interest was when an argument happened or something bad occurred, because it was something other than corny-ness , and repetitive wording that dragged the whole thing. The end was sadly the best part. Because for one, I was almost done, two for the fact that the characters weren't so corny anymore, and three for the characters actually getting fired up. If it wasn't for the end, this would have been only a 1 star rating, but I gave the benefit of the doubt and let the last part win me over for the 2 star rating. Although, a 2 star seems more fitting, to me... But maybe it was also the fact that read this book in the span of practically one month.
Regardless, I will continue on to the next book in the trilogy and hope it picks up better for me to grasp the writing style and it's contents. This was the worst book I've ever read, out of all the books I have read from this author. It literally went off a cliff and down a mountain. Something seriously went wrong here.
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Review: Ethereal Underground

Ethereal Underground by Brooke Kennedy

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My emotions are telling me that this read was engaging, hilarious, intriguing, thrilling, and absolutely well written!.


Its very different from what I usually read. I like the author's creativity with the characters and the history behind it all that lead to what is going on now. Its a bit confusing at first because there's a lot being thrown in.. but once you get into it, all the pieces fall into place.

I love how fitting the mythical creatures were in the story, and totally the opposite from cliché and predictable. My favorite mythical creature in this story would have to be the author's depiction of a unicorn. LOVED IT.

This book always had an upbeat, never lagging, even when going into the history and background of why things are in the storyline. Everything was too interesting to consider a bore as most times when the author has to fill in the reader with the whole backdrop.
Never missed a beat either when things would get a little hot (pun intended).

Can't wait to read the next book in this series!. Ready for more adventures, thrilling near-death experiences, and witty comments!. 


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