Teaser Tuesday #11

 

- A weekly meme by Should Be Reading

If you would like to participate, this is how you do so: (directions from Should Be Reading)

•  Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• share 2 teaser sentences from somewhere on that page.
• Try not to include spoilers! Share the title & author, in case someone would like to add to their TBR shelf.

 

Revealed by P.C Cast + Kristen Cast

 

 

"Yeah, we were talking when we woke up. Together. In the same bed. Right, roomie?" Stark put special emphasis on the word.

 

-pg 55 on nook edition.

 

The Raven Boys- Maggie Stiefvater

 

 

This has been on my TBR list for a long time. I decided to take the plunge and read this in one sitting. Now that sounds misleading. I read this in one sitting, not because I couldn't stop, but because I have limited reading time at the moment. The synopsis sounded so interesting to me. Although, I was surprised to find that the synopsis didn't really match the actual book. I think the synopsis takes the wrong thing to describe the plot. I thought this was going to be about Blue's struggle to not kill her one true love. Turns out, this book is about a bunch of different people, trying to find a dead king that will grant one wish.

 

"There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark's Eve, Blue. Either you're his true love...or you killed him."

 

How intriguing is that?!?! I was so excited to see how this would play out and how Blue would save him. You know, that has to happen! Well... after we meet the Raven Boys, things don't really go how I thought they would. Blue ends up with Adam. Then they all decide to look for this king together. That about sums up the book. The plot did not really develop much and it was slow at times. The author actually did the POV of several of the characters. While, it was good to see, it was a little much. There was too much back story that I would have a hard time getting back into the current story. I was getting a little overwhelmed and it took away from the story itself.

 

Stiefvater did a great job with the actual characters. They were all very interesting and had a lot of character growth by the end of this book. I loved how they all were so different but so close. Blue actually fit right into the group. Although, she is with the wrong guy, I could feel it. I'm pretty sure that Adam did too. I didn't think that much really happened with that relationship. They didn't move forward too much, so I'm a bit confused on where they ended up.

 

Actually, there's so many things that were not explained at the end of this book. I think there was more unanswered questions at the end of this book than answers. I'm hoping that the next book will clear a lot of that up. I also hope that we get what we wanted with this first book with Blue.

 

Overall, this was an interesting story and I will be reading the next book to find out what happens. I hope that it's not as slow paced and that we get more of Blue in this book. I really enjoyed her character and it was a shame to not see her more. I also hope that there is no weird love triangle with this. Although, with Adam in the mix, it seems to be heading that way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Rosie Effect- Graeme Simsion

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. I was so excited to receive this book to review! I loved the first one and couldn't believe there was already a second! 

That being said....  Sigh. I really wanted to like this one! I really loved, The Rosie Project. Maybe it was because I had too high of hopes. I know that it was going to be a hit or miss because it just came out so soon. I think he kind of just wanted to ride off of his first success. Either way, it was a bad idea. 

I've had this book on my kindle for a little while. I had a hard time getting into this book. It was really quite boring. From the beginning we just get too much of Don's science and facts. It just overwhelmed me at times that I had to skip a couple paragraphs. I didn't really get interested in this book until the last 30%. That's right folks, I had to get 70% of the way through this book for it to grab me! I couldn't believe it. 

I was unbelievably, disappointed in Rosie. COME ON!! She knew EXACTLY how Don's personality was and she was acting so childish. I understand, she was pregnant and hormones can mess with you. I just didn't understand why she all the sudden expected him to be a nurturing, happy-go-lucky, father to be. She gave him NO time to digest this information and expected him to be on board, right away. The whole first book was her trying to get through to him about being involved with another person. Now, she's changing the game and adding another life, that he has to be responsible for. 

Honestly, I think that Don did an outstanding job. All he wanted to do this whole book was keep her happy and stress free. When he tried to help with her dietary needs, she freaked out on him. I'm sorry, but there are just some things you have to give up, when you become pregnant. Especially, in the early stages. How Don could realize that but she couldn't, I'll never understand. She was in a medical school. I found the idea of him keeping track of the babies size on the tiles, week to week, absolutely touching. I know it was scientific, but Rosie should have realized, how great that was for him. All he wanted to do was help her and he tried so hard. She was so mean to him. She was beyond mean, and he didn't deserve it. She knew who he was but completely disregarded that. This is my biggest issue with this book! There was no compromise and it was so unrealistic. Just to all the sudden give up at the end without fighting. There's a child involved! It's not so easy to just throw in the towel. She acted like he was a child and didn't give him a choice in anything. 

Also, Don's personality and "quirkiness" was rather annoying. It was over the top and just not charming, like the first book. I felt like the author just went too far with it. I think that he would really have a much harder time in real life. 

I felt that all the supporting characters really didn't have any growth. They didn't really add much to the plot, until the end. They force him to realize the mistake. I just felt like this book didn't have much of a plot and I couldn't get through it fast enough. 

I had a hard time trying to decide between two and three stars. I went with three because I did have a touching moment in the end. Also, because I just loved the first book so much. I didn't hate this book and there were moments, I enjoyed. 

I really wanted to love this. I hate that I'm disappointed. I really hope he's done with this because he had a great thing.. until this book. 

W.W.W. & Waiting on Wednesday

  

This is a weekly meme hosted by http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you'll read next?


  What I'm currently reading:

Blurb from Goodreads:

THE ROSIE PROJECT WAS COMPLETE BUT I WAS UNPREPARED FOR THE ROSIE EFFECT.

GREETINGS. My name is Don Tillman. I am forty-one years old. I have been married to Rosie Jarman, world's most perfect woman, for ten months and ten days.

Marriage added significant complexity to my life. When we relocated to New York City, Rosie brought three maximum-size suitcases. We abandoned the Standardised Meal System and agreed that sex should not be scheduled in advance.

Then Rosie told me we had 'something to celebrate', and I was faced with a challenge even greater than finding a partner.

I have attempted to follow traditional protocols and have sourced advice from all six of my friends, plus a therapist and the internet.

The result has been a web of deceit. I am now in danger of prosecution, deportation and professional disgrace. 

And of losing Rosie forever.

-I'm about 12% through on my kindle. I haven't had much time to read lately, so I'm not sure how I like it so far. :)

I recently Finished:

Blurb from Goodreads:

A week after "Cherry Red Summer," Emely still can't understand why both of her potential lovers, Elyas and Luca, suddenly broke off contact with her. She can't get answers from Luca since she knows him only through e-mails?and he's not replying. But she can certainly find Elyas, who she's known for years. So Emely decides to summon enough courage?the liquid variety, if necessary?to confront him at a Halloween party. Instead of an explanation, however, she gets a surprise: it seems Emely, always prone to stumble, is falling hard for Elyas once again.

But as autumn gives way to winter, Emely's newfound bliss is shattered when she discovers a shocking lie that destroys her trust in Elyas. To flee their ruined relationship, Elyas makes plans to leave Emely, and Berlin, behind. As they prepare to part ways for good, Emely must decide if she can let Elyas go?even if it means being haunted forever by those turquoise-green eyes she?ll never see again.

"Turquoise Green Winter" is the emotional conclusion of Carina Bartsch's captivating two-book romance.

-- I did not care for this book. This is my review:Turquoise Green Winter

What I'm reading Next:

Blurb from Goodreads:

There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel

Waiting On Wednesday! #2

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, originally started by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that highlights upcoming book releases everyone is waiting on.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Expected Publication Date: February 3, 2015 by St. Martin's Press

Genre: Fiction, Historical Fiction

Goodreads Blurb:

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author comes an epic novel of love and war, spanning from the 1940s to the present day, and the secret lives of those who live in a small French town.

Viann and Isabelle have always been close despite their differences. Younger, bolder sister Isabelle lives in Paris while Viann lives a quiet and content life in the French countryside with her husband Antoine and their daughter. When World War II strikes and Antoine is sent off to fight, Viann and Isabelle's father sends Isabelle to help her older sister cope. As the war progresses, it's not only the sisters' relationship that is tested, but also their strength and their individual senses of right and wrong. With life as they know it changing in unbelievably horrific ways, Viann and Isabelle will find themselves facing frightening situations and responding in ways they never thought possible as bravery and resistance take different forms in each of their actions. 

Vivid and exquiste in its illumination of a time and place that was filled with great monstrosities, but also great humanity and strength, Kristin Hannah's novel will provoke thought and discussion that will have readers talking long after they turn the last page

Review: Turquoise Green Winter - Carina Bartsch

 

 

 

 

First, I want to thank Goodreads, First-Reads and the Publisher for providing me a copy of this book. Second, I did not realize that it was translated from German. Third, I did not realize that it was part of a two-part series.

 

With that being said, it still was horrible. You really don't need to read the first book, because you get the whole story in this one, eventually. This was almost a DNF for me. I have only ONE other DNF and it was a personal book. I really try to finish books that I need to review. I was about 100 pages in and it was a tough call. I did stick with it and finish it but I'm not happy that I did. 

 

From the beginning, I was completely annoyed with the main characters, Emely and Elyas. They are both SO stupid. Emely's inner monologue, wanted to make me scream.  Her thoughts were so immature. These two are supposed to be in college. They seriously reminded me of a cheesy, pre-teen attempt at romance. I don't know if there was something that was lost in translation? Either way, I was having such a hard time not rolling my eyes.

 

This book was so predictable. Honestly, these two really caused their own misery. They were so fixated on their own feelings that they missed all the cues. Really, I was confused by Emely, throughout the whole book. She was so self-destructive. She wants to know WHY something happened, but couldn't stand to be in the same room with him. She never let him have a chance to explain himself. I understand that she was upset but come on! Don't get mad and angry because he hasn't provided you with an explanation, when you completely shut him down, when he tries.

 

Not only was the writing bad but this book took forever! When two days span over 150 pages, there's a problem. This book definitely dragged and I feel like not much happened, at the same time. There was too much of their thought process. I like when you get what is going on inside a characters head. This book has way too much of that and makes it boring.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Musing Monday #4

Musing Mondays hosted by MizB asks you to muse about one of the following each week…

• Describe one of your reading habits.
• Tell us what book(s) you recently bought for yourself or someone else, and why you chose that/those book(s).
• What book are you currently desperate to get your hands on? Tell us about it!
• Tell us what you’re reading right now — what you think of it, so far; why you chose it; what you are (or, aren’t) enjoying it.
• Do you have a bookish rant? Something about books or reading (or the industry) that gets your ire up? Share it with us!
• Instead of the above questions, maybe you just want to ramble on about something else pertaining to books — let’s hear it, then!

    Today, I'm going to be talking about BookBub! I kept seeing this pop up as a Facebook advertisement. I wasn't sure what it was and kept ignoring it. I also thought it might cost something. After so many times, I decided to click on it and find out more.

    Well I am SO glad I did! I've had it for a couple weeks now and have really found some great deals. I've found books that I've wanted to read for a while, for $2.00 and free. I love that! It's so great because I don't have to search for deals on my own. Of course, I'm a huge reader, so I still look from time to time. What a great service for us readers though! I usually forget to get on the actual website where they have so many more books!! I usually just go off the daily emails they send me. Sometimes the books are only available through amazon or barnes and noble. Luckily, I have a kindle and nook, so I get to take advantage of lots of deals! :)

    Anyways, that's what I wanted to talk about! I'm sure that many people have been utilizing this service. Just wanted to put it out there for those that have not. Also, to talk about how amazing this is! Any great books that you've gotten for $2 or less? I posted a few books from bookbub on my latest Stacking the Shelves post. It would be great to hear what amazing deals you've received from this service!! :)

Stacking the Shelves!

This is a weekly meme hosted by Tygna's Review

Books I've Purchased: 

Broken Symmetry by Dan Rix

-I'm excited that I got this for free on my Kindle! I got it because my BookBub reminder had it. Ah, I love BookBub! I can go days without getting anything but I've found some gems too!

Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

-Another BookBub freebie!! I love the show but I've heard mixed things about the books. I know that they are really different. So we will see. 

A Quest of Heroes by Morgan Rice

-Again.. another BookBub freebie! I've seen this book on Goodreads giveaways a lot. I thought, what the heck, it's free! We will see if I get to it. 

Queen of Someday Spotlight + Giveaway

Queen of Someday

By Sherry D. Ficklin

Before she can become Catherine The Great, fifteen-year-old Sophie will have to survive her social-climbing mother’s quest to put her on the throne of Russia—at any cost.

Imperial Court holds dangers like nothing Sophie has ever faced before. In the heart of St. Petersburg, surviving means navigating the political, romantic, and religious demands of the bitter Empress Elizabeth and her handsome, but sadistic nephew, Peter. Determined to save her impoverished family—and herself—Sophie vows to do whatever is necessary to thrive in her new surroundings. But an attempt on her life and an unexpected attraction threatens to derail her plans.

Alone in a new and dangerous world, learning who to trust and who to charm may mean the difference between becoming queen and being sent home in shame to marry her lecherous uncle. With traitors and murderers lurking around every corner, her very life hangs in the balance. Betrothed to one man but falling in love with another, Sophie will need to decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to become the empress she is destined to be.

In a battle for the soul of a nation, will love or destiny reign supreme?

Queen of Someday by Sherry D. Ficklin won't be your average young adult book. No, this book will have something extra special within it. Queen of Someday will be enhanced with embedded videos throughout the story. These videos will give you behind the scenes looks into the life of Catherine the Great, as well as author commentary. Enhance your reading experience with this new enhanced young adult book! Enhanced e-books are fairly new, and Clean Teen Publishing is excited to be able to offer one to you!

*Please note that on many reading devices may not be able to show enhanced content. In this case, you will be able to follow a digital link that is embedded within the e-book to view each video online. Currently the best reading platform for enhanced e-books is iBooks. However, most Kindle and Nook devices will allow you to follow the link to our external secure website to view the bonus content. An internet connection is required for viewing.

GRAB YOUR COPY OF QUEEN OF SOMEDAY TODAY!

Release Day: October 7, 2014

Published by: Clean Teen Publishing

Genre: YA Historical Fiction

Series: A Stolen Empire Series

Praise for Queen of Someday:

“UGH. This book was just too perfect. How will I ever come down from this book high?”

~Kalla (Goodreads reviewer)

“If I could rate this book more than five stars, I would. It was INCREDIBLE.”

~Kelli from Beautiful Book Chaos

“Woah. This book kicked ass.”

~Leanne Bell (Goodreads reviewer)

“I don’t when the next book will be out but I can guarantee it will be too long.”

~Michelle (Goodreads reviewer)

“(This) book is utterly brilliant.”

~Pearl from Bibliopearl Reviews

“Ficklin's writing is a marvel to read.”

~Sara from Smitten Over Books

“Queen of Someday is a bright new addition to the YA scene…”

~Bobbi (Goodreads Reviewer)

“…holy crap I loved that ending. It was perfect!”

~Eileen Lee of Book Captain Reviews

 

Be sure to enter the giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

The true story of Catherine the Great is one fraught with betrayal, intrigue, and romance. While a good deal of my story is drawn from actual people and events, I have been very liberal in the rearrangement of dates, events, and places. Whenever possible I took my cues from her own words, intermixing my own thoughts and ideas. My thought upon the creation of the book was simple. I looked at the woman she was when she claimed the crown and then wondered, how did an innocent girl from Germany become such a force of nature? Most people aren’t born cold or ambitious, but have circumstances that forge them into those people. And that was the story I wanted to tell in this book. I wanted to see the events in her early life that would have changed her into the person she became, and not knowing the truth of that story, I simply made something up. That is what we, as writers, do best.

If you are curious about the real history behind Catherine, I suggest heading to your local library and doing a bit of research. This is not meant to be a historically accurate representation, but a flight of fancy, one that I hope you, dear reader, will enjoy as much as I have.

WATCH THE OFFICIAL BOOK TRAILER:

ABOUT SHERRY D. FICKLIN

Sherry D. Ficklin is a full time writer from Colorado where she lives with her husband, four kids, two dogs, and a fluctuating number of chickens and house guests. A former military brat, she loves to travel and meet new people. She can often be found browsing her local bookstore with a large white hot chocolate in one hand and a towering stack of books in the other. That is, unless she’s on deadline at which time she, like the Loch Ness monster, is only seen in blurry photographs.

She is the author of The Gods of Fate Trilogy now available from Dragonfly Publishing. Her previously self-published novel After Burn: Military Brats has been acquired by Harlequin and will be released in 2015 with a second book in that series to follow. Her newest YA steampunk novel, EXTRACTED: The Lost Imperials book 1, co-written with Tyler H. Jolley is now available everywhere books are sold and her newest YA novel, Losing Logan, is due for release in 2014 from Clean Teen Publishing.

Want to READ MORE from Clean Teen Publishing? Check out our huge selection of amazing reads! There's sure to be something for every reader!

BE THE FIRST TO KNOW about our GIVEAWAYS, NEW RELEASES, COVER REVEALS and MORE! JOIN OUR VIP MAILING LIST! WWW.CLEANTEENPUBLISHING.COM

Storm Siren by Mary Weber

I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book.

 

The very first things I'd like to talk about is THAT ending. Yikes! I was completely surprised by that and still can't believe Weber went there. I do have to say, as crazy as this sounds, it's refreshing. Most YA books have become pretty predictable lately and so it's nice when a book surprises you. I do think that because of the world we are in, it wont be the actual ending we think. With that being said, it would be pretty disappointing to me. If you are going to go there then stay there. I was hoping that it would be a stand alone book. When I saw that it was a trilogy, I became more convinced of my theory.

 

I did have a hard time getting into this book because he language was a little irritating. I'm assuming that she's using creative words as swear words? So if you are reading this in our language, it would be full of swear words. It just seemed a bit too much. The story also takes a while to actually grab ahold of you. It really took at least half the book for me to be totally immersed into the plot.

 

After I got into the story, the rest of the book went rather quickly. I really liked the characters. Nym is trying to deal with her gift/curse throughout the book. She is consumed by grief of the past and refuses to let it go. What she doesn't realize is that is what's holding her back from controlling her elemental gift. She is being used as a pawn in a war of generations. Although, it seems that her new owner is helping her, she's really using her for her own reasons. I think that the tension between Nym and Eogan. I also really loved Colin. He was fun and added something to the book. What ends up happening, really shows character growth. It was great to see.

 

Something that failed miserably for me, was the fact that the world they were in was never developed. Same with the whole Elemental aspect. There were no introductions on what they could do or what it really was. Every author takes their own spin on things, I never really got Weber's. There were these two people fighting each other but no background. There just was no development of these things and they are really important to this story.

 

 

Overall, it was just an okay book for me. There were a lot of reviews loving this book but it didn't do that for me. There was some great potential but a slow moving plot and not enough detail about what's really going on.

 

Teaser Tuesday #10

 

- A weekly meme by Should Be Reading

If you would like to participate, this is how you do so: (directions from Should Be Reading)

•  Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• share 2 teaser sentences from somewhere on that page.
• Try not to include spoilers! Share the title & author, in case someone would like to add to their TBR shelf.

"I roll over to shove more wood on the fire and meet Eogan doing the same. His eyes connect with mine. He leans in and his fingers are cupping my face and slipping down, down, down my skin until I gasp at the craving welling up within me. What's he doing? Adora's warning flares in my head, but I don't give a blast because his touch is lighting, burning me alive and breaking me down...."

-- 48% on kindle.

 

 

 

 

Four by Veronica Roth

Four by Veronica Roth

I had this book sitting on my ottoman for 2 weeks and six days. I had to return it to the library tomorrow and decided to see if I could read it. I wasn't sure I wanted to because I thought it was just parts of divergent retold from his perspective. So I wasn't that excited to read it. Until I looked through it and realized it was about his story.

       So we start out at when its time for Tobias's Choosing ceremony. We learn all about his life at home and to that pint. what he is feeling and why he chooses what he does. We also get to go through his initiation all the way to his place when Tris comes along. We get so much background information about his life and the faction less too. We also get the story in why Eric is such a horrible person. Why he and Four don't get along. At the end there are a few chapters of his POV from the divergent book. It's not much but they are some key moments with Tris.

      I wasn't sure I wanted to read this because sometimes authors just try to make more off a successful series. I'm glad that this was more than what I expected. It was informative and interesting. It's good to see what Four is thinking and feeling. He is so closed off throughout the series, so this is good to see.

Review: Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay

Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay

I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. I was so intrigued when I read the synopsis and excited to get my hands on a copy. What a surprising book! I didn't think I would like it as much as I did. 

 This is about Aurora, the daughter of Sleeping Beauty. It's also a dark take on the continuation tale. Turns out the prince isn't what Beauty of any of us would have expected. Aurora and her brother, Jor, are captured by the Queen ogre. Her mom ends up killing herself to give Aurora her fairy gifts, so that they can escape. Turns out that not all fairy gifts are just gifts. Many of them have dark curses that go along with them. Anyways, Jor is later captured again by the Queen and Aurora leaves her safe home to find an army. Her only focus is saving her brother. 

    Along the way she is rescued by Niklaas. He is looking for Aurora to wed her. He has been cursed to turn into a swan on his eighteenth birthday. He was told by the witch who cursed him that only a wife in power can save him. Since Aurora is the real Queen, he is convinced he can make her marry him. So when he finds Jor, trapped in a camp, he saves him. He expects Jor to lead him to Aurora. Not knowing any better, he has actually saved Aurora. She is dressed as a boy because it was safer for her travels. So she finds an opportunity to have him help her find an army. They of course, become closer during their adventures.

  The beginning of this book is a bit slow and drawn out. It doesn't pick up it's pace until the middle of the book. I really enjoyed the relationship between Aurora and Nicklaas. Especially, when he thought she was Jor. It was a great way for them to connect and become close without it being "love at first sight". It made it much more real and believable. I wasn't sure how the author was going to wrap things up nicely. The way she did it, makes a lot of sense now. I did feel that the ending battle between them and the ogres, was a rushed. There were so many opportunities to cut down some of the slower parts to add to the ending. There were also a lot of interesting takes on the fairy tales. It was entertaining and interesting. I was impressed how the author took on many grey areas about morals. I really enjoyed this book and am so glad I got to read it soon. 

I really recommend this book because it's just so fun. It's definitely not what I was expecting when I started reading this. Love it when books turn out better than expected! :)

Teaser Tuesday #9

- A weekly meme by Should Be Reading

If you would like to participate, this is how you do so: (directions from Should Be Reading)

•  Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• share 2 teaser sentences from somewhere on that page.
• Try not to include spoilers! Share the title & author, in case someone would like to add to their TBR shelf.

 

Four by Veronica Roth

 

"Fear doesn't shut you down," I say. "It wakes you up. I've seen it. It's fascinating."  -pg. 241

 

 

-Sometimes I wish that I was a little bit less fearless. Alas, I am full of fear at times. :-P

 

 

Friday Finds #4

Friday Finds are a weekly meme hosted by Shouldbereading

Showcase the books you have found and added to your To Be Read (TBR) list. It doesn't matter if you found them online, in a bookstore or in the library. They don't even have to be books you have purchased!

So show us your finds!! There's never enough books on your TBR, so this is a good way to add more!

Here are mine:

#1

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion

I saw this on Netgalley and I had no idea there was a sequel planned. I loved The Rosie Project!!

I can't wait for this one!

#2

The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows

I found this on someones WoW and thought it sounded pretty interesting. I think the cover is gorgeous as well!

#3

Frostfire by Amanda Hocking

I've enjoyed a lot of Hocking's books. I saw this on WoW too and added it to my TBR list. It is a different world for sure. The cover is awesome too!

*All titles have links to their Goodreads page.

Review: Jane Austen's First Love- Syrie James

 

 

 

I won this book from a Goodreads, first-reads giveaway. I would like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy.

 

This is my first book by Syrie James so I didn't really know what to expect. I have all the Jane Austen books but have not read them yet. I know! It's horrible of me. I really enjoyed all the movies and I love the era. I really enjoyed this book!

 

You get 15 year old Jane Austen and her hurry to grow up. This is her story  reminiscing, about her first love, Edward Taylor. She goes back in time and tells you this story that just sucks you right in. All the details about the time period make it easy to make the picture come alive. This whole book was inspired by a letter that Jane wrote to her sister, inspired by true events. James does a great job writing this story on how Jane meets Edward. He might have actually been her first love.

 

Jane undertakes a lot throughout this book. Not only is she falling in love for the first time, she starts to meddle in other's love lives. She starts to push certain people towards each other, not realizing she has no idea what she's doing. What she thought is actually the opposite of what's happening. In the end, she puts fixing her mistakes before her own wishes. You see how she realizes her faults. When she has to leave without saying by to Edward, it makes her latch onto him even stronger. Years pass and she's still head over heels for him. Her sister tries to tell her that it may seem like he's the one for her but it doesn't mean it is so. Later, when she sees him, she realizes how true her sisters words were.

 

It reminds me of when I was a teenager and I would be sure that I had just met the person I was going to marry. How in your mind you are so in love and there's no one else. It's just crazy how when you mature, you realize how wrong you are.

 

I really liked this book and I will get on reading my Austen novels soon!