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lpofimagination

Little Pieces of Imagination

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” 
― Marcus Tullius Cicero

 

a blogger, book fanatic, loves to dance, swim, draw, take photographs and enjoys a good laugh

3:AM Kisses - Addison Moore If you want to read my thoughts, visit this person's (Vivian) review. Didn't read the whole book, but from the 42% I did read, my thoughts are exactly the same. I hope you guys enjoy this book though!
The Darkest Part (Living Heartwood) - Trisha Wolfe This spring, I got to review Of Silver and Beasts by Trisha Wolfe. Guess what? I loved it! It was a book that sealed the deal for me and I now want to make it my life’s mission to read all of Trisha’s books. LOL. I’m slightly kidding, but the truth is not far from it. I wondered what it’d be like if Trish ever wrote a contemporary novel and now I got the chance to explore it first hand.


As much as I'm doing this trip for Tyler, truth is, I'm doing it for me, too. I'm tired of being scared. Sick of living in fear. I'm doing this to set Tyler free, yes, to help him cross over--but deep down, I know it's about more.
I need to cross over, too.
To the living.



The story. Sam is depressed. Like.. really in a dark place and all that’s keeping her together is her dead boyfriend’s ghost Tyler. Who others say is a hallucination. Sam is sure he’s not and she is determined to bring his soul to peace by going on a road trip to take his ashes everywhere he wanted to travel. Only problem is, she has to go with Holden or not go at all. Why is this a problem? Let’s see.. Holden is Tyler’s brother and when they were younger, Sam was helplessly in love with him until he broke her hear. Now, spending even five minutes in a room with him seems insurmountable.

My thoughts. I found this to be really intriguing; hopeless; dark. I loved the last book I read that featured a road trip and that was The Edge of Never. While The Darkest Part didn’t exactly reach the level of awesomeness that was Camryn and Andrew’s story, I did truly enjoy it. When we met Sam, she was in a really dark place and I didn’t see any way possible for her to feel alive again. Everything she had dreamed about had vanished into thin air and now she has to cope with it all alone. I’m glad Holden was there to support her. Speaking of Holden..

Holden was the heart of the story for me. Even though Tyler is long gone, his presence still lingers and it was great to watch unfinished business between the brothers work itself out and Holden get relief from years of guilt and horrible memories. I believed his story and I felt connected to it. Sam was at times a bit hard to connect to since she didn’t know the whole story and was catching up to it just as we were while Holden held the missing pieces. The chemistry Holden and Sam had was good and enjoyable. I loved how their story got a realistic ending with a touch of happiness rather than everything being over the top amazing.

At the end of the day I believe this is very suitable for a fall read since it’s dark, edgy and offers a few rays of sunshine with its hope and romantic plotline. I was happy to witness Sam’s victory over darkness and sorrow. She had the possibility to experience two very different loves and I enjoyed reading about both of them. I think this novel is worth a try and I’m happy to have enjoyed it as much as I did. By the way, I saw on Goodreads that it's marked as a part of a series, but I do believe it's a stand-alone. Perhaps there'll be some companion novels in the future.

More of my reviews can be found my blog.
Dangerous Creatures (Dangerous Creatures, #1) - Kami Garcia,  Margaret Stohl Two of my favorite characters (alongside with Amma and Macon, of course) as the main characters? Heck yes I'm going to read this!!! *happy dance* As the series progressed, I felt like Garcia and Stohl's co-writing became a lot stronger so I'm hopeful that this'll be good.
Everything For Us (The Bad Boys, #3) - M. Leighton I did like this installment, but I didn't get overly emotional. We have new main characters for the final book and I really liked the complex character that was Nash. Also, I found Marissa to be a gorgeous soul by the end of the series, which is an idea that I would have laughed at if you had asked me at the very beginning. She was one nasty bitch when I first started these books. We got our lovely dose of Olivia and Cash and I LOVE these two so so so much!

I found this book to be a little too rushed and perhaps some lack of depth in the romance department, but it had a reason for it which I finally found out. (If you've seen my two updates, you know I was pretty darn anxious to know wth Nash was referring to.) I think what made this one a little flat for me was the same thing I sturggled with in On Dublin Street where the MC-s (especially female ones) assume something and don't talk about what's going on in their head etc and so it causes drama that can be very well avoided or turned down to a minimum, plus the part where you know they'll have to spend some time apart yada yada yada. Overall, it was a good book. The final chapters were great and I loved watching these characters grow.

If you're a fan of the series, definitely give this bad boy and former Queen B of the block a try to convince yourself that they're capable of redeeming themselves.

More of my reviews can be found my blog.
Boomerang - Noelle August A New Adult book by our beloved Veronica Rossi? And this intriguing pre-synopsis? Ohhhhh yes!!! Count me in, baby:) The only sad thing is that it comes out in 2014.
Widow’s Web (Elemental Assassin, #7) - Jennifer Estep This one was basically Owen and Eva's story as we get to know the sister-brother duo and their past a little better. Their past comes to haunt them with a plan of revenge and it's Gin's job to clean up the mess as always, even if she'd prefer to stay as far away from it as humanly (or elemntaly) possible.

Loved all secondary characters exept for Owen. I get where he's coming from, but when a psycho tries to murder your beloved ones as well as hurt innocent people who have even looked at her the wrong way, she's clearly too far gone for any redemption. I do, I DO understand his motives to protect the psycho (lol, this sentence is sooo weird, don't turn too much attention to it :)), but enough is enough and he knows it. I have no idea how he'll redeem himself if ever, but Jenny read book #9 and told me that he is climbing his way back to Gin little by little.

As for the progress of the whole series, it was a decent book. The plot idea ruined it for me though hence the three stars. By the way, is it just me or have the elemental fighting scenes gotten better and better? Probably me, but I have come to enjoy those.
By a Thread - Jennifer Estep Actual rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Why, these books just keep getting better and better. I asbolutely loved this one, because it wasn't about Mab Monroe anymore. The gang got new challenges to overcome and the story was the most original of the series so far. Also, it was so fun to watch them try to have a calm, ordinary beach vacation. Finn totally made it hilarious with his lovely, fantastic self. I love Gin's step-brother like no other! :-)

If there has ever been a doubt in my mind that Owen and Gin ARE meant to be, it was wiped away in this book. I know they will have their future obstacles as I've stumbled upon some spoilers, but I KNOW they'll overcome them. They have to! Their love is so real and beautiful. I love their steamy scenes, but I also enjoy their sweet, humble moments too. When Gin came out of that burning mansion, walked to her friends and Owen ran to her as soon as he saw her and pulled her into his arms and showered her face with his kisses--I was honestly teary-eyed while I listened to this scene at work today. It was perfect! I love how he trusts Gin and believes in her the way that douche Donovan never did. This book, by the way, reminded me why Donovan Cane is never going to be the guy for Gin. He's a classic a-hole. One with high morals, but a-hole nevertheless.

I also enjoyed Gin and Bria's relationship which reminded me a little me and my little sister. We may have our issues and fights, but at the end of the day, we try to do our best to find a solution and I wouldn't trade her for anything. Love her and I felt the sisterly bond between Gin and Bria becoming stronger by each minute so it was really, really nice to read that storyarc:)

I soooo can't wait to read the next ones. You know, it's hard to believe it was book 6 since they're so easy to follow. I'm not a fan of repetitive writing in a series, but I understand why it's nessecary as UF series are LOOOOONG. However, it's getting tiresome so whenever Gin repeats a section from a previous book, I just fastforward a little:) No guilt whatsoever :D hehe.
Out of Line - Jen McLaughlin, Diane Alberts *An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review*

When I first saw this book as an option for review, I jumped into action and requested immediately. The cover is awesome, the blurb sounded good and what more could I have wished for to allure me in? Exactly! So I hopped on the review tour and was super excited to give this New Adult novel a try. I’m sure you’re all here to see what I thought, so I won’t waste your time any longer, let’s get down to business.


"I was done fighting her. From now on, I would fight for her."



The story. Carrie is a very privileged young woman what with being the daughter of a senator. She has a reputation and an image to live up to and when she sets off to college, it’s the tiny bit of freedom she has been craving for forever. There she meets Finn, a free-spirited marine, and she has the choice—to overcome her issues of trust and have the time of her life with someone who may be the one or sail on a sinking ship to loneliness.

My thoughts. Look, as you gathered from my updates, me and Carrie didn’t get off to a good start. She said something in the first chapter that rubbed me the wrong way and I truly thought she’d be one of those extremely annoying main characters who’d constantly annoy the jazz out of me. Lucky for her, she was able to somewhat redeem herself as the novel progressed. Since we have a dual point of view, we know from early on who Finn is and if you’ve seen and enjoyed Chasing Liberty starring Mandy Moore, you’ll probably want to watch it again sometime by the time you’re finished with this pretty. Just as Mandy's character, Carrie grows tremendously throughout the novel. Same goes for First Daughter starring Katie Holmes.

Finn was a great character to spend time with. He was wicked, smexy, laid-back and fun, but strict when it came to his job. I’d like to make a comment about something related to him: I want to study like that. Any chance Finn would want to do some cramming and reward me whenever I get a correct answer? I’m totally up for that *insert innocent face* Whaaat? Can you blame me? I don’t think so. That was… *ahem* nice *ahem* to read about.

I liked the parts where Finn taught Carrie how to surf the best. Also, the smexy was hot in this book, let’s be honest. When Carrie found out what Finn was hiding from her, I understood her anger and frustration. It was hard to watch it all unravel since we know how Finn truly feels, but Carrie with all her trust issues thanks to her parents had a hard time seeing through all the lies and realizing that Finn did love her. I had a tough time with one thing though: I didn’t understand how much time had passed between certain scenes hence me thinking some things happened faster than they were supposed to happen.

The plot is pretty much predictable from the start and offers nothing new. However, I found it to be a like a great beach vacation read or suitable if you’re having hard time letting go of summer, for instance. The ocean scenes made me want to experience some hot sunshine and nice, cool water for a while longer. I’m more than sure that people will love this book, I just wanted something different in addition to all that we got, because there are lots of similar books out there and it needs to stand out with something. I think people who loved Lengths by Steph Campbell and Liz Reinhardt would find this enjoyable.

More of my reviews can be found my blog.
Spider’s Revenge (Elemental Assassin, #5) - Jennifer Estep I was beginning to worry it was going to be like Pretty Little Liars (show) which rides on a train named Destination: Nowhere. I thought killing Mab was going to be a battle/victory for the last book, but Estep surprised me with Gin going after the fire elemental in book 5 already. It went down pretty well all things considered. I really enjoyed this one as well and I think it's probably the best book so far since so much happened. As you've probably gathered from my updates and reviews, I'm head-over-heels in love with Owen Grayson who yet again proved he's worthy of being with Gin. And finally someone dropped the L-bomb;) Whohoo!! I love how Gin's friends, former-enemies-turned-to-allies and everyone she has protected from Mab and her wrath gathered up their courrage and put their heads on the block as she went into the battle and backed her up. These friends are keepers, I say! I wonder what happens next, especially regarding the ending. It sets up the next books nicely and I can't wait to explore this series to full length:)
Tangled Threads - Jennifer Estep I'm not going to write a long review, but I will say a few things.

*I love Finnegan Fane--he's a great friend to Gin.
*I like how selfless Gin is and always tries to save the people who've been hurt no matter if she is thrown to the crossfire thanks to her actions while saving others
*Thank god that Donovan Cane decided to leave this sorry-a town because Owen Grayson is the one for Gin, I can feel it. It's incredible how every touch and caressing word by him shows how much he cares. How he came to help Gin in the middle of the night and took care of her, how he accepted her assassin past and present and is falling in love with her knowing all her flaws--this man is a keeper and I hope everyone finds their own Owen Grayson in their lives.
*I guess it's my problem since I'm reading these right after another without having to wait more than 6 months between the books, but it's getting tiresome to hear Gin (or rather Jennifer) telling us every single minor detail that has happened in previous books. I feel like I should skip the action scenes since they're all recapped in the next one.. -.-
*Oh and it's funny how all the bad guys call Gin a bitch. 'You're gonna die, bitch' etc--it's just so funny. You know it's the bad guy talking when you hear that line lolllls

Anyhow, still enjoying these:) A good, decent adult urban fantasy series.
Web of Lies - Jennifer Estep Really, really enjoyed this one. It wasn't as steamy as the first one, but Gin has definitely improved from being a sassy assassin (hahaha, it's funny if you say it quickly) to becoming a woman who helps because it's right and tries to help by being Karma's little helper through payback to the bullies of Ashland.

I was surprised by the twists and turns this book provided and quite pleasently at that. The events take place throughout a very short period of time, but so much stuff happens that it honestly feels longer than a few days. I'm glad that we got more scenes with Jo-jo and Sophia. We got to see different sides to all of the main characters and I enjoyed the banter and easy-going relationship between Gin and her so-called family of friends. I'm also glad that Violet and Eva somewhat became Gin's friends and I hope we'll see more of them in the following books. Gin taps more into her powers of ice and stone and her magic will do pretty crazy things in Web of Lies.

And what would my books be without some romance? There's a hint of a new romance between Gin and a guy named Owen whom I adore *fangirl alert* Did I like detective Donovan Cane in book #1? Yes, the smexy scenes were hot! I just think he's a coward for not giving Gin a chance and judging her by her ruthless reputation. There is no way I'm staying on a shinking ship so I bought myself a ticked to Gin-and-Owen-happily-ever-after-land and that's where I'm hoping this ship will sail.

Overall, it was a decent installment, I'm looking forward to next one which I'll probably start soon, if not tomorrow. I feel like the story just got going and I can't wait to see what's next to come! If you're a fan of Georgina Kincaid (by Richelle Mead), for instance, give this series a try! It's great urban fantasy and I'm so glad there're so many books in this series and I don't have to say goodbye to Gin and her friends for at least another 7 books.
Shadows - Jennifer L. Armentrout I liked this one. It was a decent prequel leading us into the world of Luxens and giving us insight to why Daemon is so closed off and cruel to Kat in Obsidian. Dawson as the leading man in Shadows was awesome. I had no idea how much fire he held in him being the good brother and all and Beths was a pretty decend heroine as well.
Everbound - Brodi Ashton Actual rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

I waited pretty long before picking this up, didn't I? I had such a bad luck with my previous reads before Everbound and I wanted to read something I knew I'd enjoy. Well, ladies and gents, Ms. Ashton does not disappoint. Everneath's sequel was action-packed from the very first page and didn't stop surprising with its twists and turns until the very last one.


“I waited for you."
"But it's a race. Why did you wait for me?"
"I always wait for you. I'm always waiting for you.”



Everbound takes us into the world of the Everliving and it was such and original take inspired by ancient mythology and different classic authors, but it came to be something I've never seen before. This world Brodi Ashton has created is wonderfully crafted to these tiniest details and I'm so glad I got to be a part of this. All these challenges Nikki faced in the Everneath were well-written. Oh, and our beloved heroine was up to complete every challenge to save her man and even though some of the challenges were so gruelling they almost broke her physically and emotionally, she never gave up. Nikki Beckett has secured her place among my favorite heroines. She's kick-a!!!

What I loved about Everbound was that we got Cole's history and how he became and Everliving, although, I don't know whether to believe that story anymore. When I started this series, I was so sure I was going to love Cole and not feel a thing for Jack. I couldn't have been more wrong. I adored Jack in Everneath and I loved him in Everbound as well. We got more of his and Nikki's history and it was wonderful to read about. I am completely team Jack. No joke!

And then we have the ending. Ahhh..!!!!! I was so surprised and taken aback by what went down. I think it was a clever way of ending it. It wasn't fully a cliff hanger, more of a set up for book 3, but I can't help but feel anxious and worried. I was convinced that I knew his motives and that he truly cared about her, but now I don't know what to think. If some of you have any theories, mail me on Goodreads. I'd love to chat about it. I didn't want it to be this way and I have no clue what's about to happen next and even though I dislike the situation we and Nikki were left in, I like the feeling of jumping into unknown with Evertrue.

Overall, Everbound was hard to put down, I kept turning page after page to find out more. If you enjoyed Everneath, you're bound to enjoy its sequel which was crafted with wonderful ideas, well-written plot and well-developed characters. There were twists and turns waiting on every corner and Nikki is a great heroine to spend time with. The ending sets the tone for Evertrue perfectly even if I'm not happy with the way it happened, I knew it was coming at some point. I hope you guys enjoy(ed) this pretty just as much as I did. Read on, lovelies!

More of my reviews can be found my blog.
The Meeting (Vampire Academy, #1.1) - Richelle Mead I won't lie, I expected another scene. I know that it wasn't easy for Richelle to pick and write this since she's always said that Dimitri is such a mysterious character (I think we can all agree) and if she were to write something from his POV, he'd lose some of his appeal. I think so, too. I enjoyed this little scene and it didn't drop his mysterious vibe/allure in my eyes, however, I still would have wanted to read about some of the other scenes. Nicely done, though!
Left Drowning - Jessica Park It's been almost a year since I purchased Flat-Out Love in paperback. If a book is sold here, in Estonia, where we have 1.3 mln people and bookstores are the size of a three-room apartment, it's a pretty big deal if your book is being sold here. I saw ONE copy of it in my favorite store I like to go frequently and purchased it right then and there. There was no question if I was going to leave it to someone else. No! I wanted it all to myself. I haven't read it, but I will this winter. I've already written it in my calendar lol. I've read the first four chapters and I found it enjoyable, but it truly felt like a winter read for some reason so I put it on hold. I was expecting lots of awesomeness from Left Drowning and having talked to Jessica on twitter, I felt that this was going to be awesomesauce. Oh well..


“Your parents died. Your world fell apart."
I nod.
He puts his hand on my cheek. "You were left drowning"



The story. We have the same old same old--a broken hero and heroine. It's not another rape story nor is it a 'bad boy redeemed by the good girl'. No, it has its twists and turns which make the plot unique. Blythe is suffering from a heavy weight of guilt--killing her parents, not being able to save them when they died, destroying her brother's career as a soccer player. She's empty, trying to fill herself with numbness by drinking herself to obliviation. One day she meets Sabin who becomes her best friend quite soon. Note that she doesn't have any other friends in the campus before meeting Sabin. Christopher is Sabin's brother and they meet unexpectedly during one morning and form an instant connection. Blythe finds solace in Chris's brothers Eric and Sabin and their sister Estelle. They're all broken to pieces and their friendships starts to heal every single one of them in their own time, however, their suffers are far from over.

My thoughts. Ahhh, this is so hard for me to write. I didn't form any connections with Blythe whatsoever. She wasn't relatable to me and even though I believed her connection with Chris, I didn't feel the love. When they meet, Blythe spills the beans about her guilt in the first 20 minutes. They fit together well, I agree, but that was so soon. They fall in love against all odds, but don't get involved for quite some time. When they finally did, Chris screwed up so big that I became to loathe his character. It isn't a critique to Jessica's writing by any means, it's just something personal towards Chris. I understand his reasons, but my goddddd, he was such a jerk by doing this. Scratch that!! I didn't understand at all. How.. Oh, man! I didn't like the insta-love either. The reason behind their instant connection is explained later on, but it still didn't feel natural to me.

It isn't only about love though. Blythe forms connections to all of Chris's siblings. The stongest connection she had was with Sabin. I didn't like his character. I didn't get his humour, I didn't laugh at any of his jokes and their friendship wasn't that well developed for me. I don't get how they could form such a great friendship without us having seen it. It was too quick just as Blythe's relationship with Chris. There were 4 relationships I enjoyed: Estelle and Blythe, Eric and Blythe, Eric and Zach and, last but definitely not least, James and Blythe. That last one was the reason I kept turning the pages. Blythe and her brother James were the heart of the story for me. I didn't cry a single tear during this read, but I was close to tears when I read about these two. Their story is so raw and the road to healing was painful. I was happy with the way things worked out between them by the end of the book. I had my doubts if they were going to make it okay as being able to be brother and sister one day again and I was glad that they overcame their issues.

Overall, I do think that my disappointment may come down to many things. One of them being hype and the other being expectations. It's not just another broken characters get together story, it's a journey of healing and quite an original take on the shattered pasts. I just wasn't able to form connections with any of the characters and the best part of the story for me was the MC and her brother. I think it would have worked better as a dual point of view because Chris didn't steal my heart and he remained a mystery to me even after all the revelations we got. Perhaps having a look into his mind would have given me some sort of a connection with him. It wasn't a total fail for me and I'm still everexcited to read Flat-Out Love. Jessica is a good writer and in this case I'm pretty sure it was ME, not the book. I advise you still to give it a try and if you want a different opinion, Rachel at The Reader's Den absolutely adored this pretty and her review is gorgeous. Read on, lovelies!

_______________________________________

Original thoughts before reading:

Knowing Jessica Park and Jamie McGuire are friends and the main character is Blythe McGuire, umm.. Coincidence? No, I don't think so. But whatever, lol! I'm really excited for this. Summer 2013 needs to come faster.

More of my reviews can be found my blog.
April Showers (April, #1) - Karli Perrin I didn't remember anything from the blurb going into this one, but when I cracked it open, what I found was insta-attraction. I can totally deal with that. I liked the mystery guy and I enjoyed April and Isaac's banter. Then we have Lukas, the best-friend-material kind of guy who quickly becomes April's rock. I wanted more of that relationship to find her feelings towards him believable.

I can't talk about my feelings regarding April, her choices or anything regarding this book without mild spoilers. If you don't want to read them, stop now and scroll to the last paragraph. Ok, here we go.

I had a feeling about Isaac when he mentioned students getting out of hand at the parties. We soon find out that he's April's tutor. I was glad to see that April stood up for herself. However, when she cried about him and dreamed about the guy for weeks, thought about him constantly, it became too much. Did these two have chemistry? Yes. However, they had spent 5 minutes one morning and then one night at the first party of the schoolyear together and now she's mad that he "lied" to him about not being a student. Then.. she starts to lead on Lukas who she doesn't even have such strong feelings for. Sleeps with him and thinks that maybe she did rush indeed with getting it on so soon when all she can really think about is Isaac. Well, girl, you should have thought about it sooner.

When Lukas comes to tell her something quite shocking (which I didn't see coming), she freaks out. Cries her heart out for multiple days, doesn't attend any classes and drinks herself to obliviation. Wtf, April?! You love Isaac, you are obsessed with him and you like Lukas, yes, but he's more of a best friend to you. So now you're so terribly frustrated and sad and betrayed? I understand betrayed and being angry, but the girl just cried and cried and cried. Then she jumps right into Isaac when Lukas is out of sight. It just pissed me off. The love interests were pretty cliché though with their compliments and dialogue.

Ok, final paragraph. April just made wrong decision after wrong decision and I get that people aren't flawless and it's easy to judge looking at it from the sidelines, but she was so.. frustrating to spend time with. I was totally team Isaac. Lukas was nice and everything, but some people just don't have that spark with their love interests and I think it wasn't so much Lukas's fault, but the thing was that Isaac and April had that natural, effortless chemistry. I wish April had more of a backbone and did wright by her not what was expected of her. Isaac offered her so many possibilities to take their relationship and give both of them what they wanted, but she always complained and didn't fight for her feelings, his feelings. Their feelings. I hope she will in #2. I have theories about the sequel when it comes to the ending and who did this, what'll happen etc. I don't know if I'll give the sequel a try, but since this was a debut and I hope the plot and the characters will improve, I may give it another chance.