Review: Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test #2), by Aimee Carter

Title: Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test #2)
Author: Aimee Carter
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "Kate Winters has won immortality. But if she wants a life with Henry in the Underworld, she'll have to fight for it.

Becoming immortal wasn't supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she's as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he's becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate's coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.

As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.

Henry's first wife, Persephone."

My Opinion: Kate won her immortality at the end of The Goddess Test and then left to go spend her 6 months away from the Underworld, which she spent traveling with James. In Goddess Interrupted she returns home, excited to begin her new life with Henry, only to find him once again acting distant towards her. She does her best to reassure him that being the Queen of the Underworld is what she truly wants, but when Henry is kidnapped by Cronus, the King of the Titans, during her coronation, her world is turned upside down all over again. She goes on a quest to rescue Henry, but the only person who can really help her is the last person she wants to turn to - her sister, Persephone, Henry's first wife and the woman he has pined away for for an eternity. 

One of the reasons I loved this book is because we get to spend a lot of time in the Underworld with Kate, and the descriptions of the Underworld are amazing!! It's not a vast, empty, dreary space as you might imagine, but since each person gets to pick the afterlife that they feel they deserve, it's full of beauty and love as well as hopelessness and despair. 

I wish we could have seen more of Henry in this book, because, although he might have been present, he was so distant and vacant during this time that he might as well have been absent. There's a good reason for his apathy, and of course, there is a war to prepare for and all of the gods and goddesses are preoccupied by this, but I missed his playfulness. I feel like Kate really grew a lot in this book as she has to go WAY out of her comfort zone to help Henry, and the pacing of the book was excellent! There always seemed to be a lot of action going on, which made for a really quick read. I love this series so much and I'm really excited to read the Goddess Inheritance, especially after the huge cliffhanger at the end of this book!! :D

Review: The Goddess Legacy (Goddess Test #2.5), by Aimee Carter

Title: The Goddess Legacy (Goddess Test #2.5)
Author: Aimee Carter
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "For millennia we've caught only glimpses of the lives and loves of the gods and goddesses on Olympus. Now Aimée Carter pulls back the curtain on how they became the powerful, petty, loving and dangerous immortals that Kate Winters knows.

Calliope/Hera represented constancy and yet had a husband who never matched her faithfulness….

Ava/Aphrodite was the goddess of love and yet commitment was a totally different deal….

Persephone was urged to marry one man, yet longed for another….

James/Hermes loved to make trouble for others;but never knew true loss before….

Henry/Hades's solitary existence had grown too wearisome to continue. But meeting Kate Winters gave him a new hope.

Contents:
The Goddess Queen 
The Lovestruck Goddess 
Goddess of the Underworld 
God of Thieves 
God of Darkness"

My Opinion: I don't usually read anthologies because I feel like I need more time than a short story to sink my teeth into a character and really get to know them and find out what makes them tick, but in this case I already knew the characters well from reading the previous books in the series and decided to give it a try. Boy am I glad that I did!! This wasn't just a short bit of fluff written to keep us invested in the characters until the next book comes out - it gave us the chance to look back and find out how our favorite gods and goddesses became the people that they are today. In other words, we got the chance to see how and why they act like they do, to go back in time and gain major insight into their motivations and to gain a much better understanding of them, to fall more in love with the characters that we love (Henry and James, and sometimes Ava), and to maybe soften a little bit towards those that we don't (Calliope and Persephone). I was blown away by how much I learned about all of the gods and goddesses involved, and how that information made me feel like I had peeked inside their very souls and come away with a deeper understanding of just how much they have experienced in their long lives. I now wouldn't wish immortality on my worst enemy! To have to go on after such deep disappointments and know that you are forever tied to the people who hurt you the most - it depresses me just to think about it! 

I wish I had a favorite story to tell you about, but all five were amazingly written and heartfelt, so I can't pick just one. I think the two stories that broke my heart the most were Calliope/Hera's and James/Hermes'. If you never thought you would feel sorry for Calliope, I want you to read her story and then tell me you don't just a little bit. And poor James! Just because he always acts like not much bothers him, and he tells jokes to keep everyone else's spirits up , doesn't mean he hasn't suffered deep losses. 

I don't want to give anything away (being short stories, any bit of info might do that), but suffice it to say, this book is a must read for anyone reading the Goddess Test series!! You'll go into book 3 with a whole new appreciation for all of the characters, and that's not something that you want to miss :D

Review: Covet (The Clann #2), by Melissa Darnell

Title: Covet (The Clann #2)
Author: Melissa Darnell
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "Dangerous to be together. Painful to be apart. 

Savannah Colbert knows she broke up with Tristan Coleman for the right reasons. Most of all, to keep from killing him with her new vampire abilities. But try telling her heart. Now, lost in a sea of hostile Clann faces, Sav tries to come to terms with what she's becoming and what that means for her future. And that someone is doing their best to bully her into making a terrible mistake. 

Tristan can't believe Sav won't even talk to him. If being apart is her decision, fine. Just don't expect him to honor it. But even as he prepares to fight for the girl he loves, forces beyond their control take them both in directions neither could have foreseen or prepared for. 

A reckoning is coming...and not everyone will survive."

My Opinion: Things just never seem to go easy for Savannah Colbert and Tristan Coleman. Just when Savannah manages to prove to the Vampire Council that she can be around Tristan without giving into the siren's call of his Clann blood, they give her an ultimatum and force her to break things off with him. She doesn't have the heart to tell him right away,  instead waiting until their plane lands back home so she can enjoy the last few hours they have together, but things go from bad to worse when they get a phone call letting them know that the Clann thinks Sav and her father have kidnapped Tristan and done God knows what to him. In retaliation, they kidnap Sav's grandmother and when tragedy strikes, Savannah finally realizes that a relationship between herself and Tristan can only ever bring heartache to all of their loved ones, not to mention the two of them, and she keeps her word to stay away from him. Unfortunately, that's easier said than done because Tristan refuses to accept her decision, and goes to great lengths to be with her again.

I love the relationship between these two star crossed lovers just as much in this book as in the first! There's just something about them that makes you pull for them to get their happy ending, despite incredible hurdles placed in their way by both the Vampire Council and the witch Clann, with particular emphasis on Tristan's parents. There's real character growth here and the pacing of the story makes for a very quick read.  I enjoyed this book very much and am looking forward to reading the third installment in this series, Consume! :D

Review: My Wolf's Bane, by Veronica Blade

Title: My Wolf's Bane
Author: Veronica Blade
Format: ebook
Source: Author

From Goodreads: "Different species. Mortal enemies. It'll never work, but they'll die trying.

Autumn Rossi thought she was a normal teenager. Suddenly, she can outrun every critter in the forest, making her wonder if she’s even human.

When the new guy at school, Zack de Luca, witnesses a questionable scene, he unfairly pins her as stuck-up. He acts like he hates her, yet he keeps bailing her out of trouble. Not only is Zack both insufferable and irresistible, he seems to sniff her anytime he gets close.

As passion flares between them, Autumn isn’t sure which is more dangerous: her psycho ex-boyfriend, or falling for Zack — who’s risking his life just by being near her."

My Opinion: Whenever Veronica Blade comes out with a new book, I'm one of the first ones to start bugging her to let me read it, and since she's such an angel, she usually does! The reason I do this is because I have honestly loved everything she's written so far, but I will go so far as to say this is her best book yet! 

Autumn is almost 18 years old, and has been to more schools than she can count. For some strange reason, whenever someone starts asking her parents seemingly innocent questions about the family, they pick up and move to a new town, although her parents always tell her it's because her dad got a new job as a consultant and they have to move. Autumn is really liking her latest school since she was befriended by the popular kids and is even dating Daniel, the most popular guy at the school. Unfortunately, all is not as great as it seems since Daniel is starting to treat her more like a possession than a girlfriend, and her first friend at the school, Gina, is becoming unbearably snobby, especially towards Autumn's other good friends, Maya and John. Enter Zack, the new guy at school, who is extremely hot, and who seems to take an instant dislike to Autumn, accusing her of being stuck up, snobby and judgmental, just like Daniel! She doesn't know how to tell him that she's been trying to get Daniel alone to break up with him without the whole school watching it happen. Even though he supposedly can't stand her, he's always showing up especially when she needs him, e.g. when her car won't start or her tire is starting to go flat, he's always staring at her, usually with contempt, like she's doing something to piss him off, and strangely enough, he keeps sniffing her, although he totally denies it when she catches him doing it!

It seems like the fact that Zack keeps misjudging Autumn would be annoying, but honestly I was enjoying the fact that there wasn't an ounce of instalove between them so much that I loved it - and I just knew that when they eventually got out of their own way and got together it would be SO much better because they are two really strong people, both physically and mentally, neither one willing to back down from what they feel is right. And was it ever! 

Just before her 18th birthday Autumn begins noticing changes in herself - she's becoming stronger and faster, has the ability to heal at an alarming rate, and her senses of smell and hearing are acutely heightened. She spends time trying to find out where she's getting her "superpowers" from, checking the internet for anything like them. She can't talk to her over-protective parents about it, and she doesn't want to talk to anyone else who would basically call her crazy for even thinking that way, so she investigates by going into the woods near her house and running and jumping way faster and way farther than humanly possible, and basically having a great time, which was really fun to read about.

I just can't say enough how much I loved this book! Autumn and Zack had amazing chemistry that took its time building, which made you really root for them as a couple. And yes, Zack is definitely a hottie! I can't wait for the next book in this series, and yes, I'm already bugging Veronica, poor girl, for reading rights! :D

Review: The Lost Prince (The Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten #1), by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Lost Prince (The Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten #1)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "Don’t look at Them. Never let Them know you can see Them.

That is Ethan Chase’s unbreakable rule. Until the fey he avoids at all costs—including his reputation—begin to disappear, and Ethan is attacked. Now he must change the rules to protect his family. To save a girl he never thought he’d dare to fall for.
Ethan thought he had protected himself from his older sister’s world—the land of Faery. His previous time in the Iron Realm left him with nothing but fear and disgust for the world Meghan Chase has made her home, a land of myth and talking cats, of magic and seductive enemies. But when destiny comes for Ethan, there is no escape from a danger long, long forgotten."

My Opinion: I've heard such great things about Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series, even though for some strange reason I've never read it myself (don't hate me! I kept meaning to but never found the time), and I loved her book The Immortal Rules, so I jumped at the chance to read The Lost Prince. I was really hoping that I would be able to follow it since I hadn't read The Iron Fey books, and I wasn't disappointed. If anything, The Lost Prince has made me determined to go back and read the other books because if they're half as good as this one (and if the reviews are to be believed, they are), then I'm going to love them too! The Lost Prince was wildly enjoyable, and the world of the Fey has never been as enticing as it is in Ms. Kagawa's very capable hands!

I loved that the book was told from the male POV, and that said male was Ethan Chase. He was the kind of guy that you want to get to know so you can break him out of his outwardly tough shell and find the gooey, soft center that you just know is hiding in there. Enter one extremely nosy reporter for the school newspaper by the name of Kenzie who, no matter how many times Ethan tries to bully her into staying away from him (for her own good of, course), doesn't take no for an answer, add a good sized dollop of major chemistry, and you have a couple to root for! I'm not kidding - they were so cute together! I think it's mostly because Ethan had always had to push people away because the fey are notorious trouble makers, and anyone who gets close to him could, and usually does, get hurt, and Kenzie just refused to accept that, because she saw something in him that was worth fighting for. She was also tough as nails when she needed to be, and Ethan was able to finally let her in because she proved to him that he could trust her and count on her not only when things were easy, but when they were very, very rough. She also rolled with the punches when she found herself in the fairy realm face to face with a sarcastic talking cat, who agreed to lead her and Ethan to the Iron Realm to talk to his sister Meghan, the queen of the Iron Fey, whom he had hadn't seen or spoken to since she left the family behind when he was just a kid to become the queen. He had to find her to let her know that outlaw fairies and half-fae were disappearing from the human realm and that he was being chased by some type of fairy that he had never seen before, and who were really, really bad news. 

I have to say that I absolutely loved this book and my first glimpse into Never Never, and after reading about the Iron Fey, along with all of the other interesting characters, I can't wait to find out more! Not only am I waiting impatiently for the next book in this series to come out, but I'm definitely going to get my hands on a copy of the books in the Iron Fey series so I can find out more about Meghan, Ash and Puck, and find out just what happened to Ethan when he was a young boy to make him hate the Fey as much as he does! This was a very exciting book with likable characters, lots of character growth, and a plot that moves along at a great pace and keeps you wanting more! :D

Review: Spare Change, by Bette Lee Crosby

Title: Spare Change
Author: Bette Lee Crosby
Format: ebook
Source: Copy from author for review

From Goodreads: "A Woman who is Superstitious to the Core…

A Boy who claims his Parents are Dead…

A Murderer who wants to Silence the Truth of What Happened.

Olivia Westerly knows what she knows—opals mean disaster, eleven is the unluckiest number on earth and children weigh a woman down like a pocketful of stones. That’s why she’s avoided marriage for almost forty years. But when Charlie Doyle happened along, he was simply too wonderful to resist. Now she’s a widow with an eleven-year-old boy claiming to be her grandson.

Spare Change is a quirky mix of Southern flair, serious thoughts about the important things in life, the madcap adventures of a young boy and a late change of heart that makes all the difference in an unusually independent woman. 

With a foul mouth, dark secrets and heavily guarded emotions, Ethan Allen Doyle is not an easy child to like. He was counting on the grandpa he’d never met for a place to hide, but now that plan is shot to blazes because the grandpa’s dead too. He’s got seven dollars and twenty-six cents, his mama’s will for staying alive, and Dog. But none of those things are gonna help if Scooter Cobb finds him."

My Opinion: I absolutely devoured this book and can totally see myself re-reading it many times in the years to come because I fell in love with the characters! Bette Lee Crosby has quite a Southern voice in her writing, reminiscent of Fannie Flagg in Fried Green Tomatoes. Her characters are very honestly written, with both the good and bad aspects of human emotions being brought to life. 

The story is told from the POV of multiple characters, which can become confusing if not done well, and thankfully, Ms. Crosby does it VERY well! Each character has a very unique voice, so you always know who is speaking. The first half of the book sets up the two groups of characters, Olivia and Charlie Doyle and how they get together, as well as Ethan Allen Doyle, his mother and father, and their lives. This leads us to the halfway point of the book, when Olivia and Ethan Allen finally meet. Olivia is a wonderful character: 58 years old, very superstitious about the number 11, who never wanted to have children and had given up on even having a family until she met Charlie. Unfortunately, their happiness is short-lived, but their marriage completely changes her outlook on life. Enter 11-year old Ethan Allen, Charlie's grandson who he never actually met, following his own personal tragedy. Ethan Allen has witnessed a murder and is running for his life, and the only place he has to go is to Olivia (in Charlie's absence), who doesn't know what to do with him, or how to help him. Along the way, they help each other deal with their grief and heal.

This is an extremely well written and edited book with very likable characters who you grow to care about and root for.  Throw in a murder and the search for the killer - before he can find and silence Ethan Allen, the only witness - and you have one hell of a book! I highly recommend this for all lovers of great Southern fiction :)

Review: Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1), by Gena Showalter

Title: Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1)
Author: Gena Showalter
Format: hard cover, 404 pages
Source: Won in a giveaway

From Goodreads: "She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real….

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….

I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish."

My Opinion: OMG! OMG! OMG! This book was as awesome as they get! I just this minute finished it and I had to get on here and say OMG! And just in case I need to spell out how I feel about it, I LOVED it! I figured I would because I love Gena Showalter's books in general, but I literally read it every second I could because it was just THAT good! I started it yesterday at about noon, and I finished it today at about noon, which is pretty good for me!

Alice has led a totally sheltered life due to the fact that her dad sees monsters where no one else does, and to keep his family safe he keeps them pretty much on lock down 24/7. On Alice's 16th birthday she guilts her parents into taking her to her little sister Emma's ballet recital, which means being out after dark, and because of this she loses her entire family at once. She moves in with her Nana and Pops, changes her name to Ali, and vows to fight the evil that killed her family. Add to this the fact that she has to switch schools and ends up with a new best friend and a weird relationship with the hottest, baddest ass at the school, and her new life is off to a roaring start!

I loved the characters in this book. Ali is such an innocent at the beginning of the book, but when she decides to take her head out of her .... umm, I mean out of the sand, she isn't fooling around! And Kat is the best friend that all of us want to have: she's funny, snarky, full of herself in the best way, and totally loyal to a fault. Then there's Cole, the bad boy that we were all attracted to in high school, but who scared the heck out of us! Ali and Cole have a totally unique start, and that's all I'm going to say about that because I don't want to ruin any surprises for you! Suffice it to say, they are meant to be together, if they can just get out of their own way to get there!

Seeing as how this is one of Gena's books, I probably don't have to say that the pacing is perfect and the action is awesome, but I will! The main characters were great, but even better are the secondary characters! Each one has their own unique voice and there's tons of growth from start to finish. I think two of my favorites were Nana and Pops. When they take Ali in, they go out of their way to make her feel comfortable, going so far as learning the slang that all the kids use nowadays, usually with hilarious results! One of my favorite examples is when they're talking to Ali before she goes to a party at her new friend Reeve's house:

"Reeve." Pops pursed his lips. "That sounds like a made-up name to me. What exactly will be crackalackin at this party? Will her parents be there?"

Again with the horrible slang, the adorable man. "We'll swim, talk, probably play video games and Ping-Pong," I said, sidestepping the parents portion of his interrogation. I hadn't heard one way or the other, but I suspected a big fat no.

Pops gave me the evil eye. "You're not going to get chewed, are you?"

I...had no idea how to respond to that. "Chewed?"

"Don't pretend to misunderstand, young lady," Nana said. "Chewed. Cranked. Trashed."

"You mean drunk?" Please, let them mean drunk. This discussion had already taken too many horrendous turns.

They are SO cute!! Overall, I loved everything about this book and can't believe I have to wait until October 2013 to read Book 2 of The White Rabbit Chronicles, Through the Zombie Glass!! Here's to hoping the time flies by :D

How about you? Have you read it yet, and if so, what did you think of it? If not, are you planning to?