Losing It by Cora Carmack

Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible - a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren't embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognises her new theatre professor. She'd left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

Bliss is 22 and feels she is too old to be a virgin so she lets her friends talk her into going out for the sole purpose of getting laid. Turns out the guy she takes home is her new professor - awkward! So they have to ignore their feelings for one another ('cos you know - his job) and get on with it. But of course, that's an impossibility.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, the story is actually quite good with the whole one night stand turns out to be quite embarrassing when you realise you have to face the guy all the time now. But on the other hand, it adds to the stigma of being an older virgin. I realise that's probably not what the author was doing (or at least, I bloody hope she wasn't) but it's still a weird storyline.

Bliss is a "meh" leading lady, she honestly didn't make that much of an impression on me. Garrick (what?!?) is a decent (if slightly possessive) leading man - what annoyed me was that the author described him as British at the beginning and it took a while before we found out what she meant by that. I like to have a character's voice in my head but I didn't know which accent he should have so it was weird for me.

All in all, the book was OK. I might give the next one a read - at least it's not about being ashamed of being a virgin and feeling the need to screw a random stranger so ... bonus!


Book Depository: Losing It
Amazon UK: Losing It

Lament for the Living by David Nicol

What happens after the zombie apocalypse?

Set three years after the Outbreak that destroyed their lives, 'Lament for the Living' follows the inhabitants of the Sanctuary as their safe and secluded existence is threatened by a group of nomadic survivors.

When the Rangers of the Sanctuary head out to investigate a mysterious fire, they find the true nature of humanity and the societies that evolve after the zombie apocalypse.

Ultimately everyone has to choose: Survivor, or Nomad?

Sacks is one of the Sanctuary survivors, she patrols the area surrounding the Sanctuary every day but wants to be a Ranger (who travel further). When she finally gets her chance to go out with the Rangers, another group threatens the very existence of the Survivors and the peace they've created.

Nicol has created a world full of uncertainty and fear. He makes us feel for the zombies with the first chapter following a man that eventually gets Infected, this same man is also how we're introduced to Sacks and the Sanctuary. Sacks was saved when the outbreak first began and has only really known the Sanctuary as home since so seeing the Sanctuary being attacked through her (and other survivors' eyes) is particularly heart-string-tugging (if you're so inclined). It's like seeing your own home being terrorised.

Nicol's zombies are more old school than some of the ones in literature lately. They're slow and shambling, moaning and groaning and completely driven towards to people for feeding - they don't have thoughts and feelings like a lot of the modern ones do, and I really enjoyed reading them this way. Also, and I told Nicol this already as I was beta reading it, the character of Alex is so maniacally unhinged that I can't help but liken him to Begby from Trainspotting.

If you like old-school zombies and indie authors, this is recommended.


Amazon UK(Kindle only): Lament for the Living
Paperback copy from Createspace: Lament for the Living

Tempest Reborn by Nicole Peeler

Anyan may be trapped in an evil dragon and Blondie may be gone, but Jane knows one thing: she's not about to give up. She's ready to tear down heaven and earth to save her lover, despite those who believe he's lost.

Luckily for Jane, those who've given up on Anyan do not include those closest to her. Defying The Powers That Be, Jane and Company form their own crack squad of misfits, in whose hands the fate of the world may well rest.

With a little help from her friends, the Universe, and lots of snacks, Jane embarks on her greatest adventure yet, confident that with great sacrifice comes great reward. The question is, who will be that sacrifice?

Jane has just lost Anyan and Blondie and now she's expected to keep on fighting to get rid of the Red and the White. Unfortunately, nobody is entirely certain how to do that and whether she can get Anyan back. She fights on and the Creature helps her find someone who can help and she has hope that she can save Anyan while defeating the Red and the White.

Ah, the last book ..... wait that should say, Aaargh! It's the last book *sob*

OK, I think I have that out of my system. Peeler is on top form as usual with her writing, this last book is just as funny as the last five but also as serious as you would expect a possible "end of the world" book to be (well, an end of the world book that involved Jane True and her varying friends).

I was both looking forward to and fearing reading this book - I wasn't disappointed, it was a great ending to the series. Peeler is good at not leaving lots of open storylines so she didn't have a lot of things to tie off in this one. I have to say I wasn't in love with the ending - I won't say why but I just wasn't feeling it.

I loved this series and will continue to recommend it to people - I can also get my tattoo idea into play now that all the books are out.


Book Depository: Tempest Reborn
Amazon UK: Tempest Reborn

The Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox

It's never a good day when an ancient demon shows up on your toilet bowl. For Lizzie Brown that's just the beginning. Soon her hyperactive terrier starts talking and her long-lost biker witch Grandma is hurling Smuckers jars filled with magic. Just when she thinks she's seen it all Lizzie learns she's a demon slayer - and all hell is after her.

Of course that's not the only thing after her. Dimitri Kallinikos a devastatingly handsome shape-shifting griffin needs Lizzie to slay a demon of his own. But how do you talk a girl you've never met into going straight to the underworld? Lie. And if that doesn't work how dangerous could a little seduction be...?

Lizzie's adopted so when her maternal grandmother contacts her, she's excited to meet her ... until she locks her in her bathroom and then a demon attacks (from the toilet?). Turns out she's a demon slayer and her grandmother needs her help - her coven (yup, granny's a witch - a biker witch) needs Lizzie to slay a demon that they've been hiding from for several decades. When she comes into her powers, she also gets a protector - one she has the hots for - who also needs her help but, of course, doesn't just ask for it.

OK, so I wavered in my rating for this one - the beginning had me groaning at how horrid it was. Jars filled with random crap that happen to be spells? Demons coming from the toilet? And an annoying little talking dog? *groan* I had to really think about whether I wanted to keep reading it.

I stuck with it and, thankfully, the fairly interesting story sort of made it readable. Don't get me wrong all those things I listed, still exist and still make it annoying. Granny's biker covenmates are horrible characters, I just didn't like them at all. The dog gets a little less annoying but makes me glad my dog doesn't talk if that's what they're like.

This is not a book for anyone that likes something to sink their teeth into. It's a very light and fluffy read, not to be taken seriously. I've added the 2nd book to my GR TBR list 'cos I really just want to see what happens.


Amazon UK: The Accidental Demon Slayer

Follow the White Rabbit by Kellie Sheridan

For centuries, Wonderland thrived as the domain of beautiful bedlam and unapologetic madness. It was a place like no other. All it took was one girl slipping in through the cracks of the universe to start chaos spiraling toward order. In the 150 years since Alice's visit, the realm has become tainted — almost normal. Rabbits in waistcoats and playing card minions are little more than creatures of myth, and Wonderland is literally falling to pieces.

For Gwen, Rose, and Lucky, Wonderland is home, and yet they know little of its former glory. When the Alice prophecy resurfaces, they'll have one chance to use Wonderland's own legends to bring a little mayhem back into their reality. For she who controls Alice controls the fate of Wonderland.

Lucky gets transported from Wonderland to our world and in doing, Gwen believes her to be the key in bringing the new Alice to Wonderland. A Wonderland that is nothing like it used to be when the original Alice appeared - Gwen has hopes that the new Alice will help change the world just as the original Alice did.

I really enjoyed this novella - very quick read, I started it and finished it on one leg of my commute to work (just under an hour and a half). I've always loved the story of Alice in Wonderland - what child didn't love the characters and the world as they were growing up.

It was interesting trying to work out what old character each new character was going to be - Who is the new Cheshire Cat? Who is the new White Rabbit? Who is the new Mad Hatter? It's a good start to a new series putting a twist on an old favourite.


Amazon UK: Follow the White Rabbit

Country vs Country - Jane True

Haven't done one of these in a while, Country vs Country is when I compare the American and British covers of some of my favourite series. This time round it's Nicole Peeler's Jane True series.

Above are the US covers - by far, my favourite covers. As you will see below, the UK ones are very blah. I like the cuteness of these covers & that they're whimsical - it was the cover for Tracking the Tempest that put me onto the series. I saw it and thought, "This looks like a fun series" so I researched and bought Tempest Rising.

Now, if I had seen these covers first? I might not have discovered this amazing, sexy and funny series. The UK covers don't look like they fit the series. The UK publishers need to up their game a bit to compete with the US covers, methinks.

What covers do you prefer?

Shadow Embraced by Cheree Smith

No escape.

Those words haunt Scar's dreams. She thinks the creature that terrorises her while asleep isn't real, but when she's abducted and taken to a reform school meant to contain creatures too dangerous to function in society, she starts to wonder whether she isn't some monster.

She turns to an underground fight club full of vampires, werewolves and witches established by the students to control her urges, and who is she kidding, she loves to fight.

When fighters begin to disappear, turning Scar into the prime suspect, she must race to prove her innocence before her true nature is exposed.

The only problem is that she's not entirely sure she's innocent.

Scarlet likes to fight, when her parents ban her from seeing her friend she sneaks out with her and ends up attacking her. Next thing she knows, she's in some school for supernaturals - witches, werewolves & vampires. Each race doesn't really get on with the other so there is some segregation - except when it comes to a fight club type scenario. They are randomly told where and when their fight will be and will be punished if they're late. Scar discovers something else while she's in fight club - her partners are being attacked after they've fought her and it's starting to look like she's the attacker so she has to clear her name, but she's unsure as to whether it can be cleared.

Scarlet is one of those annoying female leads - she got on my nerves a lot! She's kind of egotistical and I can't seem to find any reason for it. The story itself was a good idea but I found the dialogue and character writing to be quite poor - the story is the only reason I'm giving this a 3/5 on Goodreads.

If you want a quick, light read then this is for you. If you're looking for something to sink your teeth into, try a different book.


Book Depository: Shadow Embraced
Amazon UK: Shadow Embraced

With All My Soul by Rachel Vincent

Kaylee Cavanaugh's taking her final stand!

After spending the last year undead, Kaylee has had enough of the paranormal creatures who have plagued her ever since she came into her banshee powers. Now she's ready to take her school back from the evil hellions, once and forever.

To protect her friends, Kaylee will need to find a way to turn her living incarnations of Avarice, Envy and Vanity against one another.

Yet when one more person close to her is taken, Kaylee realises she can't save everyone she loves without making some powerful sacrifices ...

Kaylee is sick of the constant death threats (and deaths) in her circle of friends and family. She decides it's time to end it all and comes up with a plan to finish the war with the hellions (well, mostly one in particular) once and for all. But then it gets taken out of her control when Avari decides to up the stakes.

Yet another one of my favourite series has ended. This saddens me so much - I like Tod and Sabine, and to a slightly lesser extent Kaylee, Sophie & Emma/(Emily). This book really finishes the series off with a bang.

There's happiness, there's tears, there's heartbreak, there's trauma. But most importantly, there's a kick ass story with some awesome characters that I will truly miss. I like the revelation about Kaylee & Tod's relationship (no spoilers from me but it's a good'un) and also seeing how Nash & Sabine's relationship is growing and changing - even though Nash is still a bit of a knob about Kaylee & Tod. And even though the ending of the book means the ending of the series, I really enjoyed it.


Book Depository: With All My Soul
Amazon UK: With All My Soul

Fall of Night by Rachel Caine

Thanks to its unique mix of human and vampire residents, Morganville is a small college town with big-time problems. But it isn't the only town with vampire trouble ...

Claire never thought she'd leave Morganville, but when she gets accepted into a graduate course at MIT, she can't pass up the opportunity. Saying goodbye to her friends, especially her boyfriend Shane, is bittersweet, and her new life at MIT is both scary and exciting. Enrolled in a special advanced study programme with Professor Irene Anderson, former Morganville native, Claire is able to work on VLAD, her machine designed to cancel the mental abilities of vampires.

But Morganville and its inhabitants are never really far from Claire's mind. When she begins testing her machine on live subjects, things quickly spiral out of control, and Claire begins to wonder whether leaving Morganville was the last mistake she'll ever make ...

Claire leaves Morganville (and her friends) to go to MIT on a special programme with one of Myrnin's former helpers. She takes VLAD with her and her new Professor wants to help her work on it - using a live vampire as the test subject. Meanwhile Claire's room mate is introducing Claire to a new level of creepiness - courtesy of her ex.

The penultimate book in the Morganville series - yes, sadly (very sadly) we are almost done with the wonderful town of Morganville and the weird and quirky residents. I shall miss my bi-annual dose of Myrnin, and I suppose Claire, Shane, Michael and Eve .... but mostly Myrnin.

This book surprised me by actually having Claire leave Morganville, I kept waiting for something to stop it from happening at the beginning - as normally happens in Morganville. But she does leave and I think it does a lot for her growing up and it definitely did something for her relationship with Shane. The story is told from Claire & Shane's POV - so yet another view into Shane's head which I loved before. It's so nice to read Shane's thoughts (and fears) on their relationship.

And what an ending! It's made me even more excited for Daylighters - even though I know as soon as I read it, the series will be finished. Which causes my face to do this :(


Book Depository: Fall of Night
Amazon UK: Fall of Night

Demonic Dora by Claire Chilton

She's finally managed to summon her first demon...

Dora Carridine is trying to summon a demon, but she's not very good at Latin and nothing ever works out the way she plans.

Her life is fraught with weekly exorcisms and having to watch her father's fire and brimstone TV show every Sunday. So, when Dora finally succeeds in summoning an incompetent demon lord, she's absolutely delighted when all hell breaks loose.

She thought summoning a sexy demon lord would be the answer to all of her problems, but her problems are only just beginning when her zealot parents try to burn her at the stake, and Dora is left with only one option — to escape and follow her demon straight into Hell.

Release Date 30th June 2013

So Dora is the daughter of a TV evangelist-type person (I don't know the proper words for them) and she likes to try and summon demons in her spare time so you know from the get go that this is not a happy pairing. She gets saved by the demon she (somehow) manages to summon and he takes her to hell where things aren't as great as Dora thought they'd be. For starters, her demon saviour (Kieron) has a crazy mother and a scary father and she has to stay with them and pretend she's dead - all while trying to ignore her sizzling feelings for Kieron and also ignore the constant come-ons from Kieron.

So I figure this book is YA but can't find anything to confirm it, generally I think YA is aimed at 15/16-19 year olds - if that is the age group this book is aiming for it is EXTREMELY immature and if it's aimed a younger age group? It seems TOO mature for that! The 2 main characters are very immature in behaviour but I would say the language was a bit too much for someone of 15 or under - now, I know kids swear but I think there's a difference between knowing it happens and actively encouraging it through literature. So I honestly don't know what age group it's aimed at.

I was hoping to like this, it sounds interesting and I thought I'd like Dora - what with her being a little goth rebel that doesn't like to fit in. I tried to like it - I really did - but it fell flat on its face with a big splat! The writing was subpar and the story was boring and unbelievable (I know it's about demons but some of the precursors to hell are completely crazy). For instance, Dora's father blames her for the demon saying she's possessed and after a failed "exorcism", he somehow manages to convince all the other adults in the town that Dora should be burned at the stake? I mean REALLY?!? Nobody in that whole crowd thought this was a wee bit weird and wrong?

Unfortunately, this isn't a book I would recommend to a friend.


Book Depository: Demonic Dora
Amazon UK: Demonic Dora