Review: Werewolf Sings the Blues by Jennifer Harlow

Title: Werewolf Sings the Blues
Author: Jennifer Harlow
Series: A Midnight Magic Mystery #2
Publication: March 8th 2014 by Midnight Ink
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Review copy provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

 

The last thing Vivian needs is to be thrust into a werewolf war

If Vivian Dahl's life had a soundtrack, every song would be the Blues. She's pushing thirty, her singing career is going nowhere, and the partying lifestyle is taking its toll. Plus, a mysterious man is stalking her. But when she's abducted from a singing gig, Vivian is surprised to see her stalker become her savior. Jason is her werewolf rescuer sent by the biological father who abandoned her as a baby. Finding herself on the run, Vivian drives across America with the enigmatic Jason and learns about the werewolf war her father's pack is caught in. Now that an opposing pack has targeted her, Jason will stop at nothing to make sure Vivian's song isn't cut short.

Werewolf Sings the Blues takes if I'm not mistaken place eight years before the first Midnight Magic Mystery book, What's a With to Do. I did like the idea of reading Vivian and Jason's story of how they came to be together but it wasn't as good as the previous book. Overall I did like it but I didn't love it. 

Vivian wasn't at all how I pictured her. In the beginning of the book as we get to know her we find out she uses drugs, drinks a lot and tries to make a living of singing which hasn't worked out like she'd hoped. So clearly she's very damaged. Damaged people are the most interesting to read about in books I think, though. But I have to admit that I wasn't too sure in the beginning if I was going to like reading in her point of view. Throughout the book she did grow on me, however. She turned out to be very fierce and knows how to kick ass if she has to. Not my favorite female character ever but I liked her spunk.

Jason is someone totally different. Although the oppossite from Vivian, he also was very damaged with what he went through with his father. But still, he knew how to love fiercely and didn't let his past put him down. I loved that about him. I loved him. And I do think he's a good fit with Vivian. 

The story wasn't much of a mystery like the previous book and I couldn't seem to like it as much as I loved What's a Witch to Do. But there were some pretty awesome moments in it so the good definitely outweighs the bad. One of my favorite moments were where characters from the F.R.E.A.K.S series came in like Will and Oliver. I might've squealed out loud when I read Oliver was there. Also George and Mona from What's a Witch to Do made an appearance. And of course Adam Blue was there too. It's always nice to see other characters come in. 

So overall, Werewolf Sings the Blues was a good read if you like werewolves, action and the paranormal as much as I do. It isn't the best book I've read from Jennifer Harlow but I did like it and read it pretty fast because I didn't want to stop reading this story. 

Favorite Quotes:

After a few breaths to calm myself, I put my shoes on, and get out of the car.
Hello.
My shittier-by-the-second life momentarily dissolves as I drink in the sight of my road-trip buddy. Without his shirt on. He must spend every spare moment at the gym. His pecs are bigger than my boobs, he has a perfect six-pack, and the rest of him might as well be chiseled in marble. I don't think there's an ounce of fat on him, and his skin's the color of milk mixed with honey. Yummy. I collect myself before he looks up and catches me. Eye candy fix achieved.

"I want to understand you," he says, as usual emotionless. Jesus Christ, it's like Spock's riding shotgun.

The man scarffed down five Big Macs like he was in a competition. I can add "almost only eats meat" to the werewolf file growing larger in my brain. Went through an entire box of Slim Jims too. I pity any cow crosses his path.

About The Author:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

Jennifer Harlow spent her restless childhood fighting with her three brothers and scaring the heck out of herself with horror movies and books. She grew up to earn a degree at the University of Virginia which she put to use as a radio DJ, crisis hotline volunteer, bookseller, lab assistant, wedding coordinator, and government investigator. Currently she calls Northern Virgina home but that restless itch is ever present. In her free time she continues to scare the beejepers out of herself watching scary movies and opening her credit card bills.

Review: Galilee Rising by Jennifer Harlow

Title: Galilee Rising
Author: Jennifer Harlow
Series: Galilee Falls Trilogy #2
Publication: December 10th 2013 by Devil on the Left Books 
Genre: Urban Fantasy ~ Adult
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

 

Love in the time of superheroes...

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” -Confucius

The year since Galilee Falls lost its reigning superhero Justice has not been kind to Joanna Fallon. She's lost her best friend, her boyfriend, her badge, even her mind. The city of Galilee Falls hasn't fared much better with supervillain related crime skyrocketing to cataclysmic proportions. Deliverance for the city arrives in the guise of The Royal Triumvirate--King Tempest, Lady Liberty, and Lord Nightingale--who vow to be the heroes the city needs. Salvation for Joanna appears in the brilliant form of Dr. Jem Ambrose, another lost soul in need of saving. But salvation comes with a high price. When Emperor Cain, an old nemesis of The Triumvirate, decides he will stop at nothing to make sure there is no city left to defend, it is up to Joanna to rise not only for her city, for her new love, but for herself as well…

I'm going to say this right away. I was slightly disappointed with Galilee Rising. I mean, it was still a likable book and the last 10 to 7 chapters I couldn't stop reading because I wanted to know what was going to happen... yet it wasn't enough to wow me like the first book, Justice, did.

I guess the main reason for not loving this book was that a lot had changed between the ending of Justice and the beginning of Galilee Rising. It was quite shocking. I guess I just do not well with change. I did approve of some of the changes but mostly I was left feeling meh about it all. Also some things were really obvious like who King Tempest, Lady Liberty and Lord Nightingale were in the real world. At least this time Joanna found out too pretty fast unlike with Justice. 

I also had a hard time getting into the book. It took me at least the first 50-60% to really start enjoying it. Right about when the true action began. I do love the action scenes and the heroes and villain fighting. There were also some very shocking things revealed. And why do my favorite heroes always have to die?

I loved Joanna in the first but but in this one I liked her a lot less. The good thing is, after a year, she's starting to get back on the right track, changing her life and finding new love. That's all good and well but I really disliked the romance. Actually, I just disliked Jem. Maybe other will love him but I just didn't. It happens. As for the other characters I loves the new ones like Lexie and Brendan. But I missed Harry. Due to everything that happened in the year between now and the last book he wasn't as much in Joanna's life. I felt so sad about it. Maybe I shouldn't have focused so much on that but there you go.

Overall, Galilee Rising was a likable read. I didn't love it but it wasn't awful either. It was a slightly more darker book than Justice in my eyes, which is always a plus. I am curious to see, though, how the third book is going to turn out!

About The Author:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

Jennifer Harlow spent her restless childhood fighting with her three brothers and scaring the heck out of herself with horror movies and books. She grew up to earn a degree at the University of Virginia which she put to use as a radio DJ, crisis hotline volunteer, bookseller, lab assistant, wedding coordinator, and government investigator. Currently she calls Northern Virgina home but that restless itch is ever present. In her free time she continues to scare the beejepers out of herself watching scary movies and opening her credit card bills.

ARC Review: Mistress of the Wind by Michelle Diener

Title: Mistress of the Wind
Author: Michelle Diener
Publication: December 23rd 2013 
Genre: Fairytale Retelling ~ Adult
Purchase: To Come
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Bjorn needs to find a very special woman . . .

The fate of his people, and his own life, depends on it. But when he does find her, she is nothing like he imagined, and may just harbor more secrets than he does himself.

Astrid has never taken well to commands. No matter who issues them . . .

She's clashed her whole life with her father, and now her lover, the mysterious man who comes to her bedroom in darkness and disappears to guard his mountain by day as a bear, is finding it out the hard way. And when he's taken by his enemies, no one is prepared for Astrid's response.

It is never wise to anger the mistress of the wind . . .

This novel is a retelling of the fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon.

My Thoughts:

Mistress of the Wind is a very special book to me. For one, it's a beautiful story and two, I was one of the beta readers and my name is in the acknowledgements. So I just want to thank Michelle again here for asking me. 

"She was not just Astrid. She was something more."

Though I didn't give this book as high a rating as I did in the past for the other books written by this author I did like it. It was an amazing retelling but I didn't enjoy it as much as her other books. But I must say that when a read the completed story I enjoyed it more. I really loved the characters and Michelle's writing was gorgeous.

"She didn't care if there was no hope in Norga's palace. She was bringing hope with her."

Astrid is definitely one of my favorite female character. I love all female characters Michelle creates actually, but Astrid had really something special. I love how slowly she finds who she really is. It was a joy reading about her. 
Bjorn was another amazing character. Though I wasn't so sure of him the first time I read this book I fell in love with him slowly and even more so the second time I read it. 
But my favorite character was Jorgen. I loved him right from the start and his dry humor made me laugh several times. 

"Because no matter how small the chance, she was willing to risk everything."

Also this is an adult fairytale retelling and I just love that because most fairytale retellings are young adult so it's nice to see that adult ones can just be as enjoyable to read. 

Gorgeous writing and spunky characters, Mistress of the Wind was a great retelling of East of the Sun and West of the Moon. Though not my favorite book by this author, I'm so glad I got to chance to read it and am once again awed by the way Michelle Diener can hook me with her words.

About The Author:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Michelle Diener writes historical fiction and fantasy. Her Susanna Horenbout & John Parker series, set in the court of Henry VIII, includes In a Treacherous Court, Keeper of the King’s Secrets and In Defense of the Queen.
Michelle’s other historical novels include Daughter of the Sky, The Emperor’s Conspiracy and Banquet of Lies (loosely connected to The Emperor’s Conspiracy).

Michelle’s first fantasy novel, Mistress of the Wind, is set for a December 23, 2013, release.

Michelle was born in London, grew up in South Africa and currently lives in Australia with her husband and two children.

When she’s not writing, or driving her kids from activity to activity, you can find her blogging at Magical Musings, or online at Twitter and Facebook.

Review: Nearly Broken by Devon Ashley

Title: Nearly Broken
Author: Devon Ashley
Series: Nearly #1
Publication: June 4th 2013
Genre: New Adult
Format: e-book
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Kobo
Cover Rating: 4/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

e-copy provided by author in exchange for an honest review.

   

We’d both gone missing at one point, but Claire had one thing I didn’t. Someone to notice. So why was I the one still here and she the one still gone?

Nineteen year old Megan Smith has spent the past year working in a small town diner in the middle of nowhere. Life is quiet, simple, safe. Then comes the news that her look-a-like has gone missing.

Claire.

Still damaged both physically and mentally, Megan's not looking to be noticed. Wherever she goes from here, it's a road she needs to take alone. But when Nickolas Ellis takes the job as the new nightshift cook, it scares her how easily her defenses crumble down, down, down for him. But there are secrets she can't bear to share with just anyone, unspeakable acts that continue to haunt, and when the similarities of Claire’s abduction couples with the fear of an unwanted visitor in town, the urge to run before it all happens again intensifies, threatening the only happiness Megan's ever found.

New Adult Romantic Suspense / Dark Realistic Fiction
Recommended for 17+ for mature and disturbing situations, language and sexual content.

~My Thoughts:

The author, Devon Ashley, gave me this book for review month ago. Due to life getting in the way I didn't get to read this until now but I'm glad I finally did read it. Even though most people think three star ratings aren't so great, it doesn't mean this book was bad or anything. Let's just get that clear. It was a great book but not four or five star material. Now that we've got that out of the way...

I definitely liked where the story was going when it started. I really liked Megan and the mystery that surrounded her. It wasn't clear right away what really happened to her. The only thing we know was that according to her she did something awful and was on the run from someone. And then Nick came into the picture. I liked him too. Very much, actually. But what I didn't like when everything got revealed, I can't tell what exactly of course if I don't want to spoil things but I didn't like when all these things got revealed about Megan and who she really is and who Nick is all alone and how he handled it. That just put me off a little bit but other than that he was pretty great and sweet and so understanding.

I couldn't help compare this to another book that also involves human trafficking, although that book was even darker but I didn't like Nearly Broken as much for some reason. Anyway, I think some parts of the storyline just didn't feel right to me. It felt like the story was devided into these parts. The first part where Megan meets Nick, works with him and start their relationship, then the part starts where Megan finds out things and then the part where shit is hitting the fan. And I must admit I lost a little bit of my interest during the part where Megan found out who her family is. Just was a tad boring. But I liked the story overall well enough. I liked most of the characters and not only Megan and Nick, although Megan was definitely my favorite because she was so strong and sometimes snarky and she went through a lot. I really wanted her to be happy. And Nick too.


Overall not my favorite new adult book ever but Nearly Broken by Devon Ashley was a likably read with a bit of darkness that I love in some books. The characters were all great as was most of the story. I also had nothing to bad to say about the writing. I really liked it and Megan's voice. I only wish some things were handled a little different but aside from that I do want to read the next book and see what's going to happen next because the ending was really interesting. I'm sure it's going to have a twist in Nearly Mended. 

Favorite Quotes:

And I hated to admit it, but his smile warmed my heart a little, despite the hardened shell I kept around it for protection.

I no longer liked the night. The darkness was where he lied in wait, waiting for it to swallow me whole each night, suffocating my senses with fear.

After that heart-stopping kiss, my crazy grin was so wide I could've played back-up for the Joker in Batman.

Arc Review: My Name is Rapunzel by K.C. Hilton

Title: My Name is Rapunzel
Author: K.C. Hilton
Publication: December 1st 2013
Genre: Young Adult ~ Fairytale Retelling
Format: e-book
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Review copy provided by author in exchange for an honest review.

   

My tale has been told again and again, and I’ve heard each one. Except for my hair, I barely recognize the pitiful renditions. Muddled versions, crafted to entertain laughing children…but the children wouldn’t have laughed if they’d known the real story. It wasn't their fault. They didn't know the truth. Nobody did.

My name is Rapunzel. I will tell you my story. I will tell you the truth.

~My Thoughts:

My Name is Rapunzel by K.C. Hilton is a beautifully written fairytale retold by a great author who knows how to keep her readers on edge.

I liked this book a lot. I felt like I stepped into the time of fairytales, dragons and witches myself. It was so imaginative! 
I loved the way the author wrote the main character, Rapunzel over the centuries and you can definitely see a change in her. At the end, she definitely wasn't the girl we met at the beginning of this book. Great character building!
I also liked a lot of the other characters. There were quite a few but I do have to say I loved John and I'm glad in the end he got what he wanted, which was to fly. I was really touched by that turn of events, which brings me to the topic of the ending of this book. A lot was happening and I kept reading page after page to see how it was going to turn out and I must say, one of the best ending I have ever read. I was really glad by the outcome of it all and how everything fit together. 

In the first part of this story, though, I had a little difficulty getting into the story because everything seemed to go so very slow. I wanted things to start happening and picking up but that has probably more to do with my personal likings than the author's writing. I did love the second half of the book when things began fitting together more and more and when we came to the year 2013, modern times and all that. 

Overall this book was very likable and quite funny, too. And doesn't everyone loves a good fairytale every now and then? Especially when it's retold in the way K.C. Hilton did it. I'm so glad and honored I got the chance to read the arc and hopefully provide good feedback. 
I would recommend this book to readers of fairytale retellings no matter what age. And even if you don't usually read those kinds of books I would recommend it anyway because I loved the author's writing so much. It really was something!

Favorite Quote:

"Rapunzel. Rapunzel," John said the words slowly, like if he spoke fast he would lose his grip on the vines. "Throw down..."
"Don't you dare say it!"

About The Author:

Born and raised in Aurora, Illinois I spent my childhood climbing trees and playing street games with the neighborhood kids. I was a proud tomboy, until the day I didn’t want to hike the land to an old graveyard. From that point forward I was considered a “girl”.

At the age of seventeen I moved to Kentucky and eventually began to raise a family of my own. Having worn several “hats” my life has been an adventure all on its own. Still, to this day, I yearns to be a mechanic and own a pink toolbox with pink tools.

I can usually be found updating my website, reading great books, watching awesome movies or creating videos for my YouTube channel. Most days I craves Diet Coke, pizza and chocolate, in no particular order.

I don’t read scary books or watch horror movies… I’m way too scared! Lol.

Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Website | Tumblr | YouTube

Review: Suit & Fangs by Marian Tee

Title: Suit & Fangs
Author: Marian Tee
Publication: July 28th 2013
Genre: New Adult ~ Paranormal
Format: e-book
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

e-arc provided by author in exchange for an honest review.

 

Caros are what vampires used to be. We are slaves to pleasure, power turns us on, and each and every one of us has a weakness to hide.

All things sparkly and beautiful are 18-year-old Caylie Sonora’s greatest source of pleasure, and no one is more irresistibly gorgeous and seductive in her eyes than the quiet and old-fashioned Luka. All the girls in school want to belong to him, craving both his body and authority. They say that behind closed doors his coldly charming manners disappear, leaving behind a guy who’d take you so hard you’d be breathless and panting for more. But if Caylie has her way, all she’d take from him is revenge, using her body to break his heart.

The most carnal of passions is the only chink in 19-year-old Luka Georgiades’ armor, but his obsession has only always ever to do with Caylie, whose body he desires to possess, in every imaginable position. The half-human Luka may be his race’s most cunning defender, with murderously precise skills and an even deadlier mind, but even Luka is powerless against fate, which forces him to hurt the girl who’s his everything…again and again.

They are each other’s weakness, and the game of love has never been so destructive.

~My Thoughts:

When author, Marian Tee, asked me to review her new book, Suit & Fangs, of course I said yes. I loved her other book, Drawn, so I really wanted to read and review this, too. So thanks Marian!

Suit & Fangs is a really quick read. I love quick reads. It reads fast and is quite entertaining as a whole. Though I was sometimes confused with some parts of the story, especially at the start, trying to keep up with all the information that was thrown at me, I did like it. 

There were some interesting characters but I must say I wasn't Caylie's too biggest fan at first because she's very spoiled (she says so herself!) and kind of shallow sometimes but as the story went on I found her easier to read about as I got to know her better. 
Luka (gods, I love that name! ^^) on the other hand I really liked. How could I not? I'll admit, I wasn't too sure about him at first because he seemed too serious all the time but also as I got to know him better, I started to love him more and more. 
The two of them together was perfection. The romantic scenes were simply sizzling with heat. Loved it! I must say Marian writes awesome love scenes. 
As for the other characters the ones I liked the most were Caylie's friends, Ever and Sabina. They seemed like great friends to Caylie. :-)

The overal plot of the story wasn't too great but not awful either. I'm feel like I'm in a in between with everything. I like it alright but it's not the best I have ever read. But even so I'm definitely not regretting to have read this book. It has a great and different take on vampires, one I have never read about before so that's really great on its own.


All in all, Suit & Fangs by Marian Tee is a steamy paranormal romance with a very original take on the vampire genre. If you like vampires, steamy romance, danger and excitement, you should definitely try this book out!

Favorite Quotes:

What the hell had he been doing the past two years or so that he had become so powerful, so dazzling it was like he had swallowed an entire star and absorbed all its energy.

"You were like a brother to me," I said brokenly. "A kindred soul even though we're completely different. You made me think you loved me back, but you didn't. You threw me away so easily."

Find the author at:

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Purchase Suit & Fangs at:

Amazon

Review: PODs by Michelle Pickett

Title: PODs
Author: Michelle Pickett
Publication: June 4th 2013 by Spencer Hill Press
Genre: Young Adult ~ Dystopian
Format: Arc, 313 pages
Cover Rating: 3/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

Copy received from publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Seventeen-year-old Eva is a chosen one. Chosen to live, while others meet a swift and painful death from an incurable virus so lethal, a person is dead within days of symptoms emerging. In the POD system, a series of underground habitats built by the government, she waits with the other chosen for the deadly virus to claim those above. Separated from family and friends, it's in the PODs she meets David. And while true love might not conquer all, it's a balm for the broken soul.

After a year, scientists believe the population has died, and without living hosts, so has the virus. That's the theory, anyway. But when the PODs are opened, survivors find the surface holds a vicious secret. The virus mutated, infecting those left top-side and creating... monsters.

Eva and David hide from the infected in the abandoned PODs. Together they try to build a life--a new beginning. But the infected follow and are relentless in their attacks. Leaving Eva and David to fight for survival, and pray for a cure.

First of all a thank you to the people are Spencer Hill Press for sending an arc of PODs to me. I honestly had forgotten all about requesting it so it came as quite a great surprise when I received it in the mailbox. 

At first I wasn't too hopeful about this book because I wasn't sure I was going to like it. The main reason for this was only the fact that after reading so many dystopian books now, they all seem to blend in together. But luckily for me, I found PODs to be quite original and not like other dystopian books. 

PODs starts out a little before people actually know about the big, bad virus. That's one reason why it's so different from other post-apocalyptic books. The other reason is the time distribution. This book takes place of a course of, well, I really don't know how long but it's got to be probably over a year or two. Because when the people are in the pods that's at least fifteen months. Anyway, when they're in the pods we read about what they go through over those fifteen months but that's only a part of this story, there's so much more after that.

The part when they're all in the pods has got to be my favorites. I loved the way they all slowly grew toward each other and how they became a real family. 
PODs is written in Eva's point of view and I actually liked her. It's hard for me sometimes to like a female in young adult fiction because we all know how irritating they can be. Eva wasn't the most perfect character I've ever read about but I at least liked her. She was spunky and really strong, considering everthing she had to go through. And she didn't let herself be put aside because she's "womanfolk". Go, girl!
I also liked the other people in the pods, well most of them anyway. 

However, I wasn't a big fan of David, who's Eva's boyfriend. I just didn't feel him. And also the romance was a little meh for me. I liked to see more between them than always making out, almost getting hot and heavy and then getting bothered by someone. Also outside of the pods was this an issue. It was really irritating me at one point. 
There were some flaws in this book for me like the romance and also that I would like to hear more information in the beginning about the virus because I couldn't get how quickly the gorvernment got things going about the whole pods selection thing. And also I missed the characters from the pods once they were all seperated. I was so sad at that! And even at the end we don't know what all happened to them. I even want to know what happened to that jerk Josh. And I want to know if Eva's parents did die or not. At least Tiffany and her baby were there. I can't wait to read the sequel!

But still even with the flaws, I really liked this book. I read it in les than two days and that's always a good thing with me. I loved reading about Eva and I really liked the writing style. It was really easy to read and I'm really hoping there will be a sequel. I want to read again about all the characters!
Also it's really scary how this actually could happen. A virus that wipes out the entire human race.

Overall, PODs was a fast-paced, easily read, exciting dystopian/science-fiction-ish book that I know a lot of people are going to like. Like a lot of books it has some flaws but the action and great characters definitely make up for it. I would recommend it to dystopian book fans all around. 

"The sequel to PODs, "The Infected, a PODs novel," will release through Spencer Hill Press in November 2014 in paperback and e-book format."

Michelle has been an avid reader since a young child. She began writing for personal enjoyment in college, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in accounting. Deciding sitting in a cubical all day was cruel and unusual punishment, she decided to do what she really wanted to--share her passion for reading and writing with others. She wrote her debut Young Adult novel, PODs, in 2011. Michelle was born and raised in Michigan. She now resides in a small community outside Houston, Texas with her husband, four children, a 125-pound lap dog, and a very grumpy cockatiel. Michelle writes adult and Young Adult Sci-Fi romance.

Find her also on:

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Purchase PODs on:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Fishpond | Kobo

Review: Persephone by Kaitlin Bevis

Title: Persephone
Author: Kaitlin Bevis
Series: Daughters of Zeus #1
Publication: July 6th 2012 by Musa Publishing
Genre: Young Adult ~ Mythology ~ Retelling
Format: ebook, 237 pages
Cover Rating: 3/5
Overall Rating: 3/5

  

There are worse things than death, worse people too.

The “talk” was bad enough, but how many teens get told that they’re a goddess? When her mom tells her, Persephone is sure her mother has lost her mind. It isn’t until Boreas, the god of winter, tries to abduct her that she realizes her mother was telling the truth. Hades rescues her, and in order to safely bring Persephone to the Underworld he marks her as his bride. But Boreas will stop at nothing to get Persephone. Despite her growing feelings for Hades, Persephone wants to return to the living realm. Persephone must find a way to defeat Boreas and reclaim her life.

~My thoughts:


When I won this book recently I was really happy because I love reading anything involving Greek mythology. I'm a huge fan of the Covenant series by Jennifer L. Armentrout and the Oracle of Delphi series by Diantha Jones, so I was really excited to read Persephone. The only retelling I've read about her and Hades's story was Everneath by Brodi Ashton but still I can't quite compare all. 

I really liked this book when I started it. I liked Persephone's voice and was excited to see what's going on in her life and why a lot of people acted weird around her and if the feeling of being watched really happened or was in her head. There was a lot of weird stuff going on like, suddenly stuff started freezing and a rockstar giving her his number. That doesn't happen in real life. But when Persephone's mother tells her she's a goddess, Persephone thinks her mother has gone off the deep end. And really, who wouldn't react like that? That one of my favorite things in it. How Persephone didn't believe it for a while until she faced an actual god who wanted to hurt her. I feel like in most young adult books, heroine's believe too soon whatever is happening to them. This made is actually realistic for a change. 
Anyway, before Persephone knows what's happening to her, Hades (Yes, girls, start swooning!) has swept her off to the underworld and marked her as his bride. And that's how the story truly starts taking shape.

I quite like Hades. He isn't what you expect the god of the underworld to be like. He doesn't have flames as hair or is evil, as he describes, he's really a nice guy actually and a good ruler. Of course has his flaws and darker sight but he was great. My favorite scenes almost always involved him, so that does say a lot. I loved his demeanor to Persephone. You can tell right away he cares for her and over the weeks and months I saw their relationship growing. I only wished his declaration of love was put a little differently. I can't quite explain what my problem was with it. 

One of my favorite things in this whole book was how the underworld was pictured. Not a dank and dark cave or anything. Persephone and Hades lived in an amazing place where you can decorate your room anyway you like by just thinking about it. The underworld had also stores, where people actually worked because they liked doing what they did. It even had something that looked a lot to Starbucks. If that's not a nice afterlike than I don't know what is!
I actually really loved the minor characters like, Cassandra, Helen, Thanatos, Charon... And what great book doesn't have one of the characters betray the others? :)

There were some minor points that made me not love this book the whole way. Sometimes I felt like the scenes were too fast or hurried. Like, one moment there's a scene going one and the next it ends abrubtly. Also the diologue could've been a bit better. 
Most of the time I had a hard time liking Persephone. She was nice and all that, but she was so naive. The only times I liked her was when she was in the beginning, when she was with Hades, and at the end when she went all goddess on Boreas. That actually kind of kicked ass. And some small part of me wished Hades would've been a little darker like you expect Hades to be. I would imagine him a little more dominant and maybe a little scary but this Hades was amazing too anyway!


So overal Persephone by Kaitlin Bevis was a very likable read. The few minor points I had deminish it's greatness a little but it doesn't change the fact that I did enjoy this book. It's really fast-paced, with a lot of action and awesome godlike powers. I am definitely looking forward to reading the second book, Daughter of the Earth and Sky. I hope I can get my hands on it soon!

~Favorite Quotes:

“Charm me into giving you the red M&Ms. They’re my favorite."
I looked Hades in the eyes. "Give me the red M&Ms."
"Still not good enough."
"Give me the damn M&Ms," I snapped.
He snickered. 'That wasn’t very charming.”

“Reality has teeth and claws. It's rarely pretty and never fair. Haven't you figured that out yet?”

I wanted a guy like Orpheus. Orpheus has gone through Tartarus to rescue his wife—that was love. Hades probably didn't even know the meaning of the word love.

~About the author:

I spent my childhood curled up with a book, and a pen. If the ending didn’t agree with me, I rewrote it. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, and I spent high school and college learning everything I could so that one day I could achieve that goal. I graduated college with my BFA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing, and am pursuing my masters at the University of Georgia.
My young adult fiction novel “Persephone,” will be released this summer. I also write for Athens Parent Magazine, and truuconfessions.com. I have also published several short stories, my latest, Siren Song, is available on amazon.com.

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