Monday 31 October 2011

Review: The Haunted by Jessica Verday

Product Details:
The Haunted (The Hollow #2) by Jessica Verday
Paperback 467 pages
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Released: September 2010
After a summer spent reclaiming her sanity and trying to forget the boy she fell in love with by the bridge where her best friend drowned - the boy who must not exist, cannot exist, because she knows that he is dead - Abbey returns to Sleepy Hollow, determined to leave the ghosts of her past behind.
Review:
The Haunted picks up a little while after The Hollow ends. Abbey has been spending her summer at her Aunt's farm house where she has been getting psychological help from a doctor about her 'hallucinations'. Abbey is horrified to find out that she must return home early in order to give a speech at the opening of the new bridge that has been built in Kristen's memory. Abbey is terrified by the possibility of seeing Caspian again after she has spent weeks trying to convince herself that he does not exist.

When Abbey returns back home to Sleepy Hollow, she does indeed see Caspian once again. After a brief meeting outside her house, she lets herself decide that he is real and that this is not her imagination. Whilst learning to accept the fact that she is in love with a ghost, Abbey also has to be tutored in Chemistry by Ben due to her missing so much of school and she has to work for her Uncle in his ice cream shop. With all of this going on, Abbey doesn't have much time to think about the mystery behind Kristen's secret boyfriend, D.

Abbey visits Caspian at the cemetery frequently and he starts to tell her more about his life as a ghost. When Abbey questions him about the fact that he was able to touch her once, Caspian tells her that he has discovered he can touch people on the date of his death, for 24 hours. Abbey makes Caspian accept the fact that she wants to be with him no matter what.

But of course, life isn't just that simple. When mysterious strangers with musical voices and freakish smells start appearing in Abbey's life, she discovers that there is more to her and Caspian's relationship and that she may be about to discover who was behind Kristen's death.

I loved The Haunted! I felt like the character personalities really shone through in this more than they did in The Hollow and Abbey really steps up as the Heroin. I really enjoyed Caspian's comical jealousy of Ben throughout the book and you really sense how desperately Abbey and Caspian want to be able to touch.

With a mega cliffhanger of an ending, I really can't wait to find out how it all concludes in The Hidden (which is currently being shipped to my door, courtesy of Amazon, as we speak - hurray!).

Royal Rating:


Sunday 23 October 2011

Review: Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

Product Details:
Paperback: 273 pages
Publisher: Poppy
Released: 5th September 2011

Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it's a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part, Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy's car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend's attention.

Lissa decides to end the rivalry once and for all: She and the other players' girlfriends go on a hookup strike. The boys won't get any action from them until the football and soccer teams make peace. What they don't count on is a new sort of rivalry: an impossible girls-against-boys showdown that hinges on who will cave to their libidos first. And Lissa never sees her own sexual tension with the leader of the boys, Cash Sterling, coming.
My Review:
This is the fabulous second novel by Kody Keplinger. Shut Out is a total girl power story based on the Greek play Lysistrata.
Shut Out is about the 10 year old rivalry between Hamilton High’s football and soccer team. Lissa, who is dating quarterback, Randy, is fed up of coming second best to his hatred of the soccer team. She finds out that she is not alone; all of the girlfriends of the football team are sick of the constant hatred between the two teams. Lissa come up with a plan. Her and the girlfriends of both teams decide to go on a strike. Not just any strike but a sex strike. They make a pact to withhold any sexual activity until the boys end the rivalry.

When the boys discover what the girls are up to, Randy starts to act differently towards Lissa. Throughout this, Lissa finds herself becoming increasingly attracted to Cash, the guy who flirts with everyone but won’t ever take things any further. Cash decides that the boys need someone to guide them into overcoming the strike and takes on a leadership role that brings both teams together. Soon, the strike becomes much more for the girls and Lissa starts to forget the reason that they started it in the first place. Things end up going further than the girls ever expected, and before long, there is full blown battle of the sexes going on.

The characters in Shut Out are just fabulous! Lissa’s best friend, Chloe, is a really powerful character who always speaks her mind. She takes part in the strike even though she doesn’t have a boyfriend. I also loved Cash. He is just adorable!
I really liked all of the female bonding session’s during the sleepover’s held by the girls. I loved the fact that they started to accept the truths about each other and realise that everyone is free to make their own decisions about their personal lives and that they shouldn’t feel pressured into changing that.
Shut Out is a fantastically funny read with a unique storyline and plenty of girl-power!
My Royal Rating:

Wednesday 12 October 2011

Review: Everlasting by Alyson Noel

Product Details
Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher:
Macmillan Children's Books
Released: 7 July 2011
Summary:
Everlasting is the sixth and final installment of the epic love story that has enchanted readers across the world. Ever and Damen have spent centuries facing down bitter rivals, jealous friends and their own worst fears-all in the hope of being together forever. Now in Everlasting, their destiny is finally within reach.
Review:
I've got to admit, I got a bit bored of this series. I found the penultimate book annoying and I was starting to get slightly fed up with it all. Needless to say, I was still looking forward to reading the last book, even if it was just to see the back of it.

I definitely enjoyed this book more than some of the others in the series, but I found myself losing interest with some of the plots. It was slightly predictable and I would have liked to have seen a more Jaw-Dropping twist in there somewhere.

I have to say that I did love the Shadowland storyline about half way through the book. That was the best thing about the story for me (probably because Roman was one of the best characters in this series in my opinion and it got boring once he was out of the picture!), after that I felt like the plot was dragging slightly.

I was also very disappointed with the lack of Miles in this book. I think he is a fabulous character and I wish he had a bigger role to play.

The end was good closure for the series but, again, was predictable. Overall, I'm glad I stuck with the series and I think the end is very satisfying for the fans.

Royal Rating:


Sunday 9 October 2011

Review: Shift by Jeri-Smith Ready


Details
Pages: 367
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Released: June 1st 2011
Goodreads Summary:
Aura's life is anything but easy. Her boyfriend, Logan, died, and his slides between ghost and shade have left her reeling. Aura knows he needs her now more than ever. She loves Logan, but she can't deny her connection with the totally supportive, totally gorgeous Zachary. And she's not sure that she wants to.

Logan and Zachary will fight to be the one by her side, but Aura needs them both to uncover the mystery of her past—the mystery of the Shift.

As Aura's search uncovers new truths, she must decide whom to trust with her secrets…and her heart.
My Review:
After totally falli
ng in love with Shade, I had very high expectations for Shift. And I was not disappointed! Shift carries on from where we left Aura and Logan at the end of Shade. What goes down next only adds to the confusion and mystery surrounding the Shift. Aura continues to face the challenges of uncovering the secrets of the Shift and now she must also discover the secrets about her mother. With the help of Zachary, Aura finds life changing information about who she really is.

Along with everything else going on, Aura also has to struggle with her feelings for both Logan and Zachary. Each have a place in her heart but she knows that she can't maintain a relationship with Logan and her strong bond with Zachary only confirms her feelings.

I loved the twists and turns in this book. There were defiantly some shocking moments with the characters, especially with Zachary. There was one scene in which I wanted to scream at him for being so stupid! There were also some really heart felt moments which may have brought one or two (thousand) tears to my eyes. And of course, there were defiantly some super hot scenes!

I also felt like I got to know a bit more about the other characters like Dylan and Megan, who just add to the awesomeness of the story. 

As for Aura herself, I think she is a fabulous lead character and I certainly can't blame her for being torn between Zachary and Logan because they are both super hot characters. Jeri has officially made me want to move to Scotland immediately in order to find a Zachary of my own!

Definitely one of my favourite books of this year so far. This is a sizzling hot read that you won't want to put down! I actually cannot wait for the final book, Shine, to be released in May 2012 (do I have to wait that long?!)

Don't forget to connect with Jeri on Twitter, she's super nice, and go grab a copy of Shift on Amazon RIGHT NOW!

My Royal Rating:




Monday 3 October 2011

Review: Lost It by Kristen Tracy

Details
Pages: 267
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Released: January 23rd 2007 
What would you do...
...if your best friend were plotting the annihilation of a small, furry neighborhood poodle? Or if your parents up and moved to an Outward Bound-type survival camp in the middle of the desert? How about if your grandmother bought you new bras and underwear -- and you actually thought they were a teensy bit, umm, sexy?

Most people would not react well.
Tess Whistle's junior year of high school is off to a fairly bizarre start. One might even say her life is spiraling out of control. But with her sense of humor firmly intact and her first real boyfriend on her arm, Tess is dealing with the ridiculous twists quite well, thankyouverymuch

Just wait until her shoes explode.
Firstly, when I read about 'Lost It', I completely expected it to be just another typical girl-losing-her-virginity story. I was totally wrong! Even though a big part of the book is about that, there's so much more to it!

This story really captures what it's like to be a teenager and to sometimes feel like your whole world is falling apart or that your losing your grip on reality. I think that the story holds a great positive message for teenage girls.

Secondly, I loved the characters. I thought that Tess's nar
ration was hilarious at times and I thought that her best friend Zena was a totally amazing character. In fact, I would have liked to have read a story from Zena's point of view because she is that awesome! I also like the fact that Ben seems to have a genuine love for Tess. There isn't anything fake about it. The best characters for me had to be Tess's Grandma. I just wish I had a Grandma like her!

Thirdly, this story is full of hilarious situations. The story of Tess losing her virginity under an upside-down canoe in the freezing cold is just so random! There are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments throughout.


If I had just one setback to this one, it was that the ending wasn't really enough for me, I wish there could have been a sequel.



My Royal Rating:

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