It takes a special talent to make someone DNF a book at 90%, but that's what happened here. A great book is comprised of two pillars: good writing andIt takes a special talent to make someone DNF a book at 90%, but that's what happened here. A great book is comprised of two pillars: good writing and good plot. The writing was good, the plot was a mess.
Here was what annoyed me in this book:
- The author's note. Why authors feel the need to explain their work before you even read it is beyond me. I didn't get why Tamsyn felt the need to explain that Dane wasn't a cowboy. I mean, there is nothing in the novel that would even hint that he could be a cowboy. That one went right over my head.
- The plot didn't make sense. Dane's hatred towards Kennedy was just too contrived to be believable. And I also had a hard time buying that a girl would want to sleep with her bully and tormentor no matter how hot he was.
- Insta best friends forever kind of friendship. Yeah, because that's how ever lasting friendships really happen. I would have bought if it happened once, but it happened three times.
- Too many situations where Dane had to be the hero.
- The in your face promotion of indie literature.
- Label names dropping. Do I care that Kennedy's high heeled shoes were Steve Madden? Uh, no. It added nothing to the description.
- Inconsistent description of an outfit (okay, this was the fashion designer in me bitching about it). Apparently, Kennedy was wearing a push up bra with a low back dress. Unless she was committing a terrible faux paux, as you can't wear a bra if you back is completely exposed, then the description of her ensemble didn't make sense.
- At the end, Dane tells Kennedy he wished she was dead. No he screams he wished she was dead. This is the love interest, guys. And I'm supposed to root for the couple? And it takes him rescuing her once again and doing some cheesy love declaration for dimwit to forgive me. Cut to 6 months later, and she's probably been buried in a shallow grave after he beat her to death.
Overall, The Line Between was an abysmal attempt at Romeo and Juliet. There's a reason why the original is a classic and this will never be. ...more
I received a copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
DNF at 30%. Here are my thoughts up until that point:
I don't read chick lit a whole lI received a copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
DNF at 30%. Here are my thoughts up until that point:
I don't read chick lit a whole lot, but I do love a good one from time to time. When I read the premises of One Hundred Proposals I thought that it was right up my alley. It started well but I soon lost interest.
There are many things that didn't work for me in One Hundred Proposals. First, I didn't like the MC. It was annoying to be stuck in her head. She acted like a teenager and there is nothing I hate more than a grown woman acting like a 13-year old girl.
I didn't get the relationship between Suzie and Harry. They acted like a couple but Harry was sleeping someone else. What are Harry's motives for not wanting to date Suzie? I'm sure that the author will come up with a half baked excuse by the end but I just don't care enough to stick around to find out what Harry's big secret is.
Would I recommend One Hundred Proposals to anyone? Probably not. I'm sure that this book will appeal to a lot of people but it wasn't for me....more
I wanted to like this book, I truly did but it wasn't for me. The writing wasn't bad. I couldn't connect with the characters at all. I felt contempt tI wanted to like this book, I truly did but it wasn't for me. The writing wasn't bad. I couldn't connect with the characters at all. I felt contempt toward the heroine who needed to be slapped silly for still wanting Cuba back after everything he had done. Cuba was too much of an asshole for me to care about his problems. So the romance was totally off to me and the drama was border lining ridiculous. I still want to continue to read this series but this one I couldn't bring myself to finish....more
*I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
I'm sorry but Third Degree is nothing like any of the books by Tammara Webber. That*I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
I'm sorry but Third Degree is nothing like any of the books by Tammara Webber. That to me is false advertising.
The MC is extremely unlikeable and not believable. She's portrayed to be a genius. A 18 year old girl who is already a doctor. The only problem is she doesn't have any social skills to work as doctor without supervision. Her idiosyncrasies could be compared to one Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory. The only difference is that Sheldon is a fun, and lovable character, Izzy is not. Maybe it's because Sheldon is an asexual character. He acts like a kid. Izzy acts like a moronic kid most of the time, but the author wants me to believe that she is also a horny, sex machine. When in her life would Izzy have the time to acquire sexual experience is beyond me. It just doesn't fit with her character profile.
I purchased this book after I finished reading A Girl Like You and wanted read something similar. Let me just start by saying thatMAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD
I purchased this book after I finished reading A Girl Like You and wanted read something similar. Let me just start by saying that Finding Lucas was no way near as entertaining as A Girl Like You.
My problem with this book was the MC. She's everything I hate in MCs. She's a pushover, doesn't have any ambition, kind of a slob (her feet habit was disgusting), has no self-esteem. Bottom line, it was a nightmare being stuck in her head for over 300 pages. Don't you hate characters who are beautiful but for some whacked reason think they're ugly? I get it, even gorgeous people are insecure about certain things, but Jaimie was over the top insecure. I understand that in this type of novel, the point is to have character growth, so we can't have the MC being perfect. But the problem for me is that I didn't see a gradual changing in Jaimie. No, she spent 85% of the book being her whine, insecure self and her major transformation happened out of the blue, in an instant. Give me a break!
Besides the MC being insufferable, the plot was extremely slow. There was too much emphasis on Jaimie's bad relationship with Derek. I kid you not, it took 30% of the book for her to finally break up with him. Come on, you don't need to spend 30% of the book beating around the bush for us to get that her relationship sucked. Gosh, I couple of chapters would have sufficed.
Then comes the myriad of plot holes. First, the author keeps telling us that the MC is insecure, that she likes her privacy, that she doesn't make friends easily because she doesn't trust people. Whatever. But the MCs actions contradict what the author painted. Let's take a look at one Jaimie's best friends, Hannah. She met Hannah at a DMV and they bonded over some stupidity. Come on! The Jaimie the author described would never become friends with a total stranger. Likewise, Jaimie would have never taken a job as a producer in a trashy TV show where she had to constantly meet strange people.
Another thing that bothered me were the inconsistencies, like the age difference between Jaimie and her sister. Her sister is 18, Jaimie is 32, so do the math and you get a 14 year difference. But we got Jaimie saying that the difference between them is 13 years. Also, Jaimie keeps referring to music in the 80s but she was in high school during the 90s. How hard is it to find out what kind of music teens listened in the 90s?
Let's talk about the unbelievable grand finale. Jaimie is insecure, she can't stand being the center of attention. But when she has to go on her own TV show to possibly humiliate herself she suddenly turns into a bubbly, confident woman that captivates the entire audience. Yeah, right. Oh, and Derek, her snob ex-boyfriend would definitely be in the audience. Yeah, right again.
And to finalize my rant, the title is completely misleading. The MC spent maybe 25% of the book actually looking for Lucas, and he wasn't even her HEA....more
I tried, I really did. The insta-love was based on nothing! When Ryan asked why Hadley liked him her answer was pretty this: I think you are hot and II tried, I really did. The insta-love was based on nothing! When Ryan asked why Hadley liked him her answer was pretty this: I think you are hot and I like the way you make me all hot and bothered. So I guess I love you. Yep, that pretty much sums up their relationship. The plot was based solely on the MC's inability to stand up for themselves, speak their minds.I can understand Ryan. He was a sheltered teenager and his reaction was somewhat believable (even though I still think he was kind of slow). Hadley was the worst. Why did she let her uncle dictate her life? She was an adult, she paid his salary, but she bowed and cowed to all his manipulations. I want my money back!...more
What a freaking disappointment this book was, especially considering its potential. Plot all over the place, character inconsistencies, lame rSpoilers
What a freaking disappointment this book was, especially considering its potential. Plot all over the place, character inconsistencies, lame romance. Argh. Maybe giving 2 stars is even too much.
The book was divided in two parts and I don't remember what the author named those parts but I can say that the first part consisted of everything put on hold so Celaena and Chaol could pursue their lukewarm romance. Man, I don't think I ever came across a couple that lack so much steam. They were boring together. Celaena suddenly started to act all girly and silly and Chaol finally decided that it was time for him to pursue her. I wouldn't mind Celaena being interested in buying pretty clothes and all if that hadn't been used with the sole purpose for her to be more approachable to Chaol. It didn't seem it was an intrinsic part of her personality before.
I also didn't like how bad Celaena treated Dorian. I accept that a potential romance between them is out the question now, but she was mean to him for no reason. Yeah, she had Chaol so she didn't need Dorian anymore. But then when she was pissed at Chaol, having Dorian around was okay.
In the second part of the book, Celaena became an enraged monster after the death of Nehemia. The silly girl in love was gone, she was pissed at everyone. She hated Chaol's guts, yadda, yadda, yadda. That is all fine and good if Celaena had reacted the same way after Sam's death. He was her first love, so how come she didn't got berserk and kill the person responsible for his death as soon as she was out of Endovier? It just didn't add up.
Plus, for an assassin, she was pretty naive and gullible. She believed everyone. She never for once thought that maybe Archer was lying. What? She thought the king would want him dead for no reason?
Like I said in the beginning, the plot was all over the place. It didn't engage me at all. I kept forcing myself to pick up the book to finish it and that is not what you want in a book.
The characters keeping secrets from each other got old pretty fast too. It just made the story constricted.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this series to a friend. The first book was good, but this sequel wasn't. I really don't care what happens next in the story....more
The only reason this book ended up in my kindle is because it was free. I started to read it last night and so far I'm not impressed. It sounds exactlThe only reason this book ended up in my kindle is because it was free. I started to read it last night and so far I'm not impressed. It sounds exactly like thousands of other UF books out there. Same stupid formula. And why does the main character look like Sookie?
Review update 08/11/13
I'm surprised I'm still reading this book. Jolie has all the traits I don't like in my heroines. She's not very bright, makes some of the most stupid decisions, has no confidence whatsoever, is a 28-year old almost virgin (her only sexual experience was with a foreigner exchange student in high school and the girl is actually pretty, wtf), doesn't go anywhere without her security blanket (aka best friend Christa), and ultimately she lets people push her around (the wrong people). Basically, she acts like a 13-year old.
Despite all the that, she has catch the eye of gorgeous warlock Rand. She's clearly attracted to him and when she has the chance to hook up with him, she runs away like a scared child only to moan and cry about it later. What a dimwit.
And thinking about it, most of the bad decisions she made was because of Rand. She went to a party full of underworld creatures she didn't know, despite the fact that she didn't want to get involved in that world, because some bitch told her Rand would there. She also started dating a womanizer werewolf just because Rand didn't want to get involved romantically with her and she wanted to prove she was over him.
So right now I don't know what I'll do? Should I continue or should I just drop it? I honestly don't see this getting any better.
Decision made: DROP THE FUCKER. Why? Well, I went ahead and read some reviews of the following book and it seems the series only gets worse.
So if like me you like your romances to be well written, to steer away from cliche-ville, and to have some sort of plot then stay the hell away from SSo if like me you like your romances to be well written, to steer away from cliche-ville, and to have some sort of plot then stay the hell away from Sweet Thing.
I just don't get all the 5-stars reviews. I guess some people have a higher tolerance for bullshit. They just need a hot, sensitive leading man and they are hooked (or a hot, bad boy and they are hooked). I guess they just need their hero to be hot, lol. I need more than that, way more.
Let me begin this review by pointing out how bad the writing was. It was so robotic and disconnected. It didn't engage me at all. Plus it was repetitive as fuck. How many times did I have to see Will winking at Mia? At some point I swear he was having some kind of facial spasm. Plus he 'winked' in writing too. Give me a break.
Mia was your typical control freak, annoying, boring MC. She had cliche stamped all over her. And you know what happens when you write characters that predictable? They become as one dimensional as they can be. The fact that Mia was so attracted to Will and fought that attraction with tooth and nails was just another reason why I had to stop reading Sweet Thing. If Mia wasn't attracted to Will at all in the beginning it would have been so much better. She also acted like a twelve year old around good looking guys. It made me think she was a blushing virgin.
I can't say much about Will since I didn't get far enough in the book. Besides his obsessive winking, he could potentially be a descent character....more
I wanted to give more stars to Roaring Midnight, I really did but alas, for a first book in this new trilogy there were too many fReview with Spoilers
I wanted to give more stars to Roaring Midnight, I really did but alas, for a first book in this new trilogy there were too many factors that grated on my nerves. The first offense was that in 232 pages, Sebastian appears in maybe 50 pages. Even though the book is mostly about Macey Gardella discovering her legacy, I thought that Sebastian would be more prominent in this series. Maybe he will play a bigger role in the next two books. I certainly hope so, because otherwise this spin-off will be a big failure.
Macey Gardella was not as likeable as Victoria was, not by far. Yes, she was stubborn and fierce, but she was also arrogant in a way that Victoria never was. Granted, she didn't have Aunt Eustacia there to counsel her, she was pretty much alone in the world, and she begrudged her father for abandoning her. But even after she became a Venator, she acted like a spoiled brat, completely selfish, and not too bright either. There were endless TSTL moments to count. Let's see how she fares in the next books.
Grady, the love interest in this first book. I don't get the attraction. Macey only knows him for a few days and she is ready not only to share all her secrets with this stranger, but she also ends up in his bed. It wasn't like Victoria and Phillip's romance, where she knew him since they were younger. I just hope that Colleen is following the same formula as before, and that Grady won't be the one for Macey in the end. I feel about Grady the same way I felt about Sebastian in Victoria's books. I couldn't stand him or how Victoria was so involved with him. I always knew that Victoria was meant for Max.
The other possible love interest is kind of laughable and calling him 'love interest' is a stretch. He is like a more damaged version of Max, but without the charm. Plus, so far he only showed lewd thoughts towards Macey.
I gotta say that Sebastian is much better now without the constant flirting and with the torture soul thing going for him. And I still don't know what Colleen has planned for his character. Is he going to die in the end and reunite with Giulia or Macey is his HEA? I do hope that is the later.
Other minor details also didn't sit well with me was like Gary pulling out a condom. A condom in the 20s? Yeah, right. Yes, they existed, but there was so much negativity about them during that time, like a guy wouldn't feel pleasure, that the situation felt unreal. It was written just so Macey wouldn't have to worry about a possible pregnancy. But the airhead didn't even think about that when she decided to trade in her V-card.
Last, but not least, what the hell was that with the Capone twist at the end? I'm not sure I liked that either. It was weird.
I know that I'm whining a lot in this review and one would wonder why I gave it 3 stars. Despite all the annoying factors that I mentioned, I liked the overall concept of the spin-off, I liked the setting, there is enough mystery to keep me going, and I'm invested in the world.
I've gotta say that I'm sick and tired of those cliche books with the tortured, tatooted bad boy paired with the wholesome, boring chick. And the blurI've gotta say that I'm sick and tired of those cliche books with the tortured, tatooted bad boy paired with the wholesome, boring chick. And the blurb of this book didn't make it endearing to me. But everyone kept talking about the first chapter, so I went ahead and read it on Amazon. The reviewers were right, the first chapter was pretty gripping. It was well written and convinced to me to purchase the book.
Oh boy, big mistake. The first chapter was the only good thing about If You Stay. After that, we descend to cliche ville with cheesy lines, unexplicable attraction, and a Mary Sue type of heroine. Gag me.
It's too bad because Courtney Cole nailed Pax's character. He was an asshole but I liked him nonetheless. It was weird. What killed the book was Mila's POV. She was so wholesome, so idiotic, and so boring. I couldn't comprehend her thought process.
So yeah, I don't think I can continue reading it. My time is too valuable for that....more
This series was a recommendation from a friend of mine and when I saw that it revolved around the world of car racing I was all over it. I read ChasinThis series was a recommendation from a friend of mine and when I saw that it revolved around the world of car racing I was all over it. I read Chasing Daisy that had a similar concept and I enjoyed it so much that I figured this one would be in the same ball park. Boy, was I wrong? First of all, I disliked the heroine at first sight. Yes, she was indeed pathetic and I had no patience for it. Plus, the other characters that I managed to read about in my brief reading of Happy Hour also did not impress me. They sounded like a bunch of immature teenagers if you ask me and I had the feeling things would just deteriorate as the story progressed. The whole sex talk using car racing terms was just silly and not amusing at all. I actually felt embarrassed for the MC that such idiotic thoughts would even cross her mind. And that probably got old pretty quick too. I heard that it gets better in the second half, but at $5 a book, I'm not willing to pay to see it. It goes to the dump pile....more
Losing it had a promising start until it lost it. There were several factors for my lack of engagement towards the end of it. The main character was aLosing it had a promising start until it lost it. There were several factors for my lack of engagement towards the end of it. The main character was an idiot. I didn't find her actions endearing at all and after that first disastrous night, any guy would see that as a complete red flag. So the fact that the hot teacher pursued loony Bliss was pretty much bullshit. Later on there was not really any plot, so the reasons for them to be apart was again BS. So pretty much this book was a pile of idiotic moments without much to say. Sorry for the harsh review, but after reading Hopeless by Colleen Hoover I was not in the right frame of mind to read babble crap.
Ugh! I should have listened to my gut feeling. Nothing good comes out when the heroine is 16 but acts like she is 12. Sophie is a blubbering idiot andUgh! I should have listened to my gut feeling. Nothing good comes out when the heroine is 16 but acts like she is 12. Sophie is a blubbering idiot and a brat. This book is just too YA for me....more
Wow! What a difference from the first book. I couldn't finish this one whereas the first book in the Chicago Stars series I gave a 5 stars rating. My Wow! What a difference from the first book. I couldn't finish this one whereas the first book in the Chicago Stars series I gave a 5 stars rating. My problem with 'Heaven, Texas' were the main characters. I had hight hopes for Bobby Tom. I liked him in 'It had to you' but when the spotlight was on him I found his character flat and boring. Not even his amazing good looks saved him. And the heroine was just as unappealing as him. It was a match made in hell. I even quickly scanned the blurb for the next books in the series and I realized that none of them held any appeal to me. The plots were all the same. I think the only original love story was the one in the first book and that is too bad because I like Susan's writing style. ...more
This book failed to impress me from chapter one but I wasn't expecting much, to be honest. My Favorite Mistake has two one dimen REVIEW WITH SPOILERS
This book failed to impress me from chapter one but I wasn't expecting much, to be honest. My Favorite Mistake has two one dimensional characters that I failed to connect with. We got Taylor, a short tempered, evil bitch character that despite being the victim of a sexual assault failed miserably to make me feel sorry for her, mainly because she was a rude, mean person, who thought that just because she had a fucked up past she was entitled to bursts of violence against the opposite sex. The male counterpart was supposed to be a bad boy with all his tattoos and suave moves but he was anything but that. I guess the author figured that the recipe for badasserey is a buzz cut hair and tattoos. Talk about stereotyping. Hunter was just a traumatized guy who despite having a fucked up past (more fucked up than Taylor's if you ask me) treated everyone with compassion and respect. He was just too nice and didn't deserve the way Taylor abused him verbally and physically. Note to the author: just having characters saying that Hunter was an ass didn't make him an ass. He didn't act like one and I don't think a guy making funny, harmless comments about sex makes him a douchebag. The reversed double standards in this book had me almost pulling my hair out. How is it okay to have the protagonist assault her love interest on several occasions and that be normal? But when Taylor crossed the line with Hunter and he kicked her out of the apartment it was a huge deal? WTF? Chelsea, I think you are taking your feminist views a bit too far. Abuse is abuse regardless of the gender of the one on the receiving end. Three quarters of the book consisted of Hunter chasing after Taylor and Taylor being a bitch to him. Taylor pretty much threatens Hunter's secret out of him but she can't return the favor and reveal hers. When she finally reveals her secret and has sex with Hunter it was like her character went through a 180 degree change but by that point I had completely lost interest in the story. I can see some similarities between My Favorite Mistake and Beautiful Disaster but to be completely honest, MFM has nothing on Beautiful Disaster. That was a great book. This one was simply put a lame attempt....more
I have to say this is one of the worst YA books I've read this year and that is no small thing because I've read a ton of reaReview with some Spoilers
I have to say this is one of the worst YA books I've read this year and that is no small thing because I've read a ton of really appalling books. First of all the book was utterly predictable. Yes, I knew that Johnny liked Fiona and that Mar and Gabe were together like a couple chapters in. But the worst part of it was the fact that the main character was utterly unlikeable. She was obnoxious, selfish, clueless, rude, gosh I could go on and on about her flaws. She deserved to end up utterly alone and a pariah at her school because Fiona was just hateful. I couldn't find one redeeming quality about her. So yeah, not recommending it to anyone....more
I usually don't expect much when reading stand alone contemporary romances but Seducing Cinderella was just too, I don't know, extra super cheesy and I usually don't expect much when reading stand alone contemporary romances but Seducing Cinderella was just too, I don't know, extra super cheesy and cliche. I don't like books with idiotic women. I find that an assault to my brain cells....more
Cheesy story about a messed up girl who avoided commitment. The sex scenes were all right but Joss was an annoying character. I couldn't even read theCheesy story about a messed up girl who avoided commitment. The sex scenes were all right but Joss was an annoying character. I couldn't even read the last chapter because I was so bored with it all.
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