Book Review: Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg

Better off Friends
by Elizabeth Eulberg 

Blurb:
For Macallan and Levi, it was friends at first sight. Everyone says guys and girls can’t be just friends, but these two are. They hang out after school, share tons of inside jokes, their families are super close, and Levi even starts dating one of Macallan’s friends. They are platonic and happy that way.

Eventually they realize they’re best friends — which wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t keep getting in each other’s way. Guys won’t ask Macallan out because they think she’s with Levi, and Levi spends too much time joking around with Macallan, and maybe not enough time with his date. They can’t help but wonder . . . are they more than friends or are they better off without making it even more complicated?

From romantic comedy superstar Elizabeth Eulberg comes a fresh, fun examination of a question for the ages: Can guys and girls ever really be just friends? Or are they always one fight away from not speaking again — and one kiss away from true love?

Available for purchase at 

   

Courtney's Review:
In this book "Better Off Friends" by Elizabeth Eulberg, Levi Rodgers transfers schools and ends up meeting Macallan Dietz and had a lot in common like their favorite TV show Buggy and Floyd. they started hanging out on Wednesdays and sooner or later they became best friends, but are they more than friends? Or are they better off friends?

In the beginning of the story I really didn’t understand the style of what the author used but eventually came to understand it better and it was amazing! Macallan is my favorite character she is so sarcastic and is such a good friend to Levi. She is also very protective of her uncle who was born with a speech deformity and so if anyone makes fun of him well… let's just say it wouldn't be good.

Overall this book is very well written (after I realized how the author has writing it) and was so easy for me to picture it in my head. Also it has the sarcasticness I liked. There’s also a little friend drama which there is anytime guys and girls become best friends. So I would indeed recommend this book to any young readers even if they don’t understand it in the beginning; just stick with it for a while - it gets so much better, trust me.      

Rating: 3 Stars - Liked It

Disclaimer:

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

Book Review: Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

Let's Get Lost
by Adi Alsaid 

Blurb:
Five strangers. Countless adventures.One epic way to get lost.

Four teens across the country have only one thing in common: a girl named LEILA. She crashes into their lives in her absurdly red car at the moment they need someone the most.

There's HUDSON, a small-town mechanic who is willing to throw away his dreams for true love. And BREE, a runaway who seizes every Tuesday—and a few stolen goods along the way. ELLIOT believes in happy endings…until his own life goes off-script. And SONIA worries that when she lost her boyfriend, she also lost the ability to love.

Hudson, Bree, Elliot and Sonia find a friend in Leila. And when Leila leaves them, their lives are forever changed. But it is during Leila's own 4,268-mile journey that she discovers the most important truth— sometimes, what you need most is right where you started. And maybe the only way to find what you're looking for is to get lost along the way.

Available for purchase at 

   

Courtney's Review:

Let me start by saying that this story is well written with lots of significant details that make it impossible to put down. In this book four strangers end up meeting this one girl named Leila and each of them go on a separate adventure with her,some are great and some are bad. At the end of the day Lelia ends up helping each person she meets. Lelia seems to be special in that she helps each person figure something out that they didn’t know before they went on their adventure with her.  

This author made it really easy to understand what was going on in the story and did not use over complicated words. I like that this author made it perfectly easy to picture everything that was going on as if it were a movie. I thought it was pretty cool that the author mentioned some of my favorite movies like The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Pretty in Pink.  I really recommend this book for young readers because it has its own special thing about it that is irresistible.

 There is something in this book that I didn’t quite see why it ended up the way it did. Maybe it is just the way the author wrote it that I didn’t understand. Regardless of this event it is a great book and that it should be read.

Rating: 3.5 Stars - I Really Liked It! 

Audio Book Review: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

City of Heavenly Fire 
(The Mortal Instruments #6)
by Cassandra Clare

Blurb: 
In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.

Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.

The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?

When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...

Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

Available for purchase at 

      

Viviana's Review:

This will be a quick review... this should have been a DNF for me. It dragged. The series should have finished with book 3. However, I'm now trying to figure out if it was the story itself or the narrators that made it worse? Perhaps it was a mix. The story dragged because there were just too many details. It was definitely a lot of "filler" and "oh let's make it longer by adding a scene that isn't needed"
So why did I continue reading/listening? Because I wanted to see how it ended. How did they end up tying up all the loose ends? When the end finally did come, I did the happy dance! No lie. I don’t think I ever did the happy dance for a book to be over. That made me sad. It wasn’t because it was a bad or terrible book. It was just too damn long. It wasn’t necessary.

The series is over… though there is a new spin off starting next year. This is part of the reason why this book was so long… it was a set up for the spin off as we were introduced to those characters.
The narrators seemed to have been bored. They read with no emotion nor did they seem to want to perform for the readers. There were moments where they seemed to perk up, but again those were moment and they were rare.

Overall, again, this was a series that could have ended like three books ago. It was well written but it was too long and it dragged. Additionally, if the narrators would have been more alive I think the feeling of it being “too long” and “dragging” wouldn’t have been so in your face.

Rating: 2 Stars - It was Okay

Audio Book Review: Invincible (Chronicles of Nick) by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Invincible 
(Chronicles of Nick Series, #2)
by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Blurb: 
Nick Gautier's day just keeps getting better and better. Yeah, he survived the zombie attacks, only to wake up and find himself enslaved to a world of shapeshifters and demons out to claim his soul.

His new principal thinks he's even more of a hoodlum than the last one, his coach is trying to recruit him to things he can't even mention and the girl he's not seeing, but is, has secrets that terrify him.

But more than that, he's being groomed by the darkest of powers and if he doesn't learn how to raise the dead by the end of the week, he will become one of them...

Available for purchase at 

            

 

Viviana's Review: 
The second book in the series and it only gets better!  OMG.  There were several parts where I was laughing out loud with one or two parts that I had to try to hold it in because I was at work.  Laughing when no one is around can cause people to stare or in my case, have the boss come out of his office to check in on me…

The story picks up right where book 1 left off.  So this is definitely not a standalone.  There isn’t much of that “catch up” that occurs in other books that occurs when it’s meant to be read as a standalone.  So if you picked this book to start the series, put it down, and start with book #1.

Seems like Nick can’t catch a breath.  Just when one disaster is averted another one is just about to begin.  The good news?  Besides his mad skills in sarcasm 101, he’s actually very smart and without knowing it, has surrounded himself with individuals who are very powerful.  Down side?  Both Nick and the readers are trying to figure out which of these individuals are friend or foe.  Nick has a good head on his shoulders and while only 14 years old, is very mature for his age and isn’t selfish.  He is overall a great, decent human being, which is why the bad guys want to make sure to turn him evil.

Simi is too cute!  Deadly but cute.  Definitely not someone you want to mess with.  We learn a little more about Nekoda and Caleb.  Nick learns more about them as well.  One of the things I really enjoy about the writing style is that Nick and the reader are on the same journey of discovery.  We learn things as he does.

We also get to meet a slew of new characters from Grim, and yeah his name sort of gives it away, to the family that owns Sanctuary.  Which I’m sure we’ll get to learn more in the upcoming books.

I couldn’t wait to read book 2 when I finished the first one and I find myself feeling the same - can’t wait to read book 3.  Sherrilyn leaves you wanting more.  Not because things were left unfinished, but because the writing is superb and the story in engaging.  You don’t want to put it down.  You want to know what happens next to Nick and his friends.  How will everything turn out?

Narrator Review: Holter Graham brings each of the characters to life.  He does a fantastic job with each voice and tone.  Entertains without being distracting.  Truly enhances the reading experience!

Rating: 5 Stars - Perfection

Audio Book Review: Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Infinity 
(Chronicles of Nick Series, Bk  #1)
by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Blurb: 
At fourteen, Nick Gautier thinks he knows everything about the world around him. Streetwise, tough and savvy, his quick sarcasm is the stuff of legends. . .until the night when his best friends try to kill him. Saved by a mysterious warrior who has more fighting skills than Chuck Norris, Nick is sucked into the realm of the Dark-Hunters: immortal vampire slayers who risk everything to save humanity.

Nick quickly learns that the human world is only a veil for a much larger and more dangerous one: a world where the captain of the football team is a werewolf and the girl he has a crush on goes out at night to stake the undead.

But before he can even learn the rules of this new world, his fellow students are turning into flesh eating zombies. And he's next on the menu.

As if starting high school isn't hard enough. . .now Nick has to hide his new friends from his mom, his chainsaw from the principal, and keep the zombies and the demon Simi from eating his brains, all without getting grounded or suspended. How in the world is he supposed to do that?

Available for purchase at 

         

Viviana's Review: 

How I came across this series is interesting. SWAG.  I was going through my tupperware of swag and found a Chronicles of Nick sling bag.  Didn’t recognize the name of the series so I looked it up. After researching it, I gave it to my 12 year old daughter who “doesn’t like to read” and told her she should check it out, as the protagonist is a 14 year old guy who apparently is very sarcastic.  Her adventure with this series is another story.  Mine begins with the audiobook.

This was a complete breath of fresh air!  Oh, and for a YA, little angst.  Thank you!  Loved Nick!  He was a great mix of smartass and sarcastic that at times I wondered “you sure you’re 14?” and then I’d smile.  Love him! He handle things rather well as he discovers things like the supernatural do exist.  

The other characters we get introduced to are awesome as well. To think this is sort of a pre-qual to the "The Dark-Hunterverse" which makes me uber excited! This is one of the reasons why I'm starting with this series vs. "The Dark-Hunterverse". You want to get the next installment so you learn more about all the characters!

The story's pace had a good mix of action that got the heart pumping and then going more into a steady slow down. The pace gives the reader a good balance that we like that keeps us wanting more.

Overall, a great read that makes you want to grab the next installment to find out what happens to the characters you just befriends! 

Rating: 5 Stars - Perfection

Book Review: Canning The Center by Tara Lain

Canning The Center
(The Long Pass Chronicles Series, Bk #2)
By Tara Lain

Blurb:
Six foot seven inch, 300 pound Jamal Jones loves football, so when he finds out the ultra-conservative owner of his new pro football team fired their current center because he’s gay, bisexual Jamal decides to stay in the closet and hang with the females. Then, at a small drag show, he comes face-to-face with his sexual fantasy in the form of Trixie LaRue, a drag queen so exquisitely convincing she scrambles Jamal’s hormones -- and his resolve to nurse his straight side.

Trevor Landry, aka Trixie LaRue, hides more than his genitals. A mathematician so brilliant he can’t be measured, Trevor disguises his astronomical IQ and his quirk for women’s clothes behind his act as a gay activist undergrad at Southern California University.

To Trevor, Jamal is the answer to a dream -- a man who can love and accept both his personas. When he discovers Jamal’s future is threatened if he’s seen with a guy, Trevor becomes Trixie to let Jamal pass as straight. But Trevor risks his position every time he puts on a dress. Is there a closet big enough to hold a football pro and a drag queen?

Available for purchase at

   

Viviana's Review:

After reading the first installment of the The Long Pass Chronicles Series "Outing The Quarterback" I couldn't wait to get my hands on "Canning The Center"! It did not disappoint!!

Where to start? How about Jamal! YUM! He's sweet, loving, family oriented, will stand up for his friends but he has a secret he's carrying around and its getting heavier by the day! He's at a very good place in his life and things are going great! His football career is taking off! Too bad the owners of the team are not open minded at all! At least Jamal still has his BFF Will around!! Will and Noah from the first book make an appearance, they are the ones who take him to the drag show and introduce him to Trixie LaRue! Talk about "BAM" "Interest at first sight"! And both Will and Noah KNEW IT!! They new it would occur! I smiled when I read the reactions. That's one of the things I adore about Tara's writing, you're going through waves of emotions with the characters but you feel like you're part of it.

Enter Trixie! She's the entertainer many come for her beautiful voice! Jamal is mesmerized! Can't keep his eyes off her! Yet, he knows, Trixie is a he! This intrigues him more! Here is one of my favorite interactions between Trixie and Jamal because Trixie pulls no punches and Jamals knows exactly what he wants!

As we flip through the pages we learn that Trevor is also hiding who he truly is from basically everyone! Jamal is the only one he believes he can be his true self with and that scares him. Both need to learn to be themselves before the can be with each other but the can do that together.

They truly are perfect for each other. Trevor gets a man who loves him unconditionally and all of him, both for his smarts and his dresses! For Jamal, how enjoys the ladies as well, Trevor/Trixie is a dream come true! Both get the support they need to be able to be themselves.

I'm sure you're waiting to know all about their chemistry? The guys are HOT! STEAMY!!! Yet they have their sweet moments as well! To be honest, I knew Jamal was a sweet guy but I didn't know he was THAT sweet!

Overall, a great read that you won't want to put down until you've hit the last page. Then you'll want to know when the next book in the series will be released! Can't Wait!!!!

Rating: 4.5 - Really LOVED IT!

Disclaimer: 

We received a complimentary copy of the book from Tara Lain, Author, in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Cowboys & Kisses (Teens of Black Falls Texas, #1) by Sasha Summers

It’s My Birthday!! 

How about some Cowboys & Kisses!

Sasha: 
Happy Happy Birthday to you! And Happy Happy Book Birthday to me - and Allie and Wyatt - and Black Falls Texas.

Viviana: 

Woohoo! The more the merrier! I’m usually not a “ohhh look it’s my birthday and let’s do something” and while I make it a point to ensure to celebrate others’ birthday, as I believe birthdays are important as it commemorates them being here with us, when it comes to mine, I’m usually low key. HOWEVER, when I realized the dates, I got this awesome idea and well, here we are!!  

Okay, before we start, we must first make a very important decision…. CAKE!

My favorite is Chocolate Ganache Supreme from Publix (local Florida Grocery Store)!

Looks yummy, right? What about yours?