Lost in Wonderland (The Twisted and the Brave, #1) by Nicky Peacock
Lost in Wonderland by Nicky Peacock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Kayla now goes by the name of Mouse and has found herself a home in Wonderland. But this isn’t the Wonderland that we know, it’s the name of a group of highly trained vigilantes who hunt serial killers, run by ex-government agents and funded by an eccentric Silicon Valley billionaire. Mouse works alongside her fellow Wonderlanders, Rabbit and Cheshire, baiting dangerous murderers.
As dangerous as Mouse’s life is she’s completely unprepared to face her own brother when he shows up. Shilo has spent most of his life in an insane asylum convinced his mother was abducted by a monster and now that monster is after his family again. Mouse is used to human killers that are monster but is a bit hesitant to believe Shilo that there are real monsters out there.
Lost in Wonderland is a retelling but one that is the type that I personally enjoy when it borrows a few things from the original to make you remember but goes off on it’s own path. This definitely went way off the path bringing serial killers into the mix and turning this into a rather dark Wonderland but I quite enjoyed the originality.
The feel of the book stays true to the original story of Wonderland. The characters had their rather eccentric feel and the book could go into a bit of weirdness here and there but it just felt right and kept the feel you’d expect even with a whole new story line.
Overall, great job coming up with a whole new twisted version of a classic story.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Destiny’s Chance by Cara Bristol
Destiny’s Chance by Cara Bristol
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Destiny Grable wakes in the hospital to find that she has been in an accident and that her friend that had been with her didn’t make it. Destiny can’t figure out though why Chase is there with her in the hospital since he was her friends ex-boyfriend and roommate and just where is her family if she’s all banged up and hurt?
As soon as Destiny gets to a mirror she is in for a major shock. The face looking back at her is not her own but that of her friend. To avoid ending up being locked in the psyche ward of the hospital Destiny takes on the identity of her friend and leaves the hospital with Chase. Finding herself living with Chase as she figures out what to do Destiny still harbors a secret crush on Chase that she never followed up on since he had gone out with her friend.
Destiny’s Chance is one of those reads that I was a bit back and forth on while I was reading it. The synopsis for this one was a bit vague and I found some things I ended up not particularly caring for while I also found some that I really liked.
First, I did enjoy the writing in this one and the overall plot. The idea of waking up and finding yourself in another body isn’t a totally new one but it was still interesting to read about though. Also, Destiny’s sister has some psychic abilities which was also a nice add to the story.
However, while the idea that Destiny wakes up and finds herself living with Chase that she’s had a crush on and them starting this steamy relationship sounds somewhat appealing it was kind of also a turn off to think that this is her friend’s guy that she’s beginning a relationship with while being in her friend’s body. Girl Code seemed to apply before the accident but flew out the window afterwards. I think maybe I would have just preferred a set up where it wasn’t her good friend’s ex.
Overall, I decided to give this one 3.5 stars. Good writing just not a personal preference to the prior relationship dynamic.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Dreamer by E.J. Mellow blitz with giveaway
The Dreamer
E.J. Mellow
(Dreamland #1)
Publication date: May 15th 2015
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult
THE DREAMER has been awarded a Silver for Best Fantasy/Science Fiction from the eLit Book Awards & a Finalist medal for Best Cover Design from the Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
It’s night. Always night. Dreams guard against the evil forged by nightmares. Infinite shooting stars illuminate a moonless sky. A city stands alone, surrounded by a darkened field. On its fringes, a man watches one star separate from the masses and fall. What survives the crash will unveil a secret centuries long hidden.
Molly hasn’t slept well since the night of her twenty-fourth birthday. Being struck by lightning might have something to do with it, but then again, her chicken did look a little undercooked at dinner. Whatever the culprit, her life quickly catapults from mundane to insane as, night after night, Molly is transported through her once dreamless sleep to a mysterious land illuminated by shooting stars.
There she meets the captivating but frustrating Dev, and together they discover Molly possesses a power coveted by his people—the ability to conjure almost anything she desires into existence. Seduced by the possibilities of this gift, Molly shifts her attention from waking life toward the man, the magic, and the world found in her dreams.
But Molly must ask herself—does something truly exist if you only see it when you close your eyes?
Faced with the threat of losing everything—her job, best friend, boyfriend, and most importantly, that little thing called her sanity—Molly will learn just how far she’ll go to uncover what is real and what is merely a figment of her imagination.
Purchase The Dreamcatcher
Purchase The Divide
—
EXCERPT:
Reaching out, I coax him to hand over whatever he’s concealing. He wears a playful smile that slips away when he sees my arm. Noticing that I’ve extended my bandaged wrist, I move it away, but Dev gingerly grabs my hand and brings it closer.
“No! I don’t think you should do that,” I say as he begins to unwrap the bandage, remembering what the doctor told me about exposing the burn too much. He holds me steady.
“Do you want this to heal?”
“What?”
“It’s a simple question. Do you want this to heal?” He nods to my bandage.
“Of course I do.” I frown. “I want nothing more than for it to heal so I don’t have to wear this stupid thing.”
As soon as I finish speaking, the coolness of his hands seep through the bandage and reaches my skin. The sensation startles me, and I try tugging my arm back, but Dev laces his long fingers with mine, holding me in place. After a beat he continues to unwrap the dressing, my newly exposed skin feeling sensitive in the fresh air.
My breath catches at what I’m pretty sure shouldn’t be there. The puffy, raw skin I was used to seeing circle my wrist is now nothing more than an ugly scab. How did it heal so fast? I slowly turn my hand over, lightly touching it to make sure it’s real.
“The mind is a powerful thing, Molly. Always remember that.”
He looks so much older in this moment…his eyes seem to hold centuries of secrets. I wonder what his age actually is. I thought he was just a few years older than myself, but now that I see his face smoothly lit by the night sky, empty of anything but a gentle expression, he possesses something ancient.
“What type of jewelry were you wearing?” He brings me back to the present by lightly stroking the sensitive part of my wrist.
I hold in a shiver. “Um, a charm bracelet. It was a gift for my birthday.”
He removes his hand. “Who gave it to you?”
I hesitate. Jared obviously gave it to me, but do I just say that? Then Dev will ask who Jared is, and for some reason I’m reluctant to admit what he might be to me.
I tuck my hair behind my ear. “A guy.”
Dev searches my eyes as I try to read how my answer might have affected him—deep down, I know I desperately want it to.
Dear Lord! What is wrong with me? This guy isn’t even real! And isn’t this the same man who made me furious earlier tonight?
“What do you do when you’re awake?”
“What?”
“What do you do when you’re not here? Do you have a job?”
“Uh, yes I have a job…” I hesitate, confused by the change of subject. “It’s all very boring though.”
He pushes me to explain, asking question after question about my mundane existence.
Slowly, his voice begins to fade and sound distant. I dig my fingers into the grass in an attempt to hold myself here, and Dev flashes me a sad smile.
“I’m waking up, aren’t I?”
“Yes.”
“But I wanted to ask you questions now.”
He reaches out, grazing my cheek with his hand. The sensation of his touch is barely there as my body has begun to recognize another surrounding. “There will be plenty of time for that.” His voice is buried under layers, and my heart trembles that there might not be. Will I dream of this again?
With that last thought, light fills my vision, and my eyes flutter open to early morning rays stretching into my window, laying their gentle warmth on my skin like a touch I long to remember.
Author Bio:
E.J. Mellow is the Award Winning author behind the NA Contemporary Fantasy trilogy The Dreamland Series. With a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, E.J. Mellow splits her time between her two loves – visual design and writing. Residing in NYC, E.J. is a member of Romance Writers of America and their Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal Chapter. She has no animals but loves those who do.
GIVEAWAY!
For Her Protection by Amber Bardan Release Blast with review and giveaway
You
shouldn’t mix business with pleasure.
FOR HER PROTECTION
An Alpha Romance
Amber Bardan
Released July 15th, 2016
You shouldn’t mix business with pleasure.
Yet
pleasure seems to be the one and only thing on Charlize’s mind the moment
Connor steamrolls into her life. Desperate to save her family company, prove
she’s more than a pretty face and worthy of being CEO, pleasure is a
distraction she can’t afford.
She
doesn’t want a bodyguard, especially not one whose caveman heroics kick her
libido into hyperdrive. Surrounded by enemies, she’s not sure if Connor is a
man she can trust.
Connor
knows better than to get personal with clients. Yet there couldn’t be anything
more personal about his feelings for Charlize. He’ll win her trust, preferably
one orgasm at a time.
With
Connor in her office, her home, driving her to sweet, merciless distraction,
there’s only so long Charlize can resist his sexy, dominant brand of protection.
WARNING: This is an Amber
Bardan Alpha Romance, featuring one dirty-talking hero obsessed with his
heroine, and a Happily Ever After. No cliffhangers.
BUY NOW
Charlize is a hardworking CEO that is desperate to prove herself and hold onto her position. It seems though that Charlize is in danger and without her knowledge Connor has been hired to protect her and has been watching her for a month now. But when things get out of control Connor needs to make himself known and the pair soon find themselves balancing work and their attraction to one another.
For Her Protection is a fairly short read that is probably ninety percent erotic and ten percent plot. Charlize and Conner steam up the pages from beginning to end but that wasn’t a bad thing at all. Charlize is a bit insecure in her personal life but strong willed and dominate in her business world so getting along with the alpha Connor took some work.
Amber Bardan does the steamier moments in a relationship rather well as this is the third book I’ve read by her. I may have enjoyed a bit more expansion to the plot in this one but there was enough there to get the story and why the couple were thrown together. I also liked that one minute you could be giggling along with some of the funnier moments then into some intense moments then onto the erotic side of the read.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
4/5 stars
After
spending years imagining fictional adventures, Amber Bardan finally
found a way to turn daydreaming into a productive habit. She now spends her
time in a coffee-fueled adrenaline haze, writing romance with a thriller edge.
She lives
with her husband and children in semi-rural Australia, where if she peers
outside at the right moment she might just see a kangaroo bounce by.
Amber is
an award winning writer, Amazon Bestselling Author, and member of Romance
Writers of Australia, Melbourne Romance Writers Guild, and Writers Victoria.
Three Truths and a Lie by Brent Hartinger
Three Truths and a Lie by Brent Hartinger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Rob has been dating Liam for the last three months and being with Liam also means getting along with Liam’s best friend Mia and her boyfriend Galen. When Rob suggests they all take a trip together the group decides to go to Mia’s family’s cabin to stay for a weekend and what could possibly go wrong with a weekend of bonding?
Arriving the group decides to go skinny dipping then have a few drinks and play a game of Three Truths and a Lie where a secret is shared to the horror of Rob. When things start going wrong the next day for the group they find that they may or may not be alone in the wilderness.
Three Truths and a Lie seems to be another of those books that I’m going against the majority of the earlier reviewers with my rating. Is the book perfect? No, probably not. But that didn’t stop me from really enjoying this read. This one is for the fans of the teenagers getting off’ed horror movies such as Friday the 13th or I Know What You Did Last Summer and quite honestly I loved it.
If you watch things like the ones I’ve mentioned you know you just want to throw your popcorn at the screen and yell at the characters for being such idiots and not getting to safety with a killer on the loose. This book will take you to that point and then beyond with keeping a reader guessing all along and then a rather twisty ending that most should not see coming.
A few things to warn about that some readers may not enjoy in this one. The story is told by the main character Rob who several times throughout the book talks directly to the reader as he’s telling his side of what happened that weekend. To me this seemed to fit with the tone of the books rather well and I actually liked it. Also, there’s sex involved in the book but it’s not overly graphic but just a warning since this is a YA horror/thriller.
Overall, I enjoyed this one, a rather fun campy horror type of read with a twisted ending.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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