Month / April 2018

by Jaime

Review; “Dread Nation” by Justina Ireland

Disclosure: This book was provided to me by Edelweiss free of charge in return for an honest and unbiased review. This book is scheduled to be released on April 03, 2018 by Balzer + Bray.

Can I just confess to you how much I love this cover.  I might be the only one who does this, but sometimes when I’m reading a book and it starts describing the main character, I will flip back and forth between the description and the cover just to see how on-point it is.  Needless to say, I’m usually disappointed.

Scoff.  She’s supposed to be a brunette not a blonde!  And why the hell is she walking a runway when it’s YA dystopian fantasy (Yeah, I’m looking at and judging you “Shattered”).  UGGGGH.  Slight temper tantrum ensues (And, yes, my tantrums do resemble those of Lucy from The Peanuts because I know that you were just dying to ask).

Continue reading →

by Jaime

Review: “The Hazel Wood” by Melissa Albert

Ok.  So we have a main character named Alice and there’s a fairytale world, The Hinterland, that she has to find her way to via the Hazel Wood (Of course it’s to rescue a loved one.  I swear!  Why do you always ask questions you already know the answers to?)  But I know what you’re thinking, “Jaime.  This is an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ retelling isn’t it?  C’mon.  You can tell me.  I won’t be angry.”

Continue reading →

by Jaime

Review: “City of Saints & Thieves” by Natalie C. Anderson

Tina’s mother was murdered and she knows exactly who pulled the trigger – Mr. Greyhill, her mother’s employer and father to Tina’s half-sister Kiki.  Since that tragic day, Tina a.k.a. Tiny Girl has been running the streets of Sangui City with a solitary goal – revenge.   By stealing for the local gang, The Goondas, she is able to scrape by and bide her time.  When a job opportunity takes her back to the scene of the crime, Tina is determined to finally exact her revenge on Mr. Greyhill.  There she is reunited with Michael, her childhood friend and Mr. Greyhill’s son.  With the help of Michael, Tina searches for the truth behind her mother’s murder and but she also begins to question whether or not she has her sights on the true killer.

Continue reading →

by Jaime

Review: “Starfish” by Akemi Dawn Bowman

“…you can’t spend your life trying to make a starfish happy, because no matter what you do, it will never be enough.  They will always find a way to make themselves the center of attention, because it’s the only way they know how to live.”

So let me get this off my chest:  I spent half of the book being angry for Kiko and I spent half of the book being angry at Kiko.  I realize that maybe I’m not being fair.  Kiko has not had an easy life:  She has a mother who is manipulative and verbally abusive, she suffers from severe social anxiety, and she was sexually abused by her uncle as a child (not a spoiler, even though they build it up like one.  The pervert uncle is mentioned in the summary).  Oh yeah, and she’s half-Japanese living in Nebraska, her father is pretty much absent and she is still pining over a boy who moved away 8 years ago (yup, EIGHT).  Let’s be honest:  Kiko is a hot mess.

Continue reading →