Fun With Books Blog

REVIEW

Title: Covenant Series

Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout

Genre: YA Paranormal

This series was recommended to me a while back, and as I had not read a YA series in a quite a while, I was ready for this one.  I went on a bit of a reading binge and read all the books one after the other.  Reading this way is satisfying as it is a complete series – and there is no waiting, but it does make it difficult to review each book separately, so I will just give my thoughts on the series as a whole.

There was so much I really enjoyed about this series – the characters were awesome, the action was great, and the romance was heart-stopping at times, but more than anything it was the story and the writing which brought it all together beautifully.  It worked very, very well.

I liked Alex as a character – she is a kick-ass no holds barred kind of girl and I like that.  I enjoyed reading about her journey from the young troubled teen that she was to the strong young woman she eventually became – she is a great character. Her love for Aidan was beautiful and his for her was powerful and selfless and I loved reading about their journey.

Out of all the characters, Seth, to me, was The Man.  He made some seriously bad judgement calls and was taken advantage of, but deep down he wanted to be an honorable man and to be respected and loved.  He is a really great character with hidden depths.

The story itself was great.  I enjoyed reading about the Olympian gods and their arrogant and humorous (to me) outlook on life.  It is probably not easy to live forever – everything has been said and done a thousand times before, and after a while, life probably becomes a bore and you do what you need to do to alleviate the boredom a bit.  Throw in a Titan here and there and things are bound to get interesting.

The conclusion to the series was not what I was expecting, but it made sense in a way.  I would have liked to have seen what happens to the rest of the cast of characters as they were important to the story, but the book just ended ……..

I did not read Elixir, which is an 80 page novella told from Aiden’s perspective. At $4.99 (South African price) I could not justify the cost, and as I am not a fan of novellas, I avoid them if I can. Having said that – Daimon, the first book in the series is actually a 93 page Prequel to the first book, Half-Blood, so it was important to buy and read it – but I must admit, it irritated the heck out of me – I have no idea why it was a prequel and not part of the first book – Half-Blood

All in all this is a good series and the first I have read by Jennifer L. Armentrout.  Apart from some really annoying editing errors it was a really good read and I enjoyed her style.

REVIEW

Ash

Author: Jason Brant

Published: December 30, 2013

Genre: Thriller/Suspense

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is a fast paced action thriller with great characters and a very unusual and interesting story line.

Ash, the main character, was a confident well-adjusted soldier leading a team in Iraq but after a devastating incident in which he was injured, he was sent back home to a future he could not come to terms with.  He could not cope with what was happening to him and the bottle became his escape, that is, until someone wanted to use him and his gift/curse for their own gain.  He then began to take his life back.

Ash certainly has my sympathy – I cannot even begin to imagine what it must be like to live with the thoughts of random strangers taking up space in my head – I have trouble organizing my own thoughts and having everyone else’s thoughts vying for space would drive me nuts within a few minutes, but it sure made for interesting reading and Jason Brant’s storytelling ability made this a very interesting and entertaining read.

I sincerely hope we get to read more about Ash and his friends in the near future – this is a great story.  I loved it :)

ps I love the cover too.

REVIEW

Thankless In Death

Series:  In Death Series #37

Author: J.D. Robb

Published: 17 September 2013

Genre: Crime/Thriller/Suspense

I have been reading the In Death series by J.D. Robb for many years and have all the books in the series.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story.  You know who the killer is from the outset, and follow him on his killing spree. This made for very interesting reading.

This killer is the worst kind possible. He is a weak underachiever with a warped sense of his own self-worth. Anyone who ever belittled him, embarrassed him or made him feel insignificant in any way was going to pay, he would see to that. He had a death list.

REVIEW

The Silver Linings Playbook

Author: Matthew Quick

Published:April 21, 2010

I really, really wanted to like this book more than I did.  I can understand why other readers loved it, as it is well written with interesting characters and an unusual story line, but it was not for me, and I found myself skimming through large parts of it.

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REVIEW

Seven Years

Series: Seven Series #1

By: Dannika Dark

Published: October 20, 2013

Genre: Paranormal Romance

I have been waiting for this book for what seems like ages. 

I love the Mageri series and was a bit worried that because I am such a big fan, and because this series is written in the same world, that it would seem like a filler, or a poor relation (lol) to the Mageri cast.  I need not have worried, Ms Dark has delivered a brilliant start to another great series I can get lost in.

One of Dannika Dark’s strongest points – apart from a great imagination and her awesome writing skills, is her ability to create characters we can relate to. All the characters portrayed have been incredibly well thought out – each and every one of them.  They all have their strong points and their weaknesses or flaws which make them come alive in a way that makes me care about what happens to them all.

REVIEW

Playing For Keeps

By R L Mathewson

Published: 29 April, 2011

Genre: Romance

With over 500 5* reviews on Amazon I though this book would be a winner and was looking forward to it, but was disappointment as I expected a lot more.

My biggest problem was with the characters.  They were childish and acted more like teenagers than 'grownups'. Jason especially - he was a jerk, and seriously p'd me off at times.  He also had this strange nickname for Haley and used it at every opportunity, it drove me nuts, I am not sure why, but it did  :)

Other than that, I enjoyed the story, but I hope Perfection which is the second book in the series is better as I really enjoyed the authors casual writing style. 

REVIEW

Wethering the Storm

By:  Samantha Towle

Published:August 20, 2013

Genre: Rock fiction

Rock fiction is one of my favorite genres - I have read so many I often wonder if it is time to give it a rest, but then I find a series like The Storm Series and I say NEVER!.  

So much about the story has been said before, The Bad Boy of Rock meets The Girl and he changes his wicked ways - done one hundred and one times.  Yes, but this one is different, at least I think so.  

What I loved about the story:

It is well written, with great characters and a really good story line - predictable at times, but I loved it anyway.

REVIEW

Neanderthal Seeks Human: A Smart Romance

Series: Knitting In The City #1

Author: Penny Reid

Published: March 14, 2013 

Genre: Romance

I adored this book.

After reading and enjoying Friends Without Benefits by Penny Reid, I was sure I would enjoy this one too, and I was quite happy to jump right in and start reading it straight away.

I am sure we have all read a book that we did not want to finish – because it was so enjoyable.  It would have been perfect if I could have read a chapter a day.  That would have meant I could read a bit every day for the next few weeks and have something to look forward to each day – but that is unfortunately not how it works.  I could not put this book down, not for anything.

I loved the two main characters, Janie and Quinn.  They are two total opposites, and yet so perfect for each other.

REVIEW

Friends Without Benefits

Series: Knitting In The City #2

Author:  Penny Reid

Published:  September 29, 2013

Genre:  Romance

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  It was a fun read, it was romantic, and it made me laugh – I love that combination.

The story is about Elizabeth and Nico who grew up together.  Nico has loved Elizabeth his whole life, but she had no idea how he felt about her, even after the one night she spent with him after sneaking into his bedroom (as teenagers).  She left the next day and cut all ties with him and that was the last time they saw or heard from each other until years later when a chance meeting brought them back together again.  By this time she was a doctor and he was the very famous and charismatic star of his own TV show.  Sparks flew.

I am from south Africa and we are finally heading into summer.  The days are warming up nicely and our Siberian Huskies are loving it - they are so different to their northern cousins - they do not like the cold, they love sunbathing and swimming.

I took these photos of my male husky 'Ozzy' last year this time.  This is their pool we put up for them to cool off in when the heat is unbearable.

Ozzy thought it was time for a swim - he had no idea how cold the water would still be :)  This was in and out within seconds - he was not happy lol.

I hope no one minds me posting this ?

REVIEW

Never Go Back

By Lee Child

Published: August 29, 2013

Genre: Thriller / Mystery

Where is Jack Reacher? Who is this imposter?

I am a huge Lee Child / Jack Reacher fan, and have been reading these books for years, but it has got to the point where I say that this could very well be my last Jack Reacher purchase. It pains me to say this, as these books have been the highlight of my reading calender for so long, but the decline has become more noticeable with this book.

There were a few times when I seriously considered not finishing the book, but this is Lee Child and Reacher, surely it can only get better? No, the writing was consistent throughout, it was boring and repetitive. The plot was weak, and every solution to a problem on both sides was just too convenient, unbelievably so on many occasions.

Links to various Booklikes tutorials around the site. Thanks to all the hardworking BL members and team who contributed. This is a work in progress. More links will be added as I find them. 

REVIEW

The Blood Whisperer

By Zoe Sharp

Published:  September 2, 2013

Genre: Mystery / Thriller / Suspense 

The Blood Whisperer by Zoë Sharp has restored my love for the thriller/mystery genre, and reminded me what it is about the genre that I love so much.

This is a standalone novel featuring Kelly Jacks.  It tells the story of how Kelly ended up on the other side of the spectrum, as a clean-up specialist rather than a crime scene specialist.

Kelly is a really strong character, and I certainly would not mess with her.  She has some serious skills which she picked up when she was serving time in prison for murder, and she is not scared to use them when necessary. 

REVIEW

Ground Zero

By Nicholas Ryan

Published: September 15, 2013

Genre: Post Apocalypse

I LOVE Zombie fiction.

I have a few favourite zombie fiction authors and have read all their books, they are:  Jason Brant, D J Molles, John O’Brien and James N Cook ........  and now Nicholas Ryan has been added to that list.

When I first heard about Ground Zero: A Zombie Apocalypse, I was excited but also nervous as there are quite a few really bad (in my opinion) zombie books out there.  A few days ago I read on Facebook that the book was available on Amazon, and I was there to download it immediately, hoping that it would be great addition to my zombie library.

REVIEW

Consumed:  The Hunger Series

by Jason Brant

Published: September 9, 2013

Genre: Post Apocalypse

After reading Devoured, I was very happy with the way things ended. Our heroes were in a safe place, safe from everything and everyone wandering the streets of the cities and out in the countryside. It was a huge relief. But that relief was to be short lived.

Consumed started off with a bang, and the action and suspense did not let up until I put the book down. It was an intense read, filled to capacity with terrifying scenes of mindless daywalkers - always on the lookout for their next victim; militant Minutemen wanting to take over the world - and loving the new world thrust upon them; and the vampires - who owned the night.

Not in my worst nightmares could I have come up with a monster like these vampires, they are absolutely terrifying.