My Thoughts: Sweet as Sin by Inez Kelley

John Murphy is tormented by nightmares. A bestselling young-adult author, he writes the ultimate fantasy: stories where good always triumphs. He knows better. His past has shown him the worst in people—and in himself. When he moves next door to the sexy, vibrant Livvy—a woman completely unlike his usual one-night stands—he's driven to explore every curve of her delicious body.

Pastry chef Livvy knows that giving in to the temptation that is John Murphy won't lead to anything permanent, but she deserves a passionate summer fling. John discovers she's as sweet as the confections she bakes while Livvy slowly unravels his secrets. But what will happen when she uncovers them all?

(Book Received by netGalley)

This book broke my heart. It really did. Sweet as Sin by Inez Kelley was not your typical romance novel. It's full of hurt, despair and brokenness. At times it was very hard to read.

John the male protagonist has a very tortured past and he has not healed at all from what was done to him. He is a YA author who is fairly successful. John uses his writing as an outlet for his own personal monsters, fantastical beings that have been with him since childhood, and are as much a part of him and any one of his organs. In most cases this would be kind of cool for a writer; to feel like the creatures he writes about are a part of him. For John it's causing him more harm then good.

Livvy was an amazing character. She is who I want to be. She is loving and understanding. She doesn't give up and she loves John. She loved John and his brokenness before she fully knew what she was dealing with, and she continued to love him when his past was explained. Livvy was what John needed to lead him on a path of healing. I loved her. I loved how she was written and how she was also broken but wasn't afraid to share it. Stupid John exploited that at one point and it made me sad for her.

This book was not a cookie cutter novel, it was not full of rainbows and butterflies. There were times that I wanted to throw my Kobo eReader across the room in frustration. I wanted to scream because sometimes it was cheesy and made me roll my eyes, but when you read a romance novel that's what you sometimes get. This was a hard read, but it was worth it. This is a story of redemption and hope.

Happy Reading Everyone.

My Thoughts: Here Lies Bridget by Paige Harbison

Heroine, Bridget Duke, rules her high school, but when she crashes her car and ends up in limbo, she must confront the people she has wronged, all of whom want her to go to hell. The outcome of these meetings will decide her final destination.







High school for me was an interesting experience, very interesting. Don’t get me wrong I had friends, good friends and I did well, however my school was full of so many social clicks it was ridiculous. There were those that you knew and talked about, and they probably had no idea who you were, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. There were some nasty girls for sure, but none of them were like Bridget Duke star of Paige Harbison’s Here Lies Bridget. No, none of the girls I went to school with were like this foul mouth, selfish little brat.

I was lucky enough to gain a copy of this book through netGalley, lucky because Harbison did an amazing job in making you truly hate the protagonist. There is absolutely no way to like Bridget. You can’t. It’s not possible. She is honestly a terrible person. Some of the things she does and some of the things she says, well they make you just want to shout, and wonder why her “friends” put up with her abuse. Being able to see into Bridget’s head and know what she’s thinking and know that she is aware of her behaviour and “unable” to help herself is even more maddening. I laugh now thinking about it. How much I disliked this character, and that you were supposed to not like her.

I liked this book. I’ve read a few reviews were people did not like it, but I really enjoyed it. I thought it was well written and dare I say it, cute. Bridget is a terrible person who hurt a lot of people. She did this mostly because she was scared of being herself. But when Bridget drives her car over a cliff, she is forced to step into someone else’s shoes and see just how much her actions have hurt others. She is forced to decide whether this is the kind of life she wants to continue living. Most of what I have read about people not enjoying this book is that they think Bridget doesn’t grovel enough in the end. This is true, however, to play Devil’s advocate here; Bridget knows what she’s done wrong and she’s trying to make things right. At that point she wasn’t trying to be forgiven she was trying acknowledge her behaviour and apologize (she was about to die).

Over all Here Lies Bridget was a good read. It was maddening and annoying, it was happy and hopeful, and it sometimes brought a tear to my eye. Who doesn't deserve a second chance now and again?

Happy Reading Everyone!

Book Blogger Hop (5) Follow Friday (4)

Book Blogger Hop hosted by Jen at Crazy for Books.

This weeks question:

"What book are you most looking forward to seeing published in 2011? Why are you anticipating that book?"

I am very very eager for two books that are being published this year.

1) Lover Unleashed by JR Ward. The Black Dagger Brotherhood series is something I love and this installment looks to be fantastic. So I can't wait.

2) We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han, I believe it's the last book in The Summer I Turned Pretty series. I have really enjoyed the series so far and I am curious to see what happens. For those who have read it, I am totally team Conrad.

Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee's View.

This weeks question is...

What is/was your favorite subject in school?

When I was in high school I loved History and French. If I all of a sudden I would now decide to teach that is what I would teach. However, these days while working on my undergrad degree I have enjoyed Sociology and Criminal Justice. They have been interesting.

Happy Reading Everyone!

My Thoughts: French Kissing by Catherine Sanderson

Name: Sally Marshall
Status: Single mother
Age: 32
Nationality: Ten years in France, yet still English through and through.
I like: Living in Paris, playing with my daughter Lila (four-years-old), the company of good friends, the smell of baking bread . . .

So reads Sally's ad, posted on a French online dating site called Rendez-Vous. Sally left Nicolas, her French boyfriend of ten years and Lila's father, after she discovered that he was having an affair with his secretary. Six months have now passed, and although most of the time she feels like she's just dashing around like a headless chicken, she's beginning to bounce back.

But making a new start is fraught with complications. As she meets freshly-single Frédéric for a drink, spends the night with charmer Manu and runs away from ex-pat Marcus, she wonders: can she find a way to reconcile motherhood with single womanhood? To what extent can she keep Lila and her love life separate? And is she truly ready to turn her back on Nicolas?

I really like British Chick Lit. So much so that I don't know why I don't read more of it. Although this novel is set in Paris, it is British through and through and it was wonderful. French Kissing by Cathering Sanderson is Sanderson's first novel and it's a good one.

Sally, the protagonist is upbeat, fun and very likeable. She's fiercely independent and is trying to adjust to life as a recently single mom; having to deal with the fact that she cannot go out with her friends when she wants to (which leads her to sometimes feel like she is being left out) dealing with the fact that she has to sometimes leave a party early because the sitter needs to get home. Life is not as easy as it once was for Sally. So she give the Internet dating a try.

There was nothing overly special about this book, it wasn't overly funny, the story was interesting but it wasn't a novel idea. But the writing was good, and the characters were great. It was an easy and quick read. I almost wish I would have saved this for summer because it would have been great to read in the morning on my front step. I also loved that the story took place in Paris and that Sally was an English born woman living in France. I desperately want to live in France some day and this book fueled my desire and helped me realize that it is possible.
Catherine Sanderson herself has lived in Paris for many many years and is originally from somewhere in the UK, but has made Paris her home.

The one thing that I did find a little annoying with this book was the amount of french phrases and sentences that were thrown into the book with no translation. I can speak and read French fairly well, however there were sometimes when I wasn't to sure about what sometime meant and had to just be ok with that. I would imagine that for someone who spoke no french this would have been pretty frustrating.

Overall I think that if you are looking for something light and fun, this is the read for you.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Teaser Tuesday #7

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

French Kissing by Cathering Sanderson

"As the mirrored cabin plummeted downwards, I realized I now envied this princess in her thickly carpeted ivory tower even less than I had before. How on earth did she cope will all the stress and responsibility of her job alone, with no one but her young daughter to turn to?"

P.19

From Book to Movie (4)

When books are made into movies I generally like to have had the book read before hand. Mostly because Hollywood tends to change things. Also movies and books are my two favourite things, so why wouldn't I read the book. I have not read Jane Erye By Charlotte Bronte but it is something I have planned on reading sometime this year. Even before I realized their was going to be a movie. It looks weird (the movie), but I've heard that the book is a bit strange as well. Hopefully I can get this read before the movie comes out.

Happy Reading Everyone!

My Thoughts: Hunger Aroused by Dee Carney

Jasmine is sick in bed when a sexy stranger breaks in and reveals she’s suffering an irreversible case of vampirism. And because her turning wasn’t approved by the Council, he must kill her once the transition is complete. In the meantime, the executioner offers to ease her torment with chocolate, hot peppers or sexual release. Fortunately for them both, Jasmine’s kitchen is bare...







Hunger Aroused I received through netGalley. So Thankyou. Dee Carney's book was fantastic... for the first 60 or so pages. It was really good, fast paced, hot as anything you can imagine and made you want to keep reading, however it piddled out as it went on.

In the beginning you meet Jasmine who works in a hospital and is very sick. Then there is Corin who is the man sent to kill her. But he seduces her instead. Sounds great eh? There were mysteries that were presented in the beginning that were pretty cool, and I was excited to dig deeper into them. Unfortunately they weren't really well explained. Certain plots weren't really well developed, and I found that the ones that were, were a little confusing to follow. Certain ideas that were in the story weren't really relevant to the plot as a whole. Which again made Hunger Aroused a very jumbled read. It was little all over the place.

The writing was good. Corin and Jasmine were good characters. I did find Corin a little annoying towards the end. He was very duty focused, and then all of a sudden he changed his tune. Huh?

I kind of feel that perhaps the author took her time writing the beginning (because the beginning was very good) but rushed through a bit more of it towards the end. But I have no idea, I am making assumptions.

I will read Dee Carney again, the end of this book is not going to keep me from reading her. Hunger Aroused had an interesting plot and the writing was ok.

Happy Reading Everyone

Teaser Tuesday #6

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Taken By Midnight by Lara Adrian

"His veins were throbbing with aggression , and the hunger that had sunk its claws into him in the infirmary with Jenna wasn't doing anything for his attitude, either. He needed to feel the pavement under his boots and a weapon in his hand."

P.85

Happy Reading Everyone.

My Thoughts: Choker by Elizabeth Woods

Sixteen-year-old Cara Lange has been a loner ever since she moved away from her best and only friend, Zoe, years ago. She eats lunch with the other girls from the track team, but they're not really her friends. Mostly she spends her time watching Ethan Gray from a distance, wishing he would finally notice her, and avoiding the popular girls who call her "Choker" after a humiliating incident in the cafeteria.

Then one day Cara comes home to find Zoe waiting for her. Zoe's on the run from problems at home, and Cara agrees to help her hide. With her best friend back, Cara's life changes overnight. Zoe gives her a new look and new confidence, and next thing she knows, she's getting invited to parties and flirting with Ethan. Best of all, she has her BFF there to confide in.

But just as quickly as Cara's life came together, it starts to unravel. A girl goes missing in her town, and everyone is a suspect—including Ethan. Worse still, Zoe starts behaving strangely, and Cara begins to wonder what exactly her friend does all day when she's at school. You're supposed to trust your best friend no matter what, but what if she turns into a total stranger?

I have two copies of Choker by Elizabeth Woods. None of the bookstores in my city had it on release day, which really annoyed me. So I ordered it, totally forgetting that I sent an e-mail to Simon and Schuster asking for a copy (they had some promo, and all you had to do was send an e-mail with your address). So One day I received that copy and the day after I received the copy that I bought (I might do a give away, we'll see).

Anywho, this book was ok, and I'll tell you why. I figured everything out by page ten, I had the whole story figured out. So once I knew that it was hard to get excited about reading it. Like getting really into a movie, but having the end spoiled by someone. My own mind spoiled this one for me.

It was good. The story was intriguing, and the writing was good. The characters were a little blah for me. But again I don't know if that's just me. I really liked the concept of the story and found it pretty creepy at times. I hated Cara's parents, they knew something was going on with Cara but chose to ignore it. They really irked me.

As I think about it more, I would recommend this book. It was an interesting read, not something I have every read before. For a debut novel, I am actually pretty impressed. My figuring out what was going on, was not due to bad writing, not at all. I seem to be able to do that sometimes. I haven't seen Johnny Depp's new movie The Tourist and I already know that he's in on the whole thing (sorry for everyone who wanted to see that).

So go out and buy this book, it was good and I want to know what everyone thought, so if you've read it, leave me a comment, and tell me your thoughts.

Happy Reading everyone!

Book Blogger Hop (4) Follow Friday (3)

Book Blogger Hop hosted by Jen at Crazy for Books.

This weeks question:

Why do you read the genre that you do? What draws you to it?

When I was in the 7th grade I read Prince of Magic by Anne Stuart. I found it at my grandmother's house one day and started to read it. My grandma was a big reader, and she had piles and piles of books. She wasn't much of a romance reader-it was often her last resort. But after reading Prince of Magic, and seeing how much Gabriel loved Liz, spoke to my pre-teen mind, and I was hooked. So I blame my gramma. Alex over at A Girl, Books and Other Things says it really well, it's about the happy endings, and the hope they inspire. As for Young Adult. I love how they are mostly good clean fun. I love how much fun they are. They bring me back to my junior high/high school days, where life was simple. I really do love them, and they usually have fabulous covers.

Follow Friday is hosted over at Parajunkee's View. So go and check it out.

This weeks Question...

What makes up your non-human family??

I don't have a non-human family. I had a cat growing up K-Ci and I loved him. He was the best. One day when I have a house I really want to get a female dog and name her Lucy. I like that

idea a lot.

Happy Reading Everyone!

My Thoughts: Naughty and Nice Anthology

A famous singer reunites with an old flame. A couple explores their desire to be truly bound together. Newlyweds heat things up when they're trapped indoors. And sparks fly when the lights go out. Whether you are naughty or nice, you can still get what you really want for Christmas in this collection of four seasonal shorts.

Featuring Stories by Shannon Stacey, Jaci Burton, Megan Hart and Lauren Dane.

So I was pretty excited to read get this book from netGalley, and very eager to dig into it. I've read stories/books by Burton, Hart and Dane, but never by Stacey. I am generally pretty excited about finding new authors and I find anthologies are the safest way to do it.

I was not a huge fan of Shannon Stacey's Holiday Sparks, which was her contribution to Naughty and Nice. I thought it was a bit rushed (which is understandable considering it was only about 50 or so pages), but I also found it not to be very well developed. I did like the characters, they worked for me. I just wish there was more to read or more of something.

Jaci Burton's All She Wants for Christmas I think was my favourite of the bunch. I liked it because it had a little more depth then the first story. I loved that there was a kid in the story and that she was cute and funny, I also loved how she always referred to Riley (The Female Protagonist) as Riley Jensen-always. It was great. The story was good and I felt like it began and ended well.

I was super excited for Unwrapped by Megan Hart. We all know that I love Megan, but Unwrapped featured Leah and Brandon from Taking Care of Business and No Reservations (which was a collaborative work by both Megan Hart and Lauren Dane). When I read a book I sometimes get really invested in the characters, I want to know what's in store for them next. I love that Megan has done this not once but twice for these two characters. I liked this story, I liked how it was written and how it played out.

I am surprised that I have not read more by Lauren Dane, after reading Believe in Naughty and Nice. I don't know why I haven't. I have only read her collaboration with Megan Hart, and I really enjoyed that. And I really really liked this story. It was good. Dane's story was hands down the raunchiest of the bunch but it was classy, and tasteful. The characters (also recycled I believe) were sweet and I totally loved them, and loved how they loved each other.

Overall Naughty and Nice was a good read. I'm glad I was able to read it.

Happy Reading Everyone!

My Thoughts: After By Amy Efaw

Who could do such a thing? Certainly not someone like Devon Davenport a straight-A student-athlete with everything going for her. But in a moment of denial, desperation, and sheer panic, she did something that most people couldn't even imagine. And now Devon is being charged with attempted murder. In a skillfully crafted story, Amy Efaw takes readers through the days leading up to and after Devon's crime, painting an unexpected picture of a truly empathetic character caught up in an unimaginable situation.


After by Amy Efaw-whoa. This will not a long review as this was a pretty heavy read-for me at least.

I liked this book, really liked it. I read a review earlier this evening where someone did not like this book, and although I can understand her reasons why she didn't like it, I don't think they were what made the book. Efaw wrote a story that captivated the attention and had you wanting to know more. I finished this book in a mere two days; I needed to know what was happening and what was going to happen, not knowing was not an option.

The content of this book is pretty heavy and it was often hard to be sympathetic to the protagonist Devon. She did something terrible-unforgivable, but as the story unfolds and you learn more about Devon and her situation. You start to understand more what she was going through, and what she was thinking. Devon was an interesting character because I would often find myself wanting to scream at her-to say something, acknowledge what she'd done. But at the same time, I was rooting for her because I can only imagine what she was then going through.

There were a few things I thought were missing from this story such as the relationship between Devon and Connor. It's mentioned briefly but never explored in much detail. I feel like it should have been. Also the way it ended. I thought it was good, however I think that there needs to be a sequel. There is a lot of questions left unanswered, and I want answers.

It's hard to talk about this book without giving to much away. I liked this book and I would recommend it to everyone.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Teaser Tuesday #5

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Choker By Elizabeth Woods

"Cara's lips were cold. She barely noticed the dampness from the spilled Coke seeping through her jeans. The orange-colored anchor was back on the screen, now wearing a somber expression."

P.130

I've just started reading this book. I have no idea what's going on at this point but I am super excited to get into it!

Happy Reading Everyone!

Stylish Blogger Award

Liz at That's What Liz Read and Cheree at Justified Lunacy both awarded me with The Stylish Blogger Award. So Ladies I thank you both. I think this is really cool. Also thanks goes to Ruby at Ruby's Reads, she awarded me as well.

Here are the rules if you are awarded:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them in your post.
2. Tell us 7 things about yourself.
3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers.
4. Contact these bloggers and let them know that they have won.

7 Random Facts About Me:

1) My Dream Man is Dean from the TV show Supernatural-Season 1 and 2 Dean. The later Dean is to serious for me.

2) Right now I am listening to Hello by The Glee cast- I love this song so much I will probably repeat it once or twice before I move on. (at the time I finished this post I was on listen #3)

3) I really would love to live in France someday-For a little while.

4) I've seen the Backstreet Boys in concert four times- And if they come here again I will go see them again.

5) I have a little brother who is 18 years younger then me-I totally adore him.

6) I love Jesus- And I would be lost without my faith

7) I Could read Dirty by Megan Hart over and over-It makes me cry every time I read it.


Great bloggers to pass this onto:

1) Jane's Story

2) Midnyte Reader

3) Miss Page-Turner's City of Books

4) The Delusional Diaries

5) Ruby's Reads

6) Recovering Potter Addict

7) Reading With Martinis

8) Read In Bed

9) My Bookish Ways

10) Paranormal Romance Addict

11) Lazy Girl Reads

12) Alison Can Read

13) Stalking the Bookshelves

14) Cheezyfeet Books

15) Imagination In Focus

So thanks again to the girls who awarded me this little award. I strongly encourage all to check out the 15 that I've awarded. Leave comments and follow.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Book Blogger Hop (3) Follow My Blog Friday (2)

Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books.

This weeks question is...

"What book influenced or changed your life? How did it influence/change you?"

This is a hard question; one I am not sure I have an answer for right now. I am currently reading a book By Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish called I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey.

"What can you do? You can do a lot. You can support justice for all by speaking out loudly to your family, friends, community, politicians and religious leaders. You can support foundations that do good work. You can volunteer for humanitarian organizations. You can vote regressive politicians out of office. You can do many things to move the world toward greater harmony…

"I know that what I have lost, what was taken from me, will never come back. But as a physician and a Muslim of deep faith, I need to move forward to the light, motivated by the spirits of those I lost. I need to bring them justice… I will keep moving but I need you to join me in this long journey."

I am reading it for school but it is really changing how I see my life and what I take for granted. So right this moment this is really changing me.

Follow my Blog Friday is a weekly meme hosted at Parajunkee's View it's a pretty cool little meme. So go check it out.

This week's question...

What book(s) have you discovered lately from someone's book blog?

What books haven't I discovered? I've always been a reader but I mostly read romance and adult fiction (when I say adult I mean novels not classified as young adult). But when I started following other's blogs I found a love for Young Adult fiction. It's now what I find myself reading the most of.

Happy Reading Everyone!

My Bookish Ways: Giveaway Giveaway Giveaway!

This looks pretty cool, boys and girls. Not a lot of time left, so be sure to go check it out!

My Bookish Ways: New Year's Reading Resolutions Giveaway Hop!: "UPDATE: The giveaway has gone so well, I'm adding a book! I'll also be giving away a copy of Ghost Town(Morganville Vampires), by Rachel Ca..."

Teaser Tuesday #4

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

•Grab your current read
•Open to a random page
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
•BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
•Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Intrinsical by Lani Woodland


"Brent smiled softly and shook his head.
“You’re a mess. Let me help.” He brought his cup to my
lips, the cup shaking, a sheen of sweat forming along his
brow."

P.106



*I received a PDF file of this novel from the publisher, so the page number might not be exact*

Happy Reading Everyone.

Haulin' (4)

I totally took advantage of Boxing Week this year, and I went a little crazy. But I love books and buying books on sale...Uhh Yeah.

PS-If you click on the cover it'll take you to it's Goodreads page.

The Dark Divine-Bree Despain

I've seen the cover of this book floating around the blog world for a little while, but never paid to much attention to it. But I picked it up when I was at the bookstore and thought it looked amazing, so now I have it, and I will read it someday!

The Girls-Lori Lansens

I'd Never heard of this book before I picked it up. But When I looked it up late, it got amazing reviews and people seems to really enjoy it.

Love Rules-Freya North

I've read one other book by Freya North and I really really liked it. It was funny and it was a light read, which I enjoyed. So I am looking forward to reading this one.

After-Amy Efaw

*I've read and finished this book, I'll have my review up later this week.*

I love the cover of this books, love love love it. I read the back, and wanted to know what happened, I missed the details of the cover when I started reading the book and it wasn't until I knew what happened that I realized that it was right there on the cover.

J'adore New York-Isabelle Lafleche

I spend hours at the bookstore when I go, hours and hours, and generally do not leave with what I had originally intended. I breeze through pick up the books with pretty covers-and buy them if they sound interesting. Sometimes it serves me well, and sometimes it doesn't. We'll find out with this one.

French Kissing-Catherine Sanderson

This looks like good fun. I've been reading some pretty heavy stuff in the last couple weeks and I need something a little lighter.

Selfish is the Heart- Megan Hart

If I can avoid it I try to buy books from the bookstore instead of on Amazon. In saying that, I waited a long time for this book to find it's way into stores. But alas I now have it. And the cover is gorgeous.

Intrinsical-Lani Woodland

I won a PDF copy of this book from a contest held at Ruby's Reads, I've started it, but I hate reading from my computer, so I'm thinking about investing in a Kobo eReader. Yesssss.

And that's my haul-Happy Reading Everyone!

My Thoughts: Beastly by Alex Flinn

I am a beast.

A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright—a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll stay this way forever—ruined—unless I can break the spell.


Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly . . . beastly.


A while ago I went to the movies and saw the movie trailer for Beastly. The trailer was good and the movie looks exciting, but I found myself saying-Oh man, that would make a really good book-Ha, I didn't realize that is was indeed a book written by Alex Flinn. I posted about the trailer and the trailer itself which can be found here. I was really excited about the whole story and I really wanted to read the book. I mean, how could I not be; a modern day tale of Beauty and the Beast, that is just way cool.

I finally got my hands on this little novel and read it in about 2 days. I really liked it. It was cute and well written. In the beginning I hated the protagonist Kyle, he was so rude and selfish and I was often caught saying "are you serious?" with him. He was a brat, totally. He got what he deserved. Let me just say what he did to Kendra was horrible. Just horrible, horrible. The kid got what he deserved.

Flinn does a wonderful job in making you dislike Kyle, and then gradually allowing you to like him. As the plot moves on you start to find him sweet, awkward but sweet. I really enjoyed reading this story from the males perspective. It was refreshing. Kyle's love interest, Lindy was fairly bland and not very exciting. I found that she did nothing really to move Kyle along in his path to discovering himself, and making him a better person. Will and Magda however were my two favourite characters. They were funny and they put up with Bratty Kyle, in a way that only true affection can. Something Kyle had been missing from his life.

This was not a masterpiece when it comes to literature. But it was a delightful story and I really enjoyed reading it. There are things about it that I am hoping the movie has, and things that are in the movie that I wish they hadn't changed (I haven't seen the movie, I'm just going by the trailer), which is why I am glad that I've read the book. It's a pretty easy read and I'd encourage everyone to read it.

Happy Reading Everyone.

Release Day-Precious and Fragile Things by Megan Hart

Gilly Soloman has been reduced to a mothering machine, taking care of everyone and everything
except herself. But the machine has broken down. Burnt out by the endless days of crying children and menial tasks, and exhausted from always putting herself last, Gilly doesn’t immediately consider the consequences when she’s carjacked. With a knife to her throat, her first thought is that she’ll finally get some rest. Someone can save her for a change.

But salvation isn’t so forthcoming. Stranded in a remote, snowbound cabin with this stranger, hours turn to days, days into weeks. As time forges a fragile bond between them, she learns her captor is not the lunatic she first believed, but a human being whose wasted life has been shaped by secrets and tragedy. Yet even as their connection begins to foster trust, Gilly knows she must never forget he’s still a man teetering on the edge. One who just might take her with him.

A couple weeks ago I read and 'reviewed' Precious and Fragile Things by Megan Hart which you can find here. This is Megan's first non-romance, non-erotic novel and I really enjoyed it.

Precious and Fragile Things is being released today in most book stores and I have the privilege today of presenting you with an excerpt of this novel to give you a little taste of what you are going to get yourselves into when you read this book. So enjoy everyone and Happy reading.

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He shook his head. “No, I’m not going to let you go, for fuck’s sake, Gilly, that’s getting pretty old. But you want to run out in the snow again? Be a dumbass? Be my guest. See what happens this time, see if I save your sorry ass one more time.”

“What about when the snow melts, Todd? What then?”

His gaze wavered for a second before he shoved her away from him and stalked to the center of the room, head hung low. When he swung around to look at her, his dark eyes were large in his face, his mouth a pensive frown.

“Why can’t you just like me?” he asked her. “I ain’t done anything real bad to you, Gilly. Not real bad.”

“I won’t ever like you. Don’t you see I can’t?”

“Why not?” Todd held out his hands, giving her that kicked-dog look. “Why?”

“Because you’re my enemy.” Gilly pulled the torn pieces of her gown back together with one hand, the fabric a useless shield but one she couldn’t put down. Her mouth stung when she spoke, but the blood had ceased dripping. “Because you are keeping me from the things I love.”

He sighed like the weight of the world had come to rest on his broad shoulders. “We could get along better than we do.”

“No!” She recoiled, grimacing.

“I didn’t mean like that,” he said quietly.

“I know you didn’t. The answer’s still no.”

He looked angry again. “We’re stuck here, Gilly. Ain’t no way around it. We’re fucking stuck out here in the middle of noplace up to our assholes in snow. That’s the way it is. Don’t keep pushing me into being something you wish I was just so you can feel better about what you did.”

It wasn’t the statement of a stupid man but of an insightful one, and Gilly wondered at what the people in his life had done to him, and for how long, to convince him he was so dumb.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Todd said. “I don’t want to.”

But he would. The words unsaid nevertheless hung between them, loud and clear.

She turned her face away. “When the snow melts, I’m going to try to get away. Are you going to tie me up?”

“I’m not that kinky,” Todd said, “though a girl did ask me once to put on her panties.”

This was serious and she hated he was making a joke of it. “The only thing keeping me here is the snow. You know that.”

“Ah, fuck me. Yes. I know it.” Todd scowled.

“So, what happens when the snow melts?” She asked the question more quietly this time, not pushing so hard. Truly curious. She wanted to know the answer.

“I knew an old hound dog once,” Todd said after a pause. “He wasn’t mine – I never had a dog. He belonged to this guy who lived down the street from one of the places they put me after…one of the places I lived as a kid.”

Despite herself, Gilly lifted her face to meet his unwavering gaze. Todd’s voice was solid, deep, precise even in its uneducated manner. He stood with his feet planted slightly apart, hands at his sides. Telling her.

“This dog was one mean son-of-a-bitch. The guy kept him outside on a chain, and that dog would run so fast to bite your ass he’d choke himself right off his own feet. Every day, I’d walk by that dog on my way to school, every fucking day he’d try to get me. But he never did.”

Todd laughed, low. “The guy that owned him could’ve just kicked that dog when he saw him, but he never did. That guy always made sure that dog had plenty of food and water, and he gave him chew toys and rawhide bones. And every night, when that guy came out to feed the dog, he’d pat him on the head and scratch him behind the ears. And the dog, that ass-biting dog, always growled. The guy loved that dog, even though the dog never loved him back, and never thanked him for all the nice things he did for it. Then one night, when the guy went out to feed the dog and pat him on the head, the little fucker didn’t bother growling. This time, he took a big chunk right out of the guy’s hand.”

Her throat had gone dry during the telling of his tale. “What happened then?”

Todd smiled, an empty expression that bared his teeth and did not reach his eyes. “The guy went inside his house and got his shotgun, and he blew that little fucker’s head right off.”

There was no mistaking the meaning of his story, but Gilly wasn’t afraid of it. “Which one of us is the dog?”

“I don’t know, Gilly,” Todd said. “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

This excerpt is copyright to Megan Hart.