Dec 032014
 

EndlessCover-Final-Endless

Author: Jaclyn Weist

Publisher: Trifecta Books

Published: November 25th, 2014

ASIN: B00Q61MYTW

ebook: 201 pages

YA Fantasy

FTC FYI: Received an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy

Summary 

Sydney lives her nightmares every night. While other teenagers are dreaming of boys or traveling to exotic places, she must run a staircase with no beginning or no end, or a terrible debt will never be paid.

Just before her seventeenth birthday, the dreams change. She is no longer alone.

But her nightmares don’t end when she wakes up. Her stepmother and stepsisters threaten to ruin everything she holds dear. She must protect the secret that both she and her father have magic or they will use it to their advantage.

As Sydney learns to control her magic, what seemed impossible before—escaping her stepmother and those ever-present stairs—is now at her fingertips. When she learns the ultimate plan of her evil captor, Sydney must stop her at all costs, or she will forever be trapped inside her nightmares.

My Review

I really enjoyed this twisted-tale of Cinderella.  While reading I had many questions as to why characters were acting a certain way, or why something was happening and Jaclyn did a great job of addressing those, and then some.  Sydney had to endure quite a bit from her step-mother and step-sisters.  And I loved her reasoning for putting up with all their abuse, she does it for her dad.  There was a great twist to the story on the Fairy Godmother, which was so sweet and fun.  One character in particular drove me crazy, but I was thrilled with the end result for all the characters.  This is a fun fantasy book that is clean and page-turning.

4 out of 5 stars.  Jaclyn released a bunch of books this year!  Check her out on the links below.

Author Links

Website / Facebook / Twitter

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble

About the Author

Jaclyn is an Idaho farm girl who grew up loving to read. She developed a love for writing as a senior in high school, when her dad jokingly said she was the next Dr. Seuss (not even close but very sweet). She met her husband, Steve at BYU and they have six happy, crazy children that encourage her writing. After owning a bookstore and running away to have adventures in Australia, they settled back down in their home in Utah. Jaclyn now spends her days herding her kids to various activities and trying to remember what she was supposed to do next.

Excerpt

Dad handed over the ticket and turned to us. He noticed me staring and glanced back to where the valet had been standing. “That’s Luke. He’s the son of one of my partners.”

“He’s gorgeous,” Sarah said. “Do you think he’d go out with me?”

Dad laughed. “Maybe so. He’ll be coming to Sydney’s birthday party, along with a few other young men I think you would prefer over Luke. Dillon seems more your type.” He gestured toward another guy coming up to the restaurant with his family.

Sarah wrinkled her nose. “No, he’s more Kaylee’s type. Oh! Here’s Luke with the car.” She hurried forward so she would be standing in front when he opened the door.

I rolled my eyes and glanced over at Kaylee. She was too busy staring at Dillon to notice me. Sarah was right, I guess. I climbed in the other side of the car, hoping to avoid the embarrassment of Sarah throwing herself at Luke.

Dad climbed in right after. “You don’t want to meet him?”

I shook my head. “No. Not right now, at least. Dad, that feeling is here. Someone’s here that shouldn’t be, and I don’t know who. What if it’s Luke?”

“You felt it too, huh? There’s a bad feeling here, but it’s not him. His dad—” He stopped when Julie climbed in.

 

 

Nov 282014
 

20911237Eye on Orion

Author: Laura D. Bastian

Publisher: Astraea Press

Published: February 24th, 2014

ISBN: 9786213526

ebook: 240 pages

FTC FYI: Received an ebook copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy

Goodreads Summary

Falling in love with your gorgeous new neighbor isn’t a bad thing, but when he turns out to be the bodyguard of a princess from a planet nine billion light-years away, life gets complicated.

Seventeen-year-old stargazer Holly Adams never imagined she’d find herself trying to prevent the overthrow of an alien government. When Jai and his sister Amira move into the house down the street, Holly is immediately drawn to them. Jai acts suspicious of her from the start, making Holly more curious about their oddities. When Holly learns they are from a different planet, she does what she can to help protect Amira from Shander, a man who wants to marry her by force in order to take over the kingdom her father rules.

Mistaken identity, a botched kidnapping, and a first kiss that bonds Holly and Jai for life are hard enough, but when Shander believes Holly to be the princess, things get even more dangerous.

My Review

I really enjoyed this book.  Holly is such a great character.  I instantly liked her and appreciated her knowledge and fascination with the stars and galaxy.  Holly could also think fast and protect herself when needed.  I think her love of the stars is one of the ways she is able to win over Jai so quickly.  Holly is curious about her neighbors, but they are also curious about her too and when Jai’s “family” invites her and her parents over for dinner, that is where secrets start to be revealed.  So many things happen, and I was turning pages fast to see what would occur.  The author did a great job with her characters and I loved learning more about the stars.  I especially liked Amira.  She was a doll, and I loved the scene at the mall where she discovers all the wonders of a food court!

4 out of 5 stars.  Laura also wrote a book for the Gates of Atlantis series, each book in the series is on sale this weekend for $0.99 each!

Author Links

Goodreads / Twitter / Website / Facebook

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Nov 262014
 

20578610The Unhappening of Genesis Lee

Author: Shallee McArthur

Publisher: Sky Pony Press

Published: November 18th, 2014

ISBN13: 9781629146478

Hardcover: 352 pages

FTC FYI: Received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy

Goodreads Summary

Seventeen-year-old Genesis Lee has never forgotten anything. As one of the Mementi—a small group of genetically-enhanced humans—Gena remembers everything with the help of her Link bracelets, which preserve memories perfectly. But Links can be stolen, and six people have already lost their lives to a memory thief, including Gena’s best friend.

Anyone could be next. Which is why Gena is less than pleased to meet a strange but charming boy named Kalan who claims that they’ve not only met, but that Gena knows who the thief is.

The problem is, Gena doesn’t remember Kalan, she doesn’t remember seeing the thief, and she doesn’t know why she’s forgetting things— or how much else she might forget. As growing tensions between Mementi and ordinary humans drive the city of Havendale into chaos, Gena and Kalan team up to search for the thief. And as Gena loses more memories, they realize they have to solve the mystery fast.

Because Gena’s life is unhappening around her.

My Review

This book is one wild ride.  Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I was WAY off!  Wow, I enjoyed being wrong.  To my credit, I was right about one thing, but there were reasons for everything and where it went was awesome.  I loved the idea of this book.  Our memories are precious.  What would it be like to have them stolen.  There is a BIG twist in this book that was very cool, but sad.  Shallee wrote some amazing characters.  As much as I liked Gena, I really liked Kalan.  He was a breath of fresh air for this fantastic book.  I won’t be giving anything away by saying this, but when Genesis keeps forgetting Kalan, it is heart breaking.  But, Kalan doesn’t give up.  I won’t say why or how she keeps doing so (that was one of the twists), but I thought it added quite an excitement to this page-turning book.

4 out of 5 stars.  This is Shallee’s first book and I look forward to what is next for her!

Author Links

Goodreads / Website / Twitter

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Nov 242014
 

23579254Eve: In the Beginning

Author: H. B. Moore

Publisher: Mirror Press

Published: November 22nd, 2014

ISBN13: 978194149395

ebook: 285 pages

FTC FYI: Received an ebook copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads Summary

The first love story on earth… Haunting… Lyrical… Unforgettable…

In a world where everything is perfect, yet the same day after day, Eve must decide if she wants to live forever in the garden with Adam and never know what lies beyond the walls. When she makes a choice with terrible consequences, the pain of mortality is swift. As she and Adam explore their new world, and her body changes, Eve discovers the sweetness of first love with the man who has always been at her side.

My Review

I absolutely loved this book.  Heather does an incredible job of telling this beautiful story of our first parents.  I appreciated Heather’s notes in the beginning of the book, that she believes one day our questions will be answered about the Garden of Eden, and that this book is not to answer those questions, but to simply “bring to life an incredible man and woman who sacrificed immortality to start the human race”.

Heather’s Eve is a sweet, curious woman who is loved protectively by Adam in the garden.  They work together to tend to the garden and the animals.  Eve is fascinated by the tree of knowledge of good and evil, while Adam fears it.  Lucifer is there and his presence causes changes and death in the Garden.  Of course, we all know what happens after that.  Eve partakes of the fruit, as does Adam, and they are cast out.  But that is where their journey begins.  Their struggles in the wilderness and how they learned to adapt were heart-felt and challenging.  Lucifer comes to confuse and manipulate them.  What I loved most was Adam and Eve’s strong love for each other.  They knew they needed to multiply and replenish the earth, but knew it would bring Eve “great sorrow”.  I enjoyed their individual journeys of self discovery and finding their new love outside the garden.  Heather wrote these characters so well.  I enjoyed how the story was told from both character’s point of view.  I loved Eve, her sweet nature and innocence were enduring, but what I loved most about her was how she was strong too and came to Adam’s rescue at times.  Adam is strong and shielding and the perfect protector, and Satan is just, well Satan.

5 out of 5 stars.

Author Links

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Purchase Links

Amazon  / Barnes and Noble

Nov 192014
 

22299646Fairy Tale Christmas

Author: Michael McLean and Scott McLean

Publisher: Shadow Mountain

Published: September 30, 2014

ISBN13: 9781609079307

Hardcover: 151 pages

FTC FYI: Received a hardcover copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy

Goodreads Summary

Santa Claus has been kidnapped! Behind the plot are the mischievous and evil characters of fairy tale stories–an evil queen, a wicked stepmother, a sorceress, the beanstalk giant, and Rumpelstiltskin. They have a plan that will erase the term “Happily Ever After” from storybooks forever. It’s nearly Christmas Eve and time is running out. Can Santa and the fairy-tale heroes save the day and bring Christmas to all the children of the world? Will anyone have a “Happily Ever After” again?

Fairy Tale Christmas reminds us all that there is good in everyone and that the magic of Christmas can soften any heart.

My Review

This cover is so much fun!  Isn’t it awesome, I love it.  This book is tons of fun.  It combines some favorite fairy tale villains and Christmas.  What a clever idea and great combination.  The story is sweet, entertaining and reads fast.  The scheme that the “Clandestines” come up with to stop Christmas and redeem their stories is creative and down right evil (in a cute way).  I loved the ending and the message of even the nastiest characters can change given the chance and Christmas magic.  I think the epilogue is my favorite, it adds just the perfect final touch to this great story.  This is a great book that you and your kids can read every year to start a new Christmas tradition.  There is also music with this book too, of course, it’s Michael McLean!  Find out more at Fairy Tale Christmas Musical.

Book Links

Website 

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Deseret Book

 

Nov 172014
 

23551406Deceived

Author: Kathi Oram Peterson

Publisher: Covenant Communication

Published: November 2014

ISBN13: 9781621088530

Paperback: 245 pages

FTC FYI: Received a paperback copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy

Goodreads Summary

A storm rages outside the unassuming Los Angeles house, while within, something sinister lurks. A murderer stalks his victim, unaware of a witness to the horrific crime: awakened from a deep, drug-induced slumber, Tara Kelly hears voices in the next room. Struggling to focus through her sleep medication, the young woman helplessly observes her aunt’s murder. Now she’s a loose end the killer cannot ignore . . .

A family friend helps Tara as she does the only thing she can: disappear. Fleeing to the security of a remote Idaho ranch, Tara finds herself under the guard of handsome rancher Joseph White Eagle. Her unwitting protector takes his role seriously, going as far as claiming that Tara is his fiancée. But even as their relationship deepens, Joseph struggles to see past Tara’s similarities to his late wife. When a series of accidents threatens Tara’s life, it becomes clear that her attempt to out run danger has been in vain. The killer will stop at nothing to find her, and Joseph will do anything to protect her even if it means unraveling secrets that will have devastating consequences for them both.

My Review

Once I was able to really sit down and take the time to delve into this book, I really enjoyed it.  I did think the romance between Tara and Joseph was a bit rushed, they did have to play the part of an engaged couple, and I only worried about that since Tara was in such a fragile state.  That being said, the characters were made for each other, and perfect for each other in many ways.  Tara and Joseph both had tragic events happen in their lives, until they find themselves together to protect Tara.  Joseph makes up an engagement to get those on the ranch to not ask too many questions about Tara.  Some do not take this engagement well, including Joseph’s daughter.  Besides the struggles that Tara is having trying to remember what happened on the night of her aunt’s murder, someone is making Joseph’s life on the ranch difficult.  Between shot animals, getting shot at themselves, and putting the lives of everyone at the ranch in danger, are the two situations connected?  The author does a great job of building the suspense and planting seeds throughout the book.  The other characters in this book are written well and through all the suspense, there is a heart-felt love and the feeling of family, and a great example of love and guidance from Heavenly Father through prayer.  I also want to add, the ending was shocking and so page-turning, it was well past my bed time when I finished reading.

4 out of 5 stars.  Kathi is the author of many great books.  Check out the links below to find out more about her.

Author Links

Goodreads / Website / Facebook / Twitter

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Deseret Book / Seagull Book

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