Book Review~Touch by Natalia Jaster

Title: Touch
Author: Natalia Jaster
Pub Date: October 27th 2014
Format: ebook
Pages: 291
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Mythology, Romance
Links: Goodreads ~ Amazon/B&N ~ Book/Author Site

Synopsis: *Mature YA: sexual content and language. Intended for readers 17 and older.

The myth of Eros isn’t the truth. Her story is the truth . . .

Love is an immortal bad girl. With a strike of her arrow and a smirk on her face, she pins human hearts together against their will. It’s for their own good, of course—silly, clueless creatures that they are.

But Love has never loved. Not until the Fates parcel her off to a small, frostbitten town littered with needy souls. Not until she crosses paths with Andrew, a crippled boy whose gaze locks onto hers. Yet how can this be? Mortals don't have the power to see deities.

The longer they’re friends, the more Love wishes she could touch Andrew. In gentle ways. In other tempting and reckless ways as well.

It’s impossible. She isn’t a true part of his world. She’s an outsider whose fingers will only ever sweep through him. A mischievous, invisible goddess who’s destined to be alone. And he’s destined for someone else. By order of the Fates, it’s Love’s duty to betray his trust. To seal his heart while ignoring the gash in her own.

Or she could become human. For there is one very tricky, very dangerous way to do so.

If only Andrew felt the same about her, it might be worth the risk.

Rating: 8.5/10
Source: Given by the author in exchange of an honest review.

My Thoughts: Wow! I was not expecting to like this book as much as I did. Despite my interest in Greek mythology I tend to stay away from books about it because they are mostly related to politics and such and those things bore me. Or the romance in them is too unrealistic and I never like that. But Touch seemed interesting and I was glad that Natalia sent me a copy.

Story: The story was really good! The forbidden-love plot is done really well and the 'cannot touch' thing added to the sensuality. The mythology is really different from the Greek one and was very interesting! Overall I really enjoyed the story. The pacing was perfect throughout and every chapter keeps you guessing what will happen next.

Writing: This book is really well-written! The writing flows easily but is also beautiful. It was easy to create images in my head (I'm a visual reader) and the writing kept me interested. I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author!

Characters: Love was very different from the usual heroines. She wasn't always likable, probably because she wasn't very relatable to me, but she was always interesting and I really liked seeing the world through her eyes. She was kind of naughty and I liked that about her.

Andrew was really cute! Seriously, he was the sweetest person ever! And I really liked his relationship with Love. He was nice and kind but also realistic. I love how he became friends with Love first. I loved how he cared about others and put them first.

The other characters were well-written and interesting as well. Natalia has created really great characters in this book.

*SPOILER*

A character I really liked was Anger. A love-hate romance between him and Love would have been so awesome! Not that I don't like Love with Andrew. But I would've liked her with Anger as well. So much angst!! And my heart broke for him when he didn't get the girl. He even had to give up everything for her. That scene in which she senses that someone is watching her but there is no one there. Omo, that was heartbreaking!

Overall: I really enjoyed this book! It was something different and really well-written. A must-read if you like well-done romances!

About The Author:

My kindergarten teacher told my mom than I stared out the window too much, daydreaming instead of paying attention in class. It's true. Eventually I learned to focus more in school (and to love it), but the daydreaming never stopped. So after earning my master's in creative writing and spending a bunch of fun years as a magazine editor, I'm now a writer of YA romance.

I'm also a total fool for first-kiss scenes, fanfiction, libraries, and starry nights.

"Touch" is my first book.

Visit my website: http://nataliajaster.com
Friend me on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/nataliajaster
Follow me on Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/andshewaits/
Follow me on Tumblr: http://andshewaits.tumblr.com

Drama Review~Full House (Thai)

Title: Full House
Main Cast: Mike D'Angelo as Mike, Sucharat Manaying as Aom Am, Panichkul Uttsada as Guy, Janesuda Jane as Mintra
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Original Run: Jan 11, 2014 to Mar 16, 2014 
Duration: 50 min.
Original Channel: Channel 8
No. of Episodes: 20
Language: Thai
Links: MDL ~ Viki

Synopsis: Aom is a writer who got swindled out of her house during her trip to Korea. She finds out that her house was sold to Mike and in an attempt to get her possessions back, she enters a contract marriage with Mike for one year. Though she lost everything, Aom remains optimistic and takes things in strike. What started out as a business relationship between the two becomes personal as they start to care for each other.

My Rating: 10/10

My Thoughts:

THIS. WAS. THE. CUTEST. DRAMA. EVER!!!!!!! OhmyGodIlovedit!!!!!! I'm sorry but I'm way too excited for my review to be coherent! Okay, wait. Deep breath.

Let me start this again. This drama was amazing! I've seen a Thai movie, Shutter, before which was amazeballs! I've also seen a Thai mini movie, The Library, which was also amazing! And now I watched this Thai lakorn which I absolutely loved! I hope my luck with Thai entertainment stays this good ;) Before I start my review let me say that I haven't seen the original Korean version of Full House, nor do I plan to. But people who have seen it say that the Thai version is better so yaay! Now onto my review.

Story: If I had to rate the story alone I would give it a 4, maybe 5, out of 10. I'll be honest, if it weren't for the lead couple I would've hated the story. The fake marriage aspect of it was great and I loved the romance but what was up with Mike? What was his deal with Min & his promise and what not?! That was extremely annoying! Especially since I felt like Min was shown as misunderstood not manipulative and evil like she was. But even if that part of the story was annoying, I really enjoyed the drama overall. Especially the AoMike parts! OTP!!!!!

Actors/Characters: Umm... I think I'm in love... No, seriously, Mike is gorgeous! And I think I'm in love with him..

That said, he was pretty good in this drama. Not Johnny Depp good, obviously, but I think he did a great job and portrayed his character well. I liked Mike (the character), he was adorable! Other than his obsessed-with-Min side, I really liked him. I liked how he was genuinely a nice person and cared about others. He wasn't mean like most "chaebol" characters are. And his relationship with Aom was just the cutest!

I loved Aom! The actress did a really amazing job, there were some scenes (like the one in which she confesses) with I absolutely loved! And I adored her character! She was funny and cute and I love how she stood her own. She refused to be bullied around and even though she was a bit crazy, I really liked her! She was one of the most 'real' characters I have ever seen!

I actually really liked Guy! He was pretty cool and I loved how straightforward he was! That was what I loved the most about him, he wasn't one of those second leads who keep suffering on their own and never say a word. He was pretty honest.

Mintra was the most annoying person ever!! I hated her! She was manipulative and selfish and I really really hated her!

The rest of the cast was okay. Most were there for comedy purposes or to move the story along and all of them did well. Mike's grandmother was adorable!

Romance: The romance was the best part of this drama. AoMike had such amazing chemistry! They reminded me of the InHyun couple. I loved their bickering and their loving glances and how much they cared for each other. I loved how they were like friends and I love love love that they are good friends in real life as well! I simply loved them together!

Overall: The story wasn't the best but the romance was mindblowingly amazing and for that alone this drama deserves a watch! I really hope AoMike soon work on another drama together!

Book Review~Girl of Nightmares (Anna #2) by Kendare Blake

Title: Girl of Nightmares
Author: Kendare Blake
Series: Anna #2
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pub Date: August 17th 2012
Format: ebook
Pages: 255
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Supernatural
Links: Goodreads ~ Amazon/B&N ~ Book/Author Site

Synopsis: It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on. 

His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live—not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.


Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.


Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor.

Rating: 8/10
Source: Bought

My Thoughts: I fairly enjoyed this book but I'm afraid I don't have much to say about it. In the beginning I was having trouble getting into it but I think that's because I wasn't in the mood of reading this type of a book. It did eventually catch my interest and I did enjoy reading it but I felt that there was something missing.

Story: The story was pretty interesting and really well-written. The supernatural element of the book was handled really well and there were some creepy scenes. They weren't too scary but they were still fun to read and added suspense. I didn't like the romance much but it wasn't about the romance. I couldn't really believe that Cas loved Anna, they hardly even knew each other. But more focus was on the friendship than the romance and I liked that because I liked Thomas', Carmel's and Cas' friendship much better. Overall the story was enjoyable and had a very Supernatural (the TV show) feel to it.

Writing: The writing was pretty good. I really liked some parts but some others made me lose my interest. Overall the writing wasn't that bad and I was especially impressed with the descriptions of the supernatural creatures and places.

Characters: Cas was the kind of character I liked but wanted to slap sometimes. I did enjoy being in his head though and I liked how much he cared about the people he loved. He was the kind of guy who trusts his instincts whereas I am someone who likes to use my head more. Therefore I didn't agree with a lot of his decisions and he irritated me at times. But I also understood his decisions. He was cool albeit a bit annoying.

Thomas and Carmel were great sidekicks! Thomas was so sweet and I loved him! I really admired Carmel and she was super cool! I did not like Jestine. I just didn't like her, no matter what Cas or anyone else says. All the other characters were well-written as well and everyone fit into the story well.

Ending: I was very impressed with how the ending was handled! Even though I did not see this coming I am very satisfied with it and it could not have ended in a better way. Props to the writer for writing a great ending to this duology.

Overall: I really enjoyed both of the books and would highly recommend them to fans of Supernatural. I would love to read more of Cas' story if Ms Blake decided to write more. These books were very enjoyable and not too scary so they're perfect for people who want to read a supernatural adventure without getting scared too much.

About The Author:

Kendare Blake is an import from South Korea who was raised in the United States by caucasian parents. You know, that old chestnut. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Business from Ithaca College and a Master’s degree in Writing from Middlesex University in London. She brakes for animals, the largest of which was a deer, which sadly didn’t make it, and the smallest of which was a mouse, which did, but it took forever. Amongst her likes are Greek Mythology, rare red meat and veganism. She also enjoys girls who can think with the boys like Ayn Rand, and boys who scare the morality into people, like Bret Easton Ellis. 

Website: http://www.kendareblake.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/KendareBlake

Book Spotlight~Rekindled Desires by Debbie Macarter

Rekindled Desires 

Description

  

 Genre: Contemporary Romance 

 On Sale: February 07, 2015 

Description 

On her best friend’s wedding night, Becca Lawson becomes distressed when she runs into the man who once held her heart and shattered it completely. One night of intense emotions and daring confessions is all it takes to rekindle long-lost emotions. Fearing another heartbreak, Becca shuts herself off completely, denying herself a chance at true love.

On the surface, it seems Austin Blackstone has it all. He’s rich, young and strikingly good-looking; but deep down, his heart aches for the unforgettable girl who slipped through his fingers. When a serendipitous encounter places them together on a tropical paradise, all of his deepest and darkest secrets secrets threaten to spill over. He’s willing to forsake everything he has built to finally get what he truly desires.

Rekindled Desires is a touching love story of second chances and new beginnings. Can two vastly different people forget their rules and take a chance at love? Fans of Deborah Bladon are sure to love this sweet tale set on a beautiful, Caribbean island.

  Book Excerpt 

How long had he denied himself the simple pleasure of being with a woman? Months? A year? That was insane. He was making himself a promise to end this celibacy as soon as he got out of this old-fashioned formality. The easy catch would be, of course, the bridesmaid. They were always ready for a little adventure, weren’t they? But this was out of the question. He must be content, polite, and utterly boring today.

But something inside of him just could not stop remembering the voice of that woman he was watching earlier, standing in the middle of this tropical garden with the flowers that produced amazing, exotic, almost seductive scents. Some feeling of déjà vu would not let go.

His gut was telling him that his life was missing something, something very important.

 Family. This was a family gathering.

The wedding represented the birth of a family and he was desperately alone. At twenty-eight, Austin was in his prime. Physically he was in perfect shape. Financially, he was very stable. He was ready to have someone significant in his life. He was ready to give himself. This was something he had never felt before.

 How could Roman do this when he was so young?

It must be the old money, the sense of security, something Austin had had to build wealth on his own. He was proud of it. Preoccupied with his growing businesses and success, he tended to put his private life aside.

 Did he even have a life beyond work?

He wanted to become a family man, to tie himself to a wife and a bunch of kids. He had never before felt compelled to care for anyone, except himself. He had little idea how to do that in the first place. He’d never experienced what a family really meant…until today.

Was it realistic to be so much in love that Rom wanted to marry when he was barely twenty? Austin had been twenty not so long ago. He remembered what he’d been like back then vividly. His chest clenched with regret as he remembered the young girl, that innocent soul he cruelly pushed away. How could he possibly have resisted that goddess-like body she’d thrown at him? But he’d been so self-centered and not capable of any kind of relationship at that time, never mind love. For so long, the sweet form of that girl who’d foolishly confessed her love for him had kept appearing in his dreams…

He had not wanted to be responsible for her broken heart. So he had just disappeared from her life and made sure she knew nothing about him anymore. It was better for her. She should have forgotten about him forever.

 

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