I Breathe, Therefore I Read

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Renegade Review

The conclusion to the Heven and Hell series.

I’ve been beautiful. I’ve been ugly. I’ve died. I’ve been brought back. I’ve had abilities awakened within me. My strength has been tested. My beliefs have been tested.

Yet I stand.

What’s next when you’ve pretty much experienced it all?

The end.

Sam and I are picking up the pieces. We’re trying to come to terms with all we’ve lost. And as much as I would like to hide my head, ignore the reality I live every day, there is no forgetting.

Riley is in hell—I’m still not sure of his agenda. My mother’s past haunts me. And Kimber… Kimber is being herself. Cole sneaks glances at Gemma and she returns them when she thinks I don’t see.

But I do.

When Beelzebub escapes he brings his war to places I never thought he would. Earth. Maine. Home. Now everyone and everything is at risk. This has become bigger than my circle of friends. This has become bigger than me. I have to finish this. I have to find a way to stop him, to finish this war.

I just pray we will all be left standing in the end.

My Take:

5 Stars

Would I recommend to others: Yes!

Appropriate for 14 and under: yes

Language and Sexual Content: mild to none for both

What a perfect ending to this series. I couldn't keep up with all the twist and turns that were thrown at me during this book. Everything, however, is finally tied up together nicely. I was only left with one desire...more of Riley!! Riley wiggled his way into my heart, just like he did to Heven. Every tidbit of information that came my way about him, I found myself clinging to my Kindle and pouring over the chapter trying to find out what made him tick and if he'd finally get his happy ending. I REALLY hope there's another book with his story??

The danger in this book is more than in any of the other books. A lot of weird things happen to people around Heven and Sam. I was absolutely devastated by the middle of the book when another character that I loved, didn't get the ending I wanted. I kept reading though and was SO glad that I did. This book is beautifully written and I'll add the entire series to my "favorites" list. I will definitely enjoy reading this story again and again.

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Thursday, July 11, 2013

Tirade Review

Betrayal burns. Death hurts and the clock ticks…

Minutes and hours stretch into days. How long can Sam survive being confined in Hell? I have a plan… a plan with a lot of holes. I need someone who can make up for my weaknesses, someone who possesses the power that I lack. Riley is supposed to be off limits. He’s dangerous, he’s mean and he’s not to be trusted. But I do.

Beelzebub is on a tirade, bent on revenge. I took what he wants and sent him into the flames. I will wear the scars of his punishments forever. But scars don’t scare me anymore.

On my way to free Sam I find my true path, a secret place and new allies. But in Hell nothing is easy… and everything is cruel. The only thing left to do is survive.

My Take:

5 stars

Would I recommend to others: yes

Appropriate for 14 and under: maybe

Language and sexual content: mild on both

So far this one was my favorite of the series! I simply couldn't put it down and the action was pretty much nonstop through the entire thing.

It starts out with Sam being trapped in Hell and Heven living through hell knowing she "left" him there and all the danger she's in now, without him there to protect her. The things that Sam is put through during his residency in Hell are absolutely horrific! And the only thing pulling him through is his Mindbond with Heven. Heven's life isn't much easier as she fights off enemies of her own, all while feeling Sam's pain and imagining the worst for him.

There were SO many things that happened in this book that I couldn't even begin to imagine would happen. It was so fast paced and full of fun and yummy Sam, that I couldn't put it down until I finished it. So, onto the last book now, I can't wait to see what is in store for these characters!

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Sunday, July 7, 2013

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Charade Review

Dying at the hands of a psycho was a shock. Having my life returned to me by an angel was incredible. Being named a Supernatural Treasure and being given Sam as my guard was pretty darn awesome. Acquiring a debt for it all - well, I should have seen it coming. Now here we are, fighting demons from hell, caring for a boy that I just don't trust and traveling to faraway places to return a treasure to its rightful place. Nothing is as it seems. Everyone wears a mask, everyone puts on a charade. It's up to us to separate the truth from the lies and reality from fiction. A hard task when my new reality involves fallen angels, witches and dragons...and did I mention hell? Anchoring me down through it all is Sam. Sam who must face tragedies of his own and is put to the test again and again. If we fail in our task, life as we know it - life as you know it - will end. Forever.

My Take:

5 Stars!!

Would I recommend to others: yes

Appropriate for 14 and under: maybe

Language and sexual content: mild on both

I'm sorry that I am continuing through the series on this review, but I am seriously addicted!! Please bare with me as I conclude the series. I hope you read it and that you become as engrossed in it as I am.

I don't know how she did it, but Ms. Hebert wrote an even better book than the first (Masquerade). I couldn't put this down and read it into the wee hours of the morning.

Sam and Heven have made it through the unbelievable, only to have Heaven ask them to give their everything on a task that Heven and Sam alone can complete. Trial after trial are upon them, people they love and know the most surprising them at every turn. And the cliffhanger at the end?? Can their lives get anymore horrible and complicated? And yet the two of them, linked as one, are able to make it through even the most daunting days.

I just have to say this book was very well written. I loved her descriptions of the bond between Heven and Sam, the landscaping and demons and dragon in hell...I could go on and on, but it would be better if you read it yourself. Do NOT miss out on this book!

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Masquerade Review

I'm disfigured. Scarred. Ugly.
When I look in the mirror, I see a stranger. When I look over my shoulder, no one's there…
Yet I feel watched. Hunted. Afraid.
And then he tells me I’m beautiful.
He tells me I’m safe.
I believe him.
Until someone tries to kill me.
Secrets abound, danger is near, and still… my heart desires a boy with whiskey-colored eyes and far too many secrets.
Secrets that could cost me my life.
To stay alive I have to look deep, beneath the masks everyone wears, to find the truth.
To find myself.

My Take:

5 HUGE stars!!

Would I recommend to others: Yes!!!

Appropriate for 14 and under: yes

Language and Sexual Content: mild on both counts

Oh, WOW!! I loved this book! Honestly I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I "opened" this book, but I'm so glad that I did. I was grabbed from the first paragraph and thrust into the world of Heven and Sam. I was (still am) so invested in their world that I feel like I know them, like I want to jump in and protect them from things they can't see yet, lol. This book had me on the edge of my seat one moment, tearing up another and then chuckling out loud. It's SO well written and I'm only sad that I didn't read this book sooner. (It's been buried in my TBR list for quite a while.)

I love Heven. She isn't the complete package. She has her weaknesses and her strengths and her love for a beautiful boy with whiskey colored eyes. She is vulnerable at times, but at her strongest when she needs to be, drawing some of that strength from who she is and from Sam.

Sam, Sam, Sam...what a completely perfect specimen of a man!! He's so supportive, loving and just an all around "make your body melt" kind of guy. I love that he wants to protect Heven with ever fiber of his being, but at the times when she needs it, he allows her to stand on her own two feet, with him at her back.

You absolutely need to read this series! I gobbled up almost the first 3 books in one weekend!

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Monday, July 1, 2013

The Rush Review

A life not her own—A future already decided.

Every facet of Ivy Pierce’s life is meticulously planned out and plotted. Cynical and jaded by sixteen, Ivy’s only hope is to escape the legacy she was born into.

She has a plan, a carefully thought out, feasible plan. She just has to play by the rules until everything falls into place. Unfortunately as predictable as her life can be, she never sees Ryder Sutton coming. He tumbles into her life unimpressed and untouched by her and the life she lives. He’s an enigma to her. A gorgeous, frustrating, sincere mystery and a complete phenomenon in the ugly world she lives in.

What blooms between them is a fiercely intense attraction that cannot be ignored. Even though they would both be better off without each other—Even if both their lives depend on staying apart.

My Take:

3.5 to 4 Stars

Would I recommend to others: yes

Appropriate for 14 and under: yes

Language and Sexual Content: none, very mild

I had to wait a couple of days to absorb this book and decide how best to review it. I did submit a quick little blurb on Goodreads, just over my phone, but it may be changed.

To start off, I love all things "Rachel Higginson". So when I started this book, I hadn't even read the synopsis of what it was about. I have to admit that I couldn't get into the book, it didn't have the same draw and Rachel's other work did. However, because I love her writing, I continued until the book drew me in...which was about 49% of the way through it.

What I didn't like:

I felt like the book sort of drug a little in the first half. I felt like we were constantly in Ivy's head and that things were on repeat, without giving any of the story away. It drove me crazy that you don't find out anything about her previous relationship until almost this point, yet it's alluded to. I just felt like being in her head for so long, drug and some of the story may not have been necessary.

What I liked:

I loved the originality of the plot. I haven't read a book yet that was written about this content. That is another part that drew me in and pushed me along to finish the book. I loved the relationship Ivy develops with Ryder and all things centered around him. He's pretty much a knight in shining armor masquerading as a high school student, lol. Will I continue to read this series? Yes, especially because the book ended so abruptly for me. I'm curious as to what plays out with the anomaly that is Ryder.

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Thursday, June 27, 2013

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Sunday, July 14, 2013

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Sunday, July 7, 2013

Monday, July 1, 2013

Thursday, June 27, 2013