Review | Forsaken (Daughters of the Sea #1) by Kristen Day

Author: Kristen Day
Published: January 27, 2015 (2012)
Publisher: Mark My Words Book Publicity
Format: PDF ebook ARC
Pages: 242
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Mythology, Romance
Rating: ★★★★☆

[Show Synopsis]
Synopsis
Once you’ve been touched by darkness, it never leaves you…

Abandoned by her parents as an infant; seventeen year old Hannah spent her childhood wading through countless foster families until being adopted by the Whitmans three years ago. Unfortunately, Atlanta’s high society wasn’t quite ready for Hannah…or the strange events that plague her. Chilling visions of murder, unexplained hallucinations, and a dark, mysterious guy who haunts her nightmares all culminate to set in motion a journey of self-discovery that will challenge everything she’s ever believed; not to mention her sanity. Sent to live at The House of Lorelei on Bald Head Island, NC for ‘kids like her’, Hannah quickly realizes things are not what they seem. Her fellow ‘disturbed’ teens are actually the descendants of mythical Sea Gods and Goddesses. And so is she. But when Finn, the ghost from her dreams, appears in the flesh; her nightmares become reality and her dark visions begin coming true. Inexplicably drawn to him, she can’t deny the dangerous hold he has on her heart. The deadly secrets he harbors will ultimately test her courage and push the boundaries of her love. She must decide if she is ready to embrace the ancient legend she is prophesized to be a part of. The fate of all the descendants will forever depend upon it. (from NetGalley)

Review
I received this book in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.

Forsaken turned out to be fantastic. Way better than I was expecting. I am surprised more people do not know about this series especially with how popular the Percy Jackson series has become. The cover caught my attention immediately and after reading the summary, I thought it would be something I would like to give a try. I love mythology especially when incorporated in a contemporary fashion. That it is a mermaid-esque story also intrigued me. I've never really read a lot of mermaid novels, and the ones I have read really didn't thrill me, however this one definitely exceeded my expectations, and I will be reading the second book.

Plot
The idea behind the story was pretty original. It is somewhat similar to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, but other than these two series, I cannot think of a series or novel that takes this kind of take on ancient Greek mythology. In both series, the main characters do not know the legacy left for them, they go to a meeting place of people similar to them, and they face difficulties because of who they are and grow because of it. However, what I like about Daughters of the Sea is that it is from a girl's point of view. Just having that makes this story entirely different from Percy Jackson. Many stories like this seem male dominated. It is great to have these two stories from different perspectives.

Review | Before I Met You by Lisa Jewell

Author: Lisa Jewell
Published: October 15, 2013 (July 19, 2012)
Publisher: Atria (Simon & Schuster)
Pages: 448
Format: ARC/ebook
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Women's Fiction
Rating: ★★★☆☆

[Show Synopsis]
Synopsis
After her grandmother Arlette’s death, Betty is finally ready to begin her life. She had forfeited university, parties, boyfriends, summer jobs—all the usual preoccupations of a woman her age—in order to care for Arlette in their dilapidated, albeit charming home on the English island of Guernsey. Her will included a beneficiary unknown to Betty and her family, a woman named Clara Pickle who presumably could be found at a London address. Now, having landed on a rather shabby street corner in ’90s Soho, Betty is determined to find the mysterious Clara. She’s ready for whatever life has to throw her way. Or so she thinks . . . 

Review 
I received this book in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.

This book seemed to be in three parts. You have Betty's childhood and growing up on the island with her step-grandmother, Betty living in Soho, and Betty solving the mystery. The first part of the book was pretty good. It was enjoyable but unsurprising. During the second part, the mystery is introduced and Betty goes off to try and solve it. At first, things seem to be moving along, but then they kind of go to a standstill and you see Betty doing this and that while you get pieces of Arlette's past. During the last part of the book, the pace all of a sudden picks up again as the mystery finally starts fitting together. Unfortunately, this happens very late in the book, so I spent most of the book trying to force myself to get through everything.

Early Review & Book Release | The Angel Stone (Fairwick Chronicles #3) by Juliet Dark

TO BE RELEASED TUESDAY!!
Author: Juliet Dark (pseudonym of Carol Goodman)
Published: September 3, 2013
Publisher: Ballantine Books (Random House)
Pages: 288
Format: ARC/ebook
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural
Rating: ★★★★☆

[Show Synopsis]
Synopsis
For Callie McFay, a half-witch/half-fey professor of folklore and Gothic literature, the fight to save the enchanted town of Fairwick, New York, is far from over. After a hostile takeover by the Grove—a sinister group of witches and their cohorts—many of the local fey have been banished or killed, including Callie’s one true love. And in place of the spirit of tolerance and harmony, the new administration at Fairwick College has fostered an air of danger and distrust.

With her unique magical abilities, Callie is the only one who can rescue her friends from exile and restore order to the school—a task that requires her to find the Angel Stone, a legendary talisman of immense power. Propelled on an extraordinary quest back to seventeenth-century Scotland, Callie risks her life to obtain the stone. Yet when she encounters a sexy incarnation of her lost love, she finds the greater risk is to her heart. As the fate of Fairwick hangs in the balance, Callie must make a wrenching choice: reclaim a chance for eternal passion or save everything she holds dear.

Review
I received this book in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.

I loved this book! I was surprised by how much I liked it, especially since I'm not into fairies that much, but it mostly had to do with witches. It was also really easy to follow the story even though I hadn't read the first two books. I hadn't realized this book was part of a series when I requested the egalley. It kind of reminded me of A Discovery of Witches. There were witches and vampires; they were college professors; it had time travel; and of course, they're battling evil.

The writing style was very descriptive. Enough to draw you in but not so overpowering so as to make you bored. For the most part, the story was very seriously written--the college has been taken over, and she's recovering from lost love, but it wasn't dark or dismal.

Early Review | Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield

Author: Diane Setterfield
Published: November 5, 2013
Publisher:Simon & Schuster/Atria
Pages: 336
Format: ARC/ebook
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: ★★★☆☆

[Show Synopsis]
Synopsis
(from NetGalley)
Caught up in a moment of boyhood competition, William Bellman recklessly aims his slingshot at a rook resting on a branch, killing the bird instantly. It is a small but cruel act, and is soon forgotten. By the time he is grown, with a wife and children of his own, William seems to have put the whole incident behind him. It was as if he never killed the thing at all. But rooks don’t forget . . .

Years later, when a stranger mysteriously enters William’s life, his fortunes begin to turn—and the terrible and unforeseen consequences of his past indiscretion take root. In a desperate bid to save the only precious thing he has left, he enters into a rather strange bargain, with an even stranger partner. Together, they found a decidedly macabre business.

And Bellman & Black is born.

Review 
I received this book in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley.

After reading The Thirteenth Tale, I had high expectations for this book, but unlike Setterfield's other novel, this was a pretty straight forward story. It had no suspense. The best novels I've read had some level of suspense. Something held back to draw the reader in. The only thing I was curious about throughout the novel was the annoying, reappearing rook. What is the significance of the rook aside from a childhood story that apparently leads to a lifetime trauma? But really, I didn't care about the rook. His perpetual reappearance, as I said, was rather annoying.

The mystery of who Mr. Black was that intrigued the town's people was carried on with the idea of having some level of suspense, but it was rather obvious who Mr. Black was to the reader. The town's people's suspense didn't carry out of the pages into the reader. I was rather bored with Mr. Black.

Review | A Rhapsody of Dreams

Author: Tami Egonu  
Published: March 3, 2013  
Publisher: Amazon  
Pages: 173
Format: ebook  
Genre: Fantasy  
Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Synopsis
(from Goodreads)
Tired of the monotony of life, Tyler hangs onto a magnificent balloon that takes him far above his London office. Seeing countless other daydreamers, Tyler is snapped back to reality and immediately abandons his stale life to begin a spiritual quest. However, his travels around a world void of magic makes it hard for him to keep believing miracles exist.

Meanwhile, at a Georgian house in Yorkshire, Tyler’s first love, Molly, has an extraordinary encounter with a heartbroken and bitter poet. But nothing is as it first appears in this story of a powerful enchantment, a field of magical sunflowers, a memory tree, and the search for love . . . even beyond death. 

Review
I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This was kind of a strange book. I thoroughly enjoyed chapter one, but it just didn't click with me from there on. Most of the book was written like realistic fiction, but then there were these fantastical dream-reality...things that were abruptly put in making the story seem kind of choppy. It was also confusing that the chapters alternated between characters. It wasn't a consistent alteration, so you had to pay attention to who the chapter was about. Chapter titles would have helped, especially when the chapters weren't even about the two main characters.