Curssed By Jennifer Armentrout

Summary: Dying sucks
...and high school senior Ember McWilliams knows firsthand.

After a fatal car accident, her gifted little sister brought her back. Now anything Ember touches dies. And that, well, really blows.

Ember operates on a no-touch policy with all living things--including boys. When Hayden Cromwell shows up, quoting Oscar Wilde and claiming her curse is a gift, she thinks he's a crazed cutie. But when he tells her he can help control it, she's more than interested. There's just one catch: Ember has to trust Hayden's adopted father, a man she's sure has sinister reasons for collecting children whose abilities even weird her out. However, she's willing to do anything to hold her sister's hand again. And hell, she'd also like to be able to kiss Hayden. Who wouldn't?

But when Ember learns the accident that turned her into a freak may not have been an accident at all, she's not sure who to trust. Someone wanted her dead, and the closer she gets to the truth, the closer she is to losing not only her heart, but her life.

For real this time.

Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
Review: Ok so I finished up this book while I was on vacation in Mexico & it was the perfect book to read lounging in a hammock or cabana on the beach. I really like Jennifer Armentrout's style of writing - she really pinpoints how YA really talk without it being annoying. I've read 3 out of 5 books in her Lux series which is fantastic btw! How rare is it to find a fantasy/paranormal standalone that's this good? Jennifer is a real genius. The story is intense, the characters are well written, and nothing feels pressured.  It has you guessing what's going to happen and it has so many twists and turns it will leave you dizzy. From the very first page I could not put this book down. It's heart-stopping and exciting and every page leaves you breathless and needing more. So many times during this book I thought I knew who was good and who was bad just to have everything change again. It was the perfect balance of suspense and romance between Hayden and Ember. I felt throughout the book that Ember was so strong, to have gone through everything she did and the fact that at her young age she tried so hard to take care of her little sister. I really loved this book and highly recommend it.

See I told you it was a good beach book 😉

Bombshell Mascara by Covergirl

Hello there ladies! I am super excited to write a review about this product! Let me just start out by saying I love makeup & once upon a time I thought it was something I wanted to do with my life but living in good ole Evansville, IN I knew it wasn't an ideal career choice for me. I've tried countless mascaras some good and some very bad but when I saw a review on this product on Youtube I knew the next time I was at the store I wanted to pick this up and try it for myself. First of all you should watch Kandee Johnson's first impressions video for this & then tell me you're not convinced {link below!} I like that it doesn't leave my lashes clumpy and short. It actually makes them look long and thick. I will say a couple of things I don't like about this mascara is the packaging, the wand is huge and not ideal for sticking in your to go makeup bag & it's a bit difficult to get off but then isn't that what we look for, products that last and don't wear off? So with that said I do spend an extra couple of minutes on  my makeup removing routine getting this mascara off. But I can get past that for the price of $9!

This is the only pic I got after I applied this mascara, I should have gotten another closer up of my eyes but oh well. I can tell a difference in length!

Click here to watch Kandee Johnson's First Impression Video

The Fault In Our Stars By John Green

Summary: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
Review: So here I lay, after reading this book with swollen eyes, a runny nose, a wet puffy face and a whole lot of heart ache and a head ache too. For the past year I've seen this book everywhere. It was the first book cover I would see walking into Barnes & Noble, I often saw people reading it in Starbucks when I would stop in to get my green tea frap, & it was Goodreads Choice Winner for 2012. Let me just say the entire book is wonderful.  I loved John Green's wit. I gave his characters a little leeway on the maturity scale, but still I didn't believe they could be this articulate. But I loved Green's writing so much, I didn't mind. Without the wit and endearing characters, this would be nothing but a book about cancer. Green's characters feel real and quirky and I fell for them and felt for them. I cried for them. In unexpected ways, like Hazel's parents waiting for the loss they know is coming and Hazel trying not to be a grenade in their lives. And the complications of facing your own mortality and therefore being wise beyond your years but still having to live like a teenager with all its restrictions. Then there's watching your friends die off and dealing with the shallowness of people who weren't there through the tough times. I made the mistake of thinking I could read this book at work, I actually had to make myself stop reading because I had tears coming down my face at my desk! So if you don't want others to think you are having some kind of breakdown save it for the comfort of your own home where you can ugly cry all you want!

The Fault In Our Stars is an insightful and moving novel that will not just leave you with a inspiring story to remember, but also with a more optimistic understanding of life. I think the movie to this book comes out in June & after seeing Divergent this past weekend I'm really looking forward to seeing it. Shailene Woodley knocked Divergent out of the park for me & the trailer for The Fault In Our Stars also looked impressive. I'll be sure to bring along a box of Kleenex to go with my popcorn.

Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout

Summary: Starting over sucks.
When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up. And then he opened his mouth. Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. The hot alien living next door marks me.You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.
If I don't kill him first, that is.

Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
Review: So I just happened to stumble upon this book while browsing the good ole Barnes & Noble site. It was a recommendation to I Am Number 4 which by the way I read & liked. After reading the reviews on my iBooks app I decided I would give this one a try. The dialog in this book has got to be some of the best written. It's so current & hip that it's refreshing. It's not annoyingly so but the quirky spunky sayings & insults are hilarious. The first book Obsidian in this series focuses on a girl named Katy (andplusalso how cool is it that a lead characters name is mine?!) She's strong, independent, & determined. And it's sorta kinda way freaking awesome that she's a blogger & has a huge love for books, so I can relate! I really enjoyed the banter between Daemon & Katy, it made the romance part of it that much more interesting because you just itching for the two to just admit they like each other. The storyline is exciting, fun, & dangerous. The only thing about these books that I'm not a fan of are the covers, it's kind of lame and in all honestly probably detours people away from reading them. I'm all about a good book cover, & if it were up to me I would have went with something simple. But anyhow don't judge a book by it's cover & read this!

Gone Girl By Gillian Flynn

Summary: On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn't doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife's head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media--as well as Amy's fiercely doting parents--the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter--but is he really a killer? As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn't do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?

Rating: **** (4 Stars)
Review: This book is huge right?! It seemed like everyone everywhere was or is reading this book. So after hearing from a few friends that I must read this book I started it at the end of summer 2012. A year later I finally finished it... That's how long it took me to get into this book. I would pick it up & read a couple of pages, sigh and put it down. I won't give up on a book no matter how awful it is, I will eventually finish it even if it takes a full year to do so. The beginning was torture for me to get through. If you can make it past the first half of the book you'll eventually be rewarded with the start of a good read. I can honestly say I never saw that plot twist coming. It's one of those moments where you sit there and think "oh my god you've got to be kidding me!" & "how in the world? why in the hell...?" I couldn't believe what direction Flynn was taking but it was a captivating one. It's shocking and crafty. So if you have patience to get through the first half of this book you'll like this book. I'm of course looking forward to the movie coming out October 3, 2014 with Ben Afflect starring at Nick Dunne & Roasmund Pike as Amy Dunne (fantastic casting) also you can't go wrong with Niel Patrick Harris & Tyler Perry either.

The Touch Series by Laurie Stolarz

 

Summary: Some secrets shouldn't be kept...
Up until three months ago, everything in sixteen-year-old Camelia's life had been fairly ordinary: decent grades; an okay relationship with her parents; and a pretty cool part-time job at the art studio downtown. But when Ben, the mysterious new guy, starts junior year at her high school, Camelia's life becomes anything but ordinary. Rumored to be somehow responsible for his ex-girlfriend's accidental death, Ben is immediately ostracized by everyone on campus. Except for Camelia. She's reluctant to believe the rumors, even when her friends try to convince her otherwise. She's inexplicably drawn to Ben and to his touch. But soon, Camelia is receiving eerie phone calls and strange packages with threatening notes. Ben insists she is in danger, and that he can help-but can he be trusted? She knows he's hiding something... but he's not the only one with a secret.

Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
Review: I'm going to start out by saying if you liked Twilight then you would like this series. It has a very similar plot & turn of events but at the same time the style in the writing is completely different. This book has everything: great writing, stunning character development, unprecedented suspense, and gripping emotion.What I enjoyed most about this book is the originality of the story and the concept. I love the idea of psychometry; it was something I hadn't read about before. Every time I thought I was close to solving this mystery Stolaz threw a curveball that I didn't see coming. I actually read the first book in this series years ago and have waited for the final book to be released. So when I got the 5th for Christmas I dove right in.

I do have to say that the 5th & final book in the series was just so-so. I didn't really feel the closure I thought I would. It started off with a huge reveal but then just fizzled out afterwards. There was a lot of detail lacking, something I'm not used to feeling from reading Stolaz's books. I'm sad to see it end but it was time. (Side note: can we just discuss how much I love the covers of these books?!)

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Summary: In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.


Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
Review: Ok, so if you're like me and late getting on the bandwagon you probably thought this was just another Hunger Games. My husband told me about this book a year ago & to be honest I had no interest. I had read the first book in the Hunger Games series and while I didn't hate it, I didn't love it either. But enough about that book - I knew Divergent was another dystopian series & I didn't think I'd be into it. Boy was I wrong! I seriously read this book in less than a week. I couldn't put it down and when I was forced to (by having to eat, work, or shower) all I did was look forward to the next time I could pick it up again. Having lived in a suburb of Chicago myself for years it was really cool to know the locations described in the book and be able to picture exactly what was going on. I loved the deeper meaning throughout this story: how these human virtues are singled out and defined. It shows the good and bad of each, as well as the consequential aftermath. We are shown the impact and power of these values combined. I haven't picked up the second book in the series but have it on my to do list!