Little Mermaid?

 I received a free copy of this book via Prolific Works in exchange for an honest review.

Sea Phantom by Sarah Zama is an odd book because it is supposed to be a Little Mermaid retelling, but it is like none of the versions I have ever read. Or at least, until the end where you meet the 'spirit' that gave her voice to the main character so that she could find her own gift. It was short and bizarre and fits all at the same time.

I wish the characters were fleshed out a bit more because I never understood any of the reasons for why they did what they did, but then it probably would not be a short story. I am conflicted about the whole thing because on the one hand, I love how different it was, but on the other, I had no clue what was going on.

4 out of 5 stars.

Bring on the Wolves

 I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a free review. This review may contain spoilers so read at your own risk.

Ryker Chronicles: Blood Moon by Jeanette Savage is the first book in the series and it blew my mind.

I devoured it in a day and I have no regrets. Kane and Amy are a wonderful contrast to each other and I loved the chemistry between them. The way the pack played off each other was wonderful and I loved how each member contributed to the whole except for Danny. (But let's not talk about him that traitorous son of a beep).

People turning into werewolves and other creatures that do not exist in real life? Totally buying it. Man having his innards ripped out and survives? Not so much. I had to suspend my disbelief for Agent Lazaro a lot during the book because historically people have been killed by having their innards ripped out. Also, being blown up and being able to still hear and see things as your decapitated head is flying into the air? I had a hard time buying it, but nobody can know what it is like to die so I am giving the author the benefit of the doubt.

The only character I could not stand the POV was Crystal -Amy's older sister- I felt like it was unnecessary. Also, I found it disjointing that Amy's is the only one who is in first person and everyone else is in third person. Yet somehow I still read it and could not stop reading it. I got excited at the end when it said read the second book free sign up for mailing list except my Kindle could not find the link because it does not exist anymore apparently. I need to know what happens. I am on the hunt for the second book now because it sucked me in and did not let me go.

Highly recommend.

500 out of 5 stars.

Signs in the Dark

 I received a free copy of this book, Signs in the Dark by Susan Miura, from Dawn Carrington from Vinspire Publishing in exchange for an honest review. This review may contain spoilers so please read at your own risk.

Signs in the Dark is a cute and haunting story of a deaf girl named Haylie who gets abducted after receiving a text from Nathan to meet in the alley in 10. The story is told from the perspective of Haylie and Nathan.

I loved this book and could have finished it in one day except life kind of got in the way. This is a definite mom approved book and kind of reminded me of Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore by the faith these characters had in God and dealing with a similar theme (which is also why I mention mom approved because my mom bought me Angel Eyes because she thought I was not reading enough Christian novels). 

I fell in love with the characters from the first page and never stopped loving them.

Nathan, oh Nathan, he tried so hard to find clues on where Haylie was being held except everything he did made him look like more of a suspect to Haylie's abduction. You just want to hug both of them because they are so sweet and wholesome.

The writing is an easy pace and flows nicely. My only critique is that I wish the title played more in the book like if there were actual signs in the dark. Unless we want to count that it all happened mostly at night?

The book comes out October 15, 2020 so mark your calendar because this is one book you will not want to miss. It has enough of a Christian aspect to it that moms everywhere will approve, but is not so preachy that anyone can read it even if it is not your faith. This is my kind of book and I love how the author created a diverse cast of characters while getting input from people who actually are Peruvian or in the Deaf Community.

I cannot sing its praises enough and I cannot thank Susan and Dawn enough for allowing me this opportunity to read such a remarkable book.

500 out of 5 stars.

Tell Me A Secret: wrong Cover

 I received a free copy of this book by the author via Voracious Readers Only in exchange for an honest review. 

First off, I would like to thank Voracious Readers Only for bringing this book to my attention because I probably would have never have seen it otherwise. Secondly, thank you to Ann Girdharry for writing Tell Me a Secret.

The book itself was good I just wished that we knew Vanessa's name a little earlier instead of the woman because that would have been a lot darker by knowing the name because it really does show how much the character knows this person.

My only complaint about this book is that the cover had a gargoyle and there were no gargoyles in the story. I feel like maybe a half written letter or photos would have been more appropriate for the cover and would have added more ambience to the story. I am one of those readers where I want the cover to match the story so if there is a gargoyle I am totally expecting there to be gargoyles in the story even if it is a brief mention. I am weird like that, but other then the cover I loved the story. It is short and quick to read, so if anyone is looking for a quick read this would be a great book for you.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Beautifully Damaged: Aptly named

 I received a free copy of this book from the author via Voracious Readers Only in exchange for an honest review. This review may contain spoilers read at your own risk.

First off, Thank you to Laura Pavlov for writing Beautifully Damaged and thank you to Voracious Readers Only for allowing me to read this phenomenal book.

Hoo boy, you had better buckle down for the roller coaster ride this book will give you. It will make you laugh, cry, curse, pull your hair, and swoon over the sweetness.

I am a sucker for second chance romances and this book did not disappoint. From the moment Peyton (I hope I spelled her name right) sees Jackson again I fell in love and wanted to protect both of them while also wanting to shake them and shout that they belong together.

My heart broke when Jackson kept being all I need to leave her it is for her on good and never once did he realize that he made her happy until he did as he promised himself and left to go to Miami. When he realized what an idiot he was I kept waiting for him to come back and I was all he had better damn well be grovelling on his hands and knees begging for her to take him back. He didn't but what he did was sweeter.

I full on cried when it came to the letter Joseph wrote to Jackson because it was what he needed to hear, but was too stubborn to listen to. I can go on and on about this book, but I think it is best if you read it for yourselves. If you love second chance romances this book will not disappoint.

500 out of 5 stars.

Silvered Serpents (Gilded Wolves 2)

 I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review may contain spoilers so read at your own risk.

The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi is phenomenal. Infinitely better than the first one and I devoured it in three days. I fell in love with almost all the characters (it took me a long time to love Severin with his whole I need to be a god to protect people phase and I could not stand Laila still because she is always whining about something).

Enrique and Zofia are my two new favourite characters because the way they interact is priceless and I wanted to wrap them in bubblewrap and place them high on a shelf so the author could not hurt them. (Spoiler: the author does hurt them). Enrique had me at the going into a volcano and coming out wanting chocolate and marshmallows (a boy after my own heart) and when he struggled to protect Zofia because he was all "not her" I was dying and in a puddle wanting to hug and stash them away somewhere. Hypnos is still a favourite because he is unabashedly himself in a world where people frown upon who he is.

Kudos to the author for having such a diverse group of characters and I never saw the twists coming. Not with the Muses or the Doctor.

This book hurt but it was magical and it immersed me wholeheartedly into the story. There were still a couple of inconsistencies but nothing that took away from the story. It was better than the first book because in the first one I forgot so many times that we were supposed to be in Paris, but with this one it was hard to forget because the author added details and reminded you of where you were. It was also a lot more diverse in settings, which I adored and now I need to read the third book. I need to know what happens.

500 out of 5 stars.

Highly recommend.

Gilded Wolves

 The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi is one of those books that you should not go into with high expectations. This book was so hyped that I could not lower my expectations and did not enjoy it as much as I wanted to. 

The beginning was slow and confusing with a lot of flowery writing that made me feel like I should give the book an extra star because it was not it's fault that it was so hyped up that I wound up with unrealistic expectations. However, the ending did pick up and I did enjoy reading it, but wished that the beginning did not exist.

I cannot express enough how much I did not like the beginning or Laila's character (she rubs me the wrong way). Be warned there are a lot of inconsistencies in the book to the point I could not figure what the characters were supposed to look like anymore. And Tristan's characterization suddenly went left field and I kind of wish there was more of a lead to into it because it was suddenly like bam he's the complete opposite of who he is.

My favourite character was Hypnos because he is such a delight to read. He never really strays from who he is and he embraces himself flaws and all.

This book is destined to be a four out of 5 stars. (It was going to be four to add to the three because of the hyped up aspect, but the ending saved it and brought it up to an actual four. Just to confuse all of you.)

This is a tricky book to recommend because the second book is infinitely better than the first and you need to read the first to get the second book. (Although there is a lot of retelling of what happened in the first so if you want to skip this one you probably could).