Book Review: Her Wish (Playboy Genie #1) by Sophie H. Morgan

This playboy has finally met his match...

Charlie’s sick of Genies. Too beautiful, too sure of themselves, too "celebrity". And way too eager to grant wishes in the worldwide Lottery that entices mortals into buying tickets in the hope of winning their desires. Charlie would rather walk naked through Times Square than buy a ticket. Unfortunately, her friend springs for one in Charlie’s name – and it gets picked. She refuses to get sucked in and has no qualms about saying so to the famously arrogant, devilishly handsome Genie at her door. Sexy Blue Eyes will just have to take no for an answer.

Jax Michaels would love to take no for an answer. As the most famous Genie on the East Coast, known for his sex appeal, his cheeky interviews, and his roguish style of granting wishes, he only has to turn to the next in line to find a willing partner. After all, every woman wants him – except, apparently, Charlie Donahue, who throws back his charming words, sneers at his calculated grins, and refuses to even consider wishing. Jax isn't a fool. He’s prepared to wash his hands of this infuriating, appealing female…until his Handler informs him that quitting is not an option. And if he can’t talk her into wishing, Jax will have to try playing a little dirty.

I really don't read that many paranormal romance novels and the few that I have read, haven't had a genie in them, so I really didn't know what to expect. Now pair that with an author that I'm not familiar with and reading this book was like stepping into the unknown. 

Let's get the stuff I didn't like out of the way ... there wasn't much. It really came down to the pace of the story. To me, it just lagged a bit and I wish it was sped up just a notch or two. I think that if I didn't feel like I was wearing heavy boots through some of it, I would have read this one in just one sitting. The pace is really the only reason I gave it four stars instead of five. There's another thing but this didn't play into my rating ... but I feel the need to bring it up because well ... my husband says I like complaining. Too true, dude. So ... the word "lover" is thrown around on these pages multiple times and I can't freaking stand that word. It's almost as bad as the word "panties". Don't know why. It is like nails on a chalkboard to me. My bestie calls her husband "love" and I want to punch her in the boob each time. 

Anyway ... now that we've gotten that nasty business out of the way ... I REALLY liked our main characters, Charlie and Jax. Charlie is this tough as nails chick that really sticks to her guns - even sometimes against her better judgement. I just really liked everything about her. She doesn't take b.s. from anyone. Cool chick. And Jax ... he's obnoxiously and irritatingly adorable. You want to just roll your eyes at this ladies man but then he does something sweet and you forget about how irritating and cocky he is and your head falls to the side as you say "awww". You won't realize it happened until you are a couple pages away and then it smacks you in the face that he's pulled the wool over your eyes. Both of these characters, and the secondaries, were really well written. 

As I was nearing the end of the book, I just kept thinking to myself that this author was NEVER going to wrap everything up in time for the last page. There was absolutely no way that all of my questions would be answered by the time I got to the last period. Well, this has only happened two other times in my life, but I was wrong. I'll admit it. Everything was buttoned up nicely at the end of the book and it was a pretty good read. I really liked how the plot played out and things happened that really kept me interested in what was going on.

I definitely enjoyed this different spin on a romance novel and I'm pretty interested in seeing how the rest of this series goes. One to watch out for, that's for sure.

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

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Book Review: Frostbitten by Heather Beck

Great beauty hides dark secrets...

Seventeen-year-old Anastasia Lockhart has never led an easy life, but when she starts getting into serious trouble, she’s sent to live with her grandparents in Cedar Falls. The small, picturesque town hasn’t changed since she visited four years ago, with one exception – the presence of a handsome, mysterious boy named Frost. Despite warnings from her grandparents and friends to stay away from Frost, Anastasia can’t deny their attraction, and the more time they spend together, the deeper in love they fall. Unfortunately, Frost has a secret that is beyond Anastasia’s wildest imagination, and she soon finds herself in the midst of a supernatural legend that has haunted Cedar Falls for years.

Can Anastasia and Frost’s love really overcome anything, or are their fates much darker?

 

I haven't read a paranormal book like this since my Twilight and Sookie Stackhouse bender years ago. That being said ... there were similarities that were a little difficult to ignore. 

Before I get to that, I do want to say that I enjoyed this book. I thought that while the characters didn't ring any bells for me, the plot was interesting and I enjoyed where the book went and how it got there. The story was fast moving and it mostly kept me entertained the entire time that I read it. 

That being said, I didn't connect with these characters at all. Our heroine in this one, Anastasia, is seventeen years old. Anastasia didn't behave like a seventeen year old. Not in the least. I want to tell you about a few examples because they just really rubbed me the wrong way and didn't seem true to the age group Anastasia is in. There was one time she was talking about this chick working in the office at school who "hadn't been well-trained, if at all". What? Come on. A 17 year old isn't going to think that. Comment on her hair? Sure. Her outfit? Absolutely. Maybe even the rude way in which this chick was talking. I'll even take that. But commenting on her training (or lack thereof) was just weird. There was this other situation with a teacher ... Anastasia was saying how this young teacher was more interested in a paycheck and disregarding safety in her class. Again, it felt weird. Then she was talking about how she doesn't "put a label on relationships". Ugh. She's seventeen. The last one I'll bring up is how she thought that other kids in her class were "dehumanizing" the male lead, Frost. Dehumanizing? I think that all of this would have been fine if there was a reason behind Anastasia acting older than her age or at least some kind of acknowledgement of this kind of behavior from a teenager. I didn't find any of that within these pages. I didn't see any reason why Anastasia would be acting like a grumpy 30-something all the time. 

And here we are at the Twilight reference I mentioned earlier. Let's just say that before I sat down to write this review, I actually checked what other people thought about this book. I never do that but I wanted to see if I was just completely off base with seeing similarities between these two and unfortunately, I wasn't alone and I wasn't off base. It wasn't a word for word type thing, obviously, but there were just scenes where it was VERY close to Twilight. I think that the most obvious scene was when Anastasia learned the truth about Frost. Anastasia put it together on her own by listing off the qualities that Frost has and then being a-okay with this and just scampering along behind him like she was riding a unicorn off into the sunset. She didn't have any qualms about being around him and it (again) didn't feel like a 17 year old or in any way how anyone would respond to this kind of thing. Not that this has ever happened but I'm pretty sure that 99% of the population would have at least paused for a moment to think about what being a werewolf meant. 

For me, the characters make or break the story. The story could be great but if the characters just aren't cutting it, it can really ruin the entire experience for me. It was an okay book. Like I said, it kept me entertained until the last page. I just wish that Anastasia had been more believable so that I could have connected with her in some way. 

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

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Book Review: Hello Again by Stan Schatt

A dead lover wants company. Meanwhile, a no-nonsense detective who doesn’t believe in ghosts teams up with a psychic who fears something very evil is stalking its prey. A scientist finds that modern science can’t explain what he’s experiencing.

Bill met the woman of his dreams, but now she’s become his worst nightmare as her text messages become more demanding and threatening. How can he avoid her when she seems to know every step he takes? When high-tech equipment fails to explain the mystery, he finds the only solution might be to meet her face-to-face. 

When I was initially approached about this book, I almost said no because I read A LOT into the paranormal part of this story. I'm glad that I didn't let that stop me from picking it up because it was an interesting premise for a story. The meat of the plot was amazing. Personally, I just had a few issues with other things but it was entertaining and that's what I like when reading. 

First ... BEAUTIFUL cover. And yes, that matters. I'm just going to jump in here with my review, I apologize if it seems disjointed at times, I have quite a few notes and I want to fit it all in here. I really liked the main character, Bill. He's one of those gentle souls that you really never seem to meet anymore in real life. But. He was a bit ... narcissistic. He was constantly rating himself and commenting on what he looked like or thinking about what he looked like and then the ratings. He rated basically every woman that crossed his path. For such a sweet and caring guy, he seemed only interested in looks and he's an older dude ... not like 90 or anything but he was a little too focused on looks. Surely he would have learned by now, right? 

Unfortunately, Bill was really the only character that I had any feelings toward. The other secondary characters really didn't stand out to me. And the interactions between the characters felt stilted or flat and as if something was missing. There were a few places where there was more explaining of the dialogue than actual dialogue or more internal thoughts. It just slowed the book down a bit.

Like I said before, the plot of the book was great. I thought that it was super interesting and it gave me the creeps at times. That's a good thing! Being creeped out by a book just means that it reached you and I'm always looking for a book to evoke some kind of emotion from me. 

Anyway ... back to the plot ... it was great. But it was sterile. It reminded me of an operating room where everything is neatly arranged and no two items are touching each other. No mess, no nonsense. Sometimes I want a mess. Sometimes I want nonsense. It makes the story seem more realistic when it's messy. Well, to me at least. 

All in all, not a bad book. It kept my attention and kept me interested while the pages flipped past. This is a great book for readers that enjoy a slow-burn of a read ... something that really takes its time building up to a big crescendo of an ending.

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

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Book Review: Dark Touch by Aimee L. Salter

Tully isn’t alone in her skin. Whenever she touches someone, they feel everything she feels. All her ugliness. All her darkness. All her pain.

The only thing she wants is to be left alone—and to finally get out of her small Oregon town.

But then she meets Chris. He’s everything she’s not. Light. Trusting. Innocent. And he wants Tully.

Tully knows she should spare him the heartache of being with her. But when he touches her, she’s not sure she’ll have the strength to push him away...

 

I really enjoyed Salter's first book, Every Ugly Word. Because of that, I was SUPER excited to dive into Dark Touch. I must have just royally pissed off the Book Gods because this one didn't blow my skirt up. And I wanted it to. I just enjoyed her other book so much. I was a little disappointed this time.

This book seemed a little all over the place. I don't know if it was because there were quite a few things going on or what. You've got this girl, Tully, who has been abused in multiple different ways, she has this weird power and she's completely self destructive. Her coping mechanisms are sad and very extreme. That was just a lot to have going on. I also felt like all of her issues weren't fully explained and just fleshed out. It felt unfinished by the time I got to the end of the book. That's not to say that there wasn't an ending, there was and it would have closed everything out nicely if the rest of the book had completely delved into everything. I just think that with books that talk about abuse and addiction should lay it all out there, you know? Get down to the nitty-gritty. This was a heart wrenching premise ... I wanted to feel that desperation, isolation and despair. I could feel the undercurrent of those emotions but I never felt overcome. 

I also didn't really connect with any of the characters. Especially not the two main ones, Tully and Chris. They weren't horrible characters, I just wanted more. I wanted to feel like I really knew them and that never came to pass. I felt like I could see that full character in the distance and I was so close to reaching it when it would pull away again. Unfortunately, they aren't two characters that will stick with me, I'll end up forgetting them fairly quickly. And that shouldn't happen with this kind of book. It should stick with me for at least a few days and just be on my mind constantly but it won't. Not this time.

One last note ... my copy of Dark Touch doesn't state that it is an advanced copy but there were quite a few formatting issues. Normally, I wouldn't even bring this up but it does slow down your reading experience because you're trying to figure out what in the hell is going on. There are words mashed together at least once a page, most of the time it's way more. No big deal, right? Right. Unless you get to the word CRACKSAND. WTF is cracksand? I must have sat there for two or three minutes trying to figure out what cracksand was. Well, it must mean that I'm an idiot because it is actually two separate words: cracks and. Yeah. Anyway ... it does pull your attention away from the book constantly. I just hope that I didn't have a final copy. I can't imagine that going out to the masses.

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

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Book Review: The Final Seven (The Lightkeepers #1) by Erica Spindler

The first Saturday in July. . .
A missing coed . . .
The number seven carved into her door . . .
The countdown has begun.

THE FINAL SEVEN

New Orleans Detective Micki Dee Dare is a seasoned, no-nonsense cop. She doesn't need a partner, especially not Zach “Hollywood” Harris, an irreverent charmer, fresh out of an experimental FBI program. And her assignment — keep him alive while he fights crime using the special skills he brings to the table — is not what she signed up for. But the die has been cast and there's nothing she can do about it.

Micki soon realizes there's more to her partner than meets the eye—and more at stake than catching bad guys and closing cases. There’s a new kind of evil at work the Crescent City, more cunning, more powerful than any she’s ever encountered. And she and Zach may be the only ones who can stop it.

As another coed goes missing and the darkness closes in, Micki must face a terrifying truth: this time she might not make it. This time the evil they’re facing might destroy them all . . . 

 

I was lucky enough to have picked up my first Erica Spindler book more than a decade ago ... I don't know when exactly that was ... I was in high school ... holy crap ... it was almost 20 years ago. Damn. Well, I've been a fan for a very long time. DECADES. I don't know how many of her works I've read but I like her suspense novels the best. This amazing lady can weave a story like no one's business. When I saw that The Final Seven was on NetGalley, I didn't even read the blurb; I just knew that I had to have it and luckily enough, I was chosen to be graced with a copy. 

I've been wracking my brain and I don't think that Spindler has ever written a supernatural or paranormal book before. I had absolutely NO IDEA that was what this one was classified as ... I knew it was romantic suspense so when the supernatural stuff started happening, I was excited. Other than some vampire books (the sparkly ones in particular), I've not read any other supernatural stuff before. I had no doubt that Spindler would not let me regret picking this up and I didn't. 

I loved just about every aspect of this book. Hell, I even noted in my Kindle that this would be a 5 star book for me when I was just on page 4. I knew right away that the pages held an amazing story that I would get lost in. Gosh, this is really difficult ... I don't want to give away any secrets!! I'll just say this ... when (not if) you grab this one, you'll fall in love with the characters almost immediately. Micki is this no-nonsense, her pair is bigger than yours, cop and she is fabulously strong and snarky and what I want to be if I ever grow up. And Zach. Dear, sweet, Zach. I told my husband that if I ever met this Zach character in real life that he was TOAST. I'm telling you, I would boot my hubby's ass to the curb if Zach ever came walking into my life. Spindler just writes these amazing characters ... they are so real that you build this relationship with them. (Stay away from Zach. He's mine.) I just couldn't get enough. 

The story moves along at a pretty fast clip and that amps up the suspense as you are reading. From the moment I started the Final Seven, I felt like I was all coiled up and ready to pounce, I was just completely on edge. And the twists and turns that you're thrown into ... holy crap! This is not a story that you will soon forget. I'm excited to see how the rest of the series plays out, there are just endless possibilities for the characters and the plot. I'll be (impatiently) waiting for the next installment to come out! Such a great book!!

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

Available: February 11th, 2016

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Book Review: Haunted Love by Jessica Frances

My name is Thea Bell and I was murdered.

I always assumed that death was the end. So when my life was cruelly taken away from me, I never thought I would get a second chance to say what I needed to.

But then I was given a choice, a choice that allowed me to see the people I had left behind, and I knew I had to take it.

I wanted to say a proper goodbye. I needed justice for what happened to me.

But even in death, things rarely go to plan.

I never expected to meet him. I didn't anticipate falling in love. I hadn't considered the repercussions of coming back. I never realized I would put another person in danger.

I didn't know my actions were going to haunt us forever.


My name is Detective Aiden Mercer, and I think I have gone insane.

I am seeing the murder victim of my current case alive and in the flesh, and that is simply not possible.

I can see her, hear her, touch her. She’s real to me, however I know this cannot be real. Right?

But try telling my heart that, because as I grow closer to catching Thea’s killer, I also fall deeper into trouble.

Because love is rarely anything but trouble and I know this love will haunt me forever. 

I've never been a big ghosty person. I'm not saying that I don't believe in ghosts ... I'll just say that I don't NOT believe in ghosts. I've never really enjoyed movies about ghosts (except Ghostbusters, hello!) and because of that, I've not picked up a book about them either. I find the whole concept a bit creepy, actually. Just a thought of someone watching ... nope. Nopeity nope nope. I was a little shocked when I felt this book kind of call out to me to read it. I second guessed myself and decided that I wouldn't even try it and then I changed my mind a few days later. I'm glad that I did! While I may not pick up a ghost book every day because of my experience with Haunted Love, I definitely won't count them out in the future!

Before I get into the super deep stuff on this one, I did want to talk about the amount of mistakes ... it's staggering. There were at least two per page. I have to be mistaken, right? Yeah, I'm not. The mistakes were word mashups ... likethingsbeingwrittenwithnospaces ... which is super annoying and sometimes confusing and THEN throw in a few homophone issues (overseas/oversees). It was a little frustrating and really took away from the overall experience of the book. The no spaces thing ... dude. I would be totally pissed if this is what my editor put out there. I just wish that this had been an ARC and then I wouldn't even need to bring this up but it is what it is! Hopefully, it will be fixed for future editions.

Finding a connection with a character within the first few pages of a book usually means that I have found a new favorite author. And I did. I instantly fell in love with Thea. I loved her spirit, drive and compassion. She was a very well-rounded person ... for a ghost. Experiencing her journey with her made me love her that much more. I can't really understand her situation because I've never been a spirit but the author really makes you empathize with Thea and put yourself in her shoes. I enjoyed every part of the book that she was involved in. 

Detective Aiden ... gosh, I think I might have enjoyed him as much, if not more, than Thea. He is one of those "good catches" that almost every mom has talked to her daughter about. He's a well respected police detective that makes it a personal mission to close every case as quickly as possible even if it means the loss of any kind of personal life he would have otherwise had. He's hyper focused on his job and you can't help but love him for that fact alone. The situation between Aiden and Thea was heart-wrenching. It was difficult to read at times because you quickly realize the no-win situation they are both in. And I'll just say this ... there is a situation involving Aiden, Thea, a tree and a heavy make-out session ... that whole cringe-worthy scenario makes the entire book worth reading. 

I won't say anything else about the book because there are numerous secrets that you need to experience on your own but if you enjoy any kind of romance novel, you'll enjoy this one. Don't let the ghost thing hold you back because it makes for an amazing story. 

* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *

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Review: Death Wish (Ceruleans #1) by Megan Tayte

Seventeen-year-old Scarlett Blake is haunted by death. Her estranged sister has made the ultimate dramatic exit. Running away from school, joining a surfing fraternity, partying hard: that sounds like Sienna. But suicide? It makes no sense.

Following in her sister’s footsteps, Scarlett comes to the isolated cove of Twycombe, Devon, with grand plans to uncover the truth. Alone. But she hasn’t reckoned on meeting two boys who are determined to help her. Luke: the blue-eyed surfer who’ll see the real Scarlett, who’ll challenge her, who’ll save her. And Jude: the elusive drifter with a knack for turning up whenever Scarlett’s in need.

As Scarlett’s quest for the truth unravels, so too does her grip on reality as she’s always known it. Because there’s something strange going on in this little cove. A dead magpie circles the skies. A dead deer watches from the undergrowth. Hands glow with light. Warmth. Power.

What transpires is a summer of discovery. Of what it means to conquer fear. To fall in love. To choose life. To choose death.

To believe the impossible. 

 

Scarlett has a lot of baggage and the biggest bag in the bunch is her sister's recent death. She decides to spend her summer break investigating what may have happened to her sister, Sienna. Scarlett's first order of business is to get out onto the sea where her sister died. After nearly killing herself surfing, she is more determined than ever to improve and get back out there but next time, with the help of a hunky neighbor. Mysterious things start happening around her and Scarlett is terrified at what it all could mean.

Death Wish is the first novel by the budding new author, Megan Tayte. For the first book out of the gate to be this good is pretty rare. I found that Tayte's character development was interesting. She gives you little morsels at a time and gradually builds the characters in the story. I have read a lot of books where you just get your nose rubbed in all of the goings on of characters and it can be a little overwhelming but that wasn't the case with Death Wish. I liked the slow and steady pace that this tactic created. The story was unhurried and laid back but it did kick up quite a few notches about three quarters of the way through, when things started to really heat up. 

I found it a little strange that so many people are touting that this is a romance novel ... while there IS romance, it is not the focal point of the story. That was also a bit refreshing. Going in, I thought that the paranormal/fantasy parts of the book would take a backseat but again, I was mistaken. I love how the majority of the book was cloaked in secrets and you went along on this crazy ride along with Scarlett, rather than knowing what was going to happen and Scarlett having to catch up. 

Death Wish was a book that I thoroughly enjoyed and I would be interested in seeing what the second novel has to offer to the continuing story. That being said ... I do have a few things to point out for all of you American readers out there. In case you didn't know, this book takes place in England and is written by (you guessed it) a British author. So I decided that I'm going to help all of the non-Brits out a bit and give you what I am going to call, The Non-Dictionary Dictionary. I'm going to tell you some weird (to Americans) terms and what they DO NOT mean. That will help you weed out the actual meanings from your first assumptions. 

The Non-Dictionary Dictionary

1. chocolate digestives: this does not mean chocolate laxatives
2. micro-boot: this does not mean a very, very, small cowboy boot
3. titch: this does not mean an itch on your boob
4. cheese sarnies: this does not mean cheese candy
5. cuppa: this is not slang for "cup of"
6. higgledy-piggledy: this is not the term used when going to the Piggly Wiggly
7. gorse: this is not a goat/horse hybrid
8. trilby: this is not a type of singing fish
9. kipper: this is not mean being happy
10. manky: this is not a man hanky
11. grubby mac: this does not mean a dirty Big Mac

There you have it. You can thank me later for addressing your first definition assumptions and getting that out of the way. Now go get the book so you can see where these words were used and start figuring out what they actually mean.


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

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Review: Red by Alyxandra Harvey

Bad girls burn hot…

Red is the color of Kia Alcott's hair.
It's her temper, which blazes hot and always gets Kia into way too much trouble.
And it's the color of fire. Fires that Kia can start…just by thinking about them.

When her latest “episode” gets her kicked out of school, Kia is shipped off to her grandmother, who works for the wealthy Blackwoods. It's an estate shrouded in secrets, surrounded by rules, and presided over by a family that is far from normal…including the gorgeous and insolent Ethan Blackwood.

Ethan knows far more about the dangers of the forest surrounding the estate than Kia can ever imagine. For this forest has teeth, and Ethan is charged with protecting the outside world from its vicious mysteries.

But inside, even the most vibrant shade of red doesn't stand a chance against the dark secrets of the Blackwood family…

Red is about this girl named Kia whom everyone thinks is a bit of a pyromaniac. She does have a problem with starting fires but not the way that people think. She starts them alright ... and the fire literally comes from within her. Kia gets kicked out of school for setting some old lady's roses on fire, so she gets shipped off to live with her grandmother. It's not some beautiful, homey little cottage that she's going to ... it's a castle and Grandma is the vet/wood chopper/everything else for the residents of this amazing home. Soon after moving in, she notices that things probably aren't as they seem and then the story really lights up. No pun intended. Fine. Maybe it was intended ... it sounded perfect. 

What did I think? Well ... I'm not a big fan of paranormal ... I mean, I like paranormal novels but it's not my "GO TO" genre when I'm looking for something to read. Something about this cover and the blurb for it ... it was intriguing and I was super excited to pick it up. All of that nonsense being said, I really REALLY liked this one. 

I really liked the whole premise of the story ... the reader is really kept on their toes because you don't know what is going to happen next. It's always something new with each turn of the page, you literally couldn't predict the next exciting part. The writing was pretty good too. Not the best that I've read but it wasn't bad and it did keep you interested. I didn't find myself skimming pages or skipping paragraphs to just make the story move faster. 

This book is a stand alone. I don't believe that there will be a prequel that comes out and it was so nicely buttoned up at the end, I don't think that there will be a sequel either. And that has some serious drawbacks. One being that even with all of the info that you know about these characters, there is so much that is still unknown. It felt like you had enough to get you through to the end of the book but it lacked a depth that I think the book would have benefited from. There is such a thing as too much information but these characters didn't come close to having that issue. I just wanted ... more. I've said it a million times, I am a greedy reader. I'm a SUPER greedy reader. I want to know every minute detail that the author has to give me about characters, locations, situations and after the author gives me that, I want MORE. I want all of the details that the author has thought of but figured it would be too much for the story. Most of the time, it's not! Tell me about these characters' past. Tell me about their needs, wants, urges, passions, hatreds ... I want everything. I think this story just lacked those extra things and it made you feel like these characters were just part of a clique at school that you don't really know anything about except the big stuff. You don't know what makes them tick. 

Anyway, that's just how I felt. Now, by no means does everything that I've said in that last paragraph mean that the book isn't worth reading. I think that it is. ESPECIALLY if you're a person who has a hard time getting into a book ... this will keep your attention and feed that urge to read. 

This was my first book by Alyxandra Harvey and I'm excited to see what else this author has under her sleeve because this was good. 

Available: March 10th, 2015

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Review: Endless by Amanda Gray

Jenny Kramer knows she isn't normal. After all, not everybody can see the past lives of people around them.

When she befriends Ben Daulton, resident new boy, the pair stumble on an old music box with instructions for “mesmerization” and discover they may have more in common than they thought. Like a past life.

Using the instructions in the music box, Ben and Jenny share a dream that transports them to Romanov Russia and leads them to believe they have been there together before. But they weren't alone. Nikolai, the mysterious young man Jenny has been seeing in her own dreams was there, too. When Nikolai appears next door, Jenny is forced to acknowledge that he has travelled through time and space to find her. Doing so means he has defied the laws of time, and the Order, an ominous organization tasked with keeping people in the correct time, is determined to send him back.

While Ben, Jenny and Nikolai race against the clock - and the Order - Jenny and Nikolai discover a link that joins them in life - and beyond death.

So much potential. I had such high hopes for this novel because the premise was so interesting. But I guess I should have figured the book would turn out this way when the word "traveled" was spelled wrong in the blurb. Yeah, yeah ... I know that sounds mean but as a reader, I feel robbed. Robbed of the experience that I had so hoped would happen when reading this book. 

On with the slaughter! Haha ... mostly kidding. So the characters were okay ... I really didn't like Jenny. She seemed shallow and selfish and to be honest, her name drove me up the damn wall. I don't know why. I have friends that are named Jenny and it's never bothered me before ... but it really drove me crazy and I really couldn't remember who in the hell "Jenny" was when I would read it in the book. That lasted for close to 60 pages. Not good. 

I did enjoy one character and that was Ben. HE should have been the focus of the story because I loved ever Ben-moment that I got! He was just the perfect character, he had just the right amount of screwed up to make him interesting and urge you to root for him. I'll miss Ben.

The part of the book that I really enjoyed and kept me reading was the stuff about Nicholas II, the last Russian emperor because it was the most interesting out of everything on those pages. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to redeem the book. There were just too many coincidences that helped out the characters or freak accidents that happened out of no where for no explanation. Could I have missed the explanation? Sure. I was having a hard time focusing on pretty much everything in Endless, so there is a possibility that these things were explained. But again, having things spelled out for me wouldn't have made the book better. It was, in a word, meh. But the cover is pretty ... it does have that going for it. Not for me. OOOH. And I didn't like the ending. It was a cop-out and too simple for what had happened throughout this whole book. I don't care if it will take the author an extra 20-30 pages. You make that ending count! I don't have to like the ending, I just want it to stand up with the rest of the book and tie everything up or have an epic cliffhanger. I don't ask for much.

I should have consulted my Ouija Board before picking this one up.

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