MY THOUGHTS ON ~ THE GOLDEN LILY, TIDAL, ONE WEEK GIRLFRIEND, BEAUTIFUL DISASTER

Series: Bloodlines #2

Genre: Paranormal Young Adult

Publisher: Razorbill

Publication Date: 6/12/12

Format: Paperback

Pages: 418

Source: Bought

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

Sydney would love to go to college, but instead, she’s been sent into hiding at a posh boarding school in Palm Springs, California–tasked with protecting Moroi princess Jill Dragomir from assassins who want to throw the Moroi court into civil war. Formerly in disgrace, Sydney is now praised for her loyalty and obedience, and held up as the model of an exemplary Alchemist.

But the closer she grows to Jill, Eddie, and especially Adrian, the more she finds herself questioning her age–old Alchemist beliefs, her idea of family, and the sense of what it means to truly belong. Her world becomes even more complicated when magical experiments show Sydney may hold the key to prevent becoming Strigoi—the fiercest vampires, the ones who don’t die. But it’s her fear of being just that—special, magical, powerful—that scares her more than anything. Equally daunting is her new romance with Brayden, a cute, brainy guy who seems to be her match in every way. Yet, as perfect as he seems, Sydney finds herself being drawn to someone else—someone forbidden to her.

When a shocking secret threatens to tear the vampire world apart, Sydney’s loyalties are suddenly tested more than ever before. She wonders how she's supposed to strike a balance between the principles and dogmas she's been taught, and what her instincts are now telling her. Should she trust the Alchemists—or her heart?

 

Gosh. I really want to love this series. I loved Vampire Academy so much, and I think a lot of that can be attributed to the main characters, Rose and Dimitri.  Don't get me wrong, I appreciated the role Sydney played in that series. So far, though, she doesn't have the appeal (for me) to lead her own series. I adore Adrian, and would be so happy to have more of him or his point-of-view (I think I saw this was happening in future books. Is that true?). Basically, I felt The Golden Lily was just Sydney's crisis of conscience, her internal struggle with the Alchemist values. It got sort of exciting at the end. And then...Sydney made me mad again. I know, I know. This is her personality. Who she is. Still...*sighs*

Sidenote: I wrote this review before I read The Indigo Spell, which I'm hoping will change my mind about the series.

Series: Stand alone

Genre: Contemporary New Adult

Publisher: Self-published

Publication Date: 12/14/12

Format: Kindle

Pages: 312

Source: Bought

Now that Willow Avery is out of rehab, she's got one chance left to prove herself before she’s officially on every producer’s shit list. At least, that's what her parents and agent are claiming. She doesn't really give a damn if she never makes another movie or not—she just wants to get on with her life, get back to her friends, and find her next escape. But Willow is broke. And whether she likes it or not, acting is the only job she knows how to do.

When she accepts the lead in a beach drama, Willow finds herself in Hawaii. And in Hawaii, she finds Cooper, the gorgeous surfer hired to train her for her new role. With the bluest eyes she’s ever seen and the sexiest Australian accent she’s ever heard, Cooper’s different from the men she’s used to. He doesn’t want to use her. And he refuses to let her fail. But when an old friend re-enters Willow’s life—a friend whose toxicity she’s been drawn to time and time before and whose presence brings about the painful memories she's tried so hard to suppress—Willow will have to choose between the girl she was and the person she’s becoming. The lifestyle that helps her forget the pain and the guy she’s falling hard for.

Heartbreakingly Perfect. I loved Tidal so so so much.

First, I would like to point out to anyone who doesn't know, that Tidal was recently picked up by Touchstone, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. So the cover you see here will not be the cover on GoodReads, Amazon, etc. Congratulations to Emily Snow because this book deserves to be in the bookstores.

Second, Tidal is (to me) what New Adult is all about. To those who think New Adult is simply "sexed-up YA", I give you this book and my middle finger. (Kidding)

Truly? I bought Tidal the day it released, simply because I'd heard good things about Snow's writing, loved the cover, and thought the blurb sounded like something I would enjoy. I expected a light, steamy, good read about a troubled girl and the boy she falls in love with. I didn't expect to fall so deeply in love with this story. Willow and Cooper were brilliantly written characters who won my heart. I wanted them to make it through the obstacles in front of them, and at times I literally held my chest as I read. The story is intensely thoughtful, and Snow definitely dug deep to bring Cooper and Willow to life. And as much as this book squeezed my heart until I thought I couldn't take it, Tidal was also fun, and deliciously steamy.

Tidal is one of the perfect examples of why I love New Adult (and self-published) books so much. Highly, Highly Recommend.

Series: Drew + Fable #1

Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Monica Murphy

Publication Date: 1/10/13

Format: Kindle

Pages:170

Source: Bought

Temporary. That one single word best describes my life these last few years. I’m working at a temporary job until I can finally break free. I’m my little brother’s temporary mother since our mom doesn’t give a crap about either of us. And I’m that temporary girl all the guys want to get with because I give it up so easily. According to the rumors, at least.

But now I’m the temporary girlfriend of Drew Callahan, college football legend and all around golden guy. He’s beautiful, sweet—and he’s hiding way more secrets than I am. He’s brought me into this fake life where everyone seems to hate me. And everyone seems to want something from him. The only thing he seems to want though is…

Me.

I don’t know what to believe anymore. All I know is, I think Drew needs me. And I want to be there for him.

Forever.

Even though I bought this book soon after release, I am one of the last of my friends to read it. So I'll be brief. One Week Girlfriend is freaking fantastic. Seriously, I sort of want to punch myself in the face for not reading this the moment I bought it. I will not make that mistake ever again in regards to Monica Murphy.

New Adult is one of my favorite genres. And like a lot of readers, I feel like some of the stories tend to follow a pattern. One Week Girlfriend shatters that pattern. Drew and Fable and their effed up, broken lives are heart-breaking. I read this book with one hand over my mouth and the other over my heart (except when I was tweeting about how perfect the story was). What's really fantastic is that we learn about Drew and his secrets right along with Fable. The big twist is something that I could feel coming, but like her,  I was in denial. My mind and heart just weren't ready. When the moment happened, I was consumed the pain, devastation and unwavering love that Fable felt. I loved Drew. I was enraged on his behalf. I wanted their love to overcome the past.

Monica Murphy knows how to right a compelling, beautifully told story. I am absolutely in awe of how brilliantly she crafted Drew and Fable's story. That ending?! I was crying, devastated, yet smiling at the same time. That's an interested combination, huh? I am literally bouncing until I get my hands on Second Chance Boyfriend.

This is a story not to be missed.

Series: Beautiful #1

Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Atria

Publication Date: 8/14/12

Format: Kindle

Pages:437

Source: Bought

INTENSE. DANGEROUS. ADDICTIVE.

Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

Let me just start by saying that I was extremely nervous to read Beautiful Disaster. I have owned this book for nearly a year now, but just hadn't taken the leap. I will admit, I let all the negativity surrounding the book to scare me off. I can't say why, maybe it was due to the intensity of the feelings that had me freaked out. But it finally came down to me being practically the last of my friends to jump in, and I hate being left out, guys.

 

So what did I think?

 

I thought Beautiful Disaster was pretty great. There is a certain aspect to the story, and McGuire's writing, that made the book near impossible to put down. I truly enjoyed the story, but have to say the characters are what makes this book shine. I adored Travis and Abby's friends, Shep and America. Their commentary on and reactions to the insanity that is Travis and Abby was hilarious and direct. I found Abby to be a really likeable character. Did I agree with everything she said and did? No, but honestly, I'm sort of tired of the perfection that is expected of characters. Trust me, if I went away to college at eighteen years old, lived in the dorms with no one to hold me accountable, and had the exceedingly sexy Travis Maddox after me... you better believe that I would have been making "stupid" decisions, too!

 

Travis Maddox. The man is worshipped by some readers and absolutely hated by others. He's abrupt, impulsive, intense, has a wicked temper, and is more than a tad possessive. And though I wanted him to calm down and chill for a beat, I didn't hate him in the slightest. Listen, I am sort of known (and mercilessly teased by my husband) for my own temper problems when I was Travis' age. Now don't get me wrong, I've never been in a fight in my life, but let's just say that I know what it's like to be out of control. Travis is passionate to a fault. And this isn't me making excuses for his bad behavior. This is me saying that sometimes people f*ck up. They do things they shouldn't and say thing the absolute wrong things. It's just a fact. Now, do I want my character to be held accountable for their bad behavior and learn from that? Absolutely. And Travis does.

Okay, sermon over. lol I know that Beautiful Disaster is not for everyone. Just like all books aren't for everyone. But you know what? Beautiful Disaster was for me, and I'm so happy I finally gave it a chance.