{REVIEW and GIVEAWAY} MY EX FROM HELL by TELLULAH DARLING

Series: The Blooming Goddess Trilogy #1
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Publisher: Te Da Media
Publication Date: 4/1/13
Format: eARC
Source: Received from publisher for review

Sixteen-year-old Sophie Bloom wishes she’d been taught the following:

a) Bad boy’s presence (TrOuBlE) + teen girl’s brain (DraMa) = TrAuMa (Highly unstable and very volatile.)
b) The Genus Greekulum Godissimus is notable for three traits: 1) awesome abilities, 2) grudges, and 3) hook-ups, break-ups, and in-fighting that puts cable to shame.

Prior to the Halloween dance, Sophie figures her worst problems involve adolescent theatrics, bitchy yoga girls, and being on probation at her boarding school for mouthy behaviour. Then she meets bad boy Kai and gets the kiss that rocks her world.

Literally.

This breath stealing lip lock reawakens Sophie’s true identity: Persephone, Goddess of Spring. She’s key to saving humanity in the war between the Underworld and Olympus, target numero uno of Hades and Zeus, and totally screwed.

Plus there’s also the little issue that Sophie’s last memory as Persephone was just before someone tried to murder her.

Big picture: master her powers, get her memories back, defeat Persephone’s would be assassin, and save the world. Also, sneak into the Underworld to retrieve stolen property, battle the minions of Hades and Zeus, outwit psycho nymphs, slay a dragon, rescue a classmate, keep from getting her butt expelled from the one place designed to keep her safe …

… and stop kissing Kai, Prince of the Underworld.

My Ex From Hell is a romantic comedy/Greek mythology smackdown. Romeo and Juliet had it easy.

With a fun take on Greek Mythology and a winsome heroine leading the way, My Ex From Hell is a story that is sure to please Young Adult Fantasy lovers.

As someone who'd read the author's first book, Sam Cruz's Infallible Guide to Getting Girls, I knew Tellulah Darling could tell a fun story. But with it being realistic fiction and this being fantasy, I did wonder if I would like My Ex From Hell as well. But with the story's interesting spin on Greek Mythology and cast of fun characters, I did enjoy the story.

Like a lot of readers, I enjoy a book set at a boarding school. Close quarters leads to a lot of drama typically, but when you add the fact that a lot of the characters are gods and godessess, well, that makes for some extra drama, danger, and excitement.

Sophie Bloom (great name!) was a great Young Adult heroine. She is a girl who'd always managed to fit in at her school, though she's not the most popular. She has great friends, Hannah and Theo, and despite an unloving mother, she is a happy girl. Her sense of humor is what really won me over. And that held true even as Sophie's world began to change in unimaginable ways. Learning that you are Persephone will throw you for a loop, or two. The girl managed to answer every insane situation with a bit of lively self-deprecation and snark.

Of course, there's a guy, or god, it would seem. And this one is a doozy. Kai is possibly the love of Sophie's past life. He's gorgeous, powerful, sometimes charming, and she often can't even stand him. It doesn't help matters that Kai is the son of Hades, who as you know, has a complicated history with Persephone. In this version of the myth, it's his son, Kai, who has the relationship with Persephone, but still, he can't be trusted.

My Ex From Hell was pure fun. The story was clever, exciting and fast-paced. The characters were hilarious and endearing. The ending was full of action and surprise, and definitely left me ready for the next story in the series. This is a great story for teens that is sure to win their imagination.  There are so many re-imaginings of Greek Myths out there, but this one should not be overlooked.



Favorite Quote:

  "Our story starts back on Mt. Olympus sixteen years ago," he began.
  "Nice try," Hannah interrupted. "I may only know Mythology 101 but those gods predated New Kids on the Block."  ~eARC, 23%

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About the author

Tellulah Darling
noun

1. YA Novelist
2. Alter ego of former screenwriter and instructor
3. Sassy minx

Geeks out over: cool tech.
Squees for: great storytelling.
Delights in: fabulous conversation.
Writes about: where love meets comedy, flavored with pop culture. Awkwardness ensues.

Connect with Tellulah at:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Facebook  |  GoodReads  |  Blog  |  Pinterest

{REVIEW}SAM CRUZ'S INFALLIBLE GUIDE TO GETTING GIRLS by TELLULAH DARLING

Series: N/A
Genre: Contemporary YA
Publisher: Te Da Media
Publication Date: 10/17/12
Format: eARC
Pages: 244
Source: Received from publisher, via Edelweiss.

Why the hell can’t chicks be more like guys?

That question plagues high school senior Sam Cruz. Sam is perfectly happy being a player. He just wishes girls wouldn’t change the game from sex to relationships. It makes him look like an asshole. But when Sam’s best friend, Ally Klinger, gets dumped, she begs him to transform her into someone who can screw around then screw off. No risk of heartbreak that way. It’s Sam’s chance to create the perfect female AND cheer up his best friend. Armed with Sam’s Three Step Guide to Backseat Success, Ally gets the game better than Sam thought she would and before long, Sam has his wish: the female version of himself. Too bad it’s driving him nuts. Told from Sam’s and Ally's alternating POVs, Sam Cruz’s Infallible Guide to Getting Girls is a fast-paced romantic comedy that follows these teens as they navigate the minefield of sex, love, and friendship.

This book contains strong language, drinking, euphemisms, and lots of “bow chicka wow wow.”

 

Why I  Read Sam Cruz's Infallible Guide:

Ellen at Always YA at Heart reviewed this recently and her review convinced me that I must read this book!


I am a huge fan of those classic teen movies in which the coolest guy in school gives a hopeless nerdy, but adorable, girl a makeover. Once the magic has been worked, the boy then realizes how beautiful the girls is, what a catch she was all along, and falls ridiculously in love with her. The first movie that comes to mind is She's All That, with Freddie Prinz, Jr. and Rachael Leigh Cook. Sam Cruz's Infallible Guide to Getting Girls is a story much like what I've described, but told with an unabashed realism and honesty about what guys and girls are actually thinking about sex, relationships and love.

Sam Cruz is seriously one of the funniest books I've read in a while. The reaction that Sam has to the new and improved Ally made me laugh out loud, blush, and roll my eyes. The boy seriously "stood at attention" practically every time he looked at or even thought of Ally. As the mom of a boy, I am totally unprepared to even consider that these reactions occur in guys. As a girl, I am resigned to the fact that I know it happens. A lot. The fact that the author went there with Sam, didn't sugar coat the physical desires and actions of the teens, made me appreciate the story on a greater level. It's nature, there's no need in shame, is how I tend to look at these things. Ask me if I still feel that way when I have teenagers and you may get a different story.

Another factor that made me appreciate the story was Ally's ownership of her sexuality. I loved that she took charge of her desires, that she was able to express herself. Did she always make the right choices? Probably not. But she was safe, and completely consientious of what was happening. Ally didn't just sit there and let things happen, and no matter if you think teen sex is right/wrong/or something to fight at every level, a girl who knows what she wants, and is in charge of her own body is a girl that I respect.

As for the love story...it was definitely a slow road for Ally and Sam. As lifelong best friends, there are some lines that shouldn't be crossed for the sake of the friendship. Sam, who is deep-down afraid of abandonment, knows Ally can't handle the friends with benefits situation, and is not willing to risk losing her. Ally is less cautious and once she makes up her mind, she is willing to take the leap from friends to love. And though the relationship is a huge risk, I'm with Ally. Best friends who become boyfriends are the very best.


A story of friends, love, sex, and relationships, Sam Cruz' Infallible Guide to Getting Girls will make you laugh, root for these fantastic characters, then laugh some more.


Favorite Quotes:

  "I try reason. 'You faked a dead battery to trick me into coming out here so I would have sex with you.'
  'Well, it's not like you said 'no', she retorts.
  'Because I'm make and breathing. If there were going to be other conditions on this offer you should have shown me the small print. Beforehand.'
  'If I'd done that, you would have freaked out.'
  And there you have it, boys and girls. The place where my rules, carefully constructed to ensure a mutual good time, fall to shit."  -Sam   (eARC, 2%)


  "She gives me a huge hug. Except she's still in her lingerie, making my dragon roar its head again. I pull away.
  Ally glances down at my crotch and with a knowing grin, punches me in the arm."  -Sam (eARC, 25%)


  "Hooking up with her is like playing the home version of WrestleMania. There's rolling, tossing, name-calling, and the occasional threat. I'd put her in a headlock to get her back in line but she's just wormed her way on top of me."  -Sam  (eARC, 47%)

  
  "I pass Etienne, jumping around manically in what I guess is dancing. 'It's like Labiapalooza in here,' he calls out. 'Come mosh."  - Sam (eARC, 76%)

 

Read an Excerpt.


You can purchase Sam Cruz's Infallible Guide at:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository