Favorites of 2014 - The Carole Awards!

Happy end of 2014! I can't believe the year is already over and 2015 is right around the corner. Man...time does speed past faster and faster the older you get. This year I cut out the music section, so I can have more categorizes for books and movies. Now, let us hand out these imaginary Carole Awards (since i don't really have any - man, I wish I did have an award show named after me).  

Category 1 Movies:
Favorite Female Character.........Maleficent from 'Maleficent'
Honestly, I was stuck between 2 characters for this award, but Male gets it, because I think the actress did a wonderful job at making this classic baddie into a hero who temporarily lost her way. 

Favorite Male Character..........Adam from 'Upside Down'
I really adored him because he was smart and motivated. He wanted to be rich and wanted the woman he loved. He used his wits to get what he wanted and I respected that. Plus, he was pretty cute. ;) 

Favorite Baddie..........Richard from 'The Iceman'
The movie is about Richard, but he is a baddie. A baddie who gets rid of baddies? Yes, but he still was a baddie and went to jail for it. However, I loved him and the actor who plays him.

Favorite Poster..........Belle
A lovely poster with lovely colors. It really does pop. Also, the actress who plays Belle is pretty and her eyes are so intense.

Movie of the Year...........North & South
Another tough one, I watched sooooo many good movies this year. Even though this one is a "movie on TV" type film, it was still great and it deserves this award. The acting was fantastic and the story-line had me hooked. It even gave me the motivation to re-try this book. ^.^ 

Category 2 Books:
Favorite Female Character......Jasmine from 'The Dance of Spirits' 
She was a tough girl, who would do anything to survive, but keep to her morals no matter what. 

Favorite Male Character.......Robbie from 'The Bride Prize' 
He was simply adorable and funny. I loved that he could draw so well and he was such a gentleman and fought for his woman even though it seemed hopeless. 

Favorite Baddie...........Anara from 'A Cursed Bloodline' 
OOoooooh how he angered me! However, he certainly did a number on our heroes physically and emotionally. What a good baddie.

Favorite Cover...........'Dark Amelia' by Sally O'Reilly 
I love the colors. It seems simple, but it really is gorgeous. The mix of white, read, and then the peachy/red on her lips just seem to make it pop. 

Author of the Year...........Cecy Robson
I am so excited to see what she has next up her sleeve!

Book of the Year...........'The Korean Word for Butterfly' by James Zerndt
Like always, this part is always the hardest, especially after reading so many wonderful books this year. However, I must pick this one, because I loved it so much. It was a great story with great characters. 

What do you think? What were your favorites of 2014? :) Good luck in 2015!!!!!!!!!

2014 Wrap-Up & Plans for 2015

2014 is already over? What? Huh. That went quickly. 

Well, here is my wrap-up of the year:

 Book Read & Reviewed: 

83

Movies Watched & Reviewed:

22 

Challenges:

Read 80 books - accomplished (yayy!)

Conclusion:

A very good year, especially bookwise. I haven't read that many books in a long, long time. My original book challenge was 60, but I blew past that, so I upped it. Yayy! I am excited for the year coming up. :) 

2015 Goals:

Again, I shall do the the Goodreads challenge (I love it), I think I am going to try and get 85. Eeeeeek *fingers crossed* Also, one of peeps from Book Club shared this on the Facebook page and I shall attempt it. Some of them shall be hard, but it shall be fun. I highly recommend everyone gives it a go. 

*I will have my favorites of 2014 posted tomorrow. I'm still working on it. 

Blodeuedd Reviews: Magic Lost, Trouble Found by Lisa Shearin

Blurb
My name is Raine Benares. I’m a seeker. The people who hire me are usually happy when I find things. But some things are better left unfound…

Raine is a sorceress of moderate powers, from an extended family of smugglers and thieves. With a mix of street smarts and magic spells, she can usually take care of herself. But when her friend Quentin, a not-quite-reformed thief, steals an amulet from the home of a powerful necromancer, Raine finds herself wrapped up in more trouble than she cares for. She likes attention as much as the next girl, but having an army of militant goblins hunting her down is not her idea of a good time. The amulet they’re after holds limitless power, derived from an ancient, soul-stealing stone. And when Raine takes possession of the item, it takes possession of her.

Now her moderate powers are increasing beyond anything she could imagine—but is the resumé enhancement worth her soul? 

My thoughts:
I have noticed that some mentioned an UF vibe, or was it UF heroine? Anyway that does make sense. Sure it's a fantasy world, but the heroine, Raine does feel like an UF heroine and it could just as well have taken place in our world with the same plot.

Raine is cool, she finds things with her limited magical abilities. Her family are pirates and her love life has taken some hits cos of that. I liked her, she had a good head on her shoulders and could take of herself.

Other memorable characters were, Tam (I liked him), her cousin Phaelan (seemed nice too), Mychael (I sense something here), and well more. Friends who will help her, and baddies that will try to stop her.

Because the plot is that Raine comes across something many wants and they will hunt her down.

Fun enough to make me want more.

Paperback, 345 pages
Published May 29th 2007 by Ace 
Raine Benares #1
Fantasy
Own

My 23rd Birthday & Book Review: Daughter of the Reef by Clare Coleman

Author: Clare Coleman
Title: Daughter of the Reef (Ancient Tahiti #1)
Genre: Historical Fiction & Drama
Pages: ebook
First Published: December 1992
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

"Tepua, the daughter of a chief sails from her coral atoll home toward her planned, and ritually mandated, marriage. But she never reaches her destination because a violent storm damages her vessel and leaves her stranded on the shores of Tahiti, a land previously unknown to her. She is made unwelcome because of her foreignness and is victimized because of her weakness and innocence, but her spirit is strong and her will to survive and thrive is boundless. The world of Tahiti is very different from the one she has known, beautiful, savage and mystical by turns. But she is determined to build herself a new life and, in the process, she will change the destiny of all for generations to come."

This took me a little bit of time to get through, because the beginning was slow, but after about 30 pages it got better. Drama ensued and it made the story better. I was at first really, really worried this was soley going to be a boring ol' story, but there is a lot at play. There is a love triangle, political intrigue, and a growing into a woman story. Some parts where very, very dry, but the not dry parts did make up for it sort of. 

I actually didn't mind the love triangle. Crazy, right? It wasn't over-the-top and it wasn't annoying. It didn't take over the whole story. Honestly, though, I knew who she was going to pick after a certain event and plus she would be a fool to pick a certain someone. Okay...after a while, it was no longer a love story - the one boy was trying to fight for her, but she was not having it because he was an idiot and did stupid things. Idiot.

ANYWAYS

It was a fun adventure. It was certainly an interesting location and I'm glad I saved this for winter time. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh, I wanna go to the beach and be all warm and stuff. I def recommend this to those that want a huge change of scenery in their reading especially to escape for a moment from the cold. 

The ending....now THAT was a twist I did not see coming. Honestly, I don't know what made Tepua change her mind. I was lost on that front. I think the author forgot to mention her change of her somewhere, because I thought her one ultimate goal was set in stone if occasion arised. Did I miss her change of heart? Mmmmmmmm.... 

ANYWAYS

In the end, this was certainly a good shake-up in my reading. It was a good way to end the year. :) A nice book about love, politics, the ancient world, and a girl turning into a woman story. I liked how it ended, so I'll have to see what the second book in the series is about (I hope its about a different character or something - because I liked the ending Tepua got). I do recommend this to those that like historical fiction and are looking for a change up in their reading. Well, I shall stamp the last book of the year with 3 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Tepua & Tepua's sister-in-law (I can't remember the names that well lol)
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Tepua's brother & the main bad guy

~*~

By the way...IT IS MY BIRTHDAY! WOOT WOOT! 23 years young today! I'm not really doing anything today. I decided this year not to party it up or go out. Just chilling at home with Boyfriend like a cool kid. 

Last Book Blog Walkers for 2014

This challenge is organized by Felicia over at the Geeky Blogger's Book Blog
Saturday:  1 mile walk Sunday:  1.5 mile walk  Monday: Nada (power was out during my normal work-out time, so I lazed about with a book) Tuesday: 30 mins yoga Wednesday: Nada (had work and then went straight to Boyfriend's familys) Thursday:   .50 mile run/jog, 3 miles bike, & 10 mins weights (Then to my familys for xmas) Friday: Nada Conclusion: A poopy week again, but I blame the holidays and being lazy. ;) Thursday was fun though! Boyfriend actually went to the gym with me. :3  

Movie Review: Painted Skin - The Resurrection

Length: 2 hr & 11 mins
Released: 2012
Genre: Mystery, Sci-Fi, & Fantasy
Rating: Unrated (I would say about PG-13)
Where I Got It: Netflix

SUMMARY:
An ancient fox spirit embarks on a diabolical quest to become human after escaping an icy prison, and becomes bound to a disfigured princess who seeks the love of a noble guard as her kingdom crumbles in this lavish supernatural epic. Confined to a frozen cell for centuries, malevolent fox spirit Xiaowei regains her freedom and seeks to preserve her beauty by seducing men and consuming their hearts. Should a man offer her his heart willingly, Xiaowei will become mortal, breaking free of the underworld and experiencing living among the living. Meanwhile, as a dark cloud falls over her kingdom, Princess Jing flees, hiding her deep facial scars under a mask of pure gold while seeking the love of her former protector, who remains haunted by his failure to save her years prior. When destiny brings Xiaowei and Princess Jing together, the battle for the princess' heart begins.

TRAILER:

REVIEW:

This has been sitting on my TW list for a while and I was so excited when this popped up on Netflix!

This was a weird, weird movie. Super weird...but a good weird. I really want to watch the first movie (I did not know that existed), so I can get more of a back story of the Fox Demon, Xiaowei. It's totally a stand alone movie, but I would like to see what Xiaowei really did to get frozen for 500 years. Ugh - totally horrible fate btw!

The effects were totally awesome. Some were a little cheesy, but overall they were all really cool and very pretty. I especially loved the cliff scene - just for the fact of how pretty it was. The rest of the scene and how we got to the scene was not...well...happy. But yea.

The acting was good and the fight scenes were pretty good too. One scene near the end made me shake my head. Huo was an idiot. I love the actor, I really do, but goodness Huo needed a good punch on the face. *SPOILER ALERT* Yes, lets blind yourself RIGHT before the big battle, because you cheated on your love due to be seduced by the beauty of the Fox demon. Let's prove your love later buck-a-roo. Tsk *SPOILER ENDED* However, I did love the fact that Jing and the Fox demon did become "friends" in a sense. It was unexpecting, but I thought it was an interesting turn of events. 

In the end, this was a fun adventure. I loved the acting and fight scenes. Huo was an idiot, but I love the actor so I tried looking past it. Princess Jing deserved better, but hey...the heart wants what the heart wants and she had loved him for as long as she could. A couple scenes were cheesy, but they were awesome. I do really want to watch the first movie, because I think I would understand some of the references, but it did stand well as a stand alone. I shall stamp this with 4 stars, it's more like 3.5, but I rounded. :)

Favorite Character(s): Jing, the Fox Demon, and Que'r (I loved her love story with the demon hunter, it was cute)

Not-so Favorite Character(s): Huo (I love the actor, but the character needed a punch in the face)

Happy Holidays!!!!

Book Review: Brightest Kind of Darkness by PT Michelle

Author: PT Michelle
Title: Brightest Kind of Darkness (Brightest Kind of Darkness #1)
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance, UF, & Mystery 
Pages: ebook
First Published: June 27th, 2011
Where I Got It: My shelf (Amazon freebie)

"Nara Collins is an average sixteen-year-old, with one exception: every night she dreams the events of the following day. Due to an incident in her past, Nara avoids using her special gift to change fate…until she dreams a future she can’t ignore.

After Nara prevents a bombing at Blue Ridge High, her ability to see the future starts to fade, while people at school are suddenly being injured at an unusually high rate.

Grappling with her diminishing powers and the need to prevent another disaster, Nara meets Ethan Harris, a mysterious loner who seems to understand her better than anyone. Ethan and Nara forge an irresistible connection, but as their relationship heats up, so do her questions about his dark past. "

Such a weird book. Weird, but in a good way. It was an interesting storyline with interesting characters and bad guys. It does seem to take on a Final Destination type plot, but its different especially when you actually get to meet Fate and Death at a couple points in the book. Nara is a girl who can see the future, but only in her dreams; so yes, she dreams her whole next day the night before. After she reports a bomb being placed at the school and she runs into the new guy Ethan, her dreams begin to sleep away. OH SNAP!

Through a series of events, Nara and Ethan become close and Ethan reveals he has powers too! But his are scary and not at all what I expected. I will not say what, because it is a surprise and you will feel soooooooooooooooo bad for him. 0_0 

Gah, I hate everyone in Nara's life for numerous of reasons. The dad is a jerk, because he abandoned the family, which turned the mom into being cold and distant from Nara (even though this event happened 10 years ago - sorry, get over it, your daughter needs you and your love). I loved Aunt Sage, but she angered me when she revealed a huge secret which she should have told Nara after Nara told her HER secret of seeing the future. Lainey was a horrible friend. Gran...well...she was just nuts and should have helped Nara with her powers more. Ethan coming along was honestly the best thing that happened to Nara. He actually cares and wants to help her with her power and protect her from Fate. 

Fate...you are an ass! WHY FATE WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY! *shakes fist*

The beginning was a little slow and I feared it was gunna turn into Twilight-y stuff, but the author made me happy and veered away from that ditch. It got way better half-way through when things turned dark. :3 YAYY for DARK! 

In the end, this was an interesting and fun adventure. It would be cool to see the future, but honestly...there are huge negatives at play when you have this power. You don't want to mess with Fate, because Fate is vengeful. *shakes head* The beginning was worrisome and slow, but things did a mighty turn around and it made me happy. In the end, I shall stamp this with 3 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Nara, Ethan, and Samson
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Pretty much everyone else 

Blodeuedd Reviews: Sweet Adventure & Sweet Magik

 Blurb:
Oskar Klaus' job is killing him. Not even his favorite hobbies (extreme snowboarding and browsing old bookstores) are enough to snap him out of his funk. It's not easy living in the shadow of four successful older brothers and a father named Santa. Little does he know that a kiss on New Year's Eve is about to turn his life upside-down.

Kiana Grant's Manhattan life is a world away from her childhood in Oahu. She traded sunsets and surfing for a respectable career in library science, but Oskar Klaus is a temptation that's hard to resist. Before she knows it, she's in the midst of an outrageous adventure in the North Pole, dealing with mischievous elves, wicked demons, and a devastating attraction to Santa's youngest son.

There's just one problem...a bitter elf hell-bent on revenge threatens the future of everyone in the North Pole, even Santa himself... 

My thoughts:
A sweet story set around New Year. If there only was snow outside then I'd totally be in the xmas zone ;) (edit: snow now, yay).

Oscar ...oh well he has green hair, tats, a Seuss hat and loves to snowboard. And super models drool after him. 

Kiana hides herself behind ugly glasses and clothes. She does not want a bad boy who is after a super model, and she does have a hard time looking past his exterior. Cos in reality he is a really sweet guy!

Oscar is of course doing the chasing , and she will fall, and they will live happily ever after.

But before that, trouble is brewing in Glassdorf and I liked the other side shown. Just cos they are elves, does not mean they are all nice.

Sweet, fun, read it with some cookies beside you ;)

Kindle Edition, 304 pages
Published November 18th 2013 by Penny Watson 
Klaus Brothers #2
Holiday fantasy Romance
Own

 Blurb:
Sven Klaus, Chief Toy Designer for Klaus Enterprises, will protect his family at any cost. He's prepared to battle the most threatening adversaries to do it--frost flowers, snowstorms, Yeti. And beautiful tenacious tabloid journalists.

Andi De Luca's reporting career is built on lies--about corrupt politicians, greedy Hollywood stars, and Bigfoot. Now she's determined to uncover the truth about Klaus Enterprises, and she always gets her story. Even if it means revealing her own secret desires to Santa's son.

After all the lies and deception are exposed, will Andi and Sven survive this North Pole adventure? Or will YETI MAKE THEM DEADY?

My thoughts:
I think I have said sweet about them all, but hey, sweet is in the title!!

A sweet novella set before xmas :) There is romance, and a tiny adventure.

But ok the book. Sven is a toy-maker, but he wants to make furniture instead. Andi is a pitbull who has sniffed out a story. Honestly, Sven was adorable and cute. Andi, eh, do you really go from they do not want an interview to they are for certain the mafia who employs kids. She sure has a wild imagination...but, here is the but. She needs to make money for her family. I get that. And she does see the light and fall in love.

The tiny adventure is when they take a trip... ;)

This was really their story, falling in love, the drama thing and then living happily ever after. Nice.

Oh oh, I really like how it started and ended with emails. So fun to read. 

Kindle Edition, 204 pages
Published October 27th 2014 by Penny Watson
Klaus Brothers #3
For review

Book Blog Walkers #8

This challenge is organized by Felicia over at the Geeky Blogger's Book Blog
Saturday:  1 mile walk & 2 hours of dancing at the bar; yayy for Girl's Night! (it was DJ night YAYY!) Sunday:  15 mins yoga (got lazy) Monday: 30 mins Zumba Tuesday:  5 miles bike Wednesday: 2 mile walk  Thursday:   1 mile walk, 15 mins yoga & 15 mins meditation Friday: 2 mile walk Conclusion: Back on the horse! :D Since school is done I expect to do much more and I am PUUUUUMPED! 

Movie Review: Belle (2014)

Length: 1 hr & 42 mins
Released: 2013
Genre: Drama
Rating: PG
Where I Got It: Online rent

SUMMARY:
BELLE is inspired by the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle, the illegitimate mixed race daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay. Raised by her aristocratic great-uncle Lord Mansfield and his wife, Belle's lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from the traditions of noble social standing. While her cousin Elizabeth chases suitors for marriage, Belle is left on the sidelines wondering if she will ever find love. After meeting an idealistic young vicar's son bent on changing society, he and Belle help shape Lord Mansfield's role as Lord Chief Justice to end slavery in England

TRAILER:

REVIEW:

I've been wanting to watch this movie FOREVER!! I'm a little unsure about where to begin, so I shall divide and conquer this review. 

Characters

-Belle "Dido": Poor girl. Kuddos to her being so tough about everything. Especially a certain jerk and the jerk's mother. I was worried that she was going to be a "perfect" character, but it took her time to develop into a strong woman. 

-Captain Lindsay: I wish he got some more screen time, because he was an awesome guy. He didn't give a damn about his reputation, he wanted to do rights by his daughter Belle.

-Lady Mary: At first I didn't like her, but I loved her after a while.

-Lady Mansfield: Again...at first I didn't like her, but she made it up and did right by Belle. 

-Lord Mansfield: One of my favorite actors! It made me happy to see his face. 

-Elizabeth: I liked her even though she was a total air-head and totally naive at times. At one point I wanted to punch her, but she made it up.

-Lady Ashford: Total beeeeyotch. >______>

-Oliver Ashford: I did like him even tho he said some dumb things.

-James Ashford: DRACO MALFOY! Oh *cough* um, hello weird looking guy. Why did he look so weird? Maybe they made him look weird to fit his nasty personality. Why does this actor like playing an ass all the time?

-Davinier: Awwwwwwwwe. :3 Cute. 

(So many characters, I know)

Story

I never heard of Miss Belle and her story. I never even heard of her before! Hmmmm, I want to know more about her. Are there books or other movies about her? I want to learn more. Kuddos to her....they treated her like such crap at times. She was too high of status to eat with the slaves, but not white enough to eat with the family during events. So, so sad how evil humanity can be. :/ 

I did oddly love the love triangle. Crazy, right? I am so glad that Belle picked the right lad in the end though...because he truly deserved her and never really ever noticed her being half black. Ok, he noticed it but never said any dumb comments about it like the other lad did. I was certainly nervous, but alas, my worries were for not. 

The Ending

Yayy! It made me happy. I almost got really upset, but they didn't let me down (I knew what would happen, because its historical fact, but I try to ignore the facts and go for the ride). 

Conclusion

I loved the cast they got for the characters; they all did good. The story was also good and had me hooked. Even Boyfriend was totally into the movie. I also want to know more about Belle "Dido", so I shall go on the search for books and movies about her. In the end, I recommend this to those that love historical movies mixed with some controversial issues. I shall stamp this with 5 stars. :)

Favorite Character(s): Belle, Captain Lindsay, Elizabeth, and Davinier

Not-so Favorite Character(s): James & Lady Ashford

Re-watch?: Yes! A good one! Adding it to my collection of historical films. 

Book Review: Paper Towns by John Green

Author: John Green
Title: Paper Towns
Genre: YA, Fiction, Romance, and mystery
Pages: 305
First Published: October 2008
Where I Got It: Borrowed from friend

"Who is the real Margo?

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows. After their all-nighter ends, and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew..."

I read this book for the book club I am in, but I've been wanting to give John Green another go (I tried reading one of his books forever ago, but it was a DNF). I want to read 'The Fault in Our Stars', but I won't complain that I was made to read this book first. 

For this review, though, I am going to trying something different. I took notes after each part, so I will type them and expand about what I meant/thought/felt. 

Prologue 
You know me...I normally don't read these, but Sam demanded that I read it because it is important. She was right. Read it.
-3 stars

Part 1
-Slow beginning, but it sped up as it went along.
-It made me remember High School and some really good AND bad memories. I don't miss it, but it was a nice reminder of the old times.
-Ugh. Margo. I wanted to punch her attention-wanting ways. Yes, I loved the fact that she made Q go on an adventure of revenge with her...but still...ugh.
-Their adventure was fun! I am jealous I never did anything crazy like them! I especially loved Q's revenge on his bully - I was jealous!
-I loved the incorporation of TS Eliot. It really fit. 
-The end of part 1 left me agasp...so yes, I had to continue
-3 stars

Part 2
- After the grand adventure...everything hit a speed bump and slowed down again. 
-Meh, I hated Margo, but she did make things interesting.
-I skimmed a little bit.
-However, I'm glad the author gave some more spotlight to other characters; especially Q and his friends. It was nice to get to know them.
-As "clues" began to pop up, things got interesting again. 
-This was a long, long, loooooooong part. Honestly, I would have divided it into two, but that's my opinion.
-EEEK! The ending had me excited and dying to see what happened next!
-2 stars

Part 3
-Best section of the book. I simply could not stop reading the last 60 pages. 
-I loved how the author formatted the road trip. He went hour, by hour. It was fun and refreshing. 
-Ooooh, everything did tie together nicely in the end. Kuddos to the author!
-The ending....ohmygoodness. It was amazing, sad, and tragically hopeful. I still do not like Margo, but man....
-Poor Q.
-Poor Margo.
-I wish that the author had a little epilogue, but the get what the author was doing and he did a lovely job with ending. I love the last sentence of the book. It was simply my favorite. 
-5 stars 

Conclusion
I was a little worried about this book due to my previous attempt at reading this author, but I was pleasantly surprised with this book. It was good especially for a YA book (you know how picky I am on these). The characters were fun, even though I was not a fan for Margo. Q deserves a hell of a lot better in my opinion, but the heart cannot stop wanting what the heart wants.

I loved all the references to popular writers and quotes. It added extra flavoring to the story. I totally recommend this to those that need a good shake-up in their reading list. Especially for those looking for not a typical love story. Yes, it was an odd love story about a hopeless love, but also an adventure to find oneself. Part of part 2 was slow, but it was worth it to get to part 3, which was the best part throughout the whole book. 

Ok...I did an average of all the parts and it came out to 3.25, so I shall round and give this 3 stars.

Favorite Character(s): Q, Radar, and Lacey
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Margo, Margo's parents, and Ben (Meh)

B's Review: Sweet Inspiration by Penny Watson

Blurb:
What if the legend of Santa Claus is in fact, true? What if Santa has five big strapping sons who help him run his empire? Five single, sexy sons looking for romance...

Nicholas Klaus is a master pastry chef, a strict disciplinarian, and the eldest son of the legendary Santa Claus. One look at café owner Lucy Brewster sends him into an unexpected tailspin of lusty desires. When Lucy is injured, Nicholas makes a decision that catapults both of their lives into turmoil ....

Lucy Brewster, the free-spirited proprietor of Sweet Inspiration, has a flair for concocting sugary confections but no time for adventure. She gets more than she bargained for when she awakens in the North Pole...rambunctious elves, a fitness-obsessed Santa, and the man of her dreams. Does she have what it takes to become the next Mrs. Klaus? 

My thoughts:

A sweet novella :) About Santa's son!

Nicholas Klaus is a good chef. His love for it takes him to a cafe' where the owner's cookies enchant him. And she enchants him too. Yes they do fall at once, but hey it works. Nicholas is strict and well...a bit German ;) *cough*. Hey, he just wants discipline in his kitchen. I like order too.

Lucy bakes the best cookies and has the hots for a certain costumer. She is his opposite, bakes without measuring (the horror). But they fit each other and makes each other better.

And then they start to fall for each other and goes to the North Pole. I did wonder about the whole Santa thing and was all..really? But I then got an explanation about who and how Santa came to be, and it worked. I liked the explanation.

Did I say it was sweet? And made me want cookies? Oh yes, mmm cookies. 

Sweet (I said it again), a fun book to read before Christmas. 

Kindle Edition, Second Edition, 164 pages
Published September 22nd 2012 by Penny Watson
Klaus Brothers #1
Contemporary paranormal romance
Own

Book Review: The Dance of Spirits by Catherine Aerie

Author: Catherine Aerie
Title: The Dance of the Spirits
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, and Drama
Pages: ebook
First Published: September, 2013
Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

"Spring 1951: it is the fiery zenith of the Korean War, a war that the youthful US Army lieutenant Wesley Palm and his men thought that they had won... until the Chinese swept across the Yalu River. Traveling with the million-man army bent on driving back the march of "American imperialism" is Jasmine Young, a Chinese surgeon who has volunteered herself into the war for unspoken, grave reasons. Through a chronicle of merciless battles, freezing winters, and the brutality and hypocrisy of human nature, the two will find themselves weaving through the twists and turns of fate and destiny. Though their love is forbidden, their passion and pursuit of liberty cannot be quenched."

Another dark novel on my hands, but it was good. Jasmine and Wes are in the middle of a bloody war. Wes is an American who is fighting, while Jasmine is a Chinese doctor trying to save lives at the same time as trying to safe herself and try to be the perfect "communist", but her mid-set is from the old world.

So sad, so dark. War is such a nasty thing and the author does a wonderful job bringing it to life. However, it's not over-the-top. The ending was sooooooooooo sad with a sparkle of hope. I can't say what happened, but it was good, but I didn't like it. I wish that it wasn't so quick, I wish it was longer. But it was a good way to end it. I admit, I had to re-read it a couple times, because I didn't believe it happened! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Anyways....I also wish that Wes had more spotlight and got to tell his background too, because I wanted to know more about him. Maybe a short story is in the works? *hint hint* I liked Wes, but I didn't get to connect with him like I did with Jasmine. I liked Jasmine and I felt so bad for her. Yes, she had a good life and it was blown up due to the Communists taking over the government, but I am proud of her, because she managed to adjust and survive. She has "thinking issues" (lol) and she gets in trouble a lot with her commanders for it, but she has adjusted well for being a rich girl. 

I can't say much else without giving up some major spoilers, but I simply couldn't put this down, because I wanted to know what happened next.

In the end, this was a good war and romance novel. Sometimes the war outshined the love story, but it felt realistic and the author did a good job showing this. I liked Jasmine and I wanted to know more about Wes. Like where he is from and what he did before the war. I felt disconnected with him, so I didn't really care about his POV. Other then that, it was a good book! If you like war and a tragic romance, I recommend this for you. Out of five stars, I stamp this with 4 stars. 

Favorite Character(s): Jasmine, Tin Bo (Until he made me mad at the end....), and Jasmine's mother.
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Tin Bo (*shakes my head*)