I've started doing something new where I highlight all of the Indie/Small press books I've picked up to read on my Kindle. I will post mini-reviews of the titles each month.
The top 2 books from this month were Bully by Penelope Douglas and Lick by Kylie Scott!
Bully by Penelope Douglas
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Review:
OMG, I need about 10 more books just like this one! Bully was one of those"enemy to lovers" stories and I devoured every single word! Tate and Jared were best friends and then he changed and started treating her like crap. Yes, this makes Jared a bit difficult to love but I just couldn't help myself!! Over time, I could see how he was hiding his feelings. I also loved the fact that Tate was a really strong character. She was tired of putting up with his crap so she made sure he knew it. I loved the ways she'd get back at him. They had a lot of great interactions. I'm just sad that it's over: ( I want to re-read this one very soon!!
Lick by Kylie Scott Add to Goodreads
Review: Ahhh, love! This book was a surprise for me. I'm not wild about the cover but I heard it was great so I picked it up. Plus, waking up not knowing you married a rock star? YES PLEASE! I ended up loving this story so much! Evelyn wakes up with a stranger next to her, David, and she has no earthly idea who he is. After dealing with a killer hangover, and going back home, the press soon figures out what happened and she has to run back to David to get the situation fixed. But things happen and they then start to get to know each other. Evelyn gets small pieces of the night back and.*happy sigh* it was just wonderful! This is another book I want to read again! Both characters were fantastic and had amazing personalities! I highly recommend it!
The Hazards of Skinny Dipping by Alyssa Rose Ivy
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Review:
This was a fun read. Pretty light and, while it does take a look at a controlling relationship, there's much more to the book. Juliet has had her eyes on Dylan for a while. They"hook up" and it turns out to be horrible but Juliet still dates him. At school she tries to have a good relationship with Dylan but he is really controlling. She finds a friendship with a guy named Reed and they were terrific together. I really wish I had a friend like Reed.: ) He was such a good guy and he really cared for Juliet. Their bond builds slowly, which was nice. As far as"first college experiences" go, this was a super fun book.
Dark Summer by Lizzy Ford Add to Goodreads
Review: I picked up this book knowing nothing about it. It was free on amazon but I'm so glad I took a chance with it! Summer has been to a lot of boarding schools but they always fail. Now, she's trying a new place and it's finally somewhere that she fits in, sort of. There are many people who don't like Summer but she still builds some great friendships and connects with twins Beck and Decker. At age 18 each person is turned either Light or Dark, but that doesn't really mean they have to be evil. We learn this after hearing about Decker and his fate. The whole world behind this book was enjoyable and I can't wait to see what happens next!
Beautiful Broken Rules by Kimberly Lauren
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Review:
I actually wasn't sure if I would enjoy this one. The blurb didn't really grab me but I was happy to see that the book was better than I expected. Emerson is known as the slut in school and she's sort of okay with that. She wants nothing to do with relationships but she is surprised by her feelings with Jaxon, one of her best friend's new roommates, comes to town. She finds herself breaking a few of her strict rules about guys. She tries to hide away due to heartache but soon realizes what she is missing out on. I had fun with this one. It's nothing too deep or original but it was still a nice read.
Elite by Rachel Van Dyken Add to Goodreads
Review: Wow, what a book. I had no earthly idea what to expect with this book. I wasn't sure if it was dystopian or just a whole different world, or if it was something paranormal. I was a bit surprised by the"surprise" of it all. Trace wins a scholarship to an elite school and she is immediately faced with the complexity of the school structure. She's shocked to find out that a student, Nixon, is in charge and that he seems to completely hate her. There are some things Nixon does that are just so unforgivable but then I ended up liking him anyway? GRR! Trace was great and I enjoyed finding out more about her. The friends (semi-friends) she makes along the way range from nice to deadly and the twists and turns are unimaginable! It's really hard to even describe this book so I'll just say, if you are looking for something completely different, with a big twist, get this one!
A Matter of Fate by Heather Lyons
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Review:
I was reluctant to pick up this book because I'm not a huge fan of Magicals. In the end, I was happy I had read it and I do plan to read the second book soon. Chloe is a Magical but she knows very little about herself. From the start we learn that she's had dreams about a guy since she was young and then he is suddenly there in her school. This leads to a crazy love triangle though but it was pretty well done. I was a bit confused at times by all the Magical knowledge we get at once, but it was pretty unique. If you are a fan of paranormal books that have a very unique world, get this one!
Let Love In by Melissa Collins Add to Goodreads This is another brand-new-to-college book with a character who has a tragic background. Not a new idea for a book but still well-written. Maddy lost her parents when she was young and it has made her fight against falling in love. She meets bad-boy Reid at school and their relationship begins. They both have went through a lot so this made for two stubborn, slightly frustrating characters. A lot happens in this book between the two and some decisions I didn't quite understand. It's still a pretty enjoyable read. Nothing too surprising inside but nice.
Delayed Penalty by Shey Stahl
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Review:
This story has a very emotional start. A young girl is found by a hockey player in an alley after a brutal attack. It's obvious she would have died there if he hadn't brought her to the hospital. The book started out a bit stronger than it ended for me. For some reason, even though I should have felt terrible for Ami, I just never really connected with her. On the other hand, Mase was fantastic. I loved his character and POV. He had a wonderful family and great teammates. I just felt that if Ami would have been a slightly better character, and not so dry, I would have enjoyed it more.
Trying Not to Love You by Megan Smith Add to Goodreads
Review: This is hard for me to review. The actual story idea is amazing. I loved that Kenzie and Hunter had a relationship going back to childhood. I loved the family dynamics and the role of her best friend. But the writing brought it down, IMO. I don't think teens speak to each other like"I do not know why he was not there." (this isn't an actual sentence from the story but it shows what I'm referring to). It just messed with the flow of the story and the actual dialogue itself. It's robotic and caused me to pause quite a few times. I've seen another reviewer get comments because she said it bothered her while reading and yeah, it totally bothered me too. Big time. It took something away from the characters and made it more difficult for me to connect with them and believe them as being young adults. I really wanted to feel bad for Kenzie during parts of the story but I didn't feel a lot for her. Maybe it was mostly due to the language or feeling like I was just being told what was happening instead of really feeling the emotions behind it.
This book ends on a huge cliffhanger, which I'm not a big fan of honestly. I do think I'll read the next one when it comes out.
I know this story has a ton of fans already and everyone is entitled to their opinions on it.