Oh, What Fun! Christmas Blog Party: Week 2

I can't believe that it's almost Christmas! And since it's almost Christmas, I need to do week 2 of the Oh, What Fun! Christmas blog party hosted by Jameson C. Smith. You can join in on the fun here: 🎅. Here we go!

Do you make any special treats during the holidays? Which are your favorites to make? Your favorites to eat?

Cookies, peanut butter fudge, and sausage balls are some of the treats that I make during the holidays. They're also my favorites to make and my favorites to eat.

Do you leave out the traditional milk and cookies or something else?

It's been a few years since we've done it, but we used to do the traditional milk and cookies. Although one year, I think it was cookies and Mountain Dew. 

Favorite holiday flavor/scent (peppermint, sugar cookie, cinnamon, etc.)?

In general, it's a toss up between gingerbread and peppermint. 

Decorating: Keep it simple or go all-out? Do you have any favorite decorations or ornaments?

My family usually keeps it pretty simple as far as decorating goes. I have a lot of favorite ornaments, but the one that means the most is an angel ornament with a picture of my grandma who passed away years ago. Having that ornament on the tree makes me feel like she's still always with us at Christmas.  

What is your can’t-miss Christmas special?

It is pretty much a family tradition that we watch A Christmas Story at least once during the holiday season. 

Show off your Christmas tree! 

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you have a wonderful holiday!

Oh, What Fun! Christmas Blog Party: Week 1

This week, I'm participating in the Oh, What Fun! Christmas blog party hosted by Jameson C. Smith, which you can find more about here: 🎄. After all, what better way to celebrate Christmas on this blog than with two weeks of Christmas themed questions? So let's begin!

What’s your favorite holiday (it doesn’t have to be one from the “holiday season”)?

Christmas, of course!

How do you know when the holiday season has officially begun?

Right after Halloween. Christmas decorations are in stores, people are starting (or in some cases finishing) their Christmas shopping, people are getting ready for Thanksgiving. It just feels like everyone is starting to get into the holiday spirit.

What is your favorite part of the holidays?

The traditions, Christmas lights, music, holiday treats. Really, I love just about everything about the holidays!

Have any holiday wear? Show off those hats, socks, and ugly sweaters!

Unfortunately, no holiday wear here. I do want to get a Santa hat sometime though. 

Some friendly controversy: When is it appropriate to listen to Christmas tunes?

Whenever you want to. :) I usually start wanting to listen to Christmas music around the beginning of November, though there are a few songs that I'll listen to year round. 

Speaking of Christmas tunes: Share your favorites!

Essence of Heroes Character Aesthetics

A while back, I had some fun and made some character aesthetics for the five central characters in my Essence of Heroes series. I had shared these on Twitter, but I never got around to putting them up here on the blog until now. Along with the main aesthetics for the characters, I'm including links to their aesthetic boards on Pinterest in case you ever want to check them out. I've found that these are a pretty useful way to learn new things about your characters, because it really made me think about the things they liked and what they would be associated with.

Aly's Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/kspangler95/character-aesthetic-aly/

Riley's Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/kspangler95/character-aesthetic-riley/

Leo's Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/kspangler95/character-aesthetic-leo/

Becca's Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/kspangler95/character-aesthetic-becca/

Vanessa's Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/kspangler95/character-aesthetic-vanessa/

Book Review: Rose by Another Name

Today, I will be reviewing Rose by Another Name by Melanie Thurlow.

Here's the synopsis:

“Her worth decided over a game of cards, Lady Rosalyn Hayes has accepted her future. She will marry a duke she doesn’t know to protect her sisters’ reputations. But when a year of preparation for her debut vanishes in the blink of an eye, Rose flees her gilded cage in search of unrestrained adventure.

Lord Robert Phillip Clarence, Duke of Brighton, lives a life of debauchery far from his country estate, and even farther from the lady he must marry in order to restore his family’s ancestral lands. But when he is summoned home to meet his future wife, he realizes he hasn’t lived at all.

Rose and Robert do not meet when their eyes lock across a ballroom swathed in candlelight. They do not meet amid fine clothes, genteel manners, debonair charm, and chaperones. They meet, alone, upon Rose’s near death. It is this near-death experience that catapults the two nobles, disguised as servants, towards a romance that seems destined for failure.

They think they know each other. But when their true identities are revealed at a house party, will they live happily ever after or will the ton be shocked to see a lady run?”

My rating: *****

Even though I don't read them a lot, I love a good historical fiction. Rose by Another Name is the first regency historical romance that I've read, so I personally don't have a lot of books that I can compare it to in this genre.

I will say that the story had a bit of a slow start, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It's good, because it gave the story time to immerse the reader into the world of the story. It also helped the reader to learn more about Rose and Robert and see their romance unfold. The one downside to a slow start is that it took me a little longer to really get into the story.

But once I did get into the story, I kept looking forward to seeing what would happen next.

I loved the characters of Rose and Robert. They were interesting and intriguing, and had great chemistry with each other. From the moment they met, I was looking forward to when they would realize who the other was. I was rooting for them to be together and to live happily ever after. Something I felt Rose really deserved, because she does not have an easy life.

I thought I knew exactly where this story was going and how it was going to end.

Boy was I wrong.

I have to give Melanie Thurlow some major credit, because she provided a twist that I did not see coming and ended this story in a way that I wouldn't have expected from a historical romance.

This is the first book in a series and I look forward to seeing what will happen with Rose in the next book. If you're looking for a regency novel to read, I would recommend checking this book out!  

The Sequel Writing Journey: Sequel Writing Joys

Last week I talked about some of my sequel writing woes, but sequel writing isn't always difficult. This week I want to talk to you about some of the joys I've experienced with writing Iridescent's sequel.

I think my favorite thing about starting Coalescent was how easy it was to start. I already had a little bit of chapter one written before Iridescent was published, so I could include it as a sneak peek at the end of the novel. The differences between writing the first chapters of these books is amazing to me. With Iridescent, I had to introduce everything. Who is Aly? What is she doing here? Why is she here? What's going to happen? With Coalescent, I didn't have to do that. Sure, I did have to reintroduce her, but it felt easier this time around.

I didn't know who any of the characters were when I first started Iridescent, which could be a little frustrating. I would keep getting stuck on chapters, because I didn't know how to move forward with a particular character (most often Leo). Now, I know these characters. I know who they are and where they're going. I'm still learning new things about them, but it's knowledge that's adding onto their characters, not changing them to something completely new.

At least in most cases.

There are a handful of characters that are changing to me. It's like they've went, “Hey, I get what you thought about me, but you're missing a few things about me. Let me see if I can give you a new outlook on who I am.”.

And it's great!

Characters I didn't originally have a lot of ideas for, I now have new directions I can take them in.

I love getting to explore my characters and getting to discover new things about them. In the first book, I created these characters and started them on their journeys. In the sequel, I'm getting to see how they're going to grow and change along the way.

It certainly adds a fun experience to sequel writing!

The Sequel Writing Journey - Sequel Writing Woes

Ever since I published Iridescent back in July, I've been working on its sequel. I have to admit that I'm way behind schedule when it comes to this WIP, and that's something I really need to work on. This is the first sequel I've written, and that makes it a learning experience. And what better way to discuss this learning experience than in a blog post or two?

Obviously writing any story can be a learning experience. Iridescent taught me a lot. It was my first story, and the first story I've ever published. Since publishing it, I've learned that there are some areas where I can improve with my writing. Which is great. I imagine there will always be new things to learn as I grow as a writer, and I hope that I can continue to make my stories better. I'm hoping that I can take everything that I've learned from Iridescent and use it to make Coalescent even better.

But here's the thing.

Sequels are hard.

I know what I want to do with this story, but I keep getting stumped in trying to make it better than my first novel. I'm constantly feeling I'm being plagued with questions. Is the pacing going better this time? Is it too boring? How can I make sure these characters are more interesting this time around? How can I make sure that the interesting characters stay interesting and don't get boring?

Oh, and of course my very favorite question.

Does anyone besides me even want this sequel?

Ah, insecurity and self-doubt, how nice of you to pop back in again.

I'm going to be honest here. In my ideal fantasy world, Iridescent would have taken off the second I hit the publish button. Reality, though, is much different. I'm grateful to everyone who has bought a copy of Iridescent so far, and to everyone who has left a review. It really does mean a lot to me.

That being said, I think it's safe to say that this story still hasn't entirely found it's audience.

Which is fine.

These things take time and like I said before, this is all a learning process for me. Marketing a book and finding an audience for it is no easy feat. I can admit that I'm not the best with social media. I think it's probably safe to say that this blog post itself will have very few viewers. I'm still learning, I'm still trying.

But that only makes the sequel writing more frustrating.

It's hard finding motivation when you don't know if anyone is going to want to read your work. It's hard when you see other people finding their audiences and gaining fans of their work. It's easy to get jealous.

And I know the age old saying that I shouldn't compare my work and life with others. That doesn't mean that it's not an easy trap to fall into. It's way too easy to get caught up thinking 'Why isn't that happening to me?', 'Why are things going so easily for them?'. The thing is, I'm sure that these writers have their own struggles that I can't see, and that's something that I'm trying to remind myself. That, and that things will work out when the time is right.

I love my characters. Aly, Riley, and Leo in particular have invaded my mind and they're making it clear that they're not going away until I finish telling their stories. Which is good, because I do enjoy writing these characters and the adventures they go on.

So I'm going to keep writing them.

Even though it can be hard and frustrating, I'm going to keep pushing on with this sequel. I'm going to find my motivation and inspiration.

And you know what, sequel writing isn't always a frustrating mess. There are some big high points to it as well, but I'll talk more about that next week. ;)

Book Release Day!

Today's the day! Iridescent is now available for purchase! You can find this book in the following places:

Amazon.com ebook format

Amazon.com paperback format

CreateSpace paperback 


After reading the book, you can leave a review on Amazon and Iridescent's Goodreads page.

I hope that you will enjoy this book!

Book Review: Unsanctioned Eyes

Today, I will be reviewing Unsanctioned Eyes by Brianna Merritt.

Here’s the synopsis:

“Her death was just the beginning.

Quinn Rogers doesn’t exist. There are no records of her name. Her DNA has no match. She is a ghost. A phantom killer no one can trace. The perfect assassin. Or so she thinks.

At the top of her game, Quinn’s no longer looking over her shoulder. Her master will protect her, save her, like he always has. But there are forces at work neither of them suspect.

Can Quinn find the truth in a world of lies? Or will her unsanctioned past catch up to her in the end?”

My rating: ***** (Closer to 4 ½)

Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense is one of my favorite genres to read. I love how the stories keep you guessing with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. Unsanctioned Eyes is no exception to this. Throughout the story I kept wondering what would happen next, and how the characters would get out of the situations they were in.

Speaking of characters, I have to be honest and say that I really didn’t like Quinn at first. She is a killer, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. I couldn’t connect with her, and really, I didn’t want to connect with her. When Nathan arrives, a new side of Quinn starts to emerge and by the halfway point I could see how her character was starting to change. Quinn’s changes felt very natural to the story, and I do love a good redemption arc, so I’m curious to see where this character will go in the next story.

The other characters were interesting too. I think my favorites were Nathan and Jason. Jason was entertaining to read about, and I really sympathized for Nathan. He was not in a good situation in this book, but he was able to make the best of it and really helped Quinn to start seeing the light.

Overall, Unsanctioned Eyes was a great read and I’m looking forward to seeing where the next book will take these characters. If you’re looking for a good thriller, I recommend checking this book out! 

Iridescent Cover Reveal and Release Date

Hello, everyone!

Today, I'm excited to finally reveal the cover and release date for Iridescent. Yes, the novel is finally finished and it will be coming out very soon. I've been looking forward to this day for a while now, because I've really been wanting to show off this cover.

So, without further ado, here it is:

Synopsis:

Things are more than they appear...

Aly Roberts wasn't expecting much out of small town Airyville, NC. 

She certainly wasn't expecting to get caught up in a conspiracy involving the town's gated community, Lagniappe. 

The people of Lagniappe are private, and Aly's new friend, Riley Monroe, is certain that they're hiding something. 

Lagniappe's secrets are dangerous, and uncovering them may just change their lives forever. 


So when will this book be coming out?

July 11

Iridescent will be available for purchase on Amazon.com and CreateSpace on July 11.

Throughout the next weeks leading up to the release day, I'll occasionally be posting quotes and snippets from Iridescent on Twitter and Instagram. You can find me here:

https://twitter.com/kaitlyns95
https://www.instagram.com/daydreaming_butterfly/


I'm really looking forward to sharing this story with all of you, and I hope that you'll enjoy it!

The Fear of Bad Reviews

The closer I get to finishing Iridescent, the more nervous I get about publishing it. What if I’m not able to sell any copies of it? Or even worse, what if everyone hates it and I get flooded with bad reviews?

Bad reviews are a funny fear to have, because it’s likely that a writer will get one at some point in their career. And it shouldn’t be a surprise. We know that not everyone will love our works, even if we do wish that they could. So why is there a fear of them? Well, when you put so much time and effort into something, you want it to succeed. In a way, our characters and our stories are like our children. We created them, developed them, and watched them grow and change. The last thing we want is to see them torn to shreds.

The thing is, bad reviews really shouldn’t matter. One bad review isn’t the end of the world, and it’s extremely rare that a book is universally hated to the point where it only has negative reviews. There’s always someone who will enjoy your story.

I mean look at Twilight. Seriously, raise your hand if you’ve ever heard, thought, or said that Twilight isn’t a good novel.

Well, you’re not alone. On Amazon, Twilight has 1,774 critical reviews. The majority of said critical reviews are also one stars. That’s a lot of negativity, and frankly those critical reviews are probably more review than many of us will ever receive on one novel. And yet, overall, Twilight has a 4.6 out of 5 star rating on Amazon. Why? Because 5,984 people gave the novel a positive review and the majority of those were five stars.

Now Twilight is probably an extreme case, but it’s the book I’ve seen torn apart more than any other. The way some people act, you’d think that there wasn’t a soul on Earth who liked the series. And yet, as we all know, that simply isn’t true.

Writing a novel is hard. We put so much time and effort into them, and we want to see our stories succeed. And yet, it is so easy to get caught up in the what ifs. The thing is, we can’t just let the negatives overtake us, otherwise we’re going to take the fun out of something we love doing. We need to think positively too.

So yes, maybe someone will hate my story and yours, but there’s going to be someone who loves it too. 

The Tenseness of Tenses

AKA, changing the tense of my novel made a big difference.

It probably should seem obvious that tense can make a big impact on a story, but I didn’t realize it until after I finished Iridescent’s first draft. I always knew that I wanted the story to be told through first person point of view, primarily because Aly wanted to be the one to tell her story. The tense hadn’t seemed as important at the time. I had been reading some first person, present tense stories and I had really enjoyed them, so I thought that I would give it a try. Interestingly enough, I hadn’t realized that a lot of people seem to dislike present tense until after I finished draft one.

Please note, I am not saying that you should avoid a tense just because some people don’t like it. I mean I know some people aren’t a fan of first person POV either, but that’s what works for my story. You should always go with the POV and tense that works best for a story. In the case of Iridescent, present tense wasn’t the best idea.

I had thought that present tense would make the story more suspenseful. The reader would be seeing and learning everything right as Aly did. However, when reading the first draft I noticed that the story really wasn’t flowing well. There was something off about it. So I decided that for the second draft, I would change the story to past tense and see how things worked then.

Turns out it made a pretty big difference.

I’m halfway through my second draft and the story is flowing so much better now. It also feels more natural to write. I discovered that there were some elements in the story that were a lot easier to convey once I switched to past tense.

I’m hoping that once this draft is finished, I’ll find that the flow of the story is overall a lot better than it was when I wrote the story in present tense.

So if you ever find yourself having trouble with your story’s flow, try telling it a different way. A change in tense may just be the fix you’re looking for. 

Short Story Review: Threadbare

Today, I will be reviewing a short story called Threadbare by Bethany A. Jennings.

Here’s the synopsis:

“What happens when your gift turns against you?

All her life Bess has known the magic streams around her, waves of power she can draw from to wield the gift of magical threads. Now the youngest member of a team of Anchors, she helps protect the city streets from Drifters—energy thieves who prey on the life force of ordinary humans.

But when a battle leaves Bess’s threads in an irreparable tangle, she is faced with an agonizing choice: sever her threads and lose her magic forever—or be slowly consumed by her own power.”

My rating: *****

I think that short stories can be difficult to write. To be exciting and coherent in such a small word count, can be a hard feat to accomplish. Bethany A. Jennings was able to accomplish this and more. Threadbare is a delightfully imaginative tale. The use of the magical abilities in this story is one that I personally have never seen in a story before and I found it intriguing. Bess is an interesting protagonist and she is a very relatable character. Despite the steady pace and satisfying conclusion, Threadbare left me wanting more. Even though we the readers really only get a small glimpse of the world, it’s fascinating and it’s a setting I’d love to see explored more.

Overall, if you’re looking for a nice fantasy short story to check out, I would recommend giving Threadbare a shot! 

Book Review: Where the Woods Grow Wild

Today, I will be reviewing Where the Woods Grow Wild by Nate Philbrick.

Here’s the synopsis:

“A forest looms over Bardun Village. Nobody goes in. Nothing comes out. The secrets in the oaks remain hidden until a mischievous escapade thrusts Martin and Elodie behind the silent trees. Separated and lost in a tangle of fantasy, they discover more than animals roam where the woods grow wild.”

My rating: *****

Where the Woods Grow Wild is an enjoyable fantasy. Where many fantasies tend to move closer to darkness and despair, this story stays on the lighter side of things. That isn’t to say that it’s an easy journey for the characters. There are many obstacles and challenges that the characters are faced with. Not only that, the story does explore some serious topics such as losing a loved one and learning to accept and live with a disability. These are topics that many of us can relate to.

This novel is filled with wonderful world building and funny and witty dialogue, but my favorite part was the characters. Martin and Elodie were fantastic protagonists and I really liked how the story would switch between their perspectives. I was rooting for them throughout their journey as they went through all of their struggles to find each other again. They were realistic and, like pretty much all of the characters in the novel, there was more to them than what you first see.

The other characters were also fantastic. Illo, Fella, Aguilax, Podgin, Bramble, and the rest were all entertaining to read about.

There was also a little mystery to the story as well, which I particularly enjoyed. I kept wondering what caused Martin to lose his hand, and what or who exactly was Nayadu. There were a few things that I was left wondering about, but perhaps those questions will be answered in the next story. Which by the way, there is a sneak peek of the next book at the end of the story. I really enjoy it when authors do that!

Overall, Where the Woods Grow Wild is a great story and if you’re looking for a lighter fantasy, I recommend checking it out! 

Book Review: The Assassin's Daughter

Today, I’ll be reviewing The Assassin’s Daughter by Jameson C. Smith.

Here’s the synopsis:

“For most of her life, Katira has trained to take on the role of assassin. While it’s far from the life she would have chosen, the law known as the Inheritance Proclamation dictates that she must follow in her father’s profession. At seventeen, she’ll be expected to use her training on a real assignment any day.

When new information about an old fugitive brings questions about Kat’s past to light, she must make a choice: Prove her loyalties to the Tederan Order and their laws, or become a fugitive to search after answers she may never find.”

My rating: *****

First off, let me just say how much I love this cover. It’s very simplistic, but still super awesome. I especially like the colors. Honestly, it makes me kind of sad that my Kindle Paperwhite only displays covers in black and white. Since the cover is a darker color, the purple in it is turned to a dark gray color and it doesn’t stand out as much.

Now onto the story itself. Overall, I enjoyed it. There were moments where I wasn’t quite sure where the plot was going, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. It kept me guessing on what was going to happen to the characters, which can be rather fun. This is the first book in a series, so there were some story threads left to be explored in the future. I’m interested in learning more about the world of this story, because it seems like there’s a lot of interesting aspects to it.

Personally the characters were my favorite part of this book. Kat and Ed were really great characters and I loved their relationship. Their friendship and loyalty to each other felt like one of the strongest elements of this novel to me. Also can I just say that I love how simple their nicknames are to pronounce? I love fantasy stories, but they often leave me feeling clueless about how some of the names are supposed to be pronounced. It feels like it’s kind of a staple for the genre, but I really hate it when I’m not sure how to pronounce the protagonist’s name. Kat and Ed as nicknames were rather refreshing for a fantasy. J

The rest of the characters were great too. All of them were interesting and I’d like to learn more about them, so hopefully we’ll get to see them again in the next book.

All in all, this was an enjoyable novel and I look forward to seeing where the story and characters will go in the next installment. I definitely recommend giving this book a shot! 

Favorite Fictional Relationships

It’s that time of year again. It’s Valentine’s Day and love is in the air. Unless you’re currently single like me, in which case the only love that’s in the air is the love between fictional characters. So what better way to celebrate this holiday than talking about my favorite fictional romances? These romances range from books to movies to TV shows to games. So without further ado, I present my top seven favorite fictional relationships.

7. Tris Prior and Tobias “Four” Eaton – Divergent

Okay, I have a big love-hate relationship with the Divergent books, and by love-hate, I primarily lean towards hate. I loved the first book, the second was “eh”, and then the third book was just plain awful to me. That being said, I did like Tris and Four as a couple.

6. Emma Swan and Neal Cassidy – Once Upon a Time

I’ve mentioned on this blog before how I loved these two as a pairing, even though it was short lived because Once Upon a Time had to crush my heart and force me to lose interest in the show. Regardless, I still love the thought of these two characters in a relationship. Part of it is because they have a history together, they shared good moments and bad, and, frankly, their relationship wasn’t perfect. If Neal had lived these two would have had a lot of stuff that they would have had to work through and that could have been interesting to have seen. Also their relationship was so poetic when you think about it. The one meant to break the curse and the one who was the reason behind it. If only it could have worked out between the two of them.

5.  Daisy Johnson and Lincoln Campbell – Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D

Oh look, another short lived romance. There’s really not a lot to say about these two characters except that I love them both and liked them together as a couple. A lot of people seemed to have issues with Lincoln, but I always liked him. I wish he could have stayed on the show longer. L

4. Stephanie Plum and Ranger Manoso – Stephanie Plum

This is the odd couple in this list, because they’ve never officially been a couple in the book series. They like each other and people ship them together, but they’ve never been an official item. That being said, I still think that they could make an awesome couple.

3. Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Malarik – The Hunger Games

These two characters really went through a lot throughout their journey and it was really interesting to watch them grow. This is another one of those couples where I just really like them together, but I don’t have much else to say about them. All I can really say is that I’m glad that they found some semblance of happiness together after everything that happened in these books.

2. Elizabeth Swan and Will Turner – Pirates of the Caribbean

Okay, so Will and Elizabeth are my favorite characters in the Pirates movies. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy Captain Jack Sparrow too, but I’ve always been invested in Will and Elizabeth’s characters and relationship. Which is probably why I’m so excited about the new movie coming out in May. Yay, Will’s back! I will say that Will and Elizabeth never got an official happy ending. As we can see now with the new movie, he’s still stuck having to roam the sea as captain of the Flying Dutchman, which means that his curse apparently can’t be broken and that he can’t be with Elizabeth all the time. Add in the fact that he’s essentially immortal now, unless you know someone stabs his heart, their time together really is limited.

1. Nancy Drew and Ned Nickerson – Nancy Drew

Alright Nancy and Ned are my top favorite couple, and if I’m going to be completely honest, Ned is pretty much my fictional dream guy. Nancy goes on adventures all the time in the books and in the video games by HerInteractive, and a lot of the time that leaves Ned back at home. Understandably, he would get a little frustrated from time to time. I mean his girlfriend is traveling the globe often times risking her life, and he can’t really do much to help her. Also, Nancy gets so caught up in cases that she forgets other important things, such as her anniversary with Ned in the game Sea of Darkness. While Ned does get upset, he comes back around and forgives Nancy. He’s always understanding and supportive of her, and best of all he always believes in her. Two of my absolute favorite moments in the video game series come from The Silent Spy and Sea of Darkness and they are lines from Ned that go back to his relationship with Nancy:

"Nothing I say is going to stop Nancy -not this time. I understand why you don't want to help her. But that'll make things more dangerous for Nancy. She called me because she knows that my faith in her is stronger than my fear for her." – Ned in The Silent Spy

"You have that 'help people' gene. There's this fire within you. I firmly believe you're going to save the world one day. At times, I worry like crazy. Even if I'm out with my friends, or at a game, or in the middle of class. I've got one hand on my phone, terrified that I might get that call one day. A call that this time you didn't get lucky. And that used to terrify me, but now... I'm not afraid. What I'm trying to say is, I can't imagine life or the world without you. And even though I might get that call someday... I'm not gonna let fear hold me back. I love you Nancy. I love you so much." – Ned in Sea of Darkness

Isn’t he the sweetest?

Well that sums up my favorite fictional couples. What are yours?

Book Review: Take the Key and Lock Her Up

Today, we look at the final book in Ally Carter’s Embassy Row series: Take the Key and Lock Her Up.

Here’s the summary from Amazon.com:

"For the past three years, Grace Blakely has been desperate to find out the truth about her mother's murder. She thought it would bring her peace. She thought it would lead her to answers. She thought she could put the past to rest.
          
But the truth has only made her a target.
       
And the past?
          
The only way to put the past to rest is for Grace to kill it once and for all."

My rating: ***** (Though I’m sort of leaning closer to 3 ½)

Okay, so when I first finished reading this book I thought it was wonderful. I couldn’t put it down, I had to see what was going to happen next. Usually when that happens, I’m willing to give a book 5 stars. With this one though, the more I thought about it, the more issues that popped up for me.

Also I just want to say, I totally forgot that Adria had a prince close to Grace’s age. Really I forgot that there was a prince altogether and when they first mentioned him, I was thinking that he must be a lot younger. He’s not fortunately, or else some of the stuff in this book would have been very awkward (which it was already awkward, but it would have been worse). Also Thomas is a real MVP. He goes through a lot of crap in this book and he handles it like a champ.

Before I get into any issues, let me focus on what I liked about this book:

• The cover.

The cover of this book is absolutely gorgeous and it’s by far my favorite in the series. I want the dress that Grace is wearing. I would never be able to wear it, but it is so pretty. I’m adding it to my mental list of fictional dresses that I wish I could own.

• The characters.

The characters were great as always, well most of them were anyway. A few groups of characters were just odd and Alexei had a moment or two where he wasn’t spectacular (mainly due to a weird pseudo love triangle, that wasn’t really a love triangle, that was popping up).

• The overall story.

While there were a few issues with it, the story was still exciting and fun to read. I kept wanting to see what would happen next and I wanted to see how Grace would solve everything.

Okay, so now onto the issues with the book. The problem here is that many of the issues are wrapped up with spoilers, both for this book and for the previous ones, so I have to be vague which makes this very difficult to talk about. Ultimately there are two issues that I need to discuss. One: Where the heck is Grace and Jamie’s dad? They’ve been on the run for months, people have been trying to kill them, and he’s MIA the entire time. Shouldn’t he be trying to find them? Has anyone filled him in on what’s happening? There’s a similar issue with Grace’s grandfather, but we do at least get to see him in the book.

Problem number 2: Everything ultimately could have been avoided. That is my main issue with all of this. The people who went after Grace’s mom, go after her and her brother years after her mom’s death. If they were such a threat, why wait this long? The Society, the group of women who influence everything, are fairly idiotic. I mean they have valid concerns, they really do (primarily because Adria has a really stupid constitution), but they are of no help to Grace whatsoever. Also they brush off Grace’s way of ending everything as an impractical solution that couldn’t work, when apparently it could work just fine. Which leads to a rather weak resolution in my opinion. Also I’m going to be honest, but I find the resolution to be a little unrealistic. Though to be fair, a lot of things in this series are unrealistic and that’s why it’s enjoyable, but still.

Overall the story isn’t a bad one, but there are some plot issues that bug me. That being said, they’re not so terrible that it makes the story completely unreadable. It’s still a fun page-turning story and I do recommend checking it out. 

Optimistic Update

Hello everyone, long time no speak!

Well it hasn’t been super long, but still. I haven’t been as active with this blog as I had wanted to be when I first started it, but I’m going to try to change that this year. So more book reviews, and hopefully other posts, should be coming your way soon. I’ve had trouble in the past of coming up with posts to write, but I have a few ideas right now and I’m going to see if I can make them work.

By the way this blog is going to be one-year-old on Sunday, which is pretty cool.

In other news, I have finally finished the first draft of Iridescent! Which means I’m one step closer to being able to publish it! It’s taken me a lot longer to get this draft done than I had wanted. I’m hoping though, that now that I have it written down and I know how I want the story to go, it should be a lot easier to write from here on out. _{I’ve probably jinxed myself by saying that.} So within the next few days, I’ll start reading my first draft and jotting down some notes, and then it’ll be off to draft number two. I’m both looking forward and dreading this, mainly because I know there are going to be some issues in it that need to be worked out. But maybe it won’t be as bad as I’m thinking.

I have also made the decision that I will self-publish Iridescent once I get it to the point where it’s ready to be shared with the world. Before I was considering on going the traditional route, but there are really no guarantees that I would be able to get published that way. Plus, I want to be able to have complete creative control over what happens in this story and the others that follow it.

Well I think that about wraps up everything that’s been going on lately.