LaurenF

2.5 STARS

So here is what I was expecting - A fast paced, action packed and adrenalin pumping adventure full of mystery, intrigue and romance. I was not expecting this book to be so "YA." Just based on the sexy, shirtless, tattooed guy on the cover I was expecting a much more "mature" book.Unfortunately what I got was a very pg13 version of the overplay "secret government agency is making super soldiers" plot. And unfortunately for the first three quarters of the book that plot just barely plodded along.The character development was OK but I guess I can't expect too much from a group of people who all have amnesia. But there was just something flat and missing about the whole cast of characters and don't even get me started on the pitiful excuse of a romance between Sam and Anna! The good news is that the last quarter of the book actually got good and there was some action packed mystery and intrigue. But I am afraid it was too little too late to save this book from being painfully average.

Some books have you hooked from the very first sentence. This is not one of them! Truthfully I took an instantly dislike to both the narrator and the authors writing style and almost put the book down about 3 time in the first couple of chapters. But then somehow while I wasn’t paying attention I became strangely and totally engrossed in the story. The plot is a pretty generic “teenage girl survives the apocalypse on her wits alone.” We have all read something similar, and of course there is also the obligatory scientist and military involvement. I don’t know about you guys but I feel like I have read about the world ending at least 100 times in the last year or so. And while I like a dystopian, post-apocalyptic, zombie/alien/mutant ridden world as much as the next reader, I have to say I have seen it done better. I am by no means a scientific person but IMHO the “science” behind the creatures in this book seems a little hinky. And then there is the question of the writing, which I found SO weird! I liked the first half of the book, content wise etc. much more than the second. But I thought the second half of the book was written much better then the first. In fact I would totally believe it if I was told they were written by two separate people.At this point you are probably wondering why I haven't given this book a terrible rating. And I have to be honest and say I’m not really sure. One thing I did like about the book was the relationship between Amy (the heroine) and Baby the toddler that she finds and raises as a sister. Another is that this YA novel is VERY low in romance which I found strangely refreshing. But mostly, despite all this books MANY flaws I just found it entertaining. *Shrugs*

I have read a lot of reviews for this book and the general consensus was-But I have to be honest, the whole time I was reading it all I was thinking was-Was I reading a different book?? Where was the action? Where was the sexy times? Where was the interesting plot??

I haven't love a book this much in a very long time!Any true romance fan will tell you that the experience is a little bit like being an addict. You are always searching for the high that is as goods as that first initial mind blowing read. But nothing ever quite lives up to that first experience. Having said that this book is as close as I have come in a VERY long time. I love Kresley Cole and I LOVE this series and IMO this books is by far the best.(So far.) Which in my mind is my highest praise imaginable.

I’m always complaining that all the books I read are so unoriginal. So when I heard what this one was about I knew I was in for something different.When was the last time you read a contemporary romance in which the hero is a cross dressing cabaret performer?? In my experience they are always powerful business men or sports heroes. Lately for some reason they all seem to be cage fighters. Maybe transvestites will become the next big trend in sexy male professions!First of all let me start off with what I liked about this book, aside from the originality. Nicholas our drag queen dream boat is actually a fantastic character. Yes he spends half the book dressed as a woman (but that’s just for work, mostly...) but the author does a really good job of making him into a manly and flirtatious character that is very obviously heterosexual. This character could have gone very wrong very fast but he actually turned out to be, well...fabulous....Where the book let its self down in my opinion was Freda, the MC and narrator. She is supposed to be a chubby and funny “every girl” but I often found her unlikable. Although she has no problems with Nicholas, she came across as judgmental towards her friends and just plain uptight at times. To be honest I actually have no idea why she is friends with her roommate Nora, she never had a nice word to say about her. She also came off as the type of person that never really makes proactive decisions but just lets life happen to them. So frustrating!Then we come to the plot. Some plot points are severely underdeveloped and just sort of fizzle into nothing. Other parts of the book had me scratching my head wondering why the author added them in at all. But essentially this books plot is just like every other contemporary romance I have read lately; the only difference is the hero’s unusual profession. So all in all this was an interesting idea, unfortunately the execution was just a bit meh...

“Arabic is the language of sex”- Who knew??This book is thin on plot. But does have a couple of thought provoking moments. As for the erotica, well it is pretty tame in my opinion.I think the only real value I found in this book was the alternate portrayal Arabic women- As something more then just repressed, which is what we generally get from books these days...

I Can't Wait!!Will's POV I'm So Exited!!!YAY!!!!!!!

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Lauren Graham as an author. I’ve always liked her as an actress (nothing beats The Gilmore Girls) but that doesn’t necessarily mean she can write a book! I also had added trepidation because I very rarely, if ever enjoy chick lit, so I didn’t have the highest of expectation going in. But I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised!I can only assume that this book is at least slightly autobiographical. I don’t see how an actress can write a book about an aspiring actress without that being the case. But I personally think that this is what gave the book some depth and realism. This book could have just been another Bridget Jones Dairy, it was certainly funny enough but Graham managed to steer away from the overly absurd and the overly love sick and actually write a book that is primarily about following your dreams.I liked the main character Franny. Some people might find her insecure or ditzy but I found her relatable, what women wouldn’t be a little (or a lot) self-conscious about their perceived flaws when they are constantly auditioning and being compared to others! But the real “charmers” of this book are the secondary characters. Franny’s roommates, Jane and Dan and her Dad are especially memorable.This was a light and funny read that was far more unique then I had anticipated. It also had a few (dare I say) profound?? moments that I really did not expect to see within this genre. Now I can say I like Lauren Graham as both an actress and an author.

I love this book! I really thought Walllbanger was going to be just another smutty but forgettable read. But it really wasn't! It takes A LOT to make me literary laugh out loud when I am reading and this book did it on more then once.I had multiple LOLS!! All the characters were great even the secondary ones, I loved the banter between Simon and Caroline (the MC's) and obviously I loved the banging!! :DWhat a happy surprise this book was!!

This book started off a little too teen angsty for my taste- no one understands me, I’m so dark etc. A there may have been a couple too many "Yoda's words of wisdom" moment from both the Mom and Jesse for my liking. But it got better and all in all I enjoyed Lost and Found more then a lot of other “new adult” books I have read in a while.I did appreciate that the story line was far more original then most. Just the fact that it is was set on a ranch and not in a college or in high school is a bonus. But the ending did let me down a little. There is a very implausible rescue that unfortunately forced me to deduct half a star from my rating.

I’m not going to comment on the other stories in this book, they well all fine. I only want to talk about the Judith McNaught one -Miracles because that is the reason I read this book.I LOVE Whitney My Love it is hands down with absolutely no contest my favourite historical/regency romance. And Nicholas DuVille has always been an issue for me, when does he get his HEA?! And now I’ve been handed this crap! 44 pages!! I am sorry but the most eligible Lord in 2 countries (now that the Westmoreland Brothers are happily married) deserves a whole book!! I’m beyond disappointed. What a wasted opportunity. Nick’s story could have and should have been great!

In the beginning of this book the author likens Aliens and people to the smartest dog and the dumbest human. I am not really a dog person but this analogy seemed really ambiguous to me. Is the smartest dog smarter than the dumbest human? Or is the dumbest human smarter than the smartest dog? The author seems to think that this is obvious but I’m not so sure. There are dogs that can understand over 1000 words, they have jobs and are productive in society. (I googled it) And I’m sorry to say it but there are some really thick people out there!?After much contemplation (I gave way too much thought to one random sentence!) I decided that the Aliens in this book must be the really clever dogs. This works for me because, not only am I not a dog person, I am not an Alien person either. But I am a dystopia fan and after a good few years of read YA Dystopia I thought it might be a nice change of pace to see the world end in a different way for once. Which is why I ended up reading the much hyped about 5th Wave.So all that random rambling aside and despite my predisposition to dislike all things “Alien” I loved the first +/- 120 pages of this book. This is narrated by Cassie who is quirky and tough. She knows that no one can really be trusted and that the only way to survive in the aftermath of the Alien attacks is to stay alone. Unfortunately at this point the story moves on to being told by multiple narrators. And none of these other characters have any depth, dimension or likeability IMO and it is all downhill from there.Then the author introduces the “love story.” I personally am all for a little romance in my fiction but this was the most heavy handed, bordering on bizarre attempt at romance I have ever read. I kept waiting for Cassie to say “Just kidding.” And run away screaming. Just because a book says Young Adult on the cover that doesn’t mean the author is obliged to include romance and a love triangle! Or is there a clause in all authors’ contracts now days?What I did like about this book was that it was far less predictable then I thought it was going to be. But unfortunately when you start a book with the premise that- “ you can trust no one.” Then no matter how interesting the twists and turns in your plot are, they are never really going to shock the reader because they have been warned from the very beginning. So any development in the plot that the reader hasn’t already guessed loses its “wow” factor.Now I would like to discuss the believability of the plot. Most importantly being why would the Aliens kill off humans in waves? Why not just rip off the Band Aide and exterminate us in one foul swoop? Secondly why child soldiers? Seriously? Why kill all the adults and then give 5 year olds guns, that makes no sense what so ever! But mostly and I might be wrong here because as I said I am no Science Fiction buff but surely Aliens would have better technology then these ones do? Drones, Bird flu, Tsunamis and implanted micro chips?? These hardly seem like the evil plans hatched up by vastly superior beings with other worldly technology. They sound more like disaster movies from 2007. And hell Barack Obama might have a Drone flying over your house right now! Sure he’s a really smart guy but I’m pretty sure he’s not an Alien!Which has me asking- Is the smartest dog smarter than the dumbest human?Or is this book just mildly entertaining but ultimately deeply flawed? The only answer I really have is this- Don’t Believe all the hype. This book is NO Hunger Games!!

I really liked the first book in this series and I think my enjoyment had a lot to do with the original premise. The children of Fallen Angels being forced to work for their demon father’s to corrupt the people of the world. Now that really had me hook. Especially the idea that each one specialised in their own sin/vice. I also liked the main character Anna- the good girl gone bad, or some might say the bad girl gone good. And no one can deny her love interest Kaiden is top notch!But having said that, the second book in this series is just lacking a something. I still liked it but I’m just not raving. Maybe the glamour and newness of the original premise has worn off a little or it could be that we barely see Kaiden for the first half of the book! Or worst of all it could be because the author introduces a love triangle. But mostly, if I’m being really honest it’s because nothing much really happens in this book. This book isn’t quite boring but I think it could have been at points if the characters weren’t so much fun and so diverse. But considering that the basic plot of this book is one to “save the world” you would expect a lot more to happen. Like say coming up with a plan?? At the very least??Sadly this seems to be another trilogy that starts off well but has a disappointing second book. Here's crossing finger's that Wendy Higgins rallies for the final installment.

First let me just say that I am a huge fan of the Robin Hood Legend. As a kid I watched the Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman movie about 15 times more then most people would call healthy. So when I saw there was a book out that had a twist on the same old story – Will Scarlet is a girl in disguise!!! I was beyond excited. But then it turned out to be just so BAD!! Here’s why-Let me paint a picture of Scarlet for you - Imagine that chick from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon who can fly through trees and has other seemingly super human powers but with knives instead of swords. (Scarlet thinks swords suck!) Now make her a martyr (not in a good way) and give her a persecution complex topped off with an eating disorder. Oh and just to round it all off she is also a compulsive spitter with a tendency to brag. What a winner right?? (go girl power)I personally found very little to like about this girl. When she wasn’t doing acrobatics through the forest?? Or utilising her kick ass thieving skills (not as kick ass as the author/Scarlet would have us believe) she is either sulking or leading Robin and his merry men around by the cocks. In fact the story may as well have been changed to Scarlet and her merry men. Because the way this story portrayed it Scarlet was the one with all the plans, all the skills and the one that alwayssaves the day. In fact Robin was basically only there as eye candy and to be a pawn in Scarlet’s love triangle. Yes CRINGE there is a love triangle!!This book was written in the first person and I have to say that I have never read a more bizarre attempt at a British/colloquial/I just don’t know what accent. It was actually painful to read. And more importantly why was Scarlet the only person in the whole book with an accent?? From the lowliest peasant to the highest Lord everyone spoke perfect English. So what the hell??!! I think it took me twice as long to read this book then it should have, just because I was constantly trying to figure out what tense it was in! And I won’t even go into the author’s terrible habit of constantly stating the obvious! As for the plot, predictable is too mild a word. And on top of this the book is littered with historical inaccuracies. But perhaps worst of all, as I mentioned briefly before Robin Hood has been relegated to a bit part in his own story! I realise the book is called Scarlet but COME ON a line has to be drawn somewhere. The guy at least deserved a little dimension! But now that I think about it none of the other “supporting“ cast member had any dimension either....So in summation, there are lots of great Robin Hood stories out there but IMHO this is not one of them. This book doesn’t add anything new or interesting to the legend and I honestly wish I had just skipped it.

This is a great play and while it is well worth the read, I've seen this play twice and if you know me at all you will know that despite my love of theater the subject matter is certainly not something that I would usually gravitate towards. But I can not stress to you enough how fantastic it is when performed. Obviously a written play and a performed play can't be fairly compared but this is definitely well worth a read!

OK I feel terrible saying this because I am a HUGE KA fan. I would go so far as to call her one of my favorite authors. But the truth is and I'm so sorry to say it -I didn't like this one at all. I am actually cringing as I write this, and have been putting off reviewing this book for weeks. I almost did't write it at all but I pride myself on my honest review so here goes.1. I didn't like Tabby, no glaringly obvious reason I just couldn't warm up to her.2. Shy just did't "rev my engine." For some reason he lacked the usual sexy alpha maleness that I have come to expect from KA. Basically and again I can't quite put my finger on why but he just seemed a little watered down.3. I was SERIOUSLY bored for long portions of this book!I thought about this very hard and even played devils advocate with myself. Am I expecting too much from KA, and is that why I was disappointed? And I think I can honestly say no, that's not the reason. This book just wasn't as good as her previous ones IMO. But on the up side the editing was much better.