Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

“Everything that happened this past summer, and every summer before it, has all led up to this. To now. Every year Isabel spends a perfect summer at her family friends’ house. There’s the swimming pool at night, the private stretch of sandy beach …and the two boys. Unavailable, aloof Conrad – who she’s been in love with forever – and friendly, relaxed Jeremiah, the only one who’s ever really paid her any attention. But this year something is different. They seem to have noticed her for the first time. It’s going to be an amazing summer – and one she’ll never forget…”

With the winter closing in on us and the summer leaving us behind, what better way than to snuggle up after a hard day at work/school/college than with a good summer read completely making you forget all about the cold chill in the air, and instead sweeping you away into a hot summer filled with romance and all the joys of first loves. The Summer I Turned Pretty is the perfect choice for this.

This was such a joy to read. It made me sigh dreamily, giving me the warm fuzzies as not only was I sucked into Belly’s story, but it also had me thinking back to *that* summer when I met *that* guy and experienced love for the first time. I loved that each time Belly remembers what happens during a previous summer spent at the beach house, we’re taken back there in the next chapter to discover what happens.

There is a quote from the book that I absolutely love and I thought I would share it:
“It was a summer I’d never, ever forget. It was the summer everything began. It was the summer I turned pretty. Because for the first time, I felt it. Pretty, I mean. Every summer up to this one, I believed it’d be different. And that summer, it finally was. I was.”
I could really empathise with her feelings as that’s exactly how I felt, too, during *that* summer.

Not only is this book about romance, but it is also about family coming together, supporting each other when it really matters. There’s a moment in this story when, all of a sudden, things take a turn. You just don’t see it creeping up on you but then you realise there had been signs all along and it all just clicks into place. I can’t wait to read the sequel It’s Not Summer Without You to find out what happens next. Would definitely recommend to anyone who likes a sweet teen romance.

I rate this book 4/5!

To purchase this book from Amazon, click here
Thank you to Penguin for sending us this fab book!

Shift Review By Dayna.

Shift – M.R. Merrick.

“Devastated by the loss of his mother, Chase is trying to balance the life he’s been left with, a family he’s still getting to know, and power he never thought he’d have. He doesn’t understand why the Goddess has named him the Protector and granted him two gifts: the Mark, a tattoo that now covers his back, and the ring. But between getting interrogated by the Circle and psychic attacks from Riley, the Mark is the least of his concern. There’s a demon inside Rayna that’s fighting to be released, and it’s not her inner witch. It’s something else—a monster threatening to tear her apart.
As Chase struggles to control his magic, his enemies are closing in. Everyone has staked a claim on his ring, and destroying it may be his only chance to stop Riley. But Chase must decide if stopping him is worth risking the lives of everyone he cares about, or if protecting the ring will be enough to save his world.”

As was the case with Merrick’s debut Exiled, the sequel, Shift is just as darkly exciting and magical with just a drop of romance (which *cough* I’m hoping for more of in book 3 by the way Matthew *cough*. Yes, yes I like me a side of romance with my paranormal). Unlike with a few other books that I’ve read, this certainly wasn’t snail paced. There’s a lot going on to constantly keep your eyes glued and your attention permanently focused on the story. As you turn the first page you’re thrown right in to the middle of a scene ****spoiler alert**** where Rayna is trying to fight against turning in to a werecat so from that moment on you’re immediately gripped, sucked in to the story, not wanting to stop reading until you’ve gotten to the very end (which, if you’re a human, becomes tricky when you have to stop to eat, pee and sleep. Damn not being a modern day sparkly vampire! :p ).

Merrick’s writing just gets better and better and even more un-put-downable as the story unfolds and we learn more and more about each character. I love books that have witty and sarcastic retorts and Shift has plenty of that, of which I think mostly take place between Chase and Rayna or Chase and Vincent and I have to admit, a couple of times, I kinda found myself wanting to bash Chase and Vincent’s heads together ha ha ha. Chase, Rayna and Willy’s characters progress even more in Shift as does Chase and Rayna’s relationship. Chase is battling with his new found powers, Rayna’s battling with her shifter self and poor old Willy…well let’s just say he goes through some major changes too which totally had me in shock and had my jaw dropping about 3 feet to the floor which brings me back around full circle to say there’s a lot of surprises in store for you when you read Shift, trust me. It’s demon-hunters, shapeshifters, witches, vamps and fairytales all covered in awesome sauce and wrapped in a little red bow. This is a series that all lovers of the paranormal genre should definitely have on their bookshelves/ e-readers.

I rate this book 5/5!

Silence Giveaway!

The noise between Patch and Nora is gone. They’ve overcome the secrets riddled in Patch’s dark past…bridged two irreconcilable worlds…faced heart-wrenching tests of betrayal, loyalty and trust…and all for a love that will transcend the boundary between heaven and earth. Armed with nothing but their absolute faith in one another, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they’ve worked for—and their love—forever.

We at Secret Lives all love Becca Fitzpatrick’s Hush, Hush series and were very privileged to meet her at the Eternal Twilight 6 convention.

Here are 3/4 of Secret Lives (Lauren, Dayna and Steph) with the awesome Becca Fitzpatrick.

She is SO lovely! We are very excited to announce that *drum roll* we have a signed copy of Silence to giveaway! Yup, a SIGNED copy! Sound good? Well all you have to do to enter is post a comment on this blog (a long with your email address so we can contact the winner) saying why you like Patch. You have until the 19th of November to enter. So get those thinking caps on and get entering! We’ll announce the winner on the 20th. If you’re under 16 please ask permission from your parents.

Good luck to you all! We can’t wait to read your entries!

Forgotten Souls Review By Dayna

Forgotten Souls – Tiffany King.

Any chance Krista Miller had at a normal teenage life is now gone. Less than a year ago she lived under the radar, avoiding any relationships that would send her emotional sensitivities out of control. Little did she know that her life was destined for something more. Something that will test her very soul.

After facing certain death at the hands of the man responsible for their mysterious past, Krista and her friends learn the truth behind their origins and the purpose for their newly discovered abilities. Now, they must band together to fulfill their inherited, sacred duty. As Guides and Protectors, they must save Mankind’s Forgotten Souls before they are lost forever.

Forgotten Souls is the suspenseful sequel to Meant To Be (Saving Angels series). In Meant To Be, Krista discovers a life she never knew she had along with some very special friends, including her soul-mate, Mark. In Forgotten Souls, Krista and co meet Haniel, an angel who is sent to train them ready for saving forgotten souls and to ultimately defeat *pauses for effect* The Dark Angel.

In Meant To Be I thought of Krista as being quite vulnerable, innocent. Now in Forgotten Souls she has really come in to her own. She is stronger, more confident and since the events of Meant To Be, she seems to have matured beautifully which I think is evident in the writing. The relationship between Mark and Krista has really grown and things get a little steamy through out the book (there are some very funny moments actually that had me in stitches but I’m not a fan of spoilers so I’m not going to tell you what happens. You’ll have to read it for yourself ) although there are, shall we say, complications ahead. The group get to find out more about their history and what it entails to be a guide or a protector – something I had been dying to hear more about. They also realise that trying to juggle being a teen and a guide/protector is pretty tough. We also get to meet other guides and protectors who all come together to help Krista and the rest of her friends defeat The Dark Angel.

Once again I was taken on an emotional rollercoaster of twists and turns – with the ending being the most shocking of all making me cry for at least the last 10% of the story and had me hoping that in the 3^rd and final book, vengeance will be had and a certain soul saved. The second and third time I read this it was almost too painful to turn that first page because I knew what was to come and wasn’t sure if I wanted to go through the heartache again but, well, I guess I like torturing myself ha ha ha. I am aching to read the final installment of the series. I just hope there’s going to be a happy ending.

I rate this book 5/5.

You can buy Forgotten Souls here

The Immortal Beloved Blog Tour Has Begun!

First stop on the tour is http://www.ibetyouthinkthisblogisaboutyou.blogspot.com where you will find a fabulous interview with Katie M. John, the author of Immortal Beloved which is the sequel to The Forest of Adventures.

Last week we posted the blog tour schedule and what we were doing for it so just a reminder that over here on our blog we will be hosting a live Twitter chat on Saturday at 5pm with the characters from the series so if you’re a fan of the series and you have a question that you’re dying to ask them email us (secretlivesoffictionlovers@gmail.com) or tweet us (@SLFictionLovers) and we’ll ask them on Saturday. We will also be giving away some prizes through out the Twitter chat so keep your eyes peeled.

The Mortal Instruments/Infernal Devices Convention.

Being a fan of both of Cassandra Clare’s 2 series, I (Dayna) frequent the google group for them quite often. Just recently there has been talk about how awesome it would be to have a TMI/ID con. Where? You might ask. Well, in the home of TMI itself, New York of course! Thanks to Mina and Eileen, this may well be possible. I personally think this is an absolutely amazing idea -it even has the backing of Cassie herself- and if I can help in some way and/or can get myself to New York then I am SO there. After fans discussing it during the YA Crush Tourney thread, a new thread was set up specially for it and here’s the post about it:

“Hello Everyone,

I’ve been talking with Mina Blak, and we came up with a crazy idea for
starting a convention for all people who are interested in Cassandra
Clare’s TMI/ID Universe. We were thinking of holding it in New York
City sometime next year, hopefully around the time that City of Lost
Souls is being published.

We’d like to see how many people would be legitimately interested in
an endeavor like this. We’d like to know if you’re interested in
attending, organizing, or anything of the sort. Any feedback is
really appreciated, since if we were to actually come up with
something, we’d have to start working very soon.

I currently live in Wisconsin, USA. This means that organizing
something on the East Coast wouldn’t be the easiest thing for me, but
I’d be willing to try if there’s enough expressed interest in
something like this.

I’m asking everyone to make this go viral. Post something about this
on your Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and anywhere else you can think to
see what kind of feedback we could get.

If you’re interested in getting a hold of me personally, here’s my
contact information. Please no spam, just legitimate questions and
feedback only, and put something in the subject line about
“convention” here:
thewisepenseuse@hotmail.com
cornerchairseat.tumblr.com

https://twitter.com/#!/thewisepenseuse

Thank you
~Eileen Kelm”

So….what do you guys think?? Since that post there has been talk about maybe having it around the release of the City of Bones movie (how would it be if it coincided with the movie?!?!) or maybe for the release of the last book, City of Heavenly Fire. I think to have it then would be the perfect way to say good bye and fairwell to such an amazing series. There are bound to be some tears shed.

So, what I’d like you to do is help us TMI/ID fans spread the word. Post about it anywhere you can, tell all your friend’s. Let’s get this news going global. We need as much interest as possible to make this awesome event really happen for reals.

If you have experience in organizing events/conventions (or even if you don’t but may have a brilliant idea) please put your suggestions forward on how we could raise the funds for such an event as this. My own suggestion would be to see if any organisations would be willing to sponsor the event (maybe even Simon & Schuster would be interested)? Or even a fan or 2 who could contribute “x” amount of money towards funds (a bit like a producer of a movie I suppose) where they would then earn a percentage of the profits if the convention is successful? Just an idea or 2 there.

Thoughts?

Madly/Wolfhardt Review by Dayna

Madly/Wolfhardt – M. Leighton.

Madly is your average nearly-eighteen year old girl-for a mermaid princess, that is.

Madly James is thoroughly enjoying her internship in Slumber when the unthinkable happens-there’s a prison break in Atlas, Madly’s home beneath the sea. A traitor has set free eight Lore, the spirits of what humans know as fairy tales, and they are making their way to Slumber to awaken their descendants.

The first spirit to arrive is that of Ulrich Wolfhardt, a man that was once obsessed with wolves and a young maiden he would follow through the woods. After a bite from a wolf, Wolfhardt’s obsession with the girl became an unnatural hunger and the young maiden’s grandmother cursed him with a fate worse than death. And now he’s back…with a vengeance and a bite that can infect others as well.

Madly must learn the identity of Wolfhardt’s descendant and stop him before he kills again and spreads his curse across the earth. But the only person strong enough to help Madly is Jackson, the Sentinel who vowed to protect her and the one person capable of breaking her heart. Can Madly resist forbidden love long enough to save the world from Wolfhardt? Or will she have to sacrifice her heart and her destiny to save the ones she loves?

Before I start rambling on about how awesome the book was, I just wanted to take a moment to comment on the cover which I think is so breathtaking, so ethereal. It encompasses the atmosphere and theme of the story perfectly.

Now, on to the review. but, wait, I just want to add that…I am in love with Jackson. There I said it. And if I may, I’m going to borrow a phrase from the lovely author, Tiffany King and say, Jackson is a McHottie! I wanted to take him for myself. He’s my new fictional crush (there are a few lol) who I imagine to look like Alex Meraz or Eric Balfour but is as tall as Daniel Cudmore. Jackson is Madly’s love interest but she is unfortunately due to be betrothed to Aiden and that is all I will say on the matter because I want to make it as non-spoilery as possible).

I have to admit, I am glad I hadn’t read Madly before now and that I was able to read it knowing that I could move on to Wolfhardt straight after because if not, I would have been left with a mouth hanging wide open in disbelief thinking, “WHAT? NO! I, I…It can’t end there!!” *sulks* As it was, this didn’t happen and was safe in the knowledge that I could just swipe the page and continue reading

Madly and Wolfhardt are an amazingly enchanting and wondrous read about the Mer folk with a modern day twist. There were some incredibly funny moments and we can not forget that there were some very steamy moments too This was my first experience of reading about the Mer and it has been very enjoyable indeed – that’s an understatement! I love that they have their own magical world but journey on to shore to interact with our world to protect the descendants of the Lore. I also love that it was interwoven with fairytales. I was quite shocked when Wolfhardt finished because I wasn’t expecting it although it was a perfect place to finish it. There was such a shocking twist to the tale that even I hadn’t seen coming.

I have to say, I am intrigued to know what will come of the twins (one of which Madly’s friend, Jersey was dating but who then dumped her). There’s something odd about them. My thinking is they are part of a certain fairy tale and I’m wracking my brain trying to figure out which but I can’t put my finger on it I then thought maybe they could be the Grimm brothers. I’m hoping we find out more about the twins in book 3. I’m also wondering what will happen to poor old Aiden and how what happened will affect his life as a mer.

I’m so excited for book 3! I wish I could read it already. I’m itching to find out what happens!

I rate this book 5/5

To find out more about M. Leighton and her other amazing books (which I so can not wait to read) go here

Note: This was an E-book kindly given to us by the author specially to review for the blog.

The Immortal Beloved Blog Tour!

 
 

Secret Lives of Fiction Lovers are taking part in a blog tour for Katie M John between 18th-25th August .

On the 20th of August at 5pm (UK time) we will be hosting a character Q&A session live on twitter asking the characters of The Knight Trilogy all your questions! Have you ever wanted to ask Blake, Mina, Sam or Vivien (or any of the other characters) a question? Now’s your chance! Email your questions to SecretLivesofFictionLovers@gmail.com

When we all read books we can all imagine what the characters look like, we want to see what you think they look like! If you’re artistic, why not draw Mina for example? We want to see them all, even cartoon and anime! All drawings will be posted on the blog on the 23rd August.

If you can’t draw don’t worry! I can’t draw but I can imagine which celebrity I would want playing Blake! Can you? Tweet us your celebrity and we will put them on the site also!

Don’t forget to check out Katie M John’s blog and stop off at the other blogs throughout the tour for more fun, games and competitions!

Immortal Beloved Blog Tour Schedule 18th-25th August!

18th August
Author Interview at: I Bet You Think This Blog is about you.

19th August
Guest Post by Katie M. John. ‘Knights versus Vampires’ & Review at: Two Chicks on Books.

20th August
Live Character Q&A Twitter Chat with Author (40-50mins. 5pm start) & Drawing Contest hosted by: Secret Lives of Fiction Lovers.
@tlmfarmgirl will be hosting a twitter contest.

21st August
@ThamyDuff Quiz, which Knight is for you?
Review of Immortal Beloved at: I Bet You Think This Blog is about you.

22nd August
Character interviews at: Readingawaythedays.blogspot.com

23rd August
Review of Immortal Beloved at: Secret Lives of Fiction Lovers.

24th August
Guest Post from Katie. M. John at: Tamara’s Book Ramblings

25th August ****RELEASE DAY****
Review of Immortal Beloved at: Readingawaythedays.blogspot.com

Exiled by M R Merrick Review – By Lauren

I read this with recommendations from Dayna as per. She actually said she didn’t now whether it was my type of book and it wasn’t. However that doesn’t me I didn’t like because I did!

In a few words : Chase is a demon hunter and is exiled from the circle. Chase meets Rayna and Marcus whilst killing vampires. Turns out Marcus knew his father and mother. Rayna is a weird one. She is a witch but very much like me minus the magic so I really liked the character! The characters are very well-developed, they all have a little something about them that makes them different. I loved how he developed the demons, they were slightly different from your every day demon’s. (ha because we do have them you know!) I wanted more of Marcus/Tessa because it was sooo cute. The good thing about Exiled is the humor and relate-ability! I laughed out loud quite a few times.

I was hooked from the beginning, it seemed to be my type of book. Then about 60% the way through it turned rather Buffy-ish as Dayna has said. Now I am not a fan of Buffy so it kind of put me off a bit but I still liked the story.

Then the very last few pages, it turned around again. It returned to the more serious supernatural/paranormal side of the book. The side which I like. So I cannot say I loved it and I cannot say I didn’t. I am in between. I would recommend people to read it, its such an easy and enjoyable read. It’s written very well and I think Merrick is a terrific writer. There is something about his story that made it different.

You can see a more in-depth review here by Dayna.

Meant To Be Review By Dayna

Meant To Be-Tiffany King.

Krista Miller feels like she has lived her entire life in a glass box with her every emotion on display. She can’t help feeling like a defect as her sensitivities have made her socially inept and without any real friends; the one exception being the boy that visits her each night in her dreams.

Krista’s emotions are put to the test when a move to California triggers a devastating change to her fantasy world. The nightly comfort that the boy provides has now become a recurring nightmare as he is taken from her by an unseen force.

Struggling to appear normal, Krista enrolls in a new school and finds it to be nothing like she thought. Her new life is sent spiraling out of control from a strange connection with a boy, Mark, who claims to know all her secrets.

As Krista begins to explore the emotions that Mark evokes in her, secrets about their mysterious past and their predestined purpose threatens to separate them just when they have found each other.

Can a dream become reality and why is Krista so inexplicably drawn to Santa Cruz?
After Krista’s Dad’s passing, her Mum, much to Krista’s surprise and joy, decides they should move to Santa Cruz and make a new start. On her first day at her new school, Krista be-friend’s Sam and realises they have so much in common that maybe there is more to it. Maybe they have some kind of connection but what? Soon after, she meets Mark and, Sam’s boyfriend, Shawn. They all share this freaky connection although Krista’s connection to Mark is much more intense.

I love the main character, Krista. She actually reminds me of myself. She loves chocolate and could quite happily spend hours in a book store. The relationship she has with her mum is just lovely. I felt so sad when they had their little “hiccup”. It’s pretty much how I feel when in The Gilmore Girls Rory and her mum have that big fall out. I just really felt for them and hoped that things would be ok.

The relationship between Krista and Mark is pretty intense but, because of certain things that have happened, you can understand why.

When I first started reading Meant To Be I actually thought it was just going to be a romance story but then it takes this sudden, exciting turn where it’s no longer focused on romance but on fighting for their lives against an unexpected villain.

Meant To Be is an incredibly sweet and suspenseful story with a very interesting turn of events. The story flows beautifully and the character development was great. A perfect summer read! I never wanted it to end. I have it as an eBook and just kept swiping the screen and saying, “Noooo but I don’t want it to end there!” and was extremely happy to discover there was to be a sequel as there is so much we have yet to learn about the characters, their past and why they are the way they are. I’m looking forward to the sequel, Forgotten Souls so much which will hopefully be released at the end of this month!

I rate this 5/5

Visit Tiffany King to find out more!

You can buy Meant To Be (Ebook) from Amazon for 99c (US).