Taylor Fenner's Blog, page 144

"What I'm Reading" Wednesday #84

Once again this "WIR"-Wednesday I'm reading a few different books. Last night I started listening to Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo on audible and since I finished Riot by Jamie Shaw yesterday, today I'm starting a re-read of...
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Blurb: FROM GOODREADS:
THE GREAT GATSBY, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. This exemplary novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the fabulously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted “gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession,” it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.
Why I Chose This Book: It's been a few years since I read The Great Gatsby, probably about a month after the movie came out to be exact and I absolutely love this story. I always feel so heartbroken for Gatsby and such contempt for Daisy. I'm on a no-fantasy ban on reading right now so I thought I'd pick this up for a change. 

{Book Review Tour} Trust by Kylie Scott

Trust by Kylie Scott Blurb: Being young is all about the experiences: the first time you skip school, the first time you fall in love…the first time someone holds a gun to your head.
After being held hostage during a robbery at the local convenience store, seventeen-year-old Edie finds her attitude about life shattered. Unwilling to put up with the snobbery and bullying at her private school, she enrolls at the local public high school, crossing paths with John. The boy who risked his life to save hers.
While Edie’s beginning to run wild, however, John’s just starting to settle down. After years of partying and dealing drugs with his older brother, he’s going straight—getting to class on time, and thinking about the future.
An unlikely bond grows between the two as John keeps Edie out of trouble and helps her broaden her horizons. But when he helps her out with another first—losing her virginity—their friendship gets complicated.
Meanwhile, Edie and John are pulled back into the dangerous world they narrowly escaped. They were lucky to survive the first time, but this time they have more to lose—each other.
“Heart-pounding, realistic and wonderfully unique, Kylie Scott's Trust held me captive, fascinated, and riveted to the page from start to finish. A MUST, simply incredible, read!” –Katy Evans, New York Times bestselling author of Tycoon
“Trust was an amazing journey that I could not put down! All of my favorite things: young love, a strong heroine, and an absolutely captivating hero, who’s both sexy and bad in alllll the right ways. Loved it!” –Penelope Douglas, New York Times bestselling author of the Fall Away Series
My Review: One night, a night seventeen-year-old Edie ran into the Drop Stop in her pajamas to pick up snacks while her friend Georgia waited in the car, was all it took to change Edie's life. Held hostage in a convenience store by a meth-head Edie witnesses two people get shot in front of her and forms an unlikely bond with John Cole, the guy who saves her life.
Suddenly nothing that bothered her before matters anymore. Having enough of the bullying at her private school Edie transfers to the local high school where she once again crosses paths with John. But while Edie is taking risks and not caring about the consequences John, a former drug dealer, is trying to put his life in order and make something of himself. 
As Edie and John become friends and for the first time in her life Edie starts becoming comfortable in her own skin, making friends who truly accept her, and not caring what other people think of her something unexpected begins to happen - Edie begins falling for John. 
But is it possible that a guy like John could be interested in Edie? What will happen when John helps her lose her virginity? Will it bring them closer together? Or tear them apart? Can two people from two completely different worlds really make a go of it? Or will life tear them apart?
I love Kylie Scott's books and her indie YA debut was flipping amazing! The story blew me away and I absolutely could not put it down! The tone was a little more serious and a little darker than Kylie Scott's other books but that's what made it even more fantastic in my opinion. Where other authors sometimes falter when diverting from their usual genre/age group/writing style this book absolutely flourished.
I fell in love with Edie, and to be honest, how she was treated at her first school was like looking in a mirror to my junior high days. Being a plus size girl that was often picked on by cruel girls at school I almost feel like I lived that part of her story. I loved how after the situation at the convenience store Edie gets stronger, not allowing anyone to push her around anymore. 
John is probably my favorite book boyfriend this year and I loved how he and Edie interacted. The build up of John and Edie's relationship was paced well, and when they went back to John's uncle's house on the night Edie lost her virginity I was practically jumping up and down with anticipation. 
I also love that Kylie Scott's books are always filled with just the right amount of humor and I loved Hang and Anders in this book. They were perfect secondary characters and Edie and Hang's drunken texting scene had me literally laughing out loud.
Overall, I am so in love with the book! I couldn't stop reading, not allowing myself to stop until I got to the end. I highly recommend this book to fans of New Adult and YA books because it's the best of both worlds. Trust is a book you won't want to miss!
My Rating:5 of 5 Stars!

Trust by Kylie Scott is available today! Grab your copy:Amazon US | Amazon Aus | Amazon UK | iBooks US | iBooks Aus | Kobo | NookTRUST by Kylie Scott (Official Book Trailer) from FILM 14 on Vimeo.
    Excerpt: “You were going to give it up to Duncan Dickerson?” he sneered. “Are you serious?”
I halted, staring at him. This was not good. “How do you know about that?”
“Anders overheard you and Hang talking.”
“Bastard.”
“Well?” he demanded, acting all authoritarian. Idiot.
“To be fair, I didn’t know his last name was Dickerson,” I said. “That’s unfortunate. Though, I wasn’t actually planning on marrying him, so . . .”
“Not funny.”
I shrugged.
“You barely know the guy.”
“Um, yeah. None of your concern. We’re not talking about this.” How mortifying! My face burned bright. People should just gather around and cook s’mores. “I appreciate that we’re friends. You mean a lot to me. But this is going to have to fall under definitely none of your damn business, so go away please.”
“We’re talking about it.” He advanced a step.
“No we are not.” And I retreated.
“You were going to let a complete stranger touch you.” Advance.
Retreat. “People do it all the time. You do it all the time.”
“But you don’t,” he said, taking the final step, backing me up against the side of his car and getting all in my face. “Edie, this is your first time we’re talking about. Isn’t it?”
“Yes, and it’s going to be messy and painful and probably horribly embarrassing and I just want it over and done with.” I tried to meet his eyes but failed, settling for a spot on his right shoulder. “You’re not a girl; you wouldn’t understand. Also, last time I checked, you’re not the gatekeeper of my hymen, John Cole. So back the fuck off.”
He said nothing.
Deep, calming breaths. “Look, someday I’ll meet someone I really like and we’ll have a deep and meaningful relationship and go at it like bunnies. But I don’t want to be the dumb virgin in that scenario.”
He slowly shook his head.
“Also, I do not want to die a virgin.”
“What? What the hell are you talking about?”
“Hey, you and I both know death can occur at any time.”
“This is crazy.”
“I’m seeing a therapist!” I told his shoulder. “I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m a little bit messed up these days. It’s hard for me to trust people. That’s not going to change anytime soon.”
He screwed up his face at me. “Wha—”
“I’m just trying to be practical.”
“Well, you’re being ridiculous. None of this makes sense.”
“It does to me.”
Again, he said nothing.
In fact, he said nothing for so long that I finally looked him in the eye. The anger had left him, replaced by an emotion I didn’t recognize. Worst of all, he still smelled like summer. A little sweat and the open night air, everything I loved. Liked. I meant liked.
“What?” I said, finally.
He let loose a breath. “I’ll do it.”
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:                   Kylie is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013 & 2014, by the Australian Romance Writer’s Association and her books have been translated into eleven different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet. You can learn more about Kylie from http://www.kylie-scott.com/   FACEBOOK | TWITTER | FACEBOOK FAN GROUP | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS | NEWSLETTER  

Book Review: Because of Lila by Abbi Glines

Because of Lila by Abbi Glines Blurb: Prim, proper, classic good girl, and her least favorite label - icy. 
Lila Kate Carter has heard them all. The last one, being the newest. She is not icy. She just doesn’t care for Cruz Kerrington and his spoiled, selfish, careless ways. That doesn’t make her icy, that makes him a jerk!
Tired of being labeled and doing what is expected of her, Lila Kate leaves Rosemary Beach, Florida ready for an adventure. Wanting to recreate herself, find a new path, and become something more. 
Eli Hardy is tired of women who always act the same, do the same thing and expect the same thing. He's ready to swear off women until he can get the rest of his life together. 
Two weeks into his no-women-rule he meets Lila. She’s so damn sweet and polite. Like she walked right out of an etiquette book. But he’d already been drunk before she walked in so there was a good chance she might not be as stunning and perfect as he thinks. He’s just too drunk to worry about that. 
The next morning, he swears he can still smell her on his skin. He just can’t remember why or what happened after that third dance. 
Their worlds are about to collide, and so are the secrets and lies.
My Review: Because of Lila is the second book in the Sea Breeze meets Rosemary Beach series and after reading Like a Memory (Nate Finlay and Bliss York's story) I expected this book to be for Lila Kate Carter and Eli Hardy. As I started reading, though, I was immediately drawn to Cruz Kerrington. He was the usual sexy, bad boy that I tend to fall for.
I loved that Lila wanted to leave Rosemary Beach and reinvent herself. She reminded me a lot of her mother in the initial Rosemary Beach series, but I liked her so much better. On the other hand, while I have no real issue with Eli, I didn't like his father Marcus much in the Sea Breeze series so I still don't like Eli very much (and it really didn't have anything to do with him, exactly). 
Once I started reading this book I couldn't stop, I literally read this book in one afternoon. Throughout the book, I kept guessing which guy Lila would pick. I'd think "Oh she's definitely going to pick this guy" then a few chapters later my opinion would change, the story keeping me on my toes even until the last chapter. 
The secret Cruz was keeping broke my heart and I couldn't believe his father's reaction. He should have been outraged for his son, not blaming him.
 In the end, I'm just glad everything worked out for all three characters in their own way. 
One thing that I noticed (yet again) was the typos throughout this book. Honestly, at this point, I've read so many of her books with that issue that it doesn't even faze me anymore. I could, however, suggest a computer with spell check or a new editor. That's the only thing that's keeping me from giving this book a full five stars.
Overall, I couldn't get enough of this book. It's definitely in the top five of my favorites by Abbi Glines. I think I even liked it better than Like A Memory. If you're looking for a sexy, contemporary romance that will keep you on the edge of your seat Because of Lila is your book! 
My Rating:4.90 of 5 Stars!

#BookTag Saturday: The To Be Read Tag

This week for #BookTag Saturday we're tackling my TBR shelf. No easy feat because every time I start to make progress they just pile back up again! Are you ready to explore with me? Book tag originally from: A Perfection Called Books.


How do you keep track of your TBR pile?
I keep them separate from my other books so I know what I haven't read yet. 

Is your TBR mostly print or ebook?
I only consider books on my TBR shelf to be TBR, so print. I have a bunch of books on my Kindle to read... eventually (but they're not a priority).
How do you determine which book from your TBR to read next?
ARCs come first in order of their release dates then just whatever I feel like reading.
A Book That's Been On Your TBR List The Longest 
Sacrifice by Cayla Kluver, I've owned the book since 2012 and wasn't into fantasy at the time so I back burner-ed it. Now I don't have the first two books in the trilogy so I have to try to track those down first!
A Book You Recently Added To Your TBR
Because You Love To Hate Me - When I saw this book I knew I had to have it!

A Book In Your TBR Strictly Because Of Its Beautiful Cover
The Graces by Laura Eve - this book is beautiful even under the dust jacket!

A Book On Your TBR That You Never Plan on Reading
I plan to read them all - otherwise I wasted my money buying them. If they end up DNF then at least I tried.

An Unpublished Book On Your TBR That You’re Excited For

Shadowsong by S. Jae-Jones. I need more of The Goblin King!!!
A Book On Your TBR That Basically Everyone’s Read But You 

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir - Soon I Promise!
A Book On Your TBR That Everyone Recommends To You

Another book that's been on my TBR list too long!
A Book On Your TBR That You’re Dying To Read

The Great Pursuit by Wendy Higgins - I put it off to read ACOWAR but I want to get to it this fall!
How many books are on your Goodreads TBR shelf?
12

Book Review: Ruined by Amy Tintera

Ruined (Ruined #1) by Amy Tintera Blurb: Amy Tintera’s YA fantasy trilogy blends the romance of Kiera Cass’s Selection series and the epic stakes of Victoria Aveyard’s Red Queen in a story of revenge, adventure, and unexpected love.
Emelina Flores has nothing. Her home in Ruina has been ravaged by war; her parents were killed and her sister was kidnapped. Even though Em is only a useless Ruined—completely lacking any magic—she is determined to get revenge.
Her plan is simple: She will infiltrate the enemy’s kingdom, posing as the crown prince’s betrothed. She will lead an ambush. She will kill the king and everything he holds dear, including his son. 
The closer Em gets to the prince, though, the more she questions her mission. Her rage-filled heart begins to soften. But with her life—and her family—on the line, love could be Em’s deadliest mistake.
My Review: I picked this book up a few months ago because a blogger friend of mine was raving about how great it was and I was really excited to read it. 
Ruined begins with the reader being introduced to the main character Emelina (called Em) and her two associates as they kill a princess and her guards. Why? Because the princess killed Em's father and she's to marry the son of the king that killed Em's mom (the Queen of her homeland - Ruina) and kidnapped her younger sister Olivia. Em plans to assume the princess's identity, marry the prince, and destroy the kingdom from the inside. 
I know, I know - we can all see where this is heading. Em will arrive at the palace acting like a heartless bada$$ who is solely out for revenge until she begins to fall for the prince and then tries to stop the domino effect chain of events that she's set in motion.
To be completely honest, I was loving the story until about 2/3 of the way through. Em was sassy and I loved her and Cas dancing around each other, both desperately trying to deny that they were falling for each other. Iria and the warriors kind of reminded me of Vikings, which was cool. The story had just enough danger as you waited to see if Em's true identity and that of her associates would be uncovered. 
And then it was and the story began to unravel for me. It seemed like most of the last 100 or so pages of Ruined could have been wrapped up in half that amount. It was so drawn out - the waiting for the rest of the warriors to arrive and Em to save her sister. It also feels like the romance between Cas and Em was just rushed into that section. One minute Cas was angry with Em for lying (and acting pathetic because he thought she didn't like him) then the next they're practically throwing down right then and there (kissing). 
Cas's parents and his cousin were excellent villains - I hated them instantly, but at the same time I also disliked Em's sister. I can definitely see her growing into a huge threat in the next book. 
Overall, I liked this book, but I do believe the story lost something when everything became so rushed when Cas and his parents discovered Em's true identity and then the rest was like wading through molasses - painfully slow. I fear that when lined up with a bunch of other fantasy novels I wouldn't be able to distinguish it from the rest.
One other thing, I noticed a few typos and inconsistencies in this book. At one point, in the beginning, Cas refers to Em as herself when he doesn't know her name is Em - he's supposed to think she's Mary, remember? Someone should have caught that kind of thing, right?
Would I pick up the next book? I might look at it at the library and flip to the end, but I'm not sure I'd spend money on book 2.
My Rating:3.5 of 5 Stars!★★★1/2

#BookMail Thursday #28

I broke my book ban for the sake of Prime Day and some other great deals this week...
Amazon Preorder &  Prime Day Purchases: - Because You Love to Hate Me  Not only does this book have a gorgeous cover but I was drawn to the idea of a collection of stories about villains. I was going to wait for the release date before buying but I ended up preordering it last weekend so it would arrive on the release date. 
- Because of Lila by Abbi Glines
I was waiting for Because You Love to Hate Me to come in the mail Tuesday and decided I needed a break from fantasy so I decided to read a sample of Because of Lila (I planned to get a paperback copy if Abbi Glines is going to be part of ApollyCon's 2018 Virtual Signing). Turns out, I couldn't stop reading so I one-clicked and spent the whole day reading it. I don't regret a thing. Only that it's finished.

"What I'm Reading" Wednesday #83

Technically I was going to start this week's "WIR"-Wednesday book yesterday, but Because of Lila by Abbi Glines came out and I couldn't wait to start it! It gave me the much-needed break I needed from fantasy so I could start this book today...
The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine Blurb: A New York Times bestselling dark epic fantasy inspired by the tale of Snow White, from C. J. Redwine, the author of the Defiance series. This breathtakingly romantic, action-packed fantasy is perfect for fans of A Court of Thorns and Roses and Cinder.   
Lorelai Diederich, crown princess, and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.
In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic of his own—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman—and bring her Lorelai’s heart.
But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.
Why I Chose This Book: I saw this book at the library months ago and decided to order it from this year's ApollyCon Virtual Signing. I love fairytale retellings and this one sounds really interesting. I'm hoping that since I took a short break from fantasy and read a completely different genre that I'll be able to get into this book and stick with it. So many fantasy novels have fallen flat for me in the last couple weeks but I have heard good things about this book. Let's just hope they ring true for me. 

{Release Day Blitz} Because of Lila by Abbi Glines

Bookworm Problems: Book Slumps

So far my July reading looks like this...
"#bookwormproblems: when you've read a book so amazing you get into a book slump when you try to read something else. #amreading"

— Taylor Fenner (@TaylorFenner) July 3, 2017

Basically, I'll find one book that I breeze through and really like then when I finish it and want to move on to the next book on my TBR shelf I encounter a problem. 
Either: a)  I can't get into the book at all, not even past the first page.orb) I get maybe 40-50 pages in and the book isn't as good as it was expecting it to be so I don't see myself enjoying it enough to finish so I DNF it.
Skimming through the book doesn't help, reading ahead doesn't help, damn - reading the ending doesn't even help. I've finished one book of the four I've started reading this month (but I plan to finish the one I'm reading now so the ratio is about even). So short of going crazy, how do I get past a book slump?
Confession: I really don't have a method to my madness. 
I finished up June reading: Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco. I had won this ARC, but before I ever even entered for it I read an excerpt of the first chapter on, I believe, Entertainment Weekly's website and was immediately grabbed by the story. 
Then I started reading: Which I ended up setting aside because I didn't like it as much as the first book. Thinking I would love this book as much as I did the first book, I didn't read an excerpt before requesting. My mistake. I might pick it back up, the book doesn't come out until December so I definitely have time, or I might read 50 or so pages a month until I finish. I got to about page 70 before I got stuck.
After setting that aside I grabbed: Which I couldn't put down. I admit, the writing and story were a little strange but it kept my interest until the very end. I hadn't read an excerpt of this book, but I had liked another book by this writing duo and thankfully it paid off.
Feeling optimistic I grabbed: For some reason, this book didn't even appeal to me. I couldn't even get past the second page. I'd bought it months ago at HPB and since I was rushed by my shopping companions I didn't get much of a chance to flip through it before I bought it. Mistake #2.
One of my bookstagram friends raves about this book, so I gave it a try... I read maybe two-three chapters but I absolutely *hated* the writing. The story itself didn't make a lot of sense, so frustrated that I'd bought another book without reading an excerpt on Amazon's "look inside" feature I dropped it in the DNF pile.
Finally, feeling like I'd never find a book I liked again, I grabbed this book: and broke my book slump (for now). I'm a little over 100 pages in and I'm loving the story so I think I'll stick with it. I'd read an excerpt of this book on Amazon before I ordered a signed copy from Book People (an Indie Bookstore in Texas which I highly recommend!) so I knew that I liked the beginning at least.
***
The moral of this confusing trip through my recent reading endeavors? If you're on the fence about buying and/or reading a book because you're not sure if you're going to like it and you want to avoid a book slump you should do one of the following:
- Read an excerpt of the book. Amazon has the "look inside" feature for books that are already on sale. Even if you don't buy from them you can still usually read the first chapter. You may also be able to find an excerpt on blogs, entertainment websites like Entertainment Weekly or Publisher's Weekly, or even on the author's website (or maybe on Wattpad). This will give you a feel for how you'll like the book.
- If you still are on the fence (you like the excerpt but are still unsure if you'll like the whole book) see if your local library has a copy. That way you can still read the book and if you don't like it you won't feel bad about spending your hard-earned cash on a book you turn out to hate. 
- Read reviews about the book. This doesn't always work for me because I tend to love books other people hate and hate books everyone raves about (see: The Raven Boys). If I decide to get a feel for the book by reading reviews about what people did or didn't like about a book, I usually go with the opposite of the consensus of people's opinions. If the majority of people loved it, I'll probably hate it so I don't waste my time. If the majority of people hated it, then I should probably grab a copy. (Like I said, this doesn't always work, but sometimes it helps when making a decision.)
***
So you've already bought a bunch of books and you're working your way through your TBR pile but nothing is appealing to you. How do you break out of your book slump?
- Switch up genres (Been reading a lot of one genre? Switch things up and read a book with a completely different genre. Example: getting sick of fantasy books letting you down? Switch to Sci-Fi or Contemporary.)
- Talk to a friend or loved one about what's not working for you with the book. They may be able to give you some insight into what might help you decide to keep reading or DNF the book. Just talking about it, in general, might help.
- Post about it on social media. Maybe send out a tweet that says: #bookwormproblems: is anyone else not feeling the relationship between x & y in "this book"? (or whatever is holding you back) - see what other people say. Maybe they picked up on the same things you did. Or maybe they can tell you that your slow read picks up and gets better.
- Take a break from reading. Maybe you've just been reading too much. (I know, I know - there is no such thing!) But maybe, in this case, there is. Set the book down and hang out with friends or watch a movie, maybe listen to some music. Then when you feel like reading again give the book another go.
***
Sometimes I feel the pressure to read at least one book a week to keep up with my "What I'm Reading" Wednesday blogs and I feel like I'm not reading fast enough if it's Tuesday night and I'm still reading the same book I was reading the previous Wednesday so I force myself to keep on with a book I'm not loving. This has caused more problems for me this year because a lot of my TBR books were purchased because someone recommended them to me. I've learned recently that I have very eclectic taste in books and I need to stop buying a book because a bookstagrammer in Omaha (or wherever) says "oooh, you have to read this book because you're going to love it!" - That approach doesn't always work out for me. 
It's time to get back to buying books that look good to me, not someone else. 
***Do you encounter any of these problems? How do you get through a book slump?

#BookTag Saturday: The Reading Habits Book Tag

This "Book Tag" Saturday I'm giving you insight into my personal reading habits with...


1. Do you have a certain place at home for reading?
I either read in bed or sitting in my chair in the living room.
2. Bookmark or a random piece of paper?
Bookmarks... usually