Review: THE FIVE STAGES OF FALLING IN LOVE by Rachel Higginson

THE FIVE STAGES OF FALLING IN LOVE

by Rachel Higginson

Elizabeth Carlson is living in the pits of hell- also known as grief. 

Her husband of eight years, the father of her four children and the love of her life, died from cancer. Grady's prognosis was grim, even from the start, but Liz never gave up hope he would survive. How could she, when he was everything to her? 

Six months later, she is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life and get the kids to school on time. Both seem impossible. Everything seems impossible these days. 

When Ben Tyler moves in next door, she is drowning in sorrow and pain, her children are acting out, and the house is falling apart. She has no time for curious new friends or unwanted help, but Ben gives her both. And he doesn't just want to help her with yard work or cleaning the gutters. Ben wants more from Liz. More than she's capable of ever giving again. 

As Liz mourns her dead husband and works her way through the five stages of grief, she finds there's more of her heart to give than she thought possible. And as new love takes hold, she peels away the guilt and heartache, and discovers there's more to life than death. - Goodreads

Book Links:

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BOOK REVIEW:

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you're looking for a contemporary read that will make you cry, smile, swoon and fall in love then this book is IT. I didn't expect to love the book as much as I did which is crazy of me because hello, it's by Rachel Higginson so of course I'll end up loving it! I'm not usually a big fan of books that deal with grief and death. I avoid them like the plague because I easily get overwhelmed with my emotions and I end up bawling like a baby. But this book, I cannot not read it. 

Liz Carlson is a mess. The love of her life has just died and now she's struggling to get on with her life and trying to maintain a normal semblance of life for their four young kids. I really liked Liz. She felt real. She's a mom of four and I admire her for being strong. I'm not a mom but I could just imagine how hard it must be to lose your husband and be left to take care of four kids when all you want to do is cry in a corner and let someone else take the reins. I love her determination and resilience. But mostly I love her love of Grady. Theirs is the kind of love that you don't doubt. It's passionate and burns with the kind of intensity that everyone would be lucky to feel. 

I am freakin' amazed with this book. It's heartbreaking and evocative. I don't think I've ever read a book that made me equally sad and ecstatic. The Five Stages of Falling in Love would make you want to fall in love and make you remember what it felt like to fall in love the first time. It's beautiful!

"You were like fireworks. That's how I think of falling in love with you. One beautiful explosion after another."

'Sometimes love didn't make sense. And that was okay. It was far better to know love and accept love than try to understand it.'

ARC Review: CONFESSIONS OF A QUEEN B* by Crista McHugh

CONFESSIONS OF A QUEEN B*

by Crista McHugh

Alexis Wyndham is the other type of Queen B—the Queen Bitch. 

After years of being the subject of ridicule, she revels in her ability to make the in-crowd cower via the exposés on her blog, The Eastline Spy. Now that she's carved out her place in the high school hierarchy, she uses her position to help the unpopular kids walking the hallways. 

Saving a freshman from bullies? Check. 

Swapping insults with the head cheerleader? Check. 

Falling for the star quarterback? So not a part of her plan. 

But when Brett offers to help her solve the mystery of who’s posting X-rated videos from the girls’ locker room, she’ll have to swallow her pride and learn to see past the high school stereotypes she’s never questioned—until now. 

Add it on Goodreads. Pre-order it on Amazon.

REVIEW:

Rating: 3 of 5 stars

Seriously?! That's it?! I was so frustrated with the ending I literally screamed and I think I just broke my kindle from shaking it too much. Thankfully, I found out this is part of a series (or at least according to Goodreads) so that means there's going to be more Alexis and Brett, right? I mean this isn't going to be one of those companion series I really love but frustrates me sometimes. Right?

Anyway, back to the real issue at hand. I'm really torn on rating this book a five or giving it a one. I'm having a headache just thinking about what to write on my review. On the one hand, I really LOVE the writing. It's engaging and addictive. I didn't want to put my kindle down because I was hooked from the start. The pacing is perfect and the dialogues are humorous. I especially love the banter between Alexis and Brett. The chemistry between these two was off the charts. These two complement each other so perfectly I wanted to see Alexis-and-Brett babies already. Brett is the perfect guy to fall in love with. He's the kind of guy you would want to fall in love with you. Everyone looks at Alexis and sees a bitch. Not Brett. I love how he can rattle Alexis, push her buttons, make her furious and yet he manages to bring out the real her. 

Alexis is sassy, headstrong and an independent heroine. I admire her for being the kind of girl who doesn't take crap from anyone. I found her character a bit too cynic though. She sees only the horrible parts of a person and although I can understand why since she had once been the subject of torment and bullying, this made her seem a bit too proud. As if everyone's beneath her and they're not worth a second of her time. She has put everyone in these little boxes in her mind categorized and labeled (dumb testosterone-filled jocks, slutty cheerleaders, nerds etc.) Which brings me to one of the things I didn't like about the book. This is stereotyping and cliche highschool cliques at its finest everyone. I actually almost DNF-ed this because of that. Secondly, there was a lack of depth and development to the minor characters. I hate it when an author introduces a character and just brushes him/her aside. Summer and Taylor had me huffing and rolling my eyes. They're two of the most shallow characters I've ever met! I didn't feel an ounce of anything for these two except maybe a lot of annoyance. Taylor especially was too self-centered and extremely vain. 

Overall, CONFESSIONS OF A QUEEN B* is a highly entertaining read. I love the humor, the romance and the engrossing storytelling. I would definitely read the sequel just so I'd see where the author would take the story and the characters. Also, there were so many questions left unanswered (I'm dying of curiosity). But mostly I just have to see Brett and Lexi finally get together! 

I received an e-arc via NetGalley to read and review.

Review: SCARRED BY VENGEANCE (Titanium series #2) by Valia Lind plus Giveaway

PIECES OF REVENGE by Valia Lind

Book #1 in the Titanium Series

A weapon. A broken life. A humanity lost. 

That is all Anastasia knows, that is all that she is. As an eleven-year-old, she witnessed her family's brutal murder and she's been on the run ever since. She's spent her life training and planning for the day when she can take her revenge.

Kallos Enterprises is a well respected corporation, set on improving the genetic structure of an individual. Or so they say. Anastasia knows, first hand, what kind of monsters lurk behind the pretty walls of those skyscrapers. Armed with combat skills and a beyond perfect memory, she heads to Chicago to uncover the answers to questions that plagued her for years. 

After arriving in the city, she meets Logan, a boy from her past who changes all the rules. She doesn't remember him, but he remembers her. His position at Kallos Enterprises is useful, his presence is unnerving, and he makes her question everything she knows about herself to be true. If her perfect memory can't remember Logan, what else about her past is wrong? 

Time is running out. Anastasia has nowhere to turn, but to trust the one person who's a memory she should have, but doesn't. With a madman threatening their every step, Anastasia and Logan must uncover the truths behind Kallos experiments and hope that the answers they find won't destroy the world forever.

Buy Links:

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SCARRED BY VENGEANCE

Book #2 in the Titanium Series

This is the mission: Save. Protect. Destroy. 

Everything in Anastasia’s world came crashing down when the one person she decided to trust failed her. On the run, now more than ever, she’s trying to piece together the life she doesn’t remember. With Blake still missing, she sends the rest of the family away, hoping to keep them out of danger. But being alone is a lot harder than it used to be and she blames herself for allowing Logan into her heart. He’s gone now and she must let him go. Even though her perfect memory continues to play out the time they’ve spent together, much like a broken record. 

But Anastasia has no time to dwell on the mistakes of yesterday; her mission isn’t over. Kallos Enterprises continue their experiments, as the death rate goes up, and Anastasia has no choice but to fight. However, she’s not as cold blooded as she used to be and that proves to be a problem when the people she cares about are once again put in danger. With her strength—and memory—failing and Blake’s time running out, Anastasia must tap into parts of herself she never knew existed, hoping that in the end, it will be enough to save them all.

REVIEW:

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read and loved Pieces of Revenge (see my review here). So it isn't surprising that I feel no different with Scarred by Vengeance. Only now I feel a lot more in love with Logan.

SCARRED BY VENGEANCE is everything you could ask for in a young adult sci-fi thriller. It's full of thrilling action, unexpected twists, dynamic characters and melt-in-your-bones romance.

I love how this book totally caught me off guard. Just when you think you know everything, the author would throw another surprise your way that would keep you on edge. I'm so glad that this didn't turn out to be one of those series with a really great first book and a terrible sequel. (I just hate it when that happens.)

Anastasia is as kickass as the first time I met her. She's still the sassy, independent and reckless person I grew to love in the first book. Although now I have to say she became a better version of herself. I love watching her character grow. She had always been the type of person who chooses not to get close to anyone and was always in control of her emotions but in this book we see her more vulnerable side. And I think this made her character more real and relatable. I love her interactions with Logan the best though. Anastasia may not admit it but Logan is the one person who rattles her and pushes her to be the person she keeps hidden. 

Ah, Logan (sigh). There were times that I really wanted to jump in the book and punch him. But my feeling of wanting to jump in the book and just hug him overshadows that. I still don't see the whole picture here but after reading the last few chapters of the book I could understand better why Logan had to do some of the things he did. He's still quite a mystery to me and I have a feeling there's more to the whole story but at least now I know where he's coming from. I'm being vague here so I wouldn't spoil anything but it must be really hard to have to choose between your heart and your duty.

I LOVE everything about Scarred by Vengeance. As far as sequels go, this book definitely didn't disappoint. I was hooked from start to finish. I couldn't put the book down for long because every time I try to do some chore I end up thinking about what's gonna happen with Anastasia, Logan and gang. 

I was screaming internally after reading this so I'm really very excited to read the next book and find out what happens next. I have a feeling Valia Lind has a lot more in store for us. (I just hope she doesn't kill off any of my favorite characters.) Must-read!

I received a copy of the book to read and review as part of the tour.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Website | Twitter | Facebook

Author. Photographer. Artist. Born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia, Valia Lind always had a love for the written word. She wrote her first full book on the bathroom floor of her dormitory, while procrastinating to study for her college classes. Upon graduation, she has moved her writing to more respectable places, and have found her voice in Young Adult fiction. Falling by Design is her debut young adult novel. You can visit her online at www.valialind.blogspot.com or follow her on twitter, where she spends way too much time, @ValiaLind.

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