Wicked Sense by Fabio Bueno

I was expecting much more from this book.  There was very little that wasn't almost absurd  when it came to the magical elements, and I'm not even remotely making a comparison to actual magical practices. The romantic story line was saccharine at best.  I wasn't very attached to either Skye or Drake, not to mention the background characters.  It wasn't even hard to peg who the Singularity was, from the first time she was mentioned.  I found this to be a cute, not too engaging or absorbing story. I might read the next one just because I invested the time to read this one, but we'll see.

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson

Kiss of Deception is a story of fierce determination and fighting for a dream.  Lia, Kaden, and Rafe make intriguing protagonists with revolving points of view who give readers insight to everyone's thoughts, goals, and motivations. 

These three main characters are strong, and the alternation viewpoints illustrate how each one evolves and drives the plot ever forward.  This was an instance when I was sure a sequel was coming and I didn't have any reservations about wanting to read it.  I was mildly confused about the sudden inclusion of Pauline's first person narrative because it only lasted for one chapter, but it had relevance to the plot and I think it will have an effect on the way the story progresses in the next book. The rest of the characters are also strong, no matter how small their roles.  Whether you hate the Chancellor and the Scholar or love Lia's brother's, each person is memorable.  

I will have to say that it drove me absolutely bloody crazy that, even though I knew one guy was the prince from whom Lia was running and one was the assassin sent to kill her in her sleep, I had no idea which one was which until about a third of the way through the story.  I had a good guess as to the identity of each, but I would question myself occasionally.  I will also have to admit that I liked that I didn't know for sure, that Pearson kept me guessing for a while.

I would have also liked to know a little more about Lia's gift.  She's certain she doesn't have one at all because it's never made itself known to her before she's seventeen. Other women in the story have the gift, too, though, and there's not a lot they have to say about it either.  I found this a little frustrating, to be honest, but as the mysteries unraveled, I felt more confident that more information would be provided.  Maybe it wasn't in this book, but I'm okay with waiting for it. 

The Kiss of Deception is definitely one I would purchase and I'm really looking forward to reading the next installment of Lia's story. 

Searching for Perfect by Jennifer Probst

I liked this romance between the nerd turned hottie and the outwardly perfect woman who is supposed to find his perfect match.  It was a decent story, a good way to forget about everything else for a while.

Nate makes a good male protagonist, even given tiny level of understanding about mathematics and aeronautics. He's comfortable with himself, he's honest, and he just wants to find love. He's smart, driven and has that hidden heart of gold- the trifecta of romance heroes. 

I wasn't that attached to Kennedy as the female protagonist, though.  I know that every woman has issues with her own body no matter her age (I certainly do), but she isn't a character I connected with.  She knows she's physically perfect, she knows men find her attractive, and she's a little too restrictive with herself about food.  Maybe it was that disconnection that makes me feel like she didn't suffer anything THAT traumatic during high school, that she should get a grip already, and just accept herself for who she is, no matter if there's a tiny change in her physical appearance.

I think what I found most memorable (and most odd) about the whole book was the scientific sex scenes.  I appreciate honesty and dirty talk as much as the next girl, but goodness, Nate's was so matter-of-fact that I felt like I was reading a manual rather than a novel.  I don't embarrass easily- I am publicly posting a review of a romance novel, after all- but these scenes had me blushing. 

I'm curious to see who Probst chooses as her next subject for a story.  I know I'm not the only one interested in finding out more about Wolfe. 

John Dreamer by Elise Celine

I was expecting a lot more from this book.  I was thinking that this would be a glimpse into the darkest corners of Andy's fears and dreams.  I was thinking that it would do more than gloss over the surface of seven characters.  I was thinking incorrectly.

This is 200 pages of cute.  Cute guy.  Cute girl.  Cute background cast, if a little quirky.  None of the featured people resonate with me, though.  It's hard to relate to anyone when you get only a glimpse of who they really are.  The fears they had to face for the dreams they wanted to achieve had potential.  If there were another 100 pages (at least), delving into the issues behind the surface stories, I might have been rooting for them a little harder. 

With seven people trapped in a room in  a dream world, it's understandable that friendships would form after a while.  There doesn't seem to be a lot of time, though, during which Andy sees everyone else as a close friend when each of them move on from the dream world to the real world.  The insta-love with John included, there's a little too much of an attachment being formed with these people. 

I really don't understand why there is suddenly a chapter written in the first person perspective of someone other than Andy.  None of the other characters spoke for themselves anywhere in the book.  It makes sense when you find out what Roy's fears and dreams really are, but it doesn't make sense to suddenly have another point of view when the others haven't been there. 

I can't say I'll be adding this to my collection.  It was an okay story without a lot of the grammatical corrections it could have used. 

Don't Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski

What would you do if you realized you could suddenly read minds?  Would you freak out?  Would you accidently let someone know your freaky new ability?  Would you tell someone, hoping against all hope that you're not alone?  The students in homeroom 10B have a chance to find out in this twist on the repercussions of a flu shot. 

The narrative of this story is an oddly disjointed beast.  When you have twenty-two people telling the tale in both the third person and first person plural.  It does, however, keep the reader wondering what will be coming.

Although it's hard to keep track of each character as an individual, there is growth as a whole.  What started as every teen for himself quickly escalates into a battle to keep the group on equal ground that benefits everyone. 

In this story, the hardest part to process is the large chunks of italicized telepathic conversational snippets.  There's no indication of who is speaking, and frequently there isn't even a fully formed sentence.  I quickly gave up trying to figure out who was speaking to whom and about what during these areas. 

So, what would you do with mind-reading powers?  The answer may not be as clear as you think- especially if you're not the only one who gets to decide. 

Being Hartley by Allison Rushby

Having been dragged around the world for her entire life by her famous mother, Thea Wallis is finally ready for her own taste of stardom.  She doesn't expect it to come at the cost of her cousin's happiness, though, and just when all her wildest dreams are about to come true she has to ask herself if that's what she really wants after all.

I was mildly disappointed in this story.  While there are issues of dissatisfaction with life, possible forays into depression, and plenty of teenage rebellion and first loves, these are only lightly touched upon.  There wasn't enough exploration of the key problems, but there was plenty of whining about why Thea couldn't get what she wanted when she wanted it.

The writing style is authentic as a teenage voice, but there's always a feeling of just skimming the surface of all the emotions that range through the book.  Thea, while realistic, isn't the kind of character that will keep me coming back to her story.

On the flip side, hers is a story for those teens whose parents might not want them absorbing all the details of the darker side of life.  I know, you have an argument all ready that the darker side of life is what makes it real- that we all have emotions, problems, and issues with which to deal from which we cannot hide.  You're right.  I won't argue with that.  But Thea's story is one that could be more of an opening to discuss such things with parents, friends, or teachers rather than just read.