Book Review ~ Steel by Carrie Vaughn

Title:  Steel
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Genre: YA/Time Travel
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Jill has fought in dozens of fencing tournaments, but she has never held a sharpened blade. When she finds a corroded sword piece on a Caribbean beach, she is instantly intrigued and pockets it as her own personal treasure.

The broken tip holds secrets, though, and it transports Jill through time to the deck of a pirate ship. Stranded in the past and surrounded by strangers, she is forced to sign on as crew. But a pirate's life is bloody and brief, and as Jill learns about the dark magic that brought her there, she forms a desperate scheme to get home—one that risks everything in a duel to the death with a villainous pirate captain.

Time travel, swordplay, and romance combine in an original high-seas adventure from New York Times bestseller Carrie Vaughn.

Review:

I saw this book one day when I was looking on the Barnes and Noble web page and thought that the premise was good enough to add it to my shopping cart.  After checking out it's page on Goodreads I found that Steel got mixed reviews.  A lot of 3 and 4 star ratings.

I thought that the idea behind the story was right up my alley...mainly because it was a new-to-me idea.  I think reading Steel helped me get into the proper frame of mind for the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie that came out last weekend.

I thought Jill overall was a like able character, though in the beginning she was a little bit to "woe is me" for me personally.  There is being dedicated to your sport then there is addicted.  I think that at the beginning of the book she was leaning closer to addicted....To the point of NOT being able to enjoy a family vacation a MONTH after her last match.  Which leads up to Jill being transported back to the 18th century and becoming a member of the crew on the pirate ship Diana.  The more time that Jill spends on the Diana the more she's able to not only conquer her own issues she's also able to help the crew with some of their own problems.  When Jill is finally transported back to her own time she takes the lessons that she has learned on the Diana with her to use in her life from that point on.  Plus, there is a REALLY COOL "souvenir" too.

The pirate portion of the book was my favorite part of the book, meaning I'm not really a fan of the beginning but it got much better.  There was a TON of action.  The captain of the Diana was a WOMAN and I learned a TON.  Did you know that pirate ships are where the first forms of democracy were formed?  The main positions (captain, quartermaster, first mate, etc.) were all voted on.  Each ship has it's own rules which are known as in Steel the "articles."  Also, I really enjoyed that Carrie Vaughn brought actual pirates out of the history books and put them in her book.

The only part I had a slight misgiving with was the "romance."  There were plenty of hints at it but there was only 1 real kiss in the whole book.

Overall, I would recommend this book if you are looking for a fun, quick read, or a slight departure from what you've been reading recently.

Book Review ~ Creed's Honor by Linda Lael Miller

Title: Creed's Honor
Author: Linda Lael Miller
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: The Creed Cowboys #2

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:

 Conner Creed knows exactly who he is: a hardworking rancher carrying on his uncle's legacy in Lonesome Bend, Colorado. Maybe a small-town cowboy's life isn't his dream, but he owes the man who took him in as a kid. Until the identical twin brother he's been estranged from for years reenters his life.

Conner struggles with identity issues as he gets to know his wilder brother. And then he meets Tricia McCall, a beautiful woman who knows a thing or two about living someone else's dreams. Together, they just might find their own dreams right here in Lonesome Bend….

Review:


Connor Creed has all but given up on his own dreams and has decided that he's going to follow in his uncle's boot prints and become a rancher in his hometown of Lonesome Bend, CO.  I thought that the name of the town was more than appropriate for Connor and the way he happens to be feeling.  Then his wild card twin brother, Brody, shows up which is difficult for Connor to swallow.

Tricia McCall ends up in Lonesome Bend after the death of her father and she decides to take over his trailer park for him.  She doesn't intend to stay long, just long enough to sell the trailer park and move herself up to Seattle.  However, her crafty grandmother is working double time behind the scenes to get Tricia and Connor together.  Slowly but surely things start to progress along, then a stray dog named Valentino and Tricia's goddaughter are added to the picture.

I really enjoyed this book a lot.  I can hardly wait until the next book in the series comes out!  The thing that I really liked about this book was it was a romance with some drama and pent up emotions thrown in to keep things interesting.  The dialogue and the interactions between the characters, major as well as minor, felt so natural and like your actually there witnessing the book play out.

Friday Follows

Q. What do I do when I are not reading?

I do a lot of digital photography and I'm knitting like crazy working on some Christmas presents for family members.  When I'm not doing those things I like to watch movies and play with my dogs, who have me completely trained.



How/Where do you get your books? Do you buy them or go to the library? Is there a certain website you use like paperbackswap?

I spend a LOT of time on my local library's webpage ordering books to read.  I also like to spend money on Barnes and Noble's webpage and occassionally I like to use paperbackswap.com.

What I've been up to since last week:

Discussion Posts:

Note taking for reviews?

MEME's:

It's Monday!
IMM

Reviews:

Beastly by Alex Flinn
Trace of Fever by Lori Foster

Giveaway:

100 Follower Giveaway

Random Posts:

It's beginning to look a lot like.... (Christmas Knitting Project post)

Discussion Post ~ Note taking for reviews?

A couple of weeks ago I was reading the book Enclave by Ann Aguirre and I actually took the time to take notes about the book on a note pad so that I wouldn't forget any "important" details in my review. Then came time to write my review and I thought that if I put everything I had in my notes in my review I might cause some unintentional spoilers. So sometimes I think that taking notes might be a double edged sword...That I might giveaway or create an unintentional spoiler with the information that I've added to my notes, some might find it helpful, others might take offense.

So my question(s) to you are: 1. Do you personally take notes about the books that you read in order to include all the important facts in your review? 2. Do you do this for every book you review? and 3. How do you deal with potentially creating an unintentional spoiler in your review?

I think that I may continue to do this but I really don't want to potentially ruin someones reading experience with an unintentional spoiler.

Book Review ~ Beastly by Alex Flinn

Title: Beastly
Author: Alex Flinn
Genre: YA/Paranormal

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:

I am a beast.
A beast!
Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright. I am a monster.
You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll, stay this way forever ruined unless I can break the spell.
Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly...beastly.

Review:

I originally picked up Beastly a little over a year ago when the movie was a work in progress.  I picked up the movie on my way home from work on Friday morning and decided to read the book after the movie was over.  Now I'm po'ed at myself for waiting so long to read the book.

Kyle Kingsbury is your typical stereotypical rich kid, the good looks, the famous dad, money, can have any girl he wants, you know the type.  But as good looking as he is on the outside, on the inside he's pretty damn ugly.  Which leads to Kendra, a witch, putting a curse on Kyle.  As the beast, Kyle has 2 years to find someone to love him and love that person back in order for the spell to be broken.

With about a year left of curse, Lindy is brought into Kyle's life and after a while things start to change.  Feelings start to grow and Lindy makes a confession that brightens Kyle's day. Just when Kyle thought it was all just about to end a "wrinkle" occurs and things go a little awry right up until the last minute.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book.  So much so that I tore through it in a day and a half, usually it takes me several days to get through a book.  I think this book has a pretty great moral to it's story, everyone is beautiful in their own way.  I really enjoyed watching Kyle grow from a "hideous" foul-tempered, trash talking, don't give a crap about anyone but himself teen into a loving and caring young man.  He has a lot of help in  the form of secondary characters Will, his teacher and Magda, the maid. 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading (3)

It's Monday!  What Are You Reading is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey.  This is where we share what we have been reading, what we are currently reading and what we hope to read in the upcoming week.  I guarantee your wishlist/TBR pile will grow!

Don't forget to check out our 100 Follower giveaway!

What I Read:

Beastly by Alex Flinn

I bought the movie on my way home from work on Friday and really liked it so I picked up the book and just started reading.  For me it was a page turner and was difficult for me to put down.

What I'm Currently Reading:

The First Patient by Michael Palmer

So far it's really good.  A medical thriller centered around the White House...Yes that White House.

What I hope to read:

The Creed Legacy by Linda Lael Miller

Trace of Fever by Lori Foster

Title: Trace of Fever
Author: Lori Foster
Series: Men Who Walk the Edge of Honor #2
Genre: Romantic Suspence

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:


Undercover mercenary Trace Rivers loves the adrenaline rush of a well-planned mission. First he'll earn the trust of corrupt businessman Murray Coburn, then gather the proof he needs to shut down the man's dirty smuggling operation. It's a perfect scheme—until Coburn's long-lost daughter saunters in with her own deadly plan for revenge.

With a smile like an angel and fire in her eyes, Priscilla Patterson isn't who she seems to be. But neither is the gorgeous bodyguard who ignites all her senses. Joining forces to plot Coburn's downfall, Priss and Trace must fight the undeniable heat between them. For one wrong move, one lingering embrace, will expose them to the wrath of a merciless opponent….

Review:

I was approached about this series when Trace's book was just about ready to be released.  I had read the first book in the series and could not wait to read the next book.  Yeah for extremely sexy sounding alpha-male mercenaries who know how to "rock a girls world!"  Plus, Trace really caught my eye in When You Dare.

OH MY GOSH!  This book was a page turner.  The action in the book starts right at the beginning of the book and doesn't let up!  Trace and his team of highly trained mercenaries are undercover trying to bring down a human trafficking ring.  Trace and his family have been victims of this despicable trade.

Priscilla has her own agenda for why she wants to bring Murray down.  She's out for revenge and she's not going to let anyone stand in her way, even Trace.  She was a pretty like able character, very determined and has a pretty HUGE set of cajones!

I thought that the author did an excellent job creating chemistry between Trace and Priscilla that was White Hot.  I felt that the progression of their relationship was very realistic and wasn't rushed.  At times I thought that Trace was purposefully challenging Priscilla to see if she would "rise to the occasion" or shy away.  Let's just say that Ms. Priscilla can put on a show when she wants to!

I thought that the addition of Jackson to the story was a great build up to the next book in the series.  Again, another book I can hardly wait to read!  I also really liked how the author kept us in the loop about how things were going with Dare and Molly and Chris too.  Sometimes I feel like the characters from the prior book in the series are sort of forgotten about as the series progresses...NOT the case here.

There were only a few tiny things that gave me pause about the book.  The first thing was Priscilla's nickname, Priss overly dramatic.  Other than those little quirks I really enjoyed Trace of Fever a lot.  The more I read of this series the more I don't want it to end.