Sadie by Courtney Summers (Review)

Title: Sadie
Author: Courtney Summers
Release date: September 4, 2018
Pages: 320 per Goodreads
Format: Ebook for review

Sadie hasn't had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she's been raising her sister Mattie in an isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water.

But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie's entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister's killer to justice and hits the road following a few meagre clues to find him.

When West McCray—a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America—overhears Sadie's story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie's journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it's too late.

I love podcasts, especially true crime podcasts.  So when I saw Sadie come across my email, I was very interested.  And to top it off, it is by Courtney Summers, so how could it go wrong? Count me in!

Nightingale by Amy Lukavics (Review)

Title: Nightingale
Series: NA
Author: Amy Lukavics
Release Date: September 2018
Format: Egalley
Pages: 384 per Goodreads

At seventeen, June Hardie is everything a young woman in 1951 shouldn’t be—independent, rebellious, a dreamer. June longs to travel, to attend college and to write the dark science fiction stories that consume her waking hours. But her parents only care about making June a better young woman. Her mother grooms her to be a perfect little homemaker while her father pushes her to marry his business partner’s domineering son. When June resists, her whole world is shattered—suburbia isn’t the only prison for different women…

June’s parents commit her to Burrow Place Asylum, aka the Institution. With its sickening conditions, terrifying staff and brutal “medical treatments,” the Institution preys on June’s darkest secrets and deepest fears. And she’s not alone. The Institution terrorizes June’s fragile roommate, Eleanor, and the other women locked away within its crumbling walls. Those who dare speak up disappear…or worse. Trapped between a gruesome reality and increasingly sinister hallucinations, June isn’t sure where her nightmares end and real life begins. But she does know one thing: in order to survive, she must destroy the Institution before it finally claims them all.

 Nightingale was an interesting book.  I expected - and wanted - horror.  I got Sci-fi.  In the end, it was just an alright read for my personal tastes.   I've a feeling some people would love this whole storyline though.

All The Little Lights by Jamie McGuire (Review)

Title: All The Little Lights
Series: Standalone
Author: Jamie McGuire
Release Date: May 2018
Format: E-galley

The first time Elliott Youngblood spots Catherine Calhoun, he’s just a boy with a camera, and he’s never seen a sadder and more beautiful sight. Both Elliott and Catherine feel like outcasts, yet they find an easy friendship with each other. But when Catherine needs him most, Elliott is forced to leave town.

Elliott finally returns, but he and Catherine are now different people. He’s a star high school athlete, and she spends all her free time working at her mother’s mysterious bed-and-breakfast. Catherine hasn’t forgiven Elliott for abandoning her, but he’s determined to win back her friendship…and her heart.

Just when Catherine is ready to fully trust Elliott, he becomes the prime suspect in a local tragedy. Despite the town’s growing suspicions, Catherine clings to her love for Elliott. But a devastating secret that Catherine has buried could destroy whatever chance of happiness they have left.

I was very pleasantly surprised by this book.  I had read Jamie McGuire before, and loved her stories, but it had been a while.  I wasn't sure they would still hold the same magic for me.  But this one did!

Grease Slapped by AM Jones (Review)

Title: Grease Slapped
Series: Ink Slapped #2
Author: AM Jones
Release Date: May 2018
Format: Ebook received for review

Eli Gregor’s hole couldn’t be any larger as he fights to redeem himself. When tragedy strikes, he learns a few things about holes as Taylor explores the values of right and wrong.

Caught between better judgment and desire, Taylor and Eli find themselves at a crossroads—should they make the best decision for their careers or give in to their undeniable connection?

A torrid tale that weaves humor, drama, and sexual tension, Grease Slapped will leave you reeling and wanting more.

*Grease Slapped contains explicit language and sexual content. It's the conclusion of Ink Slapped.*

 I meant to get to this review last week, and time just totally got away from me.  Don't you hate when that happens?

But more to the point!  Grease Slapped!! Before I read it, I thought to myself, what the actual heck is Grease Slapped?  Not the book, but the words.  But as it turns out - it is something totally awesome, and made me go "awwwww".

Ink Slapped by AM Jones (Review)

Title: Ink Slapped
Series: Ink Slapped #1
Author: AM Jones
Release Date: May 7, 2018
Format: Ebook received for review

The heart wants what the heart wants—a concept that free-spirited author T.M. Dabney, never understands until she lays eyes on her new cover model, Eli.

Eli Gregor, a struggling musician and mechanic, thinks he knows the true meaning of heartbreak—that is until he accepts a business venture with the alluring Taylor Dabney. With her help, he pieces his life back together when his dreams dangle within reach and once again everything falls apart. And his success comes with a price he doesn’t want to pay.

Caught between better judgment and desire, they find themselves at a crossroads—should they make the best decision for their careers or give in to their undeniable connection?

A torrid tale that weaves humor, drama, and sexual tension, Ink Slapped will leave you reeling and wanting more.

*Ink Slapped contains explicit language and sexual content.*

 Sometimes you read a title to a book, and you get a clue of what's inside.  With Ink Slapped, I had no idea what I was getting into. Honestly, I didn't even read the blurb.  AM Jones wrote it, I wanted to read it.  And I'm currently about 65% through Grease Slapped.  I couldn't even wait to start it until after I finished the review.

Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier (Review)

Title: Jar of Hearts
Series: N/A
Author: Jennifer Hillier
Release Date: June 2018
Pages: 320 per Goodreads
Format: Egalley

This is the story of three best friends: one who was murdered, one who went to prison, and one who's been searching for the truth all these years . . .

When she was sixteen years old, Angela Wong—one of the most popular girls in school—disappeared without a trace. Nobody ever suspected that her best friend, Georgina Shaw, now an executive and rising star at her Seattle pharmaceutical company, was involved in any way. Certainly not Kaiser Brody, who was close with both girls back in high school.

But fourteen years later, Angela Wong's remains are discovered in the woods near Geo's childhood home. And Kaiser—now a detective with Seattle PD—finally learns the truth: Angela was a victim of Calvin James. The same Calvin James who murdered at least three other women.

To the authorities, Calvin is a serial killer. But to Geo, he's something else entirely. Back in high school, Calvin was Geo's first love. Turbulent and often volatile, their relationship bordered on obsession from the moment they met right up until the night Angela was killed.

For fourteen years, Geo knew what happened to Angela and told no one. For fourteen years, she carried the secret of Angela's death until Geo was arrested and sent to prison.

While everyone thinks they finally know the truth, there are dark secrets buried deep. And what happened that fateful night is more complex and more chilling than anyone really knows. Now the obsessive past catches up with the deadly present when new bodies begin to turn up, killed in the exact same manner as Angela Wong.

How far will someone go to bury her secrets and hide her grief? How long can you get away with a lie? How long can you live with it? 

This was definitely a different type of read for me, and I really liked it.  It was dark and twisted, and I was never sure who I wanted to root for - if anyone.

Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett (Review)

Title: Starry Eyes
Series: Standalone
Author: Jenn Bennett
Release Date: April 2018
Format: EGalley
Pages: 432 per Goodreads

Ever since last year’s homecoming dance, best friends-turned-best enemies Zorie and Lennon have made an art of avoiding each other. It doesn’t hurt that their families are the modern day, Californian version of the Montagues and Capulets.

But when a group camping trip goes south, Zorie and Lennon find themselves stranded in the wilderness. Alone. Together.

What could go wrong?

With no one but each other for company, Zorie and Lennon have no choice but to hash out their issues via witty jabs and insults as they try to make their way to safety. But fighting each other while also fighting off the forces of nature makes getting out of the woods in one piece less and less likely.

And as the two travel deeper into Northern California’s rugged backcountry, secrets and hidden feelings surface. But can Zorie and Lennon’s rekindled connection survive out in the real world? Or was it just a result of the fresh forest air and the magic of the twinkling stars?

 I haven't read YA in a while.  Starry Eyes was a complete joy of a read, to bring me back into the genre.  Jenn Bennett has instantly turned into an author I need to read more of (and with 2 more books on the way - I can't wait!)

I Stop Somewhere by TE Carter (Review)

Title: I Stop Somewhere
Series: None
Author: TE Carter
Release Date: February 2018
Pages: 320 per Goodreads
Format: Egalley

Ellie Frias disappeared long before she vanished.

Tormented throughout middle school, Ellie begins her freshman year with a new look: she doesn't need to be popular; she just needs to blend in with the wallpaper.

But when the unthinkable happens, Ellie finds herself trapped after a brutal assault. She wasn't the first victim, and now she watches it happen again and again. She tries to hold on to her happier memories in order to get past the cold days, waiting for someone to find her.

The problem is, no one searches for a girl they never noticed in the first place.

I Stop Somewhere was an unexpected joy for me.  And it feels weird to say that, because I felt sad throughout the majority of the book.  But it caught me in some unexpected ways, and was an amazing story.

The Trouble with Twelfth Grave by Darynda Jones (review)

Title: The Trouble with Twelfth Grave
Series: Charley Davidson #12
Author: Darynda Jones
Released: October 31, 2017
Pages: 289 per Goodreads
Format: EGalley

Grim Reaper Charley Davidson is back in the twelfth installment of Darynda Jones' New York Times bestselling paranormal series, The Trouble with Twelfth Grave.

Ever since Reyes Farrow escaped from a hell dimension in which Charley Davidson accidentally trapped him, the son of Satan has been brimstone-bent on destroying the world his heavenly Brother created. His volatile tendencies have put Charley in a bit of a pickle. But that's not the only briny vegetable on her plate. While trying to domesticate the feral being that used to be her husband, she also has to deal with her everyday life of annoying all manner of beings--some corporeal, some not so much--as she struggles to right the wrongs of society. Only this time she's not uncovering a murder. This time she's covering one up.

Add to that her new occupation of keeping a startup PI venture--the indomitable mystery-solving team of Amber Kowalski and Quentin Rutherford--out of trouble and dealing with the Vatican's inquiries into her beloved daughter, and Charley is on the brink of throwing in the towel and becoming a professional shopper. Or possibly a live mannequin. But when someone starts attacking humans who are sensitive to the supernatural world, Charley knows it's time to let loose her razor sharp claws. Then again, her number one suspect is the dark entity she's loved for centuries. So the question becomes: Can she tame the unruly beast before it destroys everything she's worked so hard to protect?

 So I had been behind on this series.  Then I binged all of them over last summer.  So when this book came out - I was way more than ready.  Charley and Reyes, omg, right?  I'm really late on this review, but here I am.  Better late than never!

Don't Let Go by Elisabeth Staab (Review)

Title: Don't Let Go
Series: Evergreen Grove #6
Author: Elisabeth Staab
Released: January 23, 2017
Pages: 250 per Goodreads
Format: Ebook received for review

Left behind by everyone he’s ever loved, Alonzo Grover lives as if he’s got no tomorrow. The discovery of a letter from his deceased boyfriend breaks him out of his rut and spurs him to right an old wrong, but the local stick-in-the-mud sheriff’s lieutenant seems determined to ruin his plans.

Lieutenant Sebastian Haas despises tangling with his small town’s most promiscuous party kid. Alonzo’s youth and recklessness drive him crazy in more ways than one… So does the uncomfortable secret they share. But when Haas’s estranged family arrives in town to throw a wedding he wants no part of, he jumps into Alonzo’s car to avoid the family drama.

Together, they wind up on an unexpected road trip. With one setback after another, it looks like they might kill each other before they make it home to Evergreen Grove. That is, unless they find something better to do than fight.

You know I love this series.  I've gone on and on, it's definitely one not to miss!  So here we are, book 6.  M/M romance, and so wonderful in all of its pages, I was not let down!

Imbalance by Heather Hildenbrand (Review)

Title: Imbalance
Series: Heart Lines #4
Author: Heather Hildenbrand
Released: May 29, 2017
Pages: 252 per Amazon
Format: ebook received for review

She has come to right the balance. He seeks to destroy it… 

Somewhere on another astral plane, a lover’s quarrel between gods, millennia old, has come full circle. 

Ea, a dark and ancient god and the father of the first Werewolf, is hell bent on destroying his supernatural offspring. And he’ll use anyone and everyone he can to get it done even from beyond the physical. For now, his vessel is the evil and mysterious Indra, a witch whose powers only slightly outweigh her penchant for hitting on the help. 

Too bad Alex is cured and once again immune to Indra’s invasive magic. A healing from which Sam almost didn’t come back.


Hina, the wolf mother goddess, has sworn to protect her cubs. And she lives on… inside Samantha Knight. Sort of like that still, small voice of reason. Except MAGICAL and pissed at her ex. If Sam can’t find a way to heal the wolves and stop Indra from harming them, the goddess will take matters into her own hands.

But an appearance like that promises destruction, chaos, and worst of all: no more Sam. Indra isn’t holding back.

 Sam is on the run. Alex is in a cage.

 The clock is ticking.

Just a note for transparency - I haven't yet finished this book.  I'm about 80% done, but the days on the calendar have come through quickly late and my schedule the past couple weeks didn't allow for as much reading as I had hoped. However, I have read enough that I feel I can leave a fair and honest review.

Book four and going strong. Something I notice about reading lately is that my attention span just isn't what it used to be.  Just being honest there.  It takes something I really love nowadays to keep me interested.  Sam and Alex have managed to do that.

Esperance by Heather Hildenbrand (Review)

Title: Esperance
Series: Heart Lines #3
Author: Heather Hildenbrand
Release Date: April 27, 2017
Format: Ebook received for review
Pages: 227  per Amazon

She is his only hope. If only he wanted to be saved.

Alex is cured... sort of. After letting the mysterious Indra work her magic, the venom is gone but so is Alex’s ability to feel. He’s not dead, but he’s not really alive either. Numb inside, he turns his back on Sam and everyone else. The only person he’ll really listen to is his new master…

Sam’s angry and lost. Her destiny was to heal, but so far, all she’s done is hurt herself and others. When Alex chooses another woman’s healing over hers, Sam’s doubts and fears become the very thing that separate her from her true potential. Despite Sam’s broken heart, she is determined to make her magic work, no matter the cost. No price can be higher than the one she paid watching Alex walk away. 

Sam will do whatever it takes. And she’ll never stop trying to change Alex’s mind—and his heart.

But Alex has his orders and he doesn’t care who they affect. Love hurts. But in this case, it just might kill…

So, just as I had hoped, the excitement returns in book 3, Esperance.  Sam is really immersing herself in this new world and taking on new challenges, and that's exactly what I wanted to see.

Inheritance by Heather Hildenbrand (Review & Giveaway)

Title: Inheritance
Series: Heart Lines #2
Author: Heather Hildenbrand
Release Date: March 27, 2017
Format: ebook received for review
Pages: 367 per Goodreads

You either use magic or it uses you… 

Sam has regained her memory—and with it, the Knowing. There is magic inside her; strong, powerful and old as the Earth, it is more than enough to heal the sick werewolves. If only she could figure out how to use it. 

Alex Channing has finally done something selfless and walked away. For the first time ever, his reasons are not about his own interests. He knows full well Sam is the only one who can heal him. But Alex knows better than anyone: magic always comes with a price. And he refuses to let Sam get hurt because of him. He’d rather die than cause her pain—and he plans to do just that. The more rabid werewolves he can take with him, the better. 

Well I just finished reading Inheritance this weekend.  It was a pretty good book, I'd have to say.  Although not quite as exciting as Remembrance, it really let you get a longer peak into the minds of Sam and Alex.

Remembrance by Heather Hildenbrand (Review)

Title: Remembrance
Series: Heart Lines #1
Author: Heather Hildenbrand
Released: Feb 2017
Pages: 306 per Goodreads
Format; Ebook received for review

She’s the cure that could save him. If only she could remember how.

Two years ago, 20 year-old Samantha Knight experienced a life-altering trauma. Unfortunately, she can’t remember what it was. Previously outgoing, fun, and carefree—it’s as if someone flipped a switch on Sam’s insides. Now, she’s afraid of everything, socially awkward, and convinced she’s going crazy. As Beyoncé would say, she woke up like this. Sam tries her best to juggle college classes, work, and the nosiest roommate ever, but behind the curtain, Sam’s life is all about keeping a firm grip on her own mind. And life is kicking her ass.

Alex Channing has only one enemy in this world: werewolves. Born and raised to fight in the supernatural military, he has become an expert at hunting and killing rabid werewolves. But when Alex is bitten and infected, he finds himself racing against a ticking clock for his own survival.

Alex’s search for a cure leads him finally to an oracle in a seaside town in California. And she gives him the reading of a lifetime. The key to his cure is a girl who forgets things, cries spontaneously, and might just be insane. And the only way she can save him is to do the one thing Alex knows is impossible: she has to remember.

Recently in my reading I’ve been avoiding PNR.  I was just so over it, ya know?  But then this book popped up on my radar, Remembrance. I’ve read Heather Hildenbrand before, so I thought, “Why not?”  I’ve read this author a few times before, and I’ve always fallen in love with her books.  Turns out that was a great decision.  Remembrance has everything I love about PNR, and books in general.

Marry Me Baby by Elisabeth Staab (Review)

Title: Marry Me, Baby
Series: Evergreen Grove #4.5
Author: Elisabeth Staab
Released: February 2017
Pages: 85 per goodreads
Format: Ebook received for review

Dante Ramos will win at love if it's the last thing he does...
Since I retired from boxing, I’m fighting to keep my life off the damn ropes.

Lately, one thing after another’s falling apart. First there’s the road-trip on Valentine’s weekend that coulda gotten me and my girl both killed. Then came the unspoken secrets that keep putting so much distance between us.

My love for Michelle is everything that keeps me human. I can feel her slipping away. I’ve got one last shot. A desperate proposal. 

And it’s all about to go wrong.

 Ahhhh I love these two.  Dante and Michelle, one of my favorite couples from Evergreen Grove get a little catch up for us, just in time for Valentine's Day.

Cover Reveal & Giveaway - Remembrance by Heather Hildenbrand

Email Change and Possibly URL Change

So I've thought long and hard about this.  I've just not been as active on my blog as I used to be.  I'm not shutting it down, but I am going to allow my fictionalcandy.com domain expire.... I think.  I'm going to look into pricing options etc.  I think it expires in the next week or two, at which point it will revert back to my http://fictionalcandy.blogspot.com URL.  Got that?

http://fictionalcandy.blogspot.com

and I am definitely giving up my GoDaddy email, because it is just too expensive to cover all of the storage I would like to keep.  I am slowly going through and transferring what I can, but from now on please feel free to contact me at:

fictionalcandy@yahoo.com

Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things by Martina McAtee (Review)

Title: Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things
Series: Dead Things #1
Author: Martina McAtee
Release Date: August 2015
Format: Personal Purchase
Pages: 510 per Goodreads

17 year old Ember Denning has made an art of isolating herself. She prefers the dead. She spends her days skipping school in old cemeteries and her nights hiding from her alcoholic father at the funeral home where she works. When her own father dies, Ember learns her whole life is a lie. Standing in the cemetery that’s been her sanctuary, she’s threatened by the most beautiful boy she’s ever seen and rescued by two people who claim to be her family. They say she’s special, that she has a supernatural gift like them…they just don’t know exactly what it is. 

They take her to a small Florida town, where Ember’s life takes a turn for the weird. She’s living with her reaper cousins, an orphaned werewolf pack, a faery and a human genius. Ember’s powers are growing stronger, morphing into something bigger than anything anybody anticipated. Ember has questions but nobody has answers. Nobody knows what she is. They only know her mysterious magical gift is trying to kill them and that beautiful dangerous boy from the cemetery may be the only thing standing between her and death. 

As Ember’s talents are revealed so are the secrets her father hid and those in power who would seek to destroy her. What’s worse, saving Ember has put her cousins in danger and turned her friend’s lives upside down. Ember must learn to embrace her magic or risk losing the family she’s pieced together.

I got this book on Amazon during some promotion when it was free.  I am so glad that I did, because I absolutely loved it.  Loved it enough that I’ve already purchased and started reading book two.  Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things is a bit over 500 pages, and for this urban fantasy, I think that is perfect.  It gave the book enough space to really explore everything that happens, and not just gloss over it.  This is kind of a YA book, although it doesn’t feel like it.  The main characters are 17, but they definitely aren’t dealing with normal 17 year old issues.

Piece by Piece by Elisabeth Staab (Review)

Title: Piece by Piece
Series: Evergreen Grove #4
Author: Elisabeth Staab
Release Date: September 20, 2016
Pages: 280 per Goodreads
Format: Ebook received for review

ETHAN’S HIT A ROUGH SPOT

So I caught my dad in bed with my ex-girlfriend.

My best friend cancelled our plans to celebrate my birthday. 

Decided to drink away the betrayal.

Made out with a cardboard cutout of a celebrity in front of my new roommates.

Got in a bar fight.

Hooked up with that pretty bartender whose sad smile I’ve secretly been painting pictures of since forever, but she shoved me out the door without a word.

Did I mention the tattoo I don’t exactly remember getting?

And that’s only Saturday.

Now I need to pick up the pieces of my messed-up life.

LEEANNE’S HAD A TOUGH LIFE

What do you do when you’ve lived in the same small town your whole life and you feel as if you’ll always be stuck in the same rut, like a piece of busted wagon wheel? Well, maybe you start by hooking up with the first decent guy who walks into your bar.

Maybe once you do, it’s hard to get him out of your head even though you try. And maybe, just maybe, you find out he makes you laugh even more than he makes you want to shout his name.

If you’re me, you don’t even know what to do with a guy like him. A little piece of happiness…that feels downright dangerous.

If I have said it once, I've said it a thousand times - I love this series.  Book four and I am not bored yet.  Elisabeth Staab is delivering book after book and each time I am anxious to meet more people from Evergreen Grove. This time around it's Ethan and Leeanne.

Extended Leave and now I'm.... back?

So... It looks like I took the summer off.  Really - I had to.  I was suffering a huge case of blogger burnout.  You know how it goes, if you're a blogger.  Sometimes life has to take a front seat, and blogging just had to take the back seat.

Ok, more like I shoved it in the trunk.  June 7.  That's the date of my last post. Now it's almost 4 months later.  Time flies, eh?

I'm sorry.  I know I don't have a huge following, but I do (or did) have some readers out there.  I've been reading all summer, and I have lots of reviews to write up.  I'm hoping I can get back into it.  In fact, right after I post this, I'm going to post a review for Elisabeth Staab's newest Evergreen Grove book (loved it, btw)

I'm not taking on review requests at the moment, unless  I have previously worked with you.  I've been trying to catch up on what I already have to do.

So to make a long story short, I hope you can find your way back to reading what I have to say, and I'll find my way back to saying it.

*Liz