Sorry, I'm Not Sorry - Nancy Rue - 3 stars

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is a middle grade read and I enjoyed it for the most part. It just did not wow me.

In this story we have Kylie Streppe who was the queen of Gold Country middle school. She and her friends had bullied a fellow student and Kylie found herself expelled for it. She was put to the test to regain her position back into the school, but it would not be easy, especially when the tables are turned and she becomes the bullied.

I liked the idea of this story because bullying is a big issue in our society today. Bullying should never be ok. It is wrong and hurtful and sometimes the desperation of the bullied becomes far more serious the longer it goes on. This leads up to more serious situations. I think this books tells a good story, it was engaging and easy to read, and hits on some key points as far as bullying goes, so the story was very realistic in that aspect. Even though, there was not much backstory told at all, since the story starts at Kylie being expelled. So you could only guess how much actual bullying went on and to what extent.

I also had a slight problem with the characters. I think they were developed ok, but I felt like they were written much older than 12 year olds, they seemed far too mature for that. I would have guess them being more like teenagers of about 16. So they were not all that believable to me and it was hard to wrap my mind around the fact that this was being told by a pre-teen. Other than that though, I liked them ok. The parents were pretty clueless and seemed to support Kylie's bullying by saying things like "They are kids, they do things like this." And they really don't, so I was glad to see some changes come about with Kylie's mom. I really did not care for her dad at all. The sad thing is that some parents today think exactly like Kylie's parents, and I think this is where part of the change needs to occur.

The Looney Experiment - Luke Reynolds - 4 star

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I find that I don't give too many review books higher than 3 stars very often, but this was good. I was actually surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did since it was a middle grade book. I am so glad that I got the opportunity to read this one. A very small book with a huge story to tell.

This a story of Atticus Hobart who seems to struggle with everyday life. He is in love with a Audrey, but lacks the courage to let her know. He is also bullied by Danny Willis who thinks he is better than anyone else, and on top of all of this, his dad has just left the family to think things out. Then Mr. Looney, a 77 year old substitute English teacher, makes his way into Atticus's life. At first the class just thinks he is this crazy old man, but Atticus and his class soon sees a different side to Mr. Looney's crazy teaching as it shows Atticus what the meaning of courage is.

I found this to have a really good plotline and a very realistic story to tell, that is both heartfelt and sincere. I found the story to be very engaging and very easy to read. Bullying is such a huge problem today that really just needs to end, and books like this can both encourage those who are bullied and maybe deter those who are the bullies. I also liked how the ending was not glamour and glitz, but a more realistic approach to what 'really happens' and not that feel good fake kind of ending.

I really liked the character of Atticus, mostly because of how realistic and believable he is written. He is your typical bullied kid who really sees no way out of the situation he is in. I love how he gradually begins to see things in a different light. There were a lot of good characters in this book, all of them very believable and well developed.

Fifty Shades of Grey - E.L. James - 3 stars

I read this book, or rather skimmed this book a few years back but decided to revisit this for a buddy read with a friend. I feel as though I really focused on it more this time around and have a better understanding of it now because I found myself a bit more open minded to what I was experiencing with this read.

In this book you have Anastasia Steele, who is a very timid individual. She goes to interview Christian Grey in place of her friend who had taken ill. While interviewing Mr. Grey, an intimidating, arrogant, well to do billionaire. Ana feels a disturbing attraction towards him that she can't explain. As she furthers her relationship with Mr. Grey, he lets her know that he does not do romance but instead something she is not sure she wants to be a part of, domination.

I found the story line intriguing. It was rather fast paced and easy to read now that I was more open to the content. I think you get a good look into this lifestyle, but it leaves questions as to why this lifestyle is preferred. I am sure this question is answered in the following books to the series. I did discover that there is a lot more to the story than first meets the eye, but it must be read with an open mind, otherwise the purpose of the story will not be observed. I found it to be more about a relationship and what each person is willing to give, in that relationship, and what a person is willing to give up as well. I also find it is about people who have issues that must first be absolved before they can see clearly as far as a relationship goes. Our upbringings and what we have had to deal with can affect so many different things in our lives and how we handle situations as we grow.

The characters, Ana and Christian, are pretty dysfunctional in this story and you begin to see their issues unfold slowly but not completely in this first installment. You start to get a feel for them in this book and it really made me want to know more about them. So their development is pretty good so far, but not quite there yet. I am hoping for much more development with the rest of this trilogy. I did like the way Ana handles things at the end of this book, I think I actually cheered her on. On thing that bothered me about both of these characters is that they are pretty wishy-washy, and really not making up either of their minds as to what they want from the relationship. This too I hope is resolved through the other books.

As far as recommending this book, all I can say is if you can be open minded then you can probably handle this book. Maybe even if you are one to like romance books you can enjoy this one, but again open mindedness is key.

Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon - 4.5 stars

I am reading this series for our Outlander Series Read along. And I really enjoyed this books so very much. I am so glad that I decided to get on board with this series after hearing so much about it. This is one decision I will never regret.

So in writing my synopsis of this book would be to give too much away and possibly spoil someone else and I really do not want to do that. So with that said I will just say that in this book Claire find herself sharing her her story twenty years later which brings her to a point in her life for hope and love and much more. You must read the series and experience it for yourself.

I can't really share words to express all the feels I experienced with this installment. So many new questions come to light that I am desperate to have answered and I know they will only be answered with patience involved. In the beginning of the book I found it to be a little less dramatic, more along the lines of being kind of nonchalant, not much happening like in the first book, but as I read on it got better and continued to do so till the very end and I was left speechless. There were many shocking moments that spiced the story up even more.

The characters are still beautiful and well developed, I need Jamie and Claire in my life for sure. They are the epitome of such a great love story and they really are my OTP. You will find so many colorful characters in the book/series to love and of course those to hate as well. Those who were in the first book make reappearences, and then there are many new faces as well.

I can't recommend this series enough, it needs to be experienced and enjoyed by everyone. Since it was a little slower in the beginning I am giving it 4.5 stars. With that said I want to link to our read along group to give everyone the opportunity to experience one of the most amazing series out there today. So do yourself a favor and come join us https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/166493-outlander-series-read-along

What Lies Within - James Morris - 4 stars

I received this book in exchange for an honest review by the author. I really did enjoy this book a lot and I found it to be pretty engaging and very easy to read. It has somewhat of a creepy aspect to it and it had a good mysterious plotline as well.

You have a high school senior who is really just background fixture in her school, that is before she gets a very mysterious text message saying "You're going to die." from someone she does not know. This puts Shelley on the alert and pushes her to find out who this is and why she is going to die. As the mystery unfolds she begins to se a side of her that is not only frightening, but a side she never would expected.

I love the plotline to this story so much, full of mystery, terror and even a little romance. I found the story to be very fluid and easy to follow. I think it was well thought out and written very well. I also thought that the story was very believable, something that could possibly happen in the world today and those are always the scariest stories. There was plenty of action to keep me entertained and turning the pages.

I did have a slight problem with our main character, Shelley. Again I found her to be made to look stupid and I detest that so much in books. She did not use her head in a lot of situations, but then in other situations she was on the top of her game and making good choices. So she was a little wishy washy at times, but other than that I really enjoyed the characters.

I would recommend this to anyone who likes Mystery, thriller and action packed stories. I feel like this book is very open to a sequel and I know that I would love to read it.

New Group - Monthly Recommendations

Hey guys I just joined a new group called Monthly Recommendations run by Trina at Between Chapters and Kayla Rayne. Each month we will recommend books according to the monthly topic. I feel like this will be an awesome group to be a part of. So click here if you wanna come join up.

I did my first topic which was for recommendation of under rated books. If you would like to go check out that video then click here. Don't forget to comment like and Subscribe if you haven't already! Thanks guys!

Inkheart - Cornelia Funke - 4 stars

I read this book as a buddy read with a friend and also to push this series through on my series-a-thon for this year. This is a Middle Grade to YA book. I thought this would have been a lot better had it been written as an adult novel. I thought it had an adult feel to it, but since it is intended for younger audiences it was pretty tame. Even though I thought that so much more could have been done with it as an adult novel, it was still very engaging.

In this book we have Meggie and her father, Mo who absolutely loves books. Mo is a book binder and he restores old books back to how they first were. Mo is a different type of father, when he reads aloud, he pulls characters and/or objects out of the story he is reading, but that's not all he also could possibly lose someone into the that same story. Things go awry, so Meggie and her father are in for an adventure to make things right and reclaim someone they had lost.

I absolutely loved the plotline of this story. A modern day world with fairy tale characters coming alive by being read out of a book. I have never heard of a plotline quite like this one. I love it's originality and uniqueness. Something that bothered me about this book was the synopsis. I found that is really could have been a spoiler to the story because what you read in the synopsis does not really happen in the book. Readers get a vague description of it, and it also made me think about how a prequel would be beneficiary to this series. I know I would definitely read it if it were to ever be written. I also really loved the world that was built here even though it is just modern day, the other fairy tale elements really jazzed it up and made it exciting.

The characters in this book were brilliant, a lot to love and a lot to hate. I can really see them developing a lot throughout the series and I hope to see some of them become a bit stronger. I felt like Dustfinger, who is one of my favorite characters, was not as strong as I would I have liked him to be. I can picture him as a total hero if he showed a little more strength. So I am hoping he develops more throughout the series. I also enjoy Meggie a lot. I can see her as a hero also and I find that she is a very strong character. She is easy to relate to even though she is only 12 she uses her fear to strengthen her. One small thing that bothered me about Meggie was that she called her dad Mo instead of Dad. That was a little annoying to me. Most of these characters are very believable and I loved that.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes something a little different, a YA novel with a little fantasy, a little mystery and a lot of other great elements. Even if you are not huge on either of those genres, I think you could enjoy this book. I am looking forward to the rest of the series with Inkspell and Inkdeath.

Mr. Mercedes - Stephen King - 4 stars

I read this book as a buddy read with some friends. I am really glad that I got to it this month. I found it pretty enjoyable for the most part. The beginning was started a little slow, a lot of build up to the story, but it soon picked up and became a really good mystery.

In this story you have this man, Brady Hartsfield, who takes a Mercedes without a warning and drives into and over a group of unemployed people who are waiting at a job fair to get jobs. There are eight people killed and many others who are injured. Ex-cop Bill Hodges is contacted by Mr. Mercedes a year later only to learn that this madman may just try to strike again.

I really liked the plot of this story and how it was constructed, and I think Stephen King wrote it very well for it being a mystery. It is not by any means his best novel, but it was really engrossing and pulled me in quite quickly. I found that it did take a bit to pick up, but once it did it had my full attention. It was very fluid and easy to read.

Again I feel like the characters were the best part of this story and we all know that King does very well with Character development, this novel was no different in that area. I liked Hodges the most I think. He is a washed up ex-cop who is now past his glory days. He put in 40 years with the department, but he has allowed life afterwards to get the best of him. Now he has this one last time to do something good and maybe make is life worthwhile. I loved how he was created and who he was. There were some other very interesting and likeable characters as well, like Janey, Jerome and Holly. All of them so well created and realistic.

I recommend this to anyone who loves Stephen King and his ability to spin a great tale, and also to those who like crime novels, Mystery, or thrillers. I now look forward to the sequel to this book Finder's Keepers.

All Good Deeds - Stacy Green - 4 stars

I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I could not pass it up since it was a mystery and a very good one at that. In this story we have Lucy who is a CPS worker turned Private investigator. She has a lot of her own issues and handles things in her own way. The only trouble is her own way could see Lucy arrested especially when a self proclaimed sociopath wants to help Lucy and knows her secrets. When a child turns up missing, Lucy jumps on it and starts her own investigation against the wishes of local law enforcement. With so much at risk Lucy works against the clock to save a child.

I really enjoyed the plot of this story. Even though it is fiction, it touches on a very extrusive problem in the world today, that being pedophilia. I found this story to be very engaging and action packed. It was also very realistic, fluid and easy to follow. I really enjoyed all the mystery that surrounded this story as well. The author definitely gives readers a lot to think about, and as soon as you feel you are on the right track, something else happens and keeps readers guessing. There are many lose ends that need to be tied up, but I am sure that comes with future installments for this series.

I liked the characters a lot, they were pretty well developed and pretty complex. I think my favorite was probably Chris. He had a lot of issues that he needed to work through, but I think he used that to his advantage. I also like Lucy for the most part, and I felt like her thought process was pretty flawed and that made the story interesting. It seems a lot of the characters were scarred in one way or another, but it makes them more believable and realistic than having a 'perfect' character. I would love to see some more back story on these characters though, maybe in future installments of this series.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery, but it could definitely have triggers for some readers, so be aware of that. The story does get somewhat graphic in nature and is not for those who are faint of heart. I do look forward to reading more in this series as they come and I am happy I got the chance to read this book and review it.

Love's Curse - Darren Gallagher - 3 sars

I got this book in exchange for an honest review from the Author. I had started enjoying zombie books back in 2013 and I am always looking for something new to try, so when the author approached me I knew I wanted to read it.

In this book we have a small cast of characters who are surviving the affects of a zombie apocalypse. Justin gets a call from a girl that he was pining for claiming that everyone she knows is dead and she needs his help. Justin decides, against his better judgment to go the 150 miles to save her. He got far more than he bargained for.

I love Zombie stories and I thought this plot was pretty good. I found a lot of action, adventure, and excitement with this book. I also found that it was very fluid and easy to read and follow. However, I did have a problem with Justin, the main character, I simply found him to be stupid. He made obvious wrong choice after wrong choice that can't be afforded in this world, and that just threw the story off for me and I found that annoying. If the story were to continue and this was a lesson learned for Justin, then I think it could be a good story because the characters can grow and develop.

I can recommend this to people who do like action packed zombie stories if you can get past dealing with one of those characters who are just wrote to be stupid. If there are more books to the series, then I would read them for sure, because I think the writing was good with this one, I just get annoyed with stupid characters.

Outlander Series Read along!

Hey guys we are now on Book 2 of the Outlander Series Read Along. We take a month to read each book while we have discussion threads to go along with it, both non spoiler and spoiler threads for a more full discussion after the book has been read. You can share favorite quotes and passages, or even talk about your favorite characters.

We would love you to come join us if you are reading it, already read it, or you are a bit further through the series. We have a lot of great people in the group that are fun to discuss the series with. Here is the link for anyone interested in joining us on the epic Journey.
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/166493-outlander-series-read-along