Review: The Felix Chronicles: Freshmen

Book Rate: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Publisher: CreateSpace

Date of Publication:  May 20th 2015

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Adventure
Page Count: 494

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis (from goodreads):

Reeling from a terrible accident that claimed the lives of his parents, Felix arrives at Portland College.

Here his reality star roommate shows him there is more to higher education than just classes, shared bathrooms and bad dorm food, and Felix gradually dares to believe he can put his past behind him.

But a fateful storm looms on the horizon: In the nearby woods, two hikers become the latest victims in a series of gruesome murders; a disfigured giant embarks on a vicious cross-country rampage, killing teenagers who fail his 'test'; and an ancient society of assassins tasked with eradicating the wielders of a mysterious source of power awakens after a long silence.

Only one man--the school's groundskeeper--knows that the seemingly unrelated events are connected, and that an eighteen-year-old boy stands in the center of the storm.
Review:

I'm pretty I'll be raving about this book for a little while...

The Felix Chronicles: Freshmen strikes me as a mixture of The Harry Potter Saga, a Stephen King's thriller and a college contemporary. You can relate to it an awful lot since there are a lot of "today's" references like Ke$ha, Taylor Swift, the Kardashians and The Hunger Games, so you really feel like the story happens in the world you live in. Which is great if you ask me.

The characters are great, incredibly realistic and smart and strong. They take precautions before jumping into dangerous situations which a lot of characters in other books don't do and always strikes as unrealistic. Felix, Allison and Lucas (my top favourite, to be honest) are great, though! They could go to my college! (I would be besties with Allison, no doubt!!!).

The plotline is gripping, a page turner really, and I'm praying there are more books coming because I can't leave this saga just yet. It's not the common storyline we are all so used to, it has it's unexpected twists and turns, which made this read so much greater for me.

If you're looking for a good long time bookis companion then this is it. The almost 500 pages and smallish letter will keep you submerged in a hot chocolate drinking and frantic reading delicious environment.

A perfect Autumn read in my opinion!

Review: Caroline Starts Over

Caroline Starts Over

By Randi M. Sherman

book rate: ★★★☆☆ (3/5) 

Publisher: FriesenPress

Date of Publication:  February 12th 2014

Genre: LGBT, Aduul Romance
Page Count: 256

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis provided (adapted):

After eighteen years of feigning contentment in an unfulfilling marriage, forty-eight year old Caroline Matthews is finally liberated when her husband dies suddenly. Caroline is determined to reclaim her life and attempts to turn back the clock to a time when she was carefree. Getting back her life isn’t as easy as Caroline had hoped. She’s two decades older, socially out of practice, and has nineteen-year-old twin daughters who don’t know about her past. Caroline orchestrates a reunion with a former lesbian lover, Rachel, whom she had a devastating break up with before marrying her late husband. Both curious, slightly shop-worn and lonely, the women foolishly rekindle their relationship. Old habits and buried feelings resurface as they attempt to navigate through this misguided romance. 

Is Caroline really as desperate as she seems? And did she play any part in the death of her husband?

Review:

I have such mixed feelings about this book.... Uuuuuuugh....

It stared off as funny and light read and it continued that way until BOOM! You read the last 5 pages.

Everything about Caroline Starts Over is very good: the writting style, the characters, the storyline... I just... Can't formulated a coeherent thought... It's like Veronica Roth's Allegiant all over again!!!

I don't want to spoil you guys so I'll be very vague and mysterious: read this book if you want to be surprised by an incredibly unexpected plot twist. But don't read this book if you're looking for characters to adore after you finish it. Caroline Starts Over will make you trust her and then shatter your trust all over the floor and swipe it under the rugh so you only notice in last second.

Review: Fresh Meat

Fresh Meat

By B. Bentley Summers

book rate: ★★★☆☆ (3/5) 

Publisher: Queer Sense Inc.

Date of Publication:  April 28th 2015

Genre: LGBT, Fantasy, Drama
Page Count: 376

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis provided (adapted):

It’s July 4, 2000, in Comer, Alabama. 

Three individuals with ties to torture, murder, and slavery are about to come together in an unexpected way. Old Soj is an African-American woman with family roots to slavery. Supernatural powers emerge for the umpteenth time in her life, and most interestingly, she has a recurring vision of a white thirteen-year-old boy whom she’s never met, telling her to “save the boy.” Warden E.J. Jones is a sadistic, psychopathic man who cruelly reigns over Arm Liom Prison. He and every inmate become mesmerized by a new young arrival known as Punk. 

On July 4, 2000, a powerful evil is awakening that cannot be stopped except by one force. Darkness and light are about to come face-to-face. 

Review:

I have a lot to say about this book so make sure you're comfortably seated.

Staring off by addressing what I considered to be the positive aspects of Fresh Meat, the wirting style is good good, very gripping, and the subject dealt with in the book was a great choice and I have to admit: it opened my eyes to some realities I wasn't aware of.

But then what were initially little problems became big ones during my reading experience with Fresh Meat.

It started as soon as the characters began being introduced: why the anagrams? I found them unnecessary and annoying since they made the names of most characters sound unrealistic.

Then a lot of scenes were repeated very often. I know they were repeated dreams or someone having the dream and thinking about the dream or the same scene viewed by different characters, but they were always told the same way. This made me want to skip a few pages many times and I would highly suggest shifting or mixing up things every time you repeat something because otherwise the reader will just find it a bit boring.

Then there is the main character Soj who is a 100% good woman and therefore 100% unrealistic too. I do believe it would have been so great it Soj could have a bit of bad or evil in herself and the book explored how she dealt with it!

And then there is E.J.'s redemption. He got to be redempted because he could have been a good man if not for the childhood traumatic experience he went through. But then so could have other inmates! Throughout the book we read everyone's story and all inmates had a traumatic childhood/juvenile experience that caused them to be the evil people they came to be. But if the waren can get redemption I think the other (or some of the other) inmates could have gotten it too, and not just be condemned like they were.

Overall I just believe Fresh Meat could have been a more interesting read if it had taken under consideratioj that every person has a bit of good and bad within themselves and we should be thaught how to deal with this, not aim to an unreachable ideal.

Review: Musical Chairs

Musical Chairs

By Sheila Levin

book rate: ★★★★★ (5/5) 

Publisher: First Edition Design Publishing

Date of Publication:  December 4th 2014

Genre: Adult Romance, Politics, Drama
Page Count: 262

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis provided (adapted):

Politics - Sex - Scandal - Secrets - Money

In a high-stakes game of musical chairs, there can be only one winner. Roberta Palmer, newly widowed supermodel and Marcia Baker, New York congresswoman are getting ready for the fight of their lives: both are running against each other in the primary for the democratic candidate of the NY senate race. Marcia’s ex-lover, Jake Rubin and Roberta’s step-daughter, Joan Palmer both hold secrets that could mean political suicide for both women. As the secrets threaten to surface which woman will be left standing when the music draws to a close?

Review:

Wow, what a surprise!

I tried to keep an  open mind when starting this book but I had this feeling I would be bored to the bones with all the politics talk and so on... I was dead wrong.

Musical Chairs brings us excellent characters, they are incredily realistic, flawed in the right way and with good sense and rational thoughts but they are also giving very moving life stories and, some of them, even inspiring personalities. (I had a few favourite characters but in an effort to not spoil your reading I will keep to myself. If you're interested anyway leave a comment down below and I will discuss it with you!)

Additionaly the storyline  is very consistente and interesting, it's a book that keeps you wanting to reach the final page and unveil all the secrets. Musical Chairs explores politics yes, but not in a boring way, it keeps you interested and also gives you some knowledge on the subject in case, like myself, you didn't have. It also explores the marital life - good and bad sides - and how these relationships can evolve - flourishing or dying.

Musical Chairs was a very different read but very good nonetheless. Reccomend if you would like to try a different reading subject!

ARC Review: Good Intentions

Good Intentions

By Pembroke Sinclair

book rate: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)

Series: The Road to Salvation

Publisher: Booktrope Editions

Release Date: July 28th 2015

Genre: Young Adult; Paranormal Romace
Page Count: 190

Source: We received a copy of this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

Katie has been through Hell—literally—and discovered that it wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be. In fact, she kind of enjoyed it. She got to be with Josh, found out about her past, and discovered who she wanted to be as a person. Katie didn’t care that her actions went against social norms. She was happy.

But things are changing—again. Wes has come back into her life, and that can only mean trouble. His presence threatens to unravel her new-found happiness. She can’t allow that. She won’t let him back in. Yet, Katie can’t push him away. 

Thrown back into a state of confusion and uncertainty, Katie is once again forced to pick sides, and in the process, she may lose herself.

Review:

Reading a book is an individual experience and therefore two people reading the same book will always have different reading experiences (and the derived feelings and opinions regarding the book). This happened very clearly to me and Isabel while reading Good Itentions.

Isabel points out her discomfort with the writting style, as we have referred in our review of book two, Dealing With Devils, the main character Katie keeps asking questions to herself in her head in a way we didn't consider very natural...

Secondly Isabel was enjoying this series mainly because the main characters weren't the typical type, the female protagonist wasn't a heroine and the male protagonist was a demon capable of loving and worthy of being trusted. Good Intentions disappointed Isabel because in this book Katie choses "the good side" and the demon betrays her showing therefore that he is a typical demon.

I personally only disliked two aspects about this book. Firstly it was slow-paced, there wasn't as much action as I would expect for the conclusion of a triology. Second and lastly, there were a lot of "repetitive thoughts" - as in the characters keeps thinking the same thing and the reader keeps being told that she/he is thinking that - which isn't necessarily bad because it's an excellent way for the reader to accompany the character's development and changes of mind more closely, but I would suggest formulating the thoughts differently so as not to sound so repetitive.

To wrap up we will leave the messages each of us took from reading Good Intentions and also what made us warm up to this story. Isabel enjoyed the "Be careful with who you trust" message and I loved the "You always have a choive; no matter how far you've gone, you can always change paths" message.

Congratulations Pembroke Sinclair on writing this triology, thank you for giving us the opportunity to review it and good luck with future projects!

Review: Night Film

Night Film
by Marisha Pessl


Book Rate: ★★★★★


Brief Introduction (adapted from goodreads):

Everybody has a Cordova story. Cult horror director Stanislas Cordova hasn't been seen in public since 1977. To his fans he is an engima. To journalist Scott McGrath he is the enemy. To Ashley he was a father.

This story starts with the loss of Ashley's life and might end with McGrath's loss of grip on reality.


Review:

If asked to review this book in one sentence I would say "Reminded me what a true 5-star book really is".

Night Film remind me of We Were Liars in the way that you have to go to it without knowing much about the book. The difference between them is just the following: Night Film did not disappoint me, it blew me away.

Talk about gripping, talk about scary, talk about page-turner and though-consumer. This book is all of the above. You'll love and hate with the characters in such an intense way, Night Film will forever have a little spot in your mind.

I don't want to tell more in order to not ruin your experience in case you want to read it. If you do please let me know ;)

Review: Prince of Conjurers

Prince of Conjurers

By Laurie L. Bolanos

book rate: ★★★★★ (5/5) 

Publisher: Nicobar Press

Date of Publication: April 2nd 2015

Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Page Count: 434

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis provided (shortened):

What if the Phantom of the Opera changed his mind after releasing Christine and Raoul?

What if he staged his own death?

What if he intended to claim Christine as his own?

Review:

What a great great read!

Prince of Conjurers is a sequel to The Phantom of  the Opera imagined and written by Laurie L. Bolanos. I've always loved The Phantom very very much, it's one of those classics you keep close to your heart and therefore I went to The Prince of Connjurers with a few reservations... Which was completely unnecessary, as I concluded!

Laurie creates all sorts of different environments and intrigues that will keep you awake at night thinking about how this story will end. You go through so many worlds and prespectives in Prince of Conjurers that it can literally be said "This book is a journey"! A journey through the things you thought you bellieved and the things you thought you didn't. A journey of reflection but also a journey that will keep you on the edge until you reach the last page.

If you've been reading my reviews you know that a few things I really appreciate in a book (and need to be able to say "this was a good book") are:

• Realistic characters, characters you can connect with and that have a rational way of viewing the events they participate in
• A plot that makes sense, no loose strings and details that just don't connect with the story itself
• An unpredictable storyline, if I'm able to guess the whole story while I'm reading the first 3 chapters then I can already said it'll be a 3-star book at the best

Prince of Conjurers did amazingly in all my "requirements" mentioned above. This was the type of book that kept me thinking "This will happen", "Ok, maybe not... Then this will happen", "Ok it didn't either...", "WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN?". All in all, it was amazing and gripping and Laurie just became an auto-buy author for me.

And as if the all the above wasn't enought, I also got to see Erik (the phantom in The Phantom of the Opera, for those who don't know or don't remember) in a different light and to be able to imagine him as more than just the phantom, which was amazing for me!

To sum it all up: 100% recommend. But do read it with an open mind as you'll be signing up for much more than just The Phantom of the Opera, you'll be signing up for a full tour to what you are imagining and what I bet you weren't.

Review: The Here and Now

The Here and Now
by Ann Bashares


Book Rate: ★★★★☆


Brief Introduction (shortened from goodreads):

This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins. 

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth. 

But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves. 


Review:

If you've just read the synopsis: I know it sounds amazing, and if you haven't: it sounds amazing!

But it isn't.

THE PLOT isn't. Please notice I didn't say it's bad, it is not bad, it's just not mind-blowinging fantastic. It's pretty simple and still very very gripping.

"The Here and Now" is a page-turner because of its characters and a reading-experience-changer because of its ending. Prenna is this smart teenage girl that lives in oppression but she's also a fighter. Any reader will be able to see her strenght and loyalty to her sense of justice become increasingly evident throughout the book. All the other character are insteresting in their own way but in my opinion Prenna is the most intriguing, and to be honest I think this only hit me when I finished the book because...

**BEGINING OF THE SPOILER SECTION**
Because she considered it was more important to her to lead her community than to be with the boy she had a crush on. And we never see this in most books, we never see the female protagonist walking away from a realtionship because the path they want to pursue is not compatible with having a romantic relationship. Either they always sacrifice their deepest wishes for being with their other half, or they simply don't have a biggest dream than falling in love.
And this is why I found Prenna so inspiring and refreshing, because she walked away when she thought she should.
**END OF THE SPOILER SECTION**

So all in all, 100% recommend, just don't go into it for the storyline.

Review: Ninelands by K. E. Boyer

Ninelands

By K. E. Boyer

book rate: ★★☆☆☆ (2/5) 

Published by: K. E. Boyer

Date of Publication: April 15th 2015

Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Page Count: 220

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis provided (shortened):

One morning, twelve-year-old Jamie Collins hears strange sounds coming from the attic. Being the son of a wizard and capable of magic himself, this doesn’t seem too odd. But when he goes upstairs to explore, he discovers something totally unexpected: Minkel, a delightful, elfish creature, who intends to take him, his sister and his friends to Ninelands, a place Jamie never knew existed.

Meanwhile Zard—the future head of the Ketch clan of wizards, who are at odds with the Council of Elves—wants to get hold of Jamie for his own dark purposes. Suddenly Jamie finds himself caught in a dangerous web of magic and he must choose whether or not he will train to be a wizard and join his father in the fight against evil.

Review:

"Ninelands" is the first book in the Jamie Collins' Mystical Adventures series and I have quite a lot to say about it so keep reading!

Firstly there's something I really want to get out of the way so let me start with that. This is definetely one of my book pet peeves: characters that talk to themselves... a lot... and in an unrealistic way... It just never sounds right to me, like the character is slightly dumb... But I'm aware it may mean nothing to other readers so I want to make clear that this is just my opinion! Now, I took the liberty of picking an excerpt to better demonstrate my point of view:

"He scratched his head and glanced into the hall.

-Maybe Mom dropped something up in the attic.

But the attic door was closed.

He went to the top of the stairs to listen.

-Mom is down in the kitchen with Megan.

He went back to his room and looked up at the ceiling.

-So what made all of the noises?"

I'm hoping you got my point so lets move on to more important aspects of the book, the characters (apart from the talk-to-self thing) are adorable and I found it impossible not to love them instantly. Now take this super fun kids and put them in this amazing world called Ninelands and you have the potential  to tell a pretty fantastic story! But that's the main problem I found in this book... It just has a lot of potential and never really makes use of it. I felt lik 80% of "Ninelands" sounded more like an instruction manual about how a certain world is and how things happen there than actually about living in that world. I know this is the first book in a series and therefore I expected the rest of Jamie Collins' Mystical Adventures to be incredibly captivating and magical and mind-blowing. But "Ninelands" specifically felt more like the novela before the series than the actual first book to me.

On the other hand, I did really enjoy some ideas this book explores. And to be fair and not just quote an excerpt I dislike from "Ninelands", I will also quote my favourite:

"It all starts with a child's imagination. That is why humans are always coming up with new tools. Or new and better ways of doing things. In your world, children's imaginations grow and magically change to become creative. So that they can invent things as grownups. To imagine something and turn it into an invention for all humans to use is pure magic."

A slow-paced book introducing a possibly adictive and really fantastic series, that's how I would describe "Ninelands".

Review: The Girl on the Train

The Girl on the Train
by Paula Hawkins


Book Rate: ★★★☆☆


Brief Introduction (from goodreads):

Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.

And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…


Review:

I aquired this book with very high expectations (Gone Girl high) and I started reading this book with very low expectations ("this is so not like Gone Girl, total waste of time" my fellow reviewers said). I finished this book not blown away but also not disappointed, I mildly enjoyed it to be honest.

I found it immensely interesting to realise how we sound different in the minds of each person whose life crosses ours, I believe this was the main advantage of reading this 3-prespective narrative about three very (and maybe not so very) different from each other. I found some characters to be more intriguing than I initially had thought they would be but I also felt very frustrated as we got to know better the remaining charcaters.

I can't say the storyline was predictable, it wasn't. But I wasl thought it could be improved regarding certain excerpts. It's far from being a 5-stars story but it's also far from being a 1-star story. A very solid 3-stars book.

If you're feeling like reading a mistery book that will not necessary blow you away but will definitely keep you a good company, then this is it.

Please let me know what you thought if you've read it!

P.S.: Do not go into it thinking it's like Gone Girl, IT'S NOT.

Review: I Want It That Way

I Want It That Way
by Ann Aguirre


book rate: ★★★☆☆


Brief Introduction:

Nadia Conrad is a 21-year-old with big dreams. Between college and her work at the local day care to be able to support herself, she couldn't be more excited to get out of the college dorms and  moves into a new apartment with her closest friends. That's when Nadia meets the distant yet irresistible guy in 1B…

Daniel Tyler has had his life turned upside down. As he tries to balance his personal life with a full-time job and night classes, all he wants when he gets home is silence. The last thing he needed were four noisy students moving into the apartment upstairs. But one night, these neighbors' paths cross and that encouter pretty much changed their lives.

The timing is all wrong—but love happens when it happens.


Review:

"I Want It That Way" was far from being either a great book or a terrible book so this review will be shorter than  usual.

Surprisingly I didn't dislike it as much as I initially thought I would. The storyline was predictable as well as the characters' backstories but there were some elements in this novel that did surprise... Nadia's girl friend and roommate relationship with one of her other friends was very refreshing to read about, the whole development and denouement was totally different from what I expected to read about when I pick "I Want It That Way" up.

Sam, Ty's son was another positive element of this book. HE IS ADORABLE, you don't get it, he's the ultimate embodiment of adorability! Sam was definitly one of the main reasons that kept me hooked on this novel.

I found everything else very predictable, the main characters, the plot, etc, etc. A 3-stars book for me. Would recommend only if you have nothing better to read.

Review: Gone Girl

Gone Girl
by Gillian Flynn

book rate: ★★★★★


Brief Introduction: (adpated from goodreads)

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears. Passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media--as well as Amy's fiercely doting parents--the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter--but is he really a killer? 

Review:

It took me a bit to get into Gone Girl. Maybe it was college keeping me busy maybe I just wasn't all that interested. Truth is, halfway through the book my mind was blown and I became physically uncapable of putting it down.
Gone Girl's plot is supernaturally strong and... well, mind blowing. The characters are consistent and stunningly interesting. I was so very happy Gillian Flynn did such a excellent exploration of the inner self of each main character!
I must also add Flynn's writting style is quite captivating. I loved the way Nick's narrative was mixed with Amy's diary entries, it gave the whole storyline a different and more interesting prespective!
I believe the only not-so-strong point I noticed in the whole book was the lack of a better and closer analysis of the parents/child relationship. It was there, I just think it had a lot more of potential... especially Amy's.
Besides this the only other thing that bothered me was... the ending was not enough... I NEED MORE!

All in all, a book I recommend 100% to those looking for a creepy book to keep you awake at night!

Review: The Maze Runner triology

The Maze Runner triology

by James Dashner

The Maze Runner                      The Scorch Trials                   The Death Cure

book rate: ★★★★☆       book rate: ★★★★☆        book rate: ★★★☆☆

Brief Introduction (from goodreads):

"If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human."
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone.
"Nice to meet ya, shank. Welcome to the Glade."
Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.
"Everything is going to change."
Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.
Remember. Survive. Run.

Review:

I marathoned this triology and its prequel and I'm starting to feel that maybe it was a bad idea. The prequel is excellent and so is the first book in triology. The second book is good, maybe not what I was expecting but still a good book. The Death Cure, the third and last book in this triolidy was the death of the triology for me.

The Kill Order (the prequel to this triology and which review you read here) and The Maze Runner were quick paced and action packed books that kept me on the edge trough the entire story.The characters were very good, incredinbly consistent and the plot was sometimes mind blowing. By the time I finished them I was officially in love with James Dashner for being such a realistic dystopian author. You can actually noticed my adoration for him in my The Kill Order's review!

The Schorch Trials were slightly more slow paced but plot was still interesting and the characters still gripped me.

The Death Cure was a disappointment honestly. It was so much more slow paced than I could ever expect a James Dashner's book to be... Some characters disappointed me, the plot didn't even seem like a plot, everything seemed slightly disconnected and the story looked like it was going nowhere. The ending of the book itself was good, I was satisfied with it, but the development of The Death Cure had so much more potential.

Regardless of my opinion of the third book I still think this is a series worth reading and I will not hesitate to reccommend it. Alhtough I will always be careful to give whoever I reccommend it to (including you guys) a heads-up about the third book.

Review: How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by Sarah Strohmeyer

How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True

By Sarah Strohmeyer

from goodreads:

From Sarah Strohmeyer, author of Smart Girls Get What They Want, comes this romantic comedy about one girl's summer job from hell. Think The Devil Wears Prada set in Disney World.

When cousins Zoe and Jess land summer internships at the Fairyland Kingdom theme park, they are sure they've hit the jackpot. With perks like hot Abercrombie-like Prince Charmings and a chance to win the coveted $25,000 Dream & Do grant, what more could a girl want?

Once Zoe arrives, however, she's assigned to serve "The Queen"-Fairyland's boss from hell. From spoon-feeding her evil lapdog caviar, to fetching midnight sleeping tonics, Zoe fears she might not have what it takes to survive the summer, much less win the money.

Soon backstabbing interns, a runaway Cinderella, and cut throat competition make Zoe's job more like a nightmare than a fairy tale. What will happen when Zoe is forced to choose between serving The Queen and saving the prince of her dreams?

My Review:

I found this book on goodreads by chance. I honestly had no idea what it was about when I started reading it. It was exactly what I was looking for.  A fun and easy read, a perfect in-between book.

The prologue caught right away my attention. It was funny and kind of confusing but I couldn't put it down right from the beginning. What I loved the most about this book was the setting. The princes and princesses, the castles and all the characters I've been familiar with all my life. A book with Cinderela, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty will always add magic to the story no matter how simple the plot is. 

If you've read more of my reviews you know that is difficult for a book to take me by surprise. It's not hard for me to figure out what the big plot twist is. So I was surprised with this plot. I was actually not expecting to happen what happened. I'm not saying it is a mind blowing plot twist, but it was surprisingly nice and unexpected.  I loved that this book, set in a magical world, had such a cute and magical touch. Honestly, it was kind of childish, but I loved it anyway. I'm a sucker for fairy tales.

About the characters, I can't say I cared much about or what happened to them but I still liked them. Zoe was funny, kind and the best best friend in this entire world! If every one had a friend like her the world would be a better place. Ian and Jess were also good characters, although we don't get to see much of them, which I'm sorry for, I wish they were more present. 

All in all, and easy and funny read. If you're looking for something smoothing, this is ideal for you. I honestly don't recommend buying it, but if you find it on a local library or have someone lend it to you, you should give it a go!

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