Friday 21 October 2016

We Awaken by Calista Lynne

Title; We Awaken
Author; Calista Lynne
Publisher; Harmony Ink Press
Publication Date; 14th July 2016
Source; Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review
My Rating; 2*s
Description;  Victoria Dinham doesn’t have much left to look forward to. Since her father died in a car accident, she lives only to fulfill her dream of being accepted into the Manhattan Dance Conservatory. But soon she finds another reason to look forward to dreams when she encounters an otherworldly girl named Ashlinn, who bears a message from Victoria’s comatose brother. Ashlinn is tasked with conjuring pleasant dreams for humans, and through the course of their nightly meetings in Victoria’s mind, the two become close. Ashlinn also helps Victoria understand asexuality and realize that she, too, is asexual.

But then Victoria needs Ashlinn’s aid outside the realm of dreams, and Ashlinn assumes human form to help Victoria make it to her dance audition. They take the opportunity to explore New York City, their feelings for each other, and the nature of their shared asexuality. But like any dream, it’s too good to last. Ashlinn must shrug off her human guise and resume her duties creating pleasant nighttime visions—or all of humanity will pay the price.



My Review: My thoughts about this book mostly centre around the word "meh." I feel like it was kind of...boring. It may have only been 180 pages but I struggled a little to get through it

There were also things I did not agree with at all, especially with Reeves, it was too easy, too simple. This book wasn't for me but I would give Calista's other books a try.

The characters did have much going for them... Ellie could have been way more understanding and I just...feel like the book fell short. It has a great premise, I was hoping for a wonderfully magic story...but it wasn't what I got this time..

It was also just so fast, so so fast. Days and you're in love? No. Not at all.

Monday 10 October 2016

Clancy of the Undertow by Christopher Currie

Title; Clancy of the Undertow
Author; Christopher Currie
Series; Stand Alone
Source/Format; eBook, from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher; Text Publishing
Publication Date; November 16th 2015
Goodreads Average Rating; 3.92*s
My Rating; 3*s
Description; We’re sitting there with matching milkshakes, Sasha and me, and somehow, things aren’t going like I always thought they would. We’re face to face under 24-hour fluorescents with the thoroughly unromantic buzz of aircon in our ears and endless flabby wedges of seated trucker’s arsecrack as our only visual stimulus.

In a dead-end town like Barwen a girl has only got to be a little different to feel like a freak. And Clancy, a typical sixteen-year-old misfit with a moderately dysfunctional family, a genuine interest in Nature Club and a major crush on the local hot girl, is packing a capital F.

As the summer begins, Clancy’s dad is involved in a road smash that kills two local teenagers. While the family is dealing with the reaction of a hostile town, Clancy meets someone who could possibly—at last—become a friend. Not only that, the unattainable Sasha starts to show what may be a romantic interest.

In short, this is the summer when Clancy has to figure out who the hell she is.



Review: I have no idea what to say about this book. I didn't love it. I didn't hate it. The word meh kind of encompasses my feelings about the entire book...

It was rather...predictable at times. You average lesbian novel written by a seemingly straight white man. With words such as queer used as a slur. Not so happy about that... Also, don't really expect a happy ending, or any kind of ending really. I feel like it was just a bunch of different plot lines leading to an open non ending...

Like I said it wasn't a bad book, it just felt a little...predictable at times for me. And nothing really felt resolved for me. It definitely kept my attention, it's the first time I've read a single book in just over a day in little while, but I'm just entirely unsure whether I would personally recommend it. There has been a lot of love for it over on goodreads, maybe it's just me, but I feel like it's a book you need to form your own opinion on.

All of the characters were flawed, but Clancy feels sort of like an unreliable protagonist because she at times can be a little dramatic... I didn't hate her character though.

It is set in Australia which I did enjoy...

Sunday 9 October 2016

Review: The Color of Love by Radclyffe

Title: The Color of Love
Author: Radclyffe
Series: Stand alone
Source: Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher: Bold Stroke Books
Publication Date: July 12th 2016
My Rating: 4.75*s
Description: Literary agent Emily May is in danger of losing everything she’s worked for—her job, her home, her friends, and the security she provides her older sister back in Singapore—all because she doesn’t have a green card. Racecar enthusiast, high-flying, fast-living Derian Winfield is called home when the only family member she still cares about falls ill. Forced into assuming a role in her father’s dynasty she’s spent years avoiding, Derian needs to rehabilitate her black sheep reputation in a hurry or the agency will likely end up being lost in a takeover. Together, she and Emily take on Derian’s father and his hatchet woman, and in the process, Derian comes up with a plan to solve both their problems. Now she only needs to convince Emily to marry her, a perfectly reasonable solution to all their troubles, or so she thinks. She just hadn’t counted on falling in love.

Review: This is the first ever book I have read written by Radclyffe...which I find surprising considering how much femslash fiction I have been reading over the past few months. Radclyffe's name appears a lot in the lesbian fiction categories on both amazon and goodreads so when the opportunity to review one of her books arose I couldn't wait to dive in.

Granted, this review is a few months late as I did have an advanced copy.

This book felt like a quick read and it was always very easy to fall back into the next day after putting down the night before, even though I didn't really want to put it down.
I loved the characters and that although at first the story, and their romance, seemed a little fast the characters themselves were slightly self aware of this and kind of fought it. It wasn't all rainbow and sunshine and lollipops. It made the story have more depth.

Emily and Dere were sweet together and I like that they came together because of someone else they both love. It is easy to form quick bonds in the face of an almost tragedy.
The supporting characters were great. I love Ron and HW and I even found myself liking Aud, who I wasn't too sure of at first. I also found it great that the problems and the tasks they had to overcome were more based in life than within the actual relationships.
I would have liked Derian to meet Pam though...just a little bit.

If you are looking for a sweet, kind of fast, romance with great characters I would recommend this book, and I absolutely cannot wait to try more of Radclyffe's books. If her other books are anything like this one I can see her quickly climbing up my favourite author's list.