Review: Spies and Prejudice

Spies and Prejudice by Talia Vance

Book: Spies & Prejudice by Talia Vance 

Expected Publication Date: June 11th 2013 by Egmont

My rating: 5/5 Stars

Genre: YA
Source: Netgalley

*This ebook was provided to me by the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Goodreads Summary:

"Fields’ Rule #1: Don’t fall for the enemy.

Berry Fields is not looking for a boyfriend. She’s busy trailing cheaters and liars in her job as a private investigator, collecting evidence of the affairs she’s sure all men commit. And thanks to a pepper spray incident during an eighth grade game of spin the bottle, the guys at her school are not exactly lining up to date her, either. 

So when arrogant—and gorgeous—Tanner Halston rolls into town and calls her “nothing amazing,” it’s no loss for Berry. She’ll forget him in no time. She’s more concerned with the questions surfacing about her mother’s death. 

But why does Tanner seem to pop up everywhere in her investigation, always getting in her way? Is he trying to stop her from discovering the truth, or protecting her from an unknown threat? And why can’t Berry remember to hate him when he looks into her eyes?

With a playful nod to Jane Austen, Spies and Prejudice will captivate readers as love and espionage collide."

My thoughts:

What a fun book! This was my first ARC to read and I was super excited about it. I discovered netgalley recently and requested A TON of books thinking I might get one or two of them... I got twelve. TWELVE. As escited as I am to have all these books, there is no way I will be reading them all right away because I already have other books to read as well! But anyway, this was at the top of my list of my netgalley books so as soon as I finished the Slammed series by Colleen Hoover, I picked this up! And I am so glad I did! This book is the perfect mix of cheese and suspense which, in my opinion, makes it the perfect summery read :)

Things I enjoyed about this book:

-Such a fun read! I enjoyed this book so much. Especially because the series I just finished, although great, was a very heavy, emotional series. I was in need of a fun pick me up book and this was just it! It had its serious moments, for sure, but every time I was forced to had to put the book down, I was left with a smile while I tried to figure out what would happen next.

-Veronica Mars :)  For those of you who have not heard of Veronica Mars, go look it up now. Awesome TV show starring Kristen Bell (my girl crush) as a teen PI. Anyway, when looking into this book, somebody compared it to Veronica Mars which instantly made me request it on netgalley. I was afraid nothing could live up to the awesomeness of Veronica Mars, and while this is not quite it, it is probably the closest I will find. So for all you Veronica Mars fans out there, please read this! 

-A little bit of everything! I really love when authors include a lot of different elements in their books. Some are just light and fluffy and some are just dark and depressing. This book is a good light summery spy mystery with just the perfect mix of emotion. The light, fun part, all the boy drama, the gay best friend, and cool spy stuff, mix in with Berry, the main character, trying to solve her mother's death and give us the perfect beach book!

Things I didn't like about this book:

-The names, these poor girls. The main character's name is Strawberry Fields and her best (girl) friend is Mary Chris Moss. Clearly these were intentional, and part of me finds it funny, but the other part of me just can't get passed the names. Every time I would read over their full names and not just their nick names (Berry & Mare) my mind was drawn away from the book and to their crazy names. It's really the only problem I had with the book. 

-I kind of lost track of what was happening during the ending action scene. I am thinking this is more of a personal issue, because it happens in all action packed books for me, but I couldn't follow exactly what was happening in the "final battle" as I like to think of it. You know, that scene at the end of all actiony-spy-mystery books where all hell breaks loose and some kind of action packed scene happens? I just lose track of what is happening, and then I get lost and just push through hoping it is all explained at the end. Like I said, probably a personal issue, but it still bothers me! If this happens to anyone else, please let me know so I know I am not alone!

Overall: With the exception of their names and my personal issues, I really enjoyed this book and give it 5 out of 5 stars! If you are looking for a good summer mystery type of book, or if you loved Veronica Mars, please read this. You will love it! It was great and took me no time to breeze through. The only times I put it down were for work and sleep. 

Have you read this book? What did you think about it?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Things to Read When You Need Something Light & Fun

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week a new top ten list is posted for us bloggers to share the books we love and discuss anything book related! To see more details about Top Ten Tuesday click HERE. 

This week's topic is Top Ten Things to Read When You Need Something Light & Fun. I am so excited for this topic! This list could not come at a better time, today was my last day of classes. I have a few exams over the next week, but I am picking out a lot of light summery reads. I plan to explore a bunch of new blogs and read about yalls books so I can add new ones to my TBR list :)

Often when I read, I like to read easy, breezy books that I do not have to think to hard in and can just enjoy! So for me this is almost like making a top ten list. I don't know how I'm only going to pick ten, but I am really going to enjoy this topic! 

Don't forget to comment and let me know what your favorites are, I love to find new blogs to follow and new books :)

Without further ado, my list:

-The Cinderella Rules by Donna Kauffman
-One for the Money by Janet Evanovich
-Love Undercover by Jo Edwards
-The Girl's Guide to (Man) Hunting by Jessica Clare
-Bass Ackwards and Belly Up by Elizabeth Craft
-The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter 
-Avalon High by Meg Cabot
-The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
-Blue Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas 

Yes, I know this is only nine books. It looked better with 9 than 10 so, yeahhh...

What books are on your top ten list of things to read when you need something light and fun?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up A Book

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week a new top ten list is posted for us bloggers to share the books we love and discuss anything book related! To see more details about Top Ten Tuesday click HERE. 

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up A Book. This was actually a pretty hard topic for me but here is what I came up with:

1) ROMANCE. I love anything with romance. It's my weakness, I am a stereotypical girly girl when it comes to this. I get all fan-girly and gush over it. It's just so great :)

Some examples:

-Walking Disaster by Jaime McGuire

-Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James

-The Selection by Kiera Cass

2) Mystery. I'm not really into the dark scary mysteries, although I'm sure they are great, but the goofy comedies or pretty much anything with romance (get used to it, it will probably be mentioned in every topic).


Some examples:
-The Stephanie Plum Series by Janet Evanovich  
-The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter know, I know, not actually a mystery but the whole book I was trying to figure out who was killing everyone!)



3) Angels. This seems so cheesy when I write it down, I don't know why. Maybe I am still coming to terms with how much I like certain paranormal topics, but this is one of them. I don't have a whole lot of books on this subject yet, but I am always on the look out for a good series about angels.

Some examples:
-Hush, Hush Series by Becca Fitzpatrick
- Fallen Series by Lauren Kate





4) Princesses. Seriously guys, I really want to be a princess. Not an actual princess, with responsibilities and junk but a real life version of a Disney Princess. Like Jasmine or Mia from The Princess Diaries. How cool would that be?

Some Examples:
-The Selection by Kiera Cass (this one might pop up a few times, because its my current series and I'M LOVING IT!)
-The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot - I actually only read the first 5 of these but they were great, as was the movie!



5) Dystopian. The Hunger Games was probably my first dystopian book and I loved it! Great way to get introduced into the genre :) I love the futuristic, anything can happen feeling you get from them.

Some examples:
-The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - obviously
-The Selection by Kiera Cass - lets see how many times I can mention this book in this post ;)
-Divergent by Veronica Roth



6) Magic. I have not read too many books that just have straight up magic in them, but the ones I have read I always love. This is another topic (like Angels) that I am always looking for another good book from.

Some examples:
-HARRY POTTER by J.K. Rowling- am I the only one who reads this is an accent? ...maybe some of you naturally talk with this accent?? Consider yourselves luck, I'm from Texas. I don't have a heavy country accent, but its nothing to be excited about
-The Gemma Doyle Series by Libba Bray (A Great & Terrible Beauty, etc.) - I read these a while back, but I LOVED them!

7) Bad Boys/Forbidden Love. Yes, I get that this falls under the romance category.. but I had to get more specific. I really enjoy reading about a bad boy. I don't know what it is, it just gets me. Probably half the books I read these days have a bad boy or forbidden love in them. Ugh... so good.

Some examples:
-Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
-Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
-Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James




8) College. Since I am a college student I find I am able to relate to characters in college and really enjoy those books. I feel like these books are rather few and far between, or maybe I just have not found them yet, so I always get crazy excited when I find one.

Some examples:
 -Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James- Yes this book is on here a ton. It's one of my favorites. When I first read about this book, I honestly just thought it would be a slightly steamy romance about a girl graduating college. I had already convinced myself I had to read it before I knew what it was about. And boy am I glad
-A Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

9) Comedies.  The other topic that is right up there with romance is comedy. I love a good laugh. And reading a book and busting out laughing? The best.

Some examples:
-Wallbanger by Alice Clayton- Even though the end of this book really let me down, the first half of this book had me laughing so loudly at completely inappropriate times. Like in class... I should probably rethink reading in class.
-The Stephanie Plum Series by Janet Evanovich


10) Vampires. Im pretty picky about vampire books, but there are so many to chose from that you can always find a great one out there!

Some examples:-House of Night Series
-Twilight *not series, only the first book... the rest were crap*
-The Morganville Vampire Series - I have not actually read these, so I probably shouldn't even mention them. But they are on my list and I am soooo looking forward to reading them, I just had to include them!

What are some topics or words that make you pick up a book??

Review: The Goddess Inheritance

You guys, I need summer break NOW. I have been so busy with school, that I couldn't even remember if I had done this review or not. I can't wait for school to be out. Anyway, here is my review for The Goddess Inheritance!

*DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE PREVIOUS BOOKS*

Book: The Goddess Inheritance by Aimee Carter (Goddess Test, #3)
Published: February 26th 2013 by Harlequin Teen
My rating: 4/5 Stars

Goodreads Summary: 

"Love or life.

Henry or their child.

The end of her family or the end of the world.

Kate must choose.

During nine months of captivity, Kate Winters has survived a jealous goddess, a vengeful Titan and a pregnancy she never asked for. Now the Queen of the Gods wants her unborn child, and Kate can't stop her--until Cronus offers a deal.

In exchange for her loyalty and devotion, the King of the Titans will spare humanity and let Kate keep her child. Yet even if Kate agrees, he'll destroy Henry, her mother and the rest of the council. And if she refuses, Cronus will tear the world apart until every last god and mortal is dead.

With the fate of everyone she loves resting on her shoulders, Kate must do the impossible: find a way to defeat the most powerful being in existence, even if it costs her everything.

Even if it costs her eternity."

Alright guys I LOVED this book! Heres why:

-KATE IS PREGNANT! (This is in the summary so I'm not ruining anything :) And usually I can't stand it when younger characters get pregnant and we have to read about all the changes (like in Breaking Dawn, world's worst book ever). This book is not about her being young and pregnant or her struggle through her pregnancy. It's about her struggle to save her family. Which has pretty much been the same story from the beginning, it just evolved. But I usually don't like pregnancies in books, I'm not sure why, I just don't. But I did not have a problem with this book. I loved it!

-It, like the others in this series, kept me guessing! I cannot predict what Aimee Carter is going to write next, and I love that! I don't mind predictable books as long as they are entertaining but I get really excited when I read one that I cannot predict. It keeps me guessing and I can't put it down!!

The reason I gave if 4 and not 5 stars:

-This is the only problem I had with the book, but I am so tired of Kate sacrificing herself. This part was pretty predictable  but other than that I couldn't guess anything! But come on Kate, talk to your husband and try to solve things, not just giving yourself over to the enemy. Annoying. 

Overall: I really enjoyed this series. I am sad it is over, but really happy at the same time with how it ended. These books sent me on a roller coaster of emotions, but in the end I loved it :) You guys should read this if you have not!

Have you read this book? What did you think?

Review: The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter 

Book: The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter (Goddess Test, #1)
Published: 2011by Harlequin Teen
My rating: 4/5 Stars

Goodreads Summary:


"It's always been just Kate and her mom - and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear that her mother won't live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld - and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy - until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride and a goddess.

If she fails..."

Things I really loved about this book:

-It may have been just me but for the most part I didn't know what was going to happen. I had my theories (I was even right about one thing!) but I didn't know how the book was going to proceed. So of course I HAD to keep reading. I was up until 3 AM the day I started this book because I was so anxious to see what happened next! Then I finished it the next day!
-I know some of you are probably thinking "Amber, this book isn't even 300 pages. Why is that such a big deal?" I love to read, and am willing to drop everything to read a good book, but that fact is.. I am a slow reader

-Greek mythology was a really nice change of pace for me. A lot of the books I read are either your typical chick lit book, or paranormal (vampires) or dystopian. I read so many of these books because I really do love them. But sometimes, I just need something new. And for me this was it! I loved it :)

Things I did not enjoy about this book:

-The main problem I had with this book was that it would skip HUGE amounts of time. Something big would happen and then the next paragraph would be a few weeks later. No tests were mentioned. We just skipped ahead with no warning to a new time period. In the end, I think it made sense. The book does cover 6 months, so to cover that amount of time in less than 300 pages, I get the need for it, now. But as I was reading it drove me nuts!

Overall: I really did enjoy this book. I read it in about 2 days which is saying a lot for me because not only am I a slow reader, but I also have work and school to keep me busy. I have read the iBooks sample of the next book, Goddess Interrupted, already and plan to really get into it tonight!

Did you read this book? What did you think about it?

Waiting on Wednesday (#1)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. Each wednesday, this meme highlights upcoming books that we are excited about!

Here are the books I can't wait for:

Untitled (Divergent #3) by Veronica Roth


"What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The explosive conclusion to Veronica Roth’s #1 New York Times bestselling Divergent trilogy reveals the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent."

Why I am excited: Come on guys, it't the final divergent book!! After finishing Insurgent, I just sat and stared into space for a good 15 min trying to decide what to do next. Ugh, waiting is killing me. And this is all the information they are giving me?? I can't even get a title?? LAME.

Expected Release Date: October 22, 2013

The Heist (O'Hare and Fox #1) by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg


"FBI Special Agent Kate O’Hare is known for her fierce dedication and discipline on the job, chasing down the world’s most wanted criminals and putting them behind bars. Her boss thinks she is tenacious and ambitious; her friends think she is tough, stubborn, and maybe even a bit obsessed. And while Kate has made quite a name for herself for the past five years, the only name she’s cared about is Nicolas Fox—an international crook she wants in more ways than one.

Audacious, handsome, and dangerously charming, Nicolas Fox is a natural con man, notorious for running elaborate scams on very high-profile people. At first he did it for the money. Now he does it for the thrill. He knows that the FBI has been hot on his trail—particularly Kate O’Hare, who has been watching his every move. For Nick, there’s no greater rush than being pursued by a beautiful woman . . . even one who aims to lock him up. But just when it seems that Nicolas Fox has been captured for good, he pulls off his greatest con of all: he convinces the FBI to offer him a job, working side by side with Special Agent Kate O’Hare.

Problem is, teaming up to stop a corrupt investment banker who’s hiding on a private island in Indonesia is going to test O’Hare’s patience and Fox’s skill. Not to mention the skills of their ragtag team made up of flamboyant actors, wanted wheelmen, and Kate’s dad. High-speed chases, pirates, and Toblerone bars are all in a day’s work . . . if O’Hare and Fox don’t kill each other first."

Why I Am Excited: I just found this searching through some upcoming releases, and I can't express how excited I am for this series! I LOVE the Stephanie Plum series by Evanovich, and this sounds awesome! I can't wait to read this new series from her!

Expected Release Date: June 18, 2013

Hotshot by Julie Garwood


"Peyton Lockhart and her sisters have inherited Bishop’s Cove, a small, luxurious oceanfront resort, but it comes with a condition: The girls must run the resort for one year and show a profit—only then will they own it.

A graduate of a prestigious French culinary school, Peyton has just lost her job as a food critic. Out of work and in a bad place personally, a year doing something completely different sounds wonderful.

There are countless challenges and too many people who want to stop the sisters from succeeding. Among them are Peyton’s contentious cousins, who are outraged that they didn’t inherit the resort, as well as a powerful group of land developers who have been eyeing the coveted beachfront property.

It’s soon apparent to Peyton that their efforts are being sabotaged, but she refuses to let the threats scare her—until she’s nearly killed. She calls on her childhood friend and protector, Finn MacBain, now with the FBI, and asks for his help. He saved her life once; he can do it again."

Why I Am Excited: Why not be excited about this? Its got a beach resort, a hot FBI agent, a mystery, and romance! This is for sure my kind of book. I will definitely be reading this when it comes out. This sounds like a perfect summer read :)

Expected Release Date: August 6, 2013

What upcoming books are you guys excited for?