Hey guys I'm back and now that the frequency of rain is so slight I feel sad to say good-bye to it... But here are some awesome books I've read in all these days!
My One and Only by Kristan Higgins
My rating: 3.46 of 5 stars
Kristan Higgins has a special flare and style that's individual and yet somehow reassuringly normal with all those contemporary romance elements and flow, when combined is successful. For me, each book of hers that I've graduated to, has become only better as a read and that's high praise for a contemporary romance from me. Too Good to Be True was disconcertingly familial in it's theme with not much romance but there was a solid, earthy, grounding quality to the main characters and the secondary ones. She has a sort of formula for the books, mixing family and romance with an almost unnoticeable ease. This story was a curve-ball since I forgot the synopsis and when I started reading the note from the author as the foreword was rather dour and sharp.I expected the usual cliche that a girl with commitment issues meets that naive and tame but romantic guy who ultimately makes her believe in love (because she doesn't believe in love, obviously! )
In the end yes, it was a stereotypical ending but those characters were amazing! They had (along with the plot) such potential and I was excited to read it. I became entrapped in the Harper-Nick romance (Jeez, even their names seem sorta 'meant to be'!!!) I DID NOT expect the guy to be an ex-husband, an architect, a person with just as many flaws as the next one and so real ! This story grew close to my heart with so many reasons for it! Harper is at times frustrating, right, acceptable, the usual combination of smart, beautiful, witty, sympathetic to be a character and easy to understand. I absolutely loved her for three-quarters of the book because she was real and human and a woman not simply some flat character to whom situations happen. A ball-buster at her profession (divorce-attorney- cliche but apt), jaded, cynical upto a point and a realist to another, she made me feel that the most cynical people always but always hope for the best the most earnestly. The irony was bitter-sweet. Harper had abandonment issues regarding her mother that seriously messed her up, coupled with the inability to communicate was a major point in the reasons for her marriage to fall apart. The thing is Higgins weaved it so that I was extremely sympathetic to her. Her birth mother is a jealous-of-her-own-daughter, shallow, selfish bitch. Now when you're a kid you aren't really fit to judge or draw conclusions about a person especially when you grow up with that person as you're somewhat 'conditioned' to believe the best of said person. Harper's need to feel her mother's love or win it is sympathizing... Nick is the first character of a con-rom that felt realistic as opposed to one-dimensional and 'too good to be true' guy... Apart from the expected 'hotness' which is boring, his character is developed to some extent. I liked that Higgins wrote in reality. Marriage isn't some 'happily-ever-after' with the traditional 'wooing' done to just get over with. It needs work, communication, will, from both sides, forgiveness, understanding, support, give n' take and even if it's cliche and not completely dependent- love. I wish you could just get a warning or know about things before a marriage and avoid all the obstacles but that's impossible and thus fake. No matter how hard you try there'll be misunderstandings, regrets, mistakes, disgruntlement, bickering, fights, clashes of personalities, and more problems. The important thing is what you choose to do during and after encountering them.
There were certain things I disliked in this story which hindered a 4.5 rating...
1. 'Ball-buster' Harper becomes a stammering, nervous idiot more times on a pivotal occasion (I suspect it's for plot flow, Higgins has to add more elements rather unnecessary to keep the plot on the move...) which adds pointless drama.
2. The 'Dennis proposal' was souring and cramped the flow to me...So disappointing. I was aghast that Higgins dared to ruin the story like that!
3. Harper became flat after the mentioned proposal and that was an out n' out flaw.The storyline was fantastic until that unnecessary event. Did Higgins wanna prolong the story?
This book is highly recommended even for people who don't really like con-rom/ chic-lit. The family element is noteworty. There's always due stress on it in Higgins' books which I appreciate. In this there's no huge tight-knit family and yet the dysfunction worked great. BeverLee and Harper's dad were amazing. When Harper opened herself up there was her security net to catch her fall if she was off-balance. In the beginning BeverLee didn't make much of an impression being the distant step-mom but under Harper's realisation I came to like her. Her dad was really interesting cuz when your bitch of a wife leaves you wihtout warning and your girl's her clone and 'seems' closer to her, you find it hard to communicate with said daughter.
So yes, this was great for 80% and then went 'Blech'!! But still you should read it.
View all my reviews
There's a new series I discovered that is plain awesome- Karina Halle's EXPERIMENT IN TERROR series and hope everyone reads this!!!
Darkhouse by Karina Halle
My rating: 4.36 of 5 stars
Wow! Whatever I expected from this it wasn't what I got in the end!!! To tell you the truth I read sins and needles and my expectations were very low coming into the Experiment In Terror series. But I have to say, why isn't Halle doing more 'supernatural' books? She can obviously rock them and I've never read better horror books than hers (although I'm sort of a beginner) But it doesn't matter because I have a feeling I'm not gonna find better books than this series out there.
Halle starts off thrillingly and eases into the 'supernatural' part of the story fast and comfortably... I fell in love with her writing - her descriptions, the atmosphere- building, the suspense, the gore (although not much), the banter and dialogue between the characters.
Perry Palamino and Dex Forray are NOT your typical couply sorta stereotypes nor is the supernatural stuff they encounter. This is the biggest highlight of the book/series. I'll take up Dex Forray first- He's different for me than any other guys from other books. He is real, mysterious with a capital M, broody (nothing more broody has lived the earth!), secretive, strange and 'charming'... But he's not the main focal point of it! Of course it's Perry Palamino!! I haven't read a more thorough or kick-ass heroine in forever! Everyone should read this book if not for the supernatural stuff then entirely for Perry!!!! God, she's awesome! I loved that she's so independent, self-assured (except for her insecurities about her looks but that's another point), able to protect herself, real, and I loved that she's not one of those 'perfect' girls with modelesque bodies... I sympathized with her insecurities regarding her body and that was one of the points that made her real.
I loved the pace, the story, the writing style, the characters, the setting, the reality, the psychological thriller style in the writing, and I have a feeling this series is gonna be one of my favourites despite it being horror/supernatural/psychological thriller and me not reading much of that genre. Halle shines through as an author through this book. The only serious and 'thorn in my pleasure' sorta complaint is that Halle stressed or pressured me to like Dex and there was too much weight and time over Perry's attraction to him- I rolled my eyes so many times at that and yes, it was mentioned more than enough times which disrupted the 'real' feeling of the story and it was a given that they'll be a romantic pair...
View all my reviews
My One and Only by Kristan HigginsMy rating: 3.46 of 5 stars
Kristan Higgins has a special flare and style that's individual and yet somehow reassuringly normal with all those contemporary romance elements and flow, when combined is successful. For me, each book of hers that I've graduated to, has become only better as a read and that's high praise for a contemporary romance from me. Too Good to Be True was disconcertingly familial in it's theme with not much romance but there was a solid, earthy, grounding quality to the main characters and the secondary ones. She has a sort of formula for the books, mixing family and romance with an almost unnoticeable ease. This story was a curve-ball since I forgot the synopsis and when I started reading the note from the author as the foreword was rather dour and sharp.I expected the usual cliche that a girl with commitment issues meets that naive and tame but romantic guy who ultimately makes her believe in love (because she doesn't believe in love, obviously! )
In the end yes, it was a stereotypical ending but those characters were amazing! They had (along with the plot) such potential and I was excited to read it. I became entrapped in the Harper-Nick romance (Jeez, even their names seem sorta 'meant to be'!!!) I DID NOT expect the guy to be an ex-husband, an architect, a person with just as many flaws as the next one and so real ! This story grew close to my heart with so many reasons for it! Harper is at times frustrating, right, acceptable, the usual combination of smart, beautiful, witty, sympathetic to be a character and easy to understand. I absolutely loved her for three-quarters of the book because she was real and human and a woman not simply some flat character to whom situations happen. A ball-buster at her profession (divorce-attorney- cliche but apt), jaded, cynical upto a point and a realist to another, she made me feel that the most cynical people always but always hope for the best the most earnestly. The irony was bitter-sweet. Harper had abandonment issues regarding her mother that seriously messed her up, coupled with the inability to communicate was a major point in the reasons for her marriage to fall apart. The thing is Higgins weaved it so that I was extremely sympathetic to her. Her birth mother is a jealous-of-her-own-daughter, shallow, selfish bitch. Now when you're a kid you aren't really fit to judge or draw conclusions about a person especially when you grow up with that person as you're somewhat 'conditioned' to believe the best of said person. Harper's need to feel her mother's love or win it is sympathizing... Nick is the first character of a con-rom that felt realistic as opposed to one-dimensional and 'too good to be true' guy... Apart from the expected 'hotness' which is boring, his character is developed to some extent. I liked that Higgins wrote in reality. Marriage isn't some 'happily-ever-after' with the traditional 'wooing' done to just get over with. It needs work, communication, will, from both sides, forgiveness, understanding, support, give n' take and even if it's cliche and not completely dependent- love. I wish you could just get a warning or know about things before a marriage and avoid all the obstacles but that's impossible and thus fake. No matter how hard you try there'll be misunderstandings, regrets, mistakes, disgruntlement, bickering, fights, clashes of personalities, and more problems. The important thing is what you choose to do during and after encountering them.
There were certain things I disliked in this story which hindered a 4.5 rating...
1. 'Ball-buster' Harper becomes a stammering, nervous idiot more times on a pivotal occasion (I suspect it's for plot flow, Higgins has to add more elements rather unnecessary to keep the plot on the move...) which adds pointless drama.
2. The 'Dennis proposal' was souring and cramped the flow to me...So disappointing. I was aghast that Higgins dared to ruin the story like that!
3. Harper became flat after the mentioned proposal and that was an out n' out flaw.The storyline was fantastic until that unnecessary event. Did Higgins wanna prolong the story?
This book is highly recommended even for people who don't really like con-rom/ chic-lit. The family element is noteworty. There's always due stress on it in Higgins' books which I appreciate. In this there's no huge tight-knit family and yet the dysfunction worked great. BeverLee and Harper's dad were amazing. When Harper opened herself up there was her security net to catch her fall if she was off-balance. In the beginning BeverLee didn't make much of an impression being the distant step-mom but under Harper's realisation I came to like her. Her dad was really interesting cuz when your bitch of a wife leaves you wihtout warning and your girl's her clone and 'seems' closer to her, you find it hard to communicate with said daughter.
So yes, this was great for 80% and then went 'Blech'!! But still you should read it.
View all my reviews
There's a new series I discovered that is plain awesome- Karina Halle's EXPERIMENT IN TERROR series and hope everyone reads this!!!
Darkhouse by Karina HalleMy rating: 4.36 of 5 stars
Wow! Whatever I expected from this it wasn't what I got in the end!!! To tell you the truth I read sins and needles and my expectations were very low coming into the Experiment In Terror series. But I have to say, why isn't Halle doing more 'supernatural' books? She can obviously rock them and I've never read better horror books than hers (although I'm sort of a beginner) But it doesn't matter because I have a feeling I'm not gonna find better books than this series out there.
Halle starts off thrillingly and eases into the 'supernatural' part of the story fast and comfortably... I fell in love with her writing - her descriptions, the atmosphere- building, the suspense, the gore (although not much), the banter and dialogue between the characters.
Perry Palamino and Dex Forray are NOT your typical couply sorta stereotypes nor is the supernatural stuff they encounter. This is the biggest highlight of the book/series. I'll take up Dex Forray first- He's different for me than any other guys from other books. He is real, mysterious with a capital M, broody (nothing more broody has lived the earth!), secretive, strange and 'charming'... But he's not the main focal point of it! Of course it's Perry Palamino!! I haven't read a more thorough or kick-ass heroine in forever! Everyone should read this book if not for the supernatural stuff then entirely for Perry!!!! God, she's awesome! I loved that she's so independent, self-assured (except for her insecurities about her looks but that's another point), able to protect herself, real, and I loved that she's not one of those 'perfect' girls with modelesque bodies... I sympathized with her insecurities regarding her body and that was one of the points that made her real.
I loved the pace, the story, the writing style, the characters, the setting, the reality, the psychological thriller style in the writing, and I have a feeling this series is gonna be one of my favourites despite it being horror/supernatural/psychological thriller and me not reading much of that genre. Halle shines through as an author through this book. The only serious and 'thorn in my pleasure' sorta complaint is that Halle stressed or pressured me to like Dex and there was too much weight and time over Perry's attraction to him- I rolled my eyes so many times at that and yes, it was mentioned more than enough times which disrupted the 'real' feeling of the story and it was a given that they'll be a romantic pair...
View all my reviews
My rating: 4.55 of 5 stars
Perry Palamino and Dex Forray are back with another supernatural mystery to film on their Experiment in Terror web show. This time the danger gets even more life-threatening and they have to trust each other even more to get through it. They travel to a Navajo town Red Fox in New Mexico. A converted couple is tortured by 'hallucinations' with windows being stoned at and wild animals slinking through, sheep being mutilated in front of their house and more strange happenings. There are more terrible and dangerous beings maybe closer to the place where they're living. I loved the story yet again and I didn't think I would get so lost in the characters or the plot and feel deeply for them. This book is at least three steps ahead than the first in all it's quotients of paranormal, action, strange animals, thrill factor, horror and gore with the amazing psychological thriller round of swords. I didn't think it possible but I fell more in love with all the things defining it... For me though there was the usual stress on the Dex attraction from Perry which I hated and it maybe was mellowed by Maximus entering the picture and yet I wasn't convinced with that as well because Max seemed strange and not a contender or potential romantic interest at all... His presence was really short and left unsatisfied with more questions than answers and a bucket load of ulterior motives... Dex is his usual ass-hole self with the broody mysterious air going on but we see more of him exactly as described- alive. He seems more involved here. The bond between Dex and Perry is tortuous for me and a little 'Blegh' as it's expected. I can already state that he'll break her heart but then will have some bull shit epiphany that she really is the one and go back and yes, the most frustrating bit- she'll take him back.... I wanna scream at the romance bits... that is the only ONLY thing keeping me from giving this a full 5 stars!
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
OH GOD!!!! That cover itself is so so so so eerie, creepy, fitting and heart-stopping that I couldn't wait to get started!!!! Ever since I read 'Darkhouse' I can NOT stop reading this series and this is the third book on the third day!!!! I was literally scrambling to get these on my ipad... This, for me, has become a book where the crux of the whole series is . As usual, Halle starts with a suspenseful piece from Perry and I can NOT read it fast enough! This is so far the BEST book from the series. Perry and Dex are back to kick the ghostie-asses and the location could NOT be more apt!!! Their destination is an isolated island near British Columbia where Chinese lepers were ignored by the government to eke out their existence.
This in itself gave me a sorta chilling warning of things about to come but you'll be surprised that the whole problem is a two-part deal and another entity is responsible for any real mind-fucking and scariness. On this island, Dex and Perry's fragile undeveloped bond will be severely tested to the point of being frayed. Their biggest enemy is themselves and if they don't trust each other then they're gone- dead. They don't have much truth about the island to rely on and head into it somewhat blind. It is indicated right from the first book that both of them have so many demons to handle and keep some sanity intact. So these very points come into factor here to pit them against each other. On one hand you can see that they want to deepen their relationship and know each other, especially Perry and they do get to do this but on the other the distrust is palpable and more in presence between them.
The setting is so extremely thorough and set so concretely that you can't doubt it. There is too much a spine chilling element in the whole atmosphere of the island that you get lost in it and you actually feel it and for this Halle is really commendable. Even though most horror readers/ movie-watchers must already have encountered such scenes and feelings, you can't help but get pulled into the writing and that atmosphere once again ensnares you wholly. The gore is racheted up here and that is one of the factors making it so good. Her descriptions are so gritty and scary. I loved that. The plot was good and most of the elements came together flawlessly and I have to say, the whole Dex-Perry, ummm, thing came to some sorta head and I didn't really mind it, you could say it helped the plot as well which was surprising!!!
This book is the highlight of the whole series for me. There is not one thing that ticked me or rubbed the wrong way. The whole book, you keep feeling there's something wrong in the picture and when it finally comes into light you feel amazingly triumphant...
If not for the rest of the books you've gotta read tis series for this one!
This in itself gave me a sorta chilling warning of things about to come but you'll be surprised that the whole problem is a two-part deal and another entity is responsible for any real mind-fucking and scariness. On this island, Dex and Perry's fragile undeveloped bond will be severely tested to the point of being frayed. Their biggest enemy is themselves and if they don't trust each other then they're gone- dead. They don't have much truth about the island to rely on and head into it somewhat blind. It is indicated right from the first book that both of them have so many demons to handle and keep some sanity intact. So these very points come into factor here to pit them against each other. On one hand you can see that they want to deepen their relationship and know each other, especially Perry and they do get to do this but on the other the distrust is palpable and more in presence between them.
The setting is so extremely thorough and set so concretely that you can't doubt it. There is too much a spine chilling element in the whole atmosphere of the island that you get lost in it and you actually feel it and for this Halle is really commendable. Even though most horror readers/ movie-watchers must already have encountered such scenes and feelings, you can't help but get pulled into the writing and that atmosphere once again ensnares you wholly. The gore is racheted up here and that is one of the factors making it so good. Her descriptions are so gritty and scary. I loved that. The plot was good and most of the elements came together flawlessly and I have to say, the whole Dex-Perry, ummm, thing came to some sorta head and I didn't really mind it, you could say it helped the plot as well which was surprising!!!
This book is the highlight of the whole series for me. There is not one thing that ticked me or rubbed the wrong way. The whole book, you keep feeling there's something wrong in the picture and when it finally comes into light you feel amazingly triumphant...
If not for the rest of the books you've gotta read tis series for this one!
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
THAT COVER!!!!!!!!!!!!! If possible it's better than Dead Sky Morning (repeat: If that's possible!) After that third book I was slightly intrigued about the Dex-Perry relationship and to say it was sketched in relief, here is an understatement. This book is about them and the ghosts in Dex's past. That's it! I wouldn't have thought that Halle would dedicate so much writing to Perry-Dex but here it is. I loved that Halle kept up the gore factor on par cuz I was afraid she would let it slide down. I didn't think it possible to love Perry more than I already did but in this one I do, with each book that love growing, is a serious accomplishment of Halle. For me, Dead Sky Morning is still the best followed by Lying Season then Red Fox.
In Red Fox we learnt that Dex's ex-girlfiend is an important part of his demons and here she's back with a vengeance. For Dex this is one hell of a development because ghosts even unknown are shit scary but one that you know can really fuck up your mind. Perry on the other hand is grappling with her attraction (that's so OBVIOUS for the whole world to see except of course, Dex which is the most frustrating thing EVER) and Dex's ghosts making appearances. Throughout this book I was wondering why Dex is so pig-headed and selfish and LAME. Suffice it to say I HATED HIM and I have a feeling I won't get over that hate as fast as Perry and I can announce truly that this romantic twist was predictable and terribly ruining. I have to be talking about this because half the book is filled with Dex-Perry. The thing I never understand is why Dex is with Jennifer all this time. He really does seem bi-polar because through Perry's eyes he's somewhat caring, funny, 'charming', 'captivating' and everything that he is attracts her (this I hate in every book that I've read! Why does their have to be some 'cosmic' connection and every ass-hole thing the guy does is okay with the girl?!) I hated that no matter how bad Dex behaves Perry seems to get over it and still feel herself growing attracted to him! This is a stereotypical romance requirement which I hate with intense ferocity. It's better to read the chapters pertaining to every book from Dex's POV in The Dex Files and I did just that which still didn't help with understanding him because if he really had the described feelings then there were no earthly reasons to behave like he did but these are all plot twists to stretch the story longer which are COMPLETELY unnecessary (for me). Jennifer is the predictable bitch who cheats and treats her boyfriend like dirt giving nothing into the relationship (if it can be called that!) They are just fuck-buddies for me with the label of superficial relationship stamped on them and if Dex really felt all that he did for Perry then he would have gotten on with Perry not Jennifer solely due to unselfish reasons but he is selfish, extremely. So of course he is the ass-hole. I personally would have not at all notched up Perry's attraction to him this much because really, I don't see much in Dex. But there are slight times when he has some few redeeming qualities but only in previous books. In this one, he acts nothing but like an ass-hole ( it's such a small word that doesn't do justice to his behaviour at all.) All the times when Jennifer jabbed at Perry and acted like a bitch the stupid man was silent and brushed all that under the rug... He claims his feelings for her and yet does not utter a peep in front of Jennifer (it's not like she's an amazing girl in love with him, too) all for a stupid selfish reason of not wanting to 'change' things and needing stability. I completely sympathize with the wish to feel stability and being scared of 'change' but see, what he has is definitely not stability. He doesn't see that at all and it's like he wants to hurt Perry and keep living in an imaginary world!!!!! If he can't recognise the stability in Perry then he really is in vain. I have a feeling I'm never gonna like him again but that's fine I've always been TEAM PERRY .
Even with the predictability of the plot and stuff that disgruntles me, I still like the series and am excited to read the next one!!
In Red Fox we learnt that Dex's ex-girlfiend is an important part of his demons and here she's back with a vengeance. For Dex this is one hell of a development because ghosts even unknown are shit scary but one that you know can really fuck up your mind. Perry on the other hand is grappling with her attraction (that's so OBVIOUS for the whole world to see except of course, Dex which is the most frustrating thing EVER) and Dex's ghosts making appearances. Throughout this book I was wondering why Dex is so pig-headed and selfish and LAME. Suffice it to say I HATED HIM and I have a feeling I won't get over that hate as fast as Perry and I can announce truly that this romantic twist was predictable and terribly ruining. I have to be talking about this because half the book is filled with Dex-Perry. The thing I never understand is why Dex is with Jennifer all this time. He really does seem bi-polar because through Perry's eyes he's somewhat caring, funny, 'charming', 'captivating' and everything that he is attracts her (this I hate in every book that I've read! Why does their have to be some 'cosmic' connection and every ass-hole thing the guy does is okay with the girl?!) I hated that no matter how bad Dex behaves Perry seems to get over it and still feel herself growing attracted to him! This is a stereotypical romance requirement which I hate with intense ferocity. It's better to read the chapters pertaining to every book from Dex's POV in The Dex Files and I did just that which still didn't help with understanding him because if he really had the described feelings then there were no earthly reasons to behave like he did but these are all plot twists to stretch the story longer which are COMPLETELY unnecessary (for me). Jennifer is the predictable bitch who cheats and treats her boyfriend like dirt giving nothing into the relationship (if it can be called that!) They are just fuck-buddies for me with the label of superficial relationship stamped on them and if Dex really felt all that he did for Perry then he would have gotten on with Perry not Jennifer solely due to unselfish reasons but he is selfish, extremely. So of course he is the ass-hole. I personally would have not at all notched up Perry's attraction to him this much because really, I don't see much in Dex. But there are slight times when he has some few redeeming qualities but only in previous books. In this one, he acts nothing but like an ass-hole ( it's such a small word that doesn't do justice to his behaviour at all.) All the times when Jennifer jabbed at Perry and acted like a bitch the stupid man was silent and brushed all that under the rug... He claims his feelings for her and yet does not utter a peep in front of Jennifer (it's not like she's an amazing girl in love with him, too) all for a stupid selfish reason of not wanting to 'change' things and needing stability. I completely sympathize with the wish to feel stability and being scared of 'change' but see, what he has is definitely not stability. He doesn't see that at all and it's like he wants to hurt Perry and keep living in an imaginary world!!!!! If he can't recognise the stability in Perry then he really is in vain. I have a feeling I'm never gonna like him again but that's fine I've always been TEAM PERRY .
Even with the predictability of the plot and stuff that disgruntles me, I still like the series and am excited to read the next one!!
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