Jazmine Marie

this is where i wish goodreads did half stars cause i'd really give it a 3.5 stars. overall, i liked that story, but it was incredibly slow throughout the whole thing. even when the plot picked up a bit, it still took a long time to get to the end. now would that deter me from recommending it? no. just know that it's a slower read.

SPOILERS

main character: river simone
the guys: gage, ash, knox, and priest

summary: 
river has a list of names, and only the last one hasn't been crossed off. she's getting revenge for something that happened to her when she was younger. this is how her path crosses with the guys. she's just killed someone who gave her bad intel outside of their club (sin and salvation), and gage (the so-called leader) is not happy about it. they don't want whatever shit she's got going on being brought to their front door step. so of course, he carts her off to their big mansion and throws her down in their basement “dungeon”. after she meets priest (the stoic, quiet one that hates her), knox (the crazy, blood-thirsty one), and ash (the manwhore), they decide to let her go. but, than gage changes his mind and thinks they can help one another, but she's gotta be under their watchful eye to do so. and then ya know, things happen (both of the revenge and sexual nature). oh, and all with her lovely companion dog by her side.

my thoughts:
overall, not a bad start to the series. usually, our heroines stumble their way into death and mayhem which river does, but she was already kinda there from the start. she isn't a stranger to being a killer, and of course, she's a solo act. it was kinda refreshing to see that she already had her own kind of badassery that she brought to the table rather than it being given to her cause of circumstance...although, i guess you could say that her situation previously was the circumstance that led her to being this way, so you know...anyway, i liked river a lot. she was headstrong and took no shit, which you gotta love. i love that by the end she takes on dog as her own even though she doesn't want to admit that makes her happy. the spice was good! i don't think i could've asked for better spice. the really enjoyed the guys–we had the usual leader, stoic, quiet guy, blood-thirsty monster, and comic relief. the cliffhanger was somewhat predictable, but i can't wait for the next book to see what they do with “hannah”.

SPOILERS

main character: iris 
the guys: silas, baron, and gabriel

summary:
the book starts off with iris and a body guard talking as they're beginning to have sex. she lets us know that her dad has recently been keeping her in the house on lockdown, but she doesn't know why. as they're about to start doing the deed, the body guard is shot in the back. iris is found by her father, where he begins trying to flee. right as they make it to the garage, iris' dad is shot. his last words are to find silas black. after iris flees, she makes her way to silas' house for refuge. their she's introduced to gabriel (silas' adopted son) and baron (silas' biological son) before being introduced to silas himself. he agrees to let her stay for a month to get back on her feet, but she wants more: revenge. through some trials and tribulations, iris ends up staying longer (later, for good) and makes a lot of changes in the house.

my thoughts:
i feel like i always start off reviews by saying, “it was good.” which is always true, and i'm not good with words. again, the same could be said for this book. i thought the beginning was explosive, but it quickly flatlined. it wasn't that it lost its pace, but the plot just seemed to plateau pretty quickly. it eventually picked up again towards the end, but just barely. i liked that it was a quick read, but i could've used a bit more plot development before iris jumped into the sex. and don't get me wrong, that's what i read these books for, but i also like plot. i did like the character development of all of the guys though. character development is key to whether i'll like something or not. and again, we had the reverse harem trio: strongest connection guy, comedic relief/the quickest to fall for the girl, and the “i hate you, but that'll turn around at some point”. 3 stars from me, dudes!

i adored this book so much. it was gentle, and kind, and comforting, and sweet. the characters were so emotionally intellectual–they constantlt considered the feelings of everyone around them. it allowed children to be who they are and be equal with the adults around them. i love bobbie so much–she reminds me so much of myself. and i loved the voice of the narrator when she spoke. it was as if she was my friend telling me a story. this is my favorite book of the year so far.

i always find the first book of any series a bit slow– they usually are. it takes a bit to build up the new world you're heading into, but this one was a bit on the faster side. it opens with a bang (teehee) from the moment you begin reading. i genuinely found myself coming back as often as i could to keep reading cause i needed to have more. right away, i found myself rooting for keyla because she was funny and relatable. no, i'm not a ghost who can't be seen, but unlike other protagonists (who i still adore), she was kinda quirky and awkward and that resonated. but, she's also very forward and honest– she knows what she wants. and i'm just as intrigued about the boys. and of course, i need them to hurry up and get their heads out of their asses and realize how much they need and want keyla. i'm definitely invested in everything.

again, movie before the book– blah, blah, blah. and again, i was surprised at how different the book is from the movie. there were similar things, but in different orders and as separate adventures. overall, i did like the book, but i found it the hardest to get through of all of them so far. it was a tedious read because there didn't really seem to be a point for their adventure. there wasn't any character development, nor was there really any character interaction to begin with. it all seemed to be about the plot which seemed unfinished from the get go. other than having Caspian and the Pevensies meet again, i couldn't understand why they were trying to find the seven missing lords. at least they were trying to make it to the end of the world, but really, why? Eustace had some character development, but really just told us this rather than showing it through the actions. there was too much tell and not enough show in this book. also, why have Caspian want to go with Reepicheep without some sort of reason. he just seemed to act like a brat which doesn't seem to fit his nobility. also, everyone's goodbyes were so trivial. i just feel like, they've built such a strong bond from Prince Caspian to Dawn Treader, why wouldn't they have made the goodbyes more reflective. as a whole, it was a good book, but it left me wanting more compared to the others.

dayuuuuuuuum...like, seriously? this book was hot as hell. as a fanfiction reader, the plot wasn't anything i haven't already read, but i still really liked it! of course, love a powerful woman, being loved and appreciated by some hot ass men. i mean, yes, they're all crazy and sadistic, but at the end of the day...it's a twisted little love story. wholly unrealistic, and yes, infuckingsane. there is absolutely nothing that should be read here and make a person want this for themselves. and towards the end, i could've used less sex and more just getting to the end of the book. i get bored reading about that when it's every other paragraph. just finish the damn thing.

main character: elise callisto
the guys: leon, dante, ryder, and gabriel

summary:
so, elise's brother (gareth) has been murdered, and she wants answers. she's interrogating this gang member lorenzo who's high on killblaze (the drug that's highly potent and what killed her brother, supposedly). he kills himself instead of giving her answers cause he knows what would happen should he snitch. elise is now going to aurora academy which is where her brother went, and she's sure that of the four kings are responsible for his death. two of them lead the gangs at large in the city. dante; who runs the oscura gang, and ryder; who runs the lunar brotherhood. one is a notorious thief who comes from a family of thieves: leon. and the last is an incredibly powerful harpy who has two elemental powers: gabriel. and they're all intrigued and enamored by her. but, she's gotta keep them all close to determine who killed her brother. also, there's this weird cult group called the black card, and she's pretty sure they have something to do with her brother's death too.

my thoughts:
so this book is really good and super interesting! i'm really invested in the plot, and i'm constantly coming up with my own conspiracies for who killed gareth. at one point, i really thought they were all involved. they all have motive. gareth stole from leon, he's working for both dante and ryder, and he's blackmailing gabriel. it'd make sense, but the last bit of the book makes me think otherwise. i feel like it has to be the black card. he could've been drugged like elise and killed himself like she witnessed the other dude do. i love how this book keeps you on your toes! one minutes you think you have it figured out and the next, you've got to change up what you thought. as heroines go, elise is a GOOD one. she is powerful, independent, and a total badass, but you can see that she has some vulnerability that she's hiding. and surprisingly, all of the guys bring it out of her in different ways. i'm highly invested in her character development and the evolution of her relationship with the guys. and speaking of the guys, i love them. although, they all give me whiplash, as i'm sure they do for elise too. they all have such a duality to them that actually makes them more interesting than the usual reverse harem boys. they aren't just bad guys or good guys who are interested in our heroine; they seem to have their own stories to tell also. i can't wait to read more!

SPOILERS

main character: ML (1050) otherwise know as emelle
the dudes: ronak, evert, sylred, and okot

summary:
emelle has been summoned back to cupid headquarters cause she's not doing her job (obviously). the head honcho cupid decides she needs to be terminated...this ends in a scuffle with emelle the new madame cupid. with this, she finds out she's got a couple other veil major/minor powers, new friends lex and sev, and needing a way back to her mates. after some cupid changes, she's sent back, but things have seriously changed. she doesn't know where her beaus are at, apparently, the princess is dead, and the prince is on a rampage. she's got a laundry list of things to do: save the princess, find her dudes, get one of said dudes out of his feral state, and help the big rebellion against the prince— what could go wrong?

my thoughts:
i am truly obsessed with this whole series. from start to finish, it had me hooked and wanting more constantly. i loved emelle as a heroine; she's funny, quirky, badass, and sweet. i thought that these books were fast reads that didn't give up the plot too easily though. it really was just well written. and of course, we have our usual reverse harem guys: hates on sight, comedic relief/doesn't take to long to join the team, and sweet guy (in this case guys) who are sweet right away. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!

the moment i laid eyes on this book, i knew that i had to read it. as a bi mexican woman, i'm always looking for representation–ya know, a mirror instead of a window. and it really did that, i was able to relate to the main character's struggle, to cesar's struggle; i felt really connected. i figured i'd be giving this book a full five stars, but alas i only gave it 3. it had nothing to do with the content; it was the writing that fell a little flat for me. the beginning half seemed a bit all over the place with the latter half being a bit stronger. i still felt like the emotional depth didn't always hit the mark because it was rushed. at some points i even felt like it was a far-fetched dream that it happened the way that it did. i don't mean that it needed to be sad and miserable at the end, that yami and bo shouldn't have gotten their happy ending, but where it tried to get real it quickly put in place a fairy tale.