That Wedding (That Boy #2)
by Jillian Dodd
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 2 stars

(From Goodreads) The gorgeous engagement ring on my finger mimics my happiness.I feel so sparkly, glittery, and full of promise, because I absolutely know he's that boy.
The boy I want to marry. My prince. My happily ever after.

But then our pastor starts asking lots of questions.
His parents say I haven’t dealt with my past.
I have horrible wedding disaster dreams.
I can’t find the perfect dress.
I have to manipulate him to get my way.
An old boyfriend asks me to run away with him.
My best friend says I'm going to ruin everything.
And forever starts to sound like a really long time.

Which totally freaks me out and makes me question everything I know.

Should best friends get married?
Will my past affect our relationship?
Are my horrible dreams a warning?
Will I ever find a dress?
Could his sexiness be clouding my judgment?
Am I going to ruin everything?
Or is it just a case of cold feet?

And then I have to decide. Am I willing to give up on true love forever, or am I going to listen to my heart and marry him

It was just okay. There were very few things I really enjoyed about this book.

"All I ever dreamed about was marrying a prince, but that was really as far as I got. To me, it was all about finding the right boy. I guess I sorta thought once you found the guy, the wedding just sort of fell into place" I love this quote, I think it's beautiful and should be the attitude given more often in today's world. The person you are marrying should be the most important part of the day.

As of about the 30% mark I stopped enjoying it so much. If it wasn't on my kobo throwing it would have been very tempting! I can no longer empathize with JJ at all. She has become a self-centered bitch who has no idea how to deal with conflict, or anything for that matter, when she is not getting her way. Her opinion is the only one that matters and anyone whose opinion differs is stupid and has no idea what they are talking about. Phillip has stopped being as sweet and is beginning to make fun of things she says and share them with others as well as he is beginning to start arguments. This last part would be okay if JJ wasn't so incapable of talking about things. The only good thing at this point is the conversations with Danny and Lori. This remains a problem for so much of the book.

The good things? It ended. Okay, it wasn't quite that bad and there are a few redeeming things near the end. I did love Jadyn's views on fairy tales, I found that humourous and true. I think reading her rewrite of a fairy tale would be quite entertaining.

"You are my best friend, my love, my life, my princess" I loved their vows, they were beautiful and so true to the characters.

So while there was not all that much I enjoyed in this book it was not the worst I have read. The first one was definitely better.

Magic in the Blood

Magic In the Blood (Allie Beckstrom #2)
by Devon Monk
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating: 4.5 stars



(From Goodreads) Working as a Hound-tracing illegal spells back to their casters-has taken its toll on Allison Beckstrom. But even though magic has given her migraines and stolen her recent memory, Allie isn't about to quit. Then the police's magic enforcement division asks her to consult on a missing persons case. But what seems to be a straightforward job turns out to be anything but, as Allie finds herself drawn into the underworld of criminals, ghosts, and blood magic.



I absolutely loved this! This is Book Two in a very promising UF series. I will do my best to keep it spoiler free but if you have not read the first one what are you waiting for!?

Allie Beckstrom is a strong-willed woman who is not good at asking for help but she's learning. She does a solitary job in the form of hounding. The dangerous of the job makes close friendships difficult at best so other than her best friend who we don't get to see in this book she's a bit of a loner with acquaintances but not really anyone she considers closer. She's the type of heroine I root for, she grew up in a home where she was expected to be what her father wanted of her and nothing more. She fought this and has made a life for herself. She gets hurt. Badly and often but she is one tough cookie. She never quits and fights for what she believes is right. I find her easy to cheer for although like all characters she has her moments when I want to yell at her for not accepting or asking for help when she so obviously should!

I love the magic system in this series, if you want to use magic it uses you back. If you forget to set a disembersment it uses you however it pleases if you do you have some say in what it does. For example a two day headache. I enjoy that there is a negative to using magic. Too many worlds these days forget to add this in. Unlucky people like Allie occasionally get used twice, the second being in the form of memory loss. This can make for interesting conversations when you no longer remember who someone is or what they may have meant to you.

The main plot point is based around the release of Lon Trager a criminal who Allie helped put away. As well as the way the magic is changing, both in her body and in the surrounding area. The story line in this one is introduces us to the deeper effects of blood magic and the whys of people becoming addicted to it. Also we get let into the hounding world learning more about hounding culture per say. A bunch of new characters are introduced some of whom I hope stick around for some time to come!

This is a well-written highly enjoyable series. There are times when the pacing may be a little on the slower side but it's nothing to complain about it my opinion!

That Boy

That Boy (That Boy #1)
By Jillian Dodd
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 4 stars



(From Goodreads) That Boy is a contemporary romance about falling in love with the boys next door.
You know, being friends with two cute boys does have its benefits.
There's Danny. Danny is a golden boy in every way. He has dreamy blue eyes and blonde hair that always looks perfect, even when it’s windblown or been stuck under a football helmet. He’s the boy every girl crushes on. The boy I get into trouble with, the boy I fight with, the hot quarterback no girl can resist, not even me. Being with Danny is like being on an adventure. He has a bright, contagious smile and abs to die for. He’s pretty much irresistible.

Equally crush worthy is Phillip. Adorable, sweet Phillip, who I have known since birth. Phillip has dark hair, a perfect smile, brown eyes, and the sexiest voice I have ever heard. He’s the boy I talk to every night before I go to sleep. The boy who rescues me, the boy who can read my mind, the boy who is always there for me, the boy who tries to keep me out of trouble, the boy who irritatingly keeps getting hotter, and whose strong arms always seem to find their way around me. And when he gives me that grin, I can never say no.

One boy will give me my very first kiss.
One boy will teach me to make out.
One boy will take me to prom.
And finally, one boy will ask me to marry him.
They will both be my best friends.
But only one of them will be the boy I fall in love with.
Only one of them is That Boy.



A solid 4 star book. This book was a surprise for me I expected to like it but I did not expect it to grab a hold of me like it did. I was made to feel so many things while I was reading this. It really picks up at about the 40-45% mark and from that point on it was hard for me to put down. I want to have someone who loves me like he loves her!

First of all, I love that JJ is such a tomboy. I have always been that girl playing football with the guys and have pretty much always had closer male friends than females so it was great to read about someone like that as well. I loved seeing her grow up and fall into a friendship with these two amazing guys. I read on someone else's review how much better it would have been to have a chapter or two from the perspective of Danny and Phillip. I agree with this I think it would give the story a bit more depth and allow the reader to better understand why JJ is so special to them.

I also like that it is written in a way that is not your typical YA love triangle. While there are two separate guys who love JJ there isn't that need for her to pick one over the other that most YA books seem to have these days. While she has feelings for both they progress in a logical and more realistic way. She dates other guys and does stupid things that we all have done or will do while we are young.

"Come to think of it, enjoying a ride on a swing is very much like stopping to smell the roses" This story was also a good reminder that we need to enjoy the little things and not take them for granted. It may have taken JJ some time to really grasp this but she tried and grew and came to see the small things as the most important pieces of our daily lives.

My biggest pet peeve was the nonstandard English use of the word drug as a past tense for drag. It bothered me every time I read it. However that is just personal preference. Otherwise the story was pretty well done, it did drag a little bit in parts which is why it gets four stars rather than five. I'd recommend this book, it is most definitely a worth while read. I own That Wedding and will be reading it shortly

Neophyte

Neophyte (Linked #1)

by Emmalee Aple
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Rating: 3 stars

(From Goodreads) Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lies her Link had been keeping start crumbling away, exposing a whole new world of dangers she didn’t even know about. 



Now Addisyn must fill in the blanks before things escalate too far. Will she save her Link? Or will she be buried in their secrets forever?

Its a pretty good book and definitely worth a read. Angels are not my thing but it is still enjoyable. The premise and characters are interesting. I particularly liked Hunter and his loyalty to Addisyn. There is action right at the start and it continues on pretty well throughout the book. How little Addi's link tells her about being an angel does get a bit repetitive. Also her whining gets to be a bit on the extreme side although I understand her frustrations.

Something I loved about the book was learning how Addisyn died and would like to know more about how it is decided who gets reincarnated as angels. The basic idea is shown but I think it would be interesting to learn more. Another thing I found enjoyable and different was Addi and Grey's secret code to identify themselves.

My biggest issue is there are still some editing problems, these tend to take away from the story. Improper usage of words is very frustrating for me as a reader and there are currently some of those issues in this story as well as general spelling and grammar mistakes. I do look forward to reading more from this author who also happens to be a great friend