Review and Giveaway: Shallow

Thanks to AToMR Tours for allowing me to participate in the Going Under and Shallow Tours.  Below you will find a link to the tour list and other sites should definitely visit!

Shallow by Georgia Cates

Going Under #2 

September 21, 2012 - Amazon  Digital Services

261 pages - Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary Romance

http://www.georgiacates.com/

Facebook:  Yes

Twitter:  @GeorgiaCates

Source: Author via AToMR Tours

Read what this book is about here.. 

I received a digital copy of this book, free, in exchange for my honest review. 

I didn't struggle with the review for this one as much as I did with the first book, Going Under. In fact, I think that Payton Archer and Nick Hawke made better main characters than they did secondary characters.  Their personalities were a lot stronger and they were instantly more likable.  I also enjoyed getting a different perspective on Jessie and Claire, and realized that they looked so much better through Payton’s eyes.

This was a cute romance, one that I could honestly describe as sickly sweet. At moments it was over-the-top and other times it was that nice warm and fuzzy sweetness.  The whole fall-in-love instantly doesn’t gel with me, but I won’t hold it against the book.  After the sappy-happy ending in Going Under, I was kind of hoping for a darker ending.  The possibility was there and honestly, a darker ending would have totally bumped the rating for me. But I didn’t get my wish.

I can’t say that I loved this story or that I have even found a series I will definitely continue with. But I did like the story for the most part. Not to give anything away, there was a part in here that bothered me, the moment that they really should have walked away from each other.  (I think it bothered me more because it was never addressed again in the story.) The two biggest issues I have would be that it was too similar to the first book and again, there is a big confusion of lust for love.

Payton and Nick’s forceful personalities redeemed this book in so many ways and made it that much more enjoyable.

3 Stars ***
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Click here for more tour information!
Always Shine, 

Starr K 

Review: Going Under and Giveaway

Thanks to AToMR Tours for allowing me to participate in the Going Under and Shallow Tours.  Below you will find a link to the tour list and other sites should definitely visit!

Going Under by Georgia Cates

Going Under #1

Georgia Cates – March 10, 2012

347 pages- Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary Romance

http://www.georgiacates.com/

Facebook:  Yes

Twitter:  @GeorgiaCates

Source: Author via AToMR Tours

Read what this book is about here.

I received a digital copy of this book, free, in exchange for my honest opinion.

                I am going to tell you this only because of the promise of being honest, no matter what.  Negative reviews don’t make me happy.  Good reviews don’t make me happy. They only tell you of the overall experience I had with a book.  They don’t give you moment by moment reactions.  This is the third review I have written for the same book. Yes, third.  The first one was “negative”, but it didn’t capture everything because there were parts I enjoyed.  The second one was “positive” but it felt as if I overlooked what bothered me about the story.  So here we are, round three.   

                I did enjoy this story, really I did.  Jessie and Claire’s bantering back and forth was humorous, and their sexual tension were at moments over the top and other times dead on.  Looking back at my high school years, before teachers and administration started cracking down on PDA, some of the scenes were classic and would be seen everywhere. Others not so much.  Forbes tended to come off as a little bit psychotic to me. For me it was odd that no one really seemed to be bothered by it -not even the adults that were aware of his tendencies.  I like Jessie for the most part, though I can't say that he made a believable drug dealer. Yes, it's not what he wanted to do but he says it's what he knows. Maybe it was the lack of interaction he had with drug deals.  The only time where there is a scene with him attempting to make a deal is at the end, which only served as a catalyst for the conclusion.

                Claire and Jessie’s relationship was more of the insta-love variety so it lacked depth. This didn’t bother me so much from Jessie’s perspective, but it irritated me to no end coming from Claire.  A part of me wonders if the intensity stems from her trying to make contact with something more stimulating then Forbes, or her being a virgin. (Though from her constant mischievous behavior you wouldn't know she's a virgin.) The ending made the insta-love worth it.  A part of me was like “of course!”  But another part of me had to smile at the ending.  That was the odd thing about this book,  I was pulled into the story and at the end had a warm feeling.  But I am not gung-ho over this book and that may be because I was hoping for a darker ending. Regardless, it was an overall enjoyable experience.

Recommendation: YA Romance fans will enjoy this.  Though my feelings are mixed, I still think it’s worth checking out.

What’s Next?  Shallow

3 Stars ***

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Click here for more tour information!

Always Shine, 

Starr K 

Mike Lawson's House Divided

House Divided

Demarco is back and this time he was able to get in trouble without his boss.  Mahoney is in the hospital and Demarco had plans to use this time to catch up on some long needed golf and relaxation.  His cousin, Paul, dies in a questionable manner and Demarco’s attempt to simply find a will or be the executor of Paul’s estate turns into a race to find out what really happened to Paul. Demarco is not the only one who wants to know the truth about Paul’s death.  Demarco finds himself in the middle, one side is trying to find him to find out how much he knows and the other side wants to use him to get more information.

                I am a fan of political thrillers; really I am a fan of any book that can pull me into its world. It doesn’t matter if it’s a world saturated with werewolves and vampires or if it’s the world of Washington and Congress.  This unfortunately fell flat, and to be honest struggled with this book; until the end where the action kicked into high gear and began a race against times and assassinations.  The lingering impression I got from Demarco was that he didn’t care about his cousin’s death, even after he got the scent that something was wrong. Two-thirds of the book Demarco wasn’t interested in doing anything except finding Paul’s will so he could go back to playing golf.  He also didn’t seem to be too overly concerned that his boss, Mahoney, is laying in the hospital in a coma.  I haven’t read any of the other Demarco novels, but the impression that I get is that he is the one that usually gets Mahoney out of trouble, which gives me the impression that if nothing else Demarco is a resourceful character.

Lawson does a good job of depicting extreme patriotism and asking the question of whether or not it can go too far. I can’t say if that was his intention or a thread that I picked up on. There are certain people in the government that are patriotic and will do absolutely anything to protect their ideal of the country, even if it is not government approved. Charles Bradford and Dillon Crane both fall into this category; the extremes that they go through put them in the league of terrorist; the very people that they are out to destroy.  Though they both hold powerful positions within the government, they have either forgotten or not heard Franklin D. Roosevelt.  “In a democratic nation, power must be linked with responsibility, and obliged to defend and justify itself within the framework of the general good.” (Franklin D. Roosevelt) It is admirable that they both desire to protect America by whatever means necessary, but they have each lost sight of the values and character that define America.

Though I struggled to finish this book more than any other, I am glad that I pushed through and made it to the end. It is a scary idea to think that “big brother” is watching, and it is odd how paranoia comes into play and alters our perceptions. But they added elements to this story that made the ending truly better than I had expected. I also recommend reading the author’s note at the end for more appreciation. If you want to know more about Mike Lawson, Joe Demarco and any other books you can check out his website at www.mikelawsonbooks.com. This titles is scheduled to be released July 5,2011.

I have received a copy of this title through netGalley and I have provided an honest review.

Always Shine,

Starr K