Megan @ The Book Babe's Reads

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You remember how I said that I was devouring this series? I was. I was really enjoying it, averaging a book a day - until I got to this one. For whatever reason, I just read this one so much slower - and I didn't like this one as much as the others in the series.

Now that Daemon has Katy, obviously the angst is gone - and that's a nice thing. I kind of thought that we would see more of them as a couple in this one - and while that did happen, the moments were just too few and far between for my taste.

And don't get me started on the introduction of a new character - Dawson was... interesting, I guess. I wanted to like him, I really did. But I feel like as a character, Dawson didn't really get the development that I hope for in all characters. As in all of these books, development of Daemon won out in the end. That's where my problems truly start - I think that the other characters should get better personalities too! I WANT MORE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

And in other news, DAWSON IS CREEPY. I want to like the boy, because he's related to Daemon... but I just find him creepy. I don't even know why I do, but... he is. So many things happen that make me sort of doubt the boy, but I guess I'll have to keep reading to find out... and I'm not so sure that I want to do that anymore.

I feel like the longer this series goes on, the less unique the plot becomes. It just seems like it's dragging butt now, so I can't imagine what it'll be like with a few more books! The ending wasn't even surprising at this point.

All in all, Opal disappointed me. It wasn't as good as the first two books in the series, and I don't really know if I'll continue reading it now.

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I'm going to come right out and say that The Titan's Curse was probably my least favorite of the series. I think I have a little something called "third book syndrome" because the third is always my least favorite. I mean, it would make perfect sense. I skipped the "second book syndrome" gene... I got something much worse. But enough about me and my genes.

We came here to talk about the book, so I'll begin. Probably my biggest problem with this one was that there was no precursor. I felt like the beginning was lacking - just thrown into a secret mission I know nothing about? Jeez, I'm confused now. All of the others at least had some hint of what was going on. Not to mention the fact that Annabeth goes missing about a chapter in... and Percy without Annabeth? Well, he's a little bit off. I think that Annabeth really balances Percy out, so without her around to mediate, he was kind of... impetuous, but also... a bit sad.

And I just missed Annabeth - she's a big part of the books for me, so with out her there it kind of fell apart. I did like the introduction of new characters, though. Nico, Bianca and Thalia all have a great part to play, and each has a distinctly different personality. I enjoyed Thalia's fiery attitude and headstrong ways; a few times I was even sure that her and Percy were going to outright battle over something!

There were several unexpected twists, and a few expected ones. I had my suspicions about Bianca and Nico - it turns out that in the end, I was right. All in all, The Titan's Curse is my least favorite of all the Percy books, but obviously it holds information that is important to me.

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My happiness with this series continued right into this book - once again, we start out with a wonderfully action-packed beginning that thrusts us right back into Percy's world. And I loved it! Immediately, stuff was happening and the plot was twisting and Percy was Percy...

Speaking of Percy, I really do like him. There's something sweet about his personality, and I like the fact that he's so loyal to all of his friends. He would do anything to save them all, and I just think that he's a brave boy. I also like that he seems older in this one - he's growing throughout the books, and there's nothing better than that in my opinion.

I also liked that we get to meet a new character in this one - be prepared for Tyson, y'all. You will fall for his sweet little cyclops self. He's just so precious! There is a bit of drama associated with him, but believe me it's barely a blip - and he overcomes it with his adorable big puppy dog-ish-ness.

I loved the new quest - it seems like every book is going to have a different quest, and I'm not gonna lie - I'm super excited about this! It's like the perfect blend of nerdiness + fantasy for me. I mean, Greek mythology AND quests? There will never come a time when that isn't awesome!!

Let's talk about Percabeth, though. Let's really talk about it - nothing has really happened, but OMG. I want it to happen so bad, it's like I'm dying for it! I definitely definitely ship it, and I'd be the kind of person to push it on them. IT NEEDS TO HAPPEN. Like, really.

AND THE ENDING. It's a cliffy, y'all. Be prepared to immediately reach for the next book, because you're going to need it!

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I'm not going to lie here - the reason that I put off Percy for so long was because of the hype surrounding this series - I mean, we have buckets and buckets of fans. I don't even know if there's any haters, and let's be honest here - I tend to be a naysayer. But I'm super happy to tell you that I actually really enjoyed The Lightning Thief! But first, a quick backstory: Nitzan has been trying to get me to read Percy FOREVER. She was just telling me how awesome it was and everything else - and then, suddenly, whenever I looked at Pinterest, there were headcanons for Percy everywhere. And there were words on them, so I HAD to read them... and I became slightly obsessed. Then there was a discussion on Twitter, and the #PercyPowWow was born... that is the story of how I came to read Percy Jackson.

Now that I've cleared things up with y'all, let's start back at the beginning. I liked this more than I expected to! For some odd reason, I had this idea that I wouldn't really care for Percy as a character. Maybe because he's a guy, or because he's a pre-pubescent guy... whatever. Turns out that he's really great, though! Percy is just so snarky and lovable.

He loves his mom, and I actually think that he seems pretty smart. Flighty, yes. But still smart. I liked that he read like a twelve year old boy - it was nice that he matched up, and wasn't too mature or immature. I also liked the relationships that he formed with the other characters throughout. I loved his friendship with Annabeth & Grover, and I can't wait to see where those relationships will take him in the future!

Another thing that I liked about The Lightning Thief was the ridiculous jokes and the over-the-top plot twists throughout the book. I laughed out loud (hysterically) a few times, that's for sure. And every single plot twist - as ridiculous as they were - somehow made sense. Anyone who can fit pieces like that together most definitely gets my vote.

I liked the never-ending presence of the Greek gods, and the explanation for how they came to be in America. I, for one - have pretty much questioned every myth retelling ever, because of the fact that they all take place in America. It was WONDERFUL to have an explanation for once!

All in all, The Lightning Thief really was a fun read. I'm enjoying the series so far, and I can't wait for shipping Percy and Annabeth. Also, can't tell you how disappointed I am in the movie now.

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For Onyx, I was still at the point of devouring this series- they were just a lot of fun to read, and I was enjoying myself. Like I said in my review of the first book, I feel like Katy is just a filler character. I don't really feel her development, and I don't particularly care for her, to be honest. She's just sort of there. And no, I'm still not really all that sold on her being a "book blogger".

I do still think that Katy & Daemon's chemistry is awesome, and in this one the heat was really turned up! Their chemistry was smoking, and while I didn't really care for the angst angst angst side of the story, it did make the chemistry more fun. I was totally telling Katy that she should just give in already!!

But as much as I was telling Katy to give in.... I do still think that Daemon is a douche. I mean, the way he does things and just everything... it's just, well, for lack of a better word, it's douchy. I want them to be together, but that doesn't excuse the fact that he just kind of annoys me.

I liked that this one had a little bit more of a mystery, and I'll be the first to admit that I didn't really know what was going to happen with that. I ran several theories through my head, but I don't think that there was every any that truly measured up to what happened. It was a good change, that's for sure!

The introduction of Blake was a nice twist, and I wasn't sure whether or not to trust him. I mean, I wanted to.. and I kind of did, but he was truly a wild card. I think that the quasi-love triangle that was tried out was ridiculous, though. I wish that JLA had just left well enough alone, and just kept the angst without the added drama of trying to make Daemon jealous.

I missed Dee in Onyx, she was so prevalent in the first book - and suddenly it's like she's hanging out with other people instead of Katy. Her presence was dearly missed.

All in all, Onyx was a good continuation of the Lux series, and I'd recommend it as a fun read.

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"The ones who throw their beauty around, waste what they have? Their beauty is only passing. It's just a shell hiding nothing but shadows and emptiness."

Hmm. How to say this? I actually enjoyed Obsidian a lot more than I expected to. Based on reviews, I could've gone either way. But in the end... I went both ways. See, there are parts of me that really enjoyed this one - that devoured it in just a couple of sittings, and this was the book to throw me out of my funk... but there are also parts of me that didn't think it was ridiculously great or anything.

I mean, I spent the first half of the book silently calling Daemon a douche. Because he is one, and it's really obvious. I actually find it ironic that the quote I used was from him... seeing as he throws around his beauty all the time. I mean, come on. He does, and he is a jerk and he is a douche... but there's just something that I like about him. It becomes more obvious in book two - in this one, I was mostly unsure.

Speaking of unsure, I don't know about Katy's book blog. It seems a little... fishy. I mean, she never really thinks about it, unless she's actually blogging, or talking about how she's going to read a book... which she never seems to do. Not gonna lie, I think about this little corner of the universe all the time. I'll think about things I want to say in certain reviews, or about how I need to promote more on this platform or whatever - my blog is constantly running in the background of my mind.

So, yes... I find it a little fishy that Katy doesn't think about hers all the time. And, well... the girl doesn't like country music. I knew that we couldn't be friends from that point on. (Just kidding. Kind of.) But really, Katy is more of a filler character than anything else. I think what the story is really about is.... you guessed it, Daemon. He seems to be the one with the development, while Katy is just kind of... flat and meh.

Which seems ridiculous, I mean come on! She's the main character! Where's the development? Where are the quirks and the personality traits? She's like (dare I say it?) Bella.

First off, I kind of want to curse a friend of mine - but she's right. Applaud yourself, Rashika! You made me notice all of the similarities between Obsidian and Twilight. I mean, dang. There are so many similarities, except for the fact that Daemon doesn't creepishly watch her while she sleeps, and she isn't obsessed with him immediately. She thinks he's hot, though. In the words of Razzy, "it's like a better version of Twilight."

All in all, I kind of feel like Obsidian is a guilty pleasure. It was a fun and quick read, but it's not like "OMG I LOVE IT FOREVER, ALL THE STARS" or anything like that. Solid 3.

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If I'm honest with you, I'll tell you that I love books with girl power. There is not one girl in this world who "needs" a guy to save her, and I love it when that crosses over into YA lit. It sends a great message, because there are so many girls out there that think they "need" a guy to be something. And this is one of the best examples of a girl power kind of book - it's a totally badass steampunk version of Charlie's Angels, but without a "Charlie".

Before I go on, let me just tell you that I love Charlie's Angels. It's just such a fun movie, and, like I said - GIRL POWER! So I was bound to at least like this one. And I did, but not as much as I had originally hoped. I think the thing that killed it for me was the ending - you know how I have problems with those.

I'm not going to reveal spoilers, but let's just say that I wasn't too surprised in the end.... to say the least. There were a few twists that I didn't see coming, but the ending... it just takes the cake for predictable, unfortunately. But here I go, starting the review at the end again! Let's talk about something more interesting, like say... I don't know, maybe the characters?

Like I said before, there is a seriously awesome amount of girl power in this book. Like, a lot! And I love love loved that! I enjoyed all of our main characters, and it was fun to read from each of their different points of view. I never got confused about who was speaking (and there were no name titles), but I think, hands down, that Cora was my favorite.

She was super smart - like, inventor smart (funny, that... she is an inventor) and she's so awesome! I loved her spunk, and the way that she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she believed in. Or to help someone who was in need. She was funny, and she liked to kind of blend into the background - which was a nice change.

That doesn't mean that I didn't like Michiko and Nellie, though! I just liked them for different reasons. I liked Michiko's drive and discipline, and Nellie's flair for girliness. Cora was definitely my favorite, though!

In other news, I think this book has the most realistic "relationship" ever described - it was hilarious when it happened, but... in the end, I think it's nice to see a relationship that doesn't work out in the end. Also a good message.

All in all, I'd say that The Friday Society was a fun steampunk adventure, with plenty of action and interesting characters - but I feel like the ending could have been better.

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I know that The Great Gatsby is a big literary classic, and that it defined a generation and all, but I just can't love it. I liked it, and that was that. Because, to be honest with you - the writing just didn't hit me right. There are a few amazing lines, but when you put them all together they just sort of become confusing, and I didn't care for that.

Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful sort of confusing - full of words and poetry... but still confusing. I can't get past that - several times in the book, I even wondered who Nick was talking about. To be honest, for about the first half of the book, I couldn't figure out who was narrating. It just never stood out to me, and I never really did connect with Nick as a character.

I'm going to come right out and say that I didn't read the synopsis of this at all - I read it solely on recommendation, so I didn't know that Gatsby and Daisy had a history. And let me tell you, that was one of the most romantic shocks ever. I loved that, and I wanted to see more on that front.

I loved the backstory on Gatsby - it was quite the crazy amount of coincidences, and I'm not sure how much of it was true - or how much of it was a lie. I'd like to think that all of it was true, but the personality of Gatsby doesn't necessarily allow for that. In the end, I'm not sure where this book really even took me. I liked it, of course - but I was easily confused by the language of that time, and don't even get me started on the movie. Once I read the book, the movie kind of just died.

All in all, The Great Gatsby is a good read, but it's slightly confusing and actually pretty sad. Gatsby built everything that he was, and in the end it didn't even matter.

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I'll be the first to say that the premise of Etched on Me appealed to me - I love the dark, gritty stories that I read, but this one didn't really work for me. It's not that it wasn't dark or gritty (it was!), the problem was that I couldn't connect with the main character, Lesley. She's a girl with a lot of problems, and although I understand that... I don't think that she was fleshed out enough.

I liked the inside look at mental institutions, and the people that are in them. It was interesting to see the things that they experience, and how Lesley reacted to them. I also liked the mystery of Lesley and her baby - it's said that they ended up on TV, and that there was a big battle between social services and such... but I didn't know why. I liked that these strings were tied up in the end.

I have to say, though... there were some parts throughout this book - well, they made me cringe, and I didn't exactly want to read them. But I did anyway - and I think I came through it with one thought - "I don't think I get this book".

I really don't think that I did. There were so many... plot twists. There was just so much going on, and I couldn't really get into it. My disconnection with Lesley didn't help either, because not only could I not connect with the story, the character just escaped me.

The message of this book is good - it lets people that are in Lesley's situation know that there is hope, and that they will get through it... but that message just isn't for me. All in all, Etched on Me just wasn't my thing, but I'm not going to try and dissuade you from reading it.

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Love? Maybe was the perfect embodiment of what I've come to expect from Heather Hepler: fluff. She writes some of the fluffiest and cutest books, but I just can't really connect with her characters or her storylines. It was predictable as all get out, but ultimately forgettable.

I wanted Piper and Charlie to be together. I thought that they would be absolutely adorable together, and I was just waiting for that romance to happen - but I feel like I really didn't get real romance with this one. It was sweet, that's for sure; but I felt no chemistry between them.

Piper was an okay sort of character, but like I said before... I just can't connect with these characters. I did, however, like Charlie. He was a sweet guy, and truly lit up every scene that he was in, but he just wasn't in the book enough. Truly, I wanted to see more of him.

This book was completely full of predictability - and not really the good kind. The predictable that made me just want to have a long serious talk with Piper. She... she's just super dense. All in all, Love? Maybe was an okay read - I even enjoyed it, but it was ultimately forgettable.

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It's the two of them, jumbled up and broken apart into confused pieces, and not really understanding, themselves, what they were doing.

To be completely honest with y'all, I've been sitting here and staring at the computer for about ten minutes. I literally have no inkling of what I want to say at all.

Tiger Lily was... I loved it. It took a bit of getting used to, because it was told from Tinker Bell's point of view, but it was about Tiger Lily. Like I said, it took some getting used to - but I really think that it was a unique and interesting way to go about it. I loved the writing, it was very descriptive and... I don't know. Flowing.

I enjoyed the character of Tiger Lily - I didn't really get to connect with her, because of the point of view, but I feel like she was a good character. She was very brave, but I feel like her mind is a dark and sad place. But that's okay. She really was pretty dang complex, and I was intrigued by her.

Undoubtedly, my absolute favorite part of Tiger Lily was the atmosphere. Neverland truly is a dark and dangerous place, with many villains that made it very interesting. It was so twisting and cruel; I mean who doesn't love that?

The ending that this book lead straight to was kind of depressing, but only for a moment. In the end, what Tiger Lily got was so much more amazing. Peter and Tiger Lily's love story was good - but in the way that a first love story always is. It was sad, and I wanted them to be together, but it just wasn't meant to be. Like I said, Tiger Lily's ending was so much better than it would have been with Peter.

It just fit. All in all, Tiger Lily really was a good read. I enjoyed Tiger Lily & the story of Neverland, and the atmosphere was amazing. But I just... don't know how to say what I want to say?

When I started this one, I was expecting a novella that would give me enough of a hint on whether or not I'd like Mila 2.0. I was expecting it to be close to eighty pages - turns out that it was fifteen (including excerpts, which I didn't read), and it literally only includes one event. The entire novella was based around a fire.

Mila wakes up. Fire. Runs outside. Runs back in to find her parents, passes out and it ends. So, I'm not sure about this series, in the long run. I thought the writing was pretty good, but it was all over way too quickly. I'd have loved to have learned more about Mila, or even to get a hint of what she was like, but nada.

It was very action packed, but that just wasn't enough for me. All in all, this was an interesting prequel - but it was over way too quickly, and I honestly kind of rolled my eyes at it.

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I can honestly say that I didn't like this book at all. I went into it with good thoughts - but I came out severely discouraged. I liked the idea behind As I Close My Eyes, but for me it just didn't deliver. We never get a real answer for why Danielle is slipping back and forth between worlds, and I feel like too much of the story was focused on the insta-love between Danielle and Ben.

It was just too hard for me to get into. The writing was very choppy in the beginning - which usually doesn't matter, because sometimes it takes a little bit for me to adjust to certain writing styles. But I never adjusted to this one - it was a jarring narrative.

But that wasn't my biggest problem - my biggest problem lay with our main character, Danielle. She's trying so hard to be an adult, but she's just failing so miserably. Her mom cleans her room (!!), but she's "18 and I can do what I want". I just didn't like that. I don't really like her, to tell the truth. Dani's mom is said to be "so protective", but she doesn't even blink at the idea of a boy staying over while they were gone. I just couldn't get behind her. She was flat, and I saw no inflection in her dialogue, or feeling from her at all. She was just... boring to me. I was disappointed with the lack of characterization and development of the characters in this book - Danielle was not the only one that I disliked. But she was the most dislikable one. She never tries to make any of her relationships work.

Don't even get me started on Ben - I don't understand why they were together, honestly. They met* and then they fell in love instantly - that upset me. They were declaring their love and wanting to be together forever... but... I didn't feel it. At all. Ben was kind of a jerk. He "loves her", but he was always trying to make her a different person. He tells her not to embarrass him. I just don't find that to be an acceptable relationship - he never apologizes or anything, and he repeatedly tells her (paraphrased) "not to act crazy" or "don't pass out and embarrass me". No. Just no. There is no reason for that - it seems like an unhealthy relationship. The romance was so disappointing. And honestly, I wasn't even looking for a romance with this one - I was looking to find out about the other person who can flip time; yet I never even got a hint of it. Not to mention the fact that the ending was a big cliffhanger - and super melodramatic.

I'm going to admit that I skimmed the last thirty pages or so. There was just so much meaningless drama, and it all added up to... nothing. The plot felt like it was just thrown together. I don't think that the author knew where she was going when she started.

As I Close My Eyes had the potential to be a good book - but it didn't deliver at all. In all honesty, I couldn't believe the amount of cliches that this book had in it. "The tall, handsome stranger who I felt a deep connection to instantly."

I wanted to see more flashbacks, the reason that I started this book - but they were few and far between. And they honestly didn't make a lot of sense - I have no idea how they related to Danielle's life in the future.

All in all, As I Close My Eyes really wasn't my thing. I wish that I could have loved it - or even liked it. But I didn't.

*actually, I lied. They didn't meet - Danielle saw him across the room in a restaurant, then again in the bookstore that he owns. Then she stalks him until he asks her out.

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History is full of death, and I've had enough of that.

I really liked Heartbeat. I was very hesitant to start it, because I didn't really know much about it... just that it was by Elizabeth Scott, one of my favorite authors! Turns out I should have been worried - I was captured from the very first chapter. There's something about a mother being kept alive to birth a baby that horrifies and interests me at the same time!

Honestly, I feel like understand both sides of the argument - on one hand... it's just kind of sick to keep someone alive artificially so that they can give birth. It skeeves me out a bit, that's for sure! Obviously, it's a part of Dan, and it's a part of her... so he wants the baby. But Emma doesn't - and I understand that as well, because like I said... it's kind of despicable. I long for the days when everything was black and white. There's too much grey in this world!

I liked Emma's character growth throughout this book - obviously she's going through some tough times, but I think she's stronger for that! She's learning how to deal with things her own way, and maybe she isn't always right - but she's growing up, and that's the important part. I especially loved Caleb and her together - my heart just broke for them. I feel like sending them a love hug - they're just so fragile!

Speaking of Caleb... I knew that I would like him from the moment I read his name. He's so broken, but he still such a sweet guy. I mean, he wants people to leave him alone - but I understand that. He was so gentlemanly and kind of chivalrous... I'm not going to lie - I might be a little bit in love with him.

Normally, when I say "I'm lost", it means that I don't understand how I got from one place to another. But in this case, that was actually a good thing - a couple of times, I got so lost in the writing that I just didn't pay attention to where it was going. It was... beautiful, in it's own way.

All in all, I really enjoyed Heartbeat. I loved the romance - and I loved that the characters grew. Handling such a tough subject is hard, but Elizabeth Scott makes it seem easy - as always!

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For me, Out of Reach was an interesting read - I enjoyed seeing the effects of addiction on family members - a lot of the time, we read more about the person who's addicted. It was nice to see some variation to the trope.

But I went into Out of Reach expecting the story to end on the last page - and I expected closure. I really didn't get it. The story has a very open ending, with an unfinished feel, and I didn't particularly care for that. I wanted to see how everything turned out. I wanted to see where the growing attraction between Rachel and Tyler went, and so many other things.

I wanted more from this.

Don't get me wrong, I liked it! I liked the overall feel - the sad and the happy. I liked that Rachel grew throughout the book, and that maybe she came out a little happier than she was when she went in. I sympathized with Rachel - I wouldn't know what to say or do in that situation either, so I react to things similarly. In the beginning, I feel like Rachel was severely depressed. The first chapter is told in completely monosyllabic sentences - straight and to the point, which set the feel of the novel.

I'm glad that was over by the second chapter, though - I don't think I could have taken it for much longer. I wanted Rachel to just feel - to feel anything! And by the end, I really do think that she was feeling. We started out with an empty shell of a character, but she grew up from that.

I liked Tyler - he was very chivalrous. I think that they (Rachel & him)  would have made a good couple. He was adorably protective of her, and I just want them to be together. They could be good for each other.

The flashbacks that Rachel had of times with Micah were good - I liked seeing his progression through her eyes, and seeing all those sweet moments with them as kids. It added an interesting depth to the story.

All in all, I can't say that I didn't enjoy Out of Reach, it just left me with more questions than answers.