Review: Seduced by Innocence by Kimberly Kinrade

Genre: Paranormal New Adult Romance | Series: Seduced Trilogy #1

Published 1/21/13 | Daring Books

Format: ebook | free in exchange for an honest review

Their passion will destroy them.
Only true love can save them.

"Liquid fire poured into me, filling me with the intimate sense of him as he leaned in to claim my lips with his own. I reached for him, needing him closer, but my arms couldn't close the distance between us, which grew wider with each hitched breath. So close to finally feeling something real, something carnal and deep, I cried out in frustration, dropping my hands as he disappeared. My cries deepened into a frenzy of panic and my eyes flew open. I clutched my blanket and stilled myself to calm my racing heart.

Just a dream. Always just a dream."

Rose Wintersong didn't have an ordinary upbringing. Raised in what most would call a hippy commune, but what is actually a powerful coven of witches, she never questions the life fate chose for her.

Until she meets Derek O'Conner.

Derek challenges everything Rose believes and forces her to see the secrets hidden beneath the whitewashed walls of her idyllic country life.

Rose knows she should walk away, that the sexy martial arts instructor is bad news bred to create discord in her tight community… but the animal magnetism between them is impossible to fight.

Caught between the passion of first love, and the steady beat of the life she's always known, Rose must choose between the innocence of her youth or the pleasures of womanhood—but lost innocence comes at a price, and Rose harbors a dark secret that could destroy everyone she loves—including Derek.

Submit to the Seduced Saga as Derek and Rose face their future while unraveling the mysteries of their past.

This is the first book that I read by Kimberly Kinrade and I thought it was okay.  I am not sure if I will read the next book in the series but I'll just see if I will be tempted enough to read it because of the cliffhanger in the end.

First of, I have to say that I hate the cover!  I know the saying but still!  See, when I go to a library or bookstore, I look at the cover first before I read the blurb in the back and this does not scream "read me!"  The same goes for when I am virtually browsing books.  I did love the small pictures (rose and wolf) before each chapter since each chapter is written in the POV of both protagonists.  There are also quotes from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet before each chapter which I thought was a lovely addition, sort of like an introduction on what was to come.

That being said, I thought the book was okay.  It was a pretty quick read for me and at 188 pages (epub).  The story pretty much runs like Romeo and Juliet with a feud between two families of different "species" so I will not give a recap of how the story went.  Rose, is a sheltered witch with an evil mother Rainbow (really, a better name for a villain should have been picked) who tries to control Rose and their coven.  The book seems like a coming of age of both protagonists as both are trying to find out who they are.

When both of them meet, there is an instant attraction with Rose realizing that Derek is the one she has been dreaming of almost every night.  Derek, on the other hand, tries to be a different person and change because Rose makes him a better person.  I would have loved it more if the author explored more on the development of Rose and Derek's love.

I did like that the author wrote in Rose and Derek's POV because I love reading about a guys' POV.  There is just something about reading in a male perspective that I think is more romantic because I kind of get an insight to what he was thinking.  Plus, it's always great to have a chance to look at their mind.

I mostly read adult romances and occasionally read YA/NA romances but I thought this lacked a little bit of romantic development between Rose and Derek.  I recommend this book to those who love to read about star-crossed lovers.

My Rating

Heat Level

 

 

Review: When in Paris... by Beverley Kendall

Genre: Young-Adult
Series: Language of Love #1
Published: Jan 4, 2013 | Season Publishing
Format: ebook | Purchased
Buy: Amazon | B&N

College freshman Olivia Montgomery is thrilled at the chance to start over, escape the rumors that plagued her in high school. And she can finally put her juvenile crush, Zachary Pearson, where he belongs--in her past. Then her unrequited love strolls into her French class, shattering Olivia's newfound peace, and the feelings she'd thought buried for good come rushing back. Now she can't shake her unwanted attraction to the one guy who can twist her stomach into knots with just a smile...but has never given her the time of day.

Zach's good looks may have always gotten him his pick of girls, but it's the star quarterback's skill on the football field that gives him his pick of the Big Ten colleges. To escape the crushing demands of his win-at-all-costs father, Zach opts for a private university in upstate New York where...his present and past collide. And the one girl he's always wanted but can't have--and a class trip to Paris--turn out to be the ultimate game changer that has him breaking every one of his rules.

The book starts in French class when Olivia Montgomery locks eyes with Zachary Pearson her longtime high school crush.  Unbeknownst to Olivia, Zach also shares the same attraction but was giving her the cold/cool attitude because he couldn't act on his feelings.  Apparently, Olivia's mother had an affair with his uncle which resulted in divorce.  As a result, he was trying to deny his attraction to her and was pretty much indifferent.  Their friendship started when April, Olivia's best friend invited her to have dinner with another friend Troy, Zach's roommate.  April and Troy try to match them up together as it was pretty much obvious that they had something going on.  So starts the love/hate relationship between the two.  A field trip to Paris changes everything and they become intimate; with Olivia thinking that they are a couple and Zach thinking that it is only a friends-with-benefits thing.  Things blow up when they return to school when Olivia finds out that Zach is not serious with her coupled with the fact that Zach's crazy ex Ashley, keeps on calling him.  They do not talk for a while until Ashley appears in Olivia's dorm and collapses, resulting in a 911 call, which reveals all.   Zach still had been communicating with Ashley because she had suicidal tendencies and he could not, in his good conscience, not talk to her.  Olivia understands and Zach talks to Ashley's parents and says that he does not want to be involved with her anymore.  The parents agree and said that they will get help for her.  Olivia and Zach go home together and officially start their new relationship.

When in Paris... is a new genre for me - YA/Chic-Lit type.  I am actually surprised that I liked it.  Olivia and Zach really had an explosive relationship with a lot of sexual tension.  Another thing that I liked about the book was the  first-person telling of the story.  I especially like that Ms. Kendall wrote Zach's POV and I loved getting a feel of his thoughts and feelings.  His POV is also realistically male.

Olivia and Zach are a perfect match, I thought.  I love how both of them don't really know each other appart from what they assume what each other is until they got to know each other.  Their relationship progresses in a way that is slow but building up to love.  I have to admit, this sort of sounds like my love story (LOL).  

One thing that I did not like about it is that the ebook had flourishes in between Olivia's POV and Zach's POV that it cut of a few words.  I hate it when this happens, although I know it is not Ms. Kendall's fault.  This is a peeve of mine and I just have to say this.  Another thing that I thought could have been explored was Olivia finding out about her mom's relationship with his uncle.  It was not actually mentioned in the book but was implied that Olivia is mad with her mother and her is father living in an apartment.  I thought that there should have been more emphasis on this because I think this should have been the major problem and not about Ashley.  Although Ashley had a integral role in their relationship, I thought it was not a really big enough impact overall.

My Rating: 4 Stars

Heat Level: 2