ANGEL SONG
Author(s): Sheila Walsh 
& Kathryn Cushman
Source: Book Sneeze
* I received this book 
free of charge in exchange
for honest review*

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (August 10, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595546855
• ISBN-13: 978-1595546852

SUMMARY:

When Annie Fletcher returns to Charleston to see her younger sister, Sarah, receive her master’s degree, she finds herself riding in the back of an ambulance, watching helplessly as Sarah fights for life. During the ride, Sarah appears to talk to someone who is not there, humming a melody Annie has never heard before.

Neighbor Ethan McKinney lends a shoulder when Sarah unexpectedly dies. And as a carpenter, Ethan volunteers to help Annie get the Fletcher family home into shape for selling. Ethan’s presence is distracting, but what troubles Annie is her neighbor Tammy’s 12-year-old son. Keith has Down Syndrome and the guile to believe he can see and hear angels.

God begins to reveal Himself to Annie – both in her newfound friends and through heart-rending and clearly supernatural events. Annie discovers faith in God, finally experiencing the comfort that His angels really do surround us.

MY THOUGHTS:

Angel Song is a Christian based fiction book that reminds us of family and the importance of God in our lives.  Annie is an interior designer who is returning to Charleston to see her youngest sister Sarah receive her master’s degree. Instead of seeing this wonderful event for her sister, she instead watches her sister Sarah fight for her life after a tragic event.  While watching over her, Sarah hums and talks to someone who is not there. 

Annie finds herself struggling with her childhood past, her career and the neighbors son who believes he can speak to the angels.  When Annie starts to open her eyes more and believe, God starts to give her blessings of friends and unusual events.

Thought the story can be a bit predictable, this book did have the heartfelt and inspiring theme that the author wanted to get across to the reader.  I am not a big fan of this sort of genre, but this book made me a believer in them with this story of love and friendship.

MY RATING:

KISS OF DEATH
Author: Rachel Caine

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Signet; Original edition (April 27, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451229738
• ISBN-13: 978-0451229731

SUMMARY:

A new chapter in the New York Times bestselling Morganville Vampires saga.

Vampire musician Michael Glass has attracted the attention of a big- time producer who wants to cut a demo and play some gigs-which means Michael will have to enter the human world. For this, he’s been assigned escorts that include both a dangerous immortal as well as Michael’s all-too-human friends. And with that mix of personalities, this is going to be a road trip from hell… 

MY THOUGHTS:

Kiss of Death is the 8th book in the Morganville Vampire series, and in my opinion, one of the best young adult vampire series there is.  I am a HUGE fan of this series and this author rarely disappoints me. 

In this installment, Michael gets recruited to make a demo in Dallas, Texas.  The gang is excited when they are actually granted passes to leave Morganville for a short time and help support Michael in his new career path.  The only downside is having Oliver as and escort. Along the way, they deal with AWOL vampires, diseased vampires, crazy locals and enough excitement to keep you reading non-stop!

While I was disappointed in not seeing and hearing from my favorite characters as much, we still get the action packed romance that this author delivers effortlessly!  I love how each chapter is a practically another drama packed adventure and how it gives the characters barely enough time to breath.  The romance between Shane and Claire was very sweet.  We finally get to see what Shane was going to give Claire in the previous books and it just squeezes your heart with emotions.  The romance between Eve and Michael is just as sweet, showing the devotion each character has to their relationships.  My favorite thing with this series though, is the witty humor and laugh out loud dialogue the author brings to each book.  You are always guaranteed bickering, humor and drama, but you are also guaranteed friendship, love and the feeling of family between them all.  Even Oliver showed a new side to himself in this book.  I might actually start to like him more now.

This is one series where I wish the author would write faster and give me my Morganville addiction fix quicker!  The vampire world in these books are like my own brand of drug that should be illegal to bookworms!

MY RATING:

Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf
For Rereading! 5 STARS

WICKED DELIGHTS OF A BRIDAL BED
Author: Tracy Ann Warren
Source: Publisher
*I received this book free of
charge in exchange for
an honest review*

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Avon (August 31, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061673447
• ISBN-13: 978-0061673443

SUMMARY:

To her surprise, Lady Mallory Byron finds herself walking down the aisle with the last man she ever expected to ask for her hand . . . .

Everyone knows the Byron brothers are “mad, bad and dangerous.” Now their sister shockingly discovers she’s the newest talk of the Ton when she marries the scandalous Earl of Gresham. Faced with a tragic loss, she’d sought comfort from him as a family friend. But soon consolation turned to passion, scandal—and a wedding! In the bridal bed, she finds pleasure beyond her wildest dreams. But can nights of wicked delight change friendship into true love? 

Charming rakehell Adam, Earl of Gresham, has secretly loved Mallory for years. He lost her once to another man, but now he has a second chance to win her love—and plans to do so by any means necessary. Will Mallory’s heart give him what he so dearly desires? Or is the past too much to overcome? 

 MY THOUGHTS:

Even though I feel this book is great as a stand alone, I wanted to let the readers know that this is book four in the Byron family series by this author.  If you want to know more about the family and other characters involved in more detail, I do recommend reading the first three books first.

That being said, I truly was captivated by the story and romance that the author created in this book.  Mallory has been through a lot. She lost her fiance in the previous books and she is in deep mourning for the loss.  She has basically given up on life without her fiance.

then we get to meet Adam.  He has always secretly loved Mallory and respected her enough to give her space.  When he finally steps in and tries to bring her out of her depression, they are found in a compromising position.  They are forced to wed and Adam doesn’t seem to mind since he has loved her for a long time anyway.  Mallory is hesitant and scared because she is starting to have feelings for Adam.  She thinks she is betraying the memory of her fiance for having feelings for another man.

If you are looking for an easy romance though, the author has a few surprises in store for you.  While I think they could have been easily resolved in some spots with the two just sitting down and talking, we all know that easy is not what is written in romance novels.  They do have bumps and crazy turns to work through.  I enjoyed the book and will definitely be on the look out for the first three books in this series.

MY RATING:

JUMPING OFF SWINGS
Author: Jo Knowles

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (August 11, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763639494
• ISBN-13: 978-0763639495

SUMMARY:


One pregnancy. Four friends. It all adds up to a profound time of change in this poignant, sensitively written YA novel.

Ellie remembers how the boys kissed her. Touched her. How they
begged for more. And when she gave it to them, she felt loved. For a
while anyway. So when Josh, an eager virgin with a troubled home life, leads her from a party to the backseat of his van, Ellie follows. But their “one-time thing” is far from perfect: Ellie gets pregnant. Josh reacts with shame and heartbreak, while their confidantes, Caleb and Corinne, deal with their own complex swirl of emotions. No matter what Ellie chooses, all four teenagers will be forced to grow up a little faster as a result. Told alternately from each character’s point of view, this deeply insightful novel explores the aftershocks of the biggest decision of one fragile girl’s life — and the realities of leaving innocence behind. 

MY THOUGHTS:

This book is told from 4 different points of views.  While it was nice to get a glimpse of the story from each person involved, I think it was a little too much for this book.  The book is not that very long, so putting 4 different points of views made it a little jumbled at times.

The main focus is on Ellie.  She is the teenager who is looking to be loved, but as soon as she sleeps with the boy, they leave her.  Basically, the school thinks she is the Slut of the school.  Corrine is Ellie’s best friend.  She is with her through every step of the book.  I found their friendship to be sweet and believable.  Josh is the last boy that Ellie is with.  He loses his virginity to Ellie because he is tired of being harassed by the other boys at school.  He feels bad for using Ellie, but he doesn’t mention it to her.  Caleb is friends with all three of them.  He hates being in the middle because he has always loved Ellie.  The one night between Josh and Ellie causes major problems for all the teens involved.  Ellie finds herself a pregnant teen and has to make a decision on whether she should keep the baby, give it up for adoption, or have an abortion.  She finds strength from her close friends and some unexpected people as well.

While I wasn’t a fan of the 4 point of views, the story was good.  I know a lot of schools have teenager’s who are dealing with teen pregnancy.  I know teens would feel lost and scared without knowing who to turn to.  This would be a wonderful read for a teenager, whether boy or girl, and touches on a sensitive topic that teens are reluctant to talk about.

MY RATING: