(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I found this book to be a really entertaining read, with more serious, intense scenes than I was expecting when I originally read the blurb of this book.

I actually quite liked Nyx as a character. Some of the comments she came out with were really quite amusing and I enjoyed her interactions with the witches. It was also nice to see the relationships that formed between them as the book went on, rather than there just being hostility between them.

I really liked the similarities between the different myths and legends, such as Merlin. It was also interesting to see the different types of magic that the different characters could do.

I liked the evolution that Nyx’s character underwent throughout the book. I felt that the author did a good job of capturing the kind of personality that the fae tend to have, but still made Nyx an entertaining character. I also found the other characters to be really interesting as well. There was a good mixture of different personalities and powers… and it was good to see them have to put their differences aside to work together.

The bit about the Tithe was pretty interesting, too… especially the YTNS part. I did, however, find the footnotes a bit distracting. I felt that they could have been easily put into the story itself and that the footnotes detracted from the plot quite a bit.

It was nice to learn more about Nyx’s past and I would have liked to learn more about the other characters’, too. There were bits and pieces revealed, but I would have liked to see more of their pasts and everything. I also would have liked to know more about the different mythologies and sources of their powers.

Although this book did come to an actual, proper ending, I felt that there was more that could be done and explored with the characters. I really liked the fact that the characters faced real consequences and the danger they were in felt real.

I would definitely read a sequel to this book and I’d also check out more books by this author in the future. This was a good, entertaining read that made me laugh as well as kept me reading because of how intense it was. It’s probably a book I would read again.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

Although this book was the second in a series, I still found it easy to follow; probably because it was centred around a new group of characters. I also found it interesting that the characters ended up taking a boat and being on the sea. It makes a change from all of the zombie stories where the characters take a car and then wind up having to escape on foot…

Although the prologue of the book was written in third person, the rest was written in first person and the POV of only one character, which is always much easier to read. I liked Ben as a character and I also liked the relationships he formed with the other characters. It was interesting to see people who would probably have never talked in normal reality have to pull together to save themselves and each other.

I did feel that the military/navy wasn’t painted in a very good light. Even the ones who weren’t ‘bad’ seemed to lack a certain kind of intelligence. Amusingly enough, I had Captain America flashbacks with the character of Bucky. (I actually did like him).

I felt the spread of the infection came across as quite realistic. In the world we now live in, travel is so easy, that it made sense many places would be overrun by the infection before modes of travel could be cut off.

It was also interesting to see a doctor in one of the characters. I felt that a lot of research had clearly gone into this book, as well as the author drawing on his own personal experience. I felt that the characters were interesting and well-rounded and I actually cared about them. Also, despite the near misses, I felt the danger they were in was very real.

There were times when I really felt for the characters, particularly during those moments when they had to make the tough decisions. I was able to empathise with them easily and I found myself avidly reading the book to find out what would happen next. I’d probably read the other books in this series at some point.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I found this book to be quite an interesting read. It was nice to see a first person POV stick with the same first person and not change perspectives repeatedly.

The blurb of this book was really intriguing, partly because it was similar to an idea I had when I was much younger but never got around to doing anything with. I felt that the author handled the two different timelines particularly well and it was good to see the parallels between the two different storylines, as well as how different the times were.

I thought it was an interesting idea how Jocelyn kept getting sick and dizzy when she was close to Jackson. It was much better than the love at first sight/first conversation trope that seems so prevalent in young adult fiction. It was also good to see certain behaviour picked up on and commented on, such as the whole thing with the watch and its inscription.

I liked a lot of the supporting characters as well, but I did find myself getting confused between the groups of friends at times. It was nice that the different times were in alternating chapters, though, and not two in one time, three in the other… etc.

I did think that the book was fairly well-written, but I also noticed quite a few errors, particularly when ‘lair’ was used instead of ‘liar’. I also didn’t like Jocelyn too much in the nineteenth century… at least before everything happened with Olivia. I could understand why she felt the way she did, but something about her character then kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

I did feel there were a few moments where the language came across as a bit too modern in the nineteenth century storyline, but on the whole, I didn’t get too confused between the two different plot lines.

By the end of the book, I had some questions answered, but a lot more that weren’t. I do have the second book on my Kindle and I will be reading it in the next couple of days. The idea is fairly unique and the characters are interesting and well-rounded.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

Fiction dealing with natural disasters and their aftermath isn’t something that’s rare, though it’s not as common as, say, zombies. So when I read books like this one, the uniqueness often comes from the characters and the way they deal with the situations they find themselves in.

I found Erika to be quite an interesting character. Although I felt there was a bit too much plot convenience (her skills were only revealed when it was crucial to the plot), I still did like her. She had a realistic goal to work towards and I really cared about her being able to be reunited with her family.

I also particularly liked Erika’s relationship with Star. There’s something particularly sweet about people choosing to adopt children who have been orphaned in a situation like that, since a lot of people would only look out for themselves.

I did feel that the author did a good job of showing the different attitudes of people after what had happened. I did have some confusion with various characters who merged together at times, but I felt the danger they faced came across as real and I truly cared about what happened to them – though, at first, it did seem as if Erika was more concerned about her husband’s safety than her son’s.

I would probably read the next books in this series at some point, as well as check out other books by this author.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I didn’t realise until I got to the end of this book that I’d read another book by this author in the past – The Harrowing. It was good, because I didn’t have any preconceptions going on… and I also didn’t have any feelings of deja vu that I have had when reading books by certain authors in the past.

I found the plot of this book to be a fairly intriguing one, though I was less keen on the switching between past and present tense. I didn’t think that was necessary.

I did quite like Rourke as a character. He was interesting and I liked getting the hints about his past. I also liked seeing him work with the other members of his team… though Epps’ character just made me think of Don from Numb3rs, even though they don’t look anything alike.

I felt the author did a good job of making the woman a more sympathetic character, even given what she’d been doing. I found her to be a really interesting character as well.

It was nice to see law enforcement people working together and there were a few things that surprised me in this book. I felt that other characters were interesting and well-rounded. There were some really hard moments in this book to read as well… a few scenes that really made me think.

I found the book to be really quite well-written, though I’m not sure if there are meant to be paranormal aspects to this book, or if those suggestions were indicative of psychiatric issues. I also found the information about profiling really interesting. I felt that a lot of research had clearly gone into this book.

I would probably be interested in reading the next books in this series at some point in the future. It would be good to see more of the characters and their lives.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I’ve read quite a few collections of short stories, whether ghost stories or others. I tend to find ghost stories quite fascinating and I felt that it was really interesting to have glimpses of the different culture and beliefs that these short stories showed.

Although all six of the stories shared a similar theme, I liked that each one of them was different. I couldn’t say which one I liked best, because I felt that they were all quite different in their own way.

I couldn’t say that any of the stories in this collection were really scary. That might be because I read and watch a lot of horror things, though, so other people might find them scarier than I did.

I wasn’t quite so sure about the last story, I have to say. It was a bit disturbing, but I didn’t feel that it had the right amount of character and story detail that the other short stories had.

I did particularly like The Returned. That story was one that I felt had an element of sweetness to it and it also detailed one of the story themes I like. I won’t go into the details here, but although it did switch between two first person POVs, I didn’t find it really hard to read and I felt that actually worked.

A Good Student was a short story I would have liked to see further expanded. Actually, I did feel that all of the stories were intriguing enough (and had interesting enough characters) that they would have worked to be expanded into longer stories. Again, the only exception was the last story, but if it had been longer, I might have been less confused.

I felt the author did a good job of showing the culture without making the stories filled with boring information. I would definitely read other books by this author in the future.