Review: Whatever It Takes by Lindsay Paige

Thank you to Making Connections (on Goodreads) and to Lindsay Paige for the opportunity to read and review this book

Genre

YA Contemporary

Series

Bold As Love (Book 3)

Publication Date

June 13th, 2012

Publisher

Self-Published

Available At

*Not yet available*

Their first year of college isn’t what they expected. Emily is still struggling with the loss of her baby, while Jake seems to have no trouble with it at all. Emily is so conflicted about how to deal with the miscarriage. On top of that, she’s having nightmares. 

Can Jake help his Sweetness? Will she allow him? Their relationship is suffering and Jake is determined to do whatever Emily asks of him. But when Emily makes a suggestion that she feels will help with her grief, could it tear the couple apart forever?

Review

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Another installment with exceptional sweetness when it comes to romance. There was slightly more tension when there were issues that the characters needed to work through and that added more to the story. I felt that the characters were actually struggling instead of going through a preface of struggling without actually walking through it.

I do, however, feel that the characters are put through too many different emotional twists. For me, it takes away from each story as each installment offers pretty hectic things to overcome. It was too much for me. I felt that the stories could have focused on less twists and more characterization growth. The emotions weren't there for me because there was too much happening from book 1 to book 3, I couldn't get attached to the characters with so much going on. I can say, though, that there is greater unexpectedness in Whatever It Takes. 

I may have some issues, but I also did enjoy Whatever It Takes. It's a shorter read than Sweetness or I'm Yours so prepare to read it in one sitting. It also appears (from the ending) that there will be another installment in the Bold As Love series. Which is always a good thing.

Review: I'm Yours by Lindsay Paige

Thank you to Making Connections (on Goodreads) and Lindsay Paige for the opportunity to read and review this book

Genre

YA Contemporary

Series

Bold As Love (Book 2)

Publication Date

November 2011

Publisher

Self-Published

Available At

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

Formats

Ebook

Paperback

After the incident with Claire, Emily encounters more problems. Conrad is back with explanations and hope. Emily wants to give him a chance to explain himself. She can't help but wonder why he left. However, Jake isn't comfortable with Emily going out to eat with an old lover. 

Will things be too much for Emily to handle? Will Emily do the one thing she knows best and withdraw? Will Emily and Jake's love for one another keep them from shattering?


Review
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

There is no doubt in my mind that Jake and Emily are completely compatible characters. The romance is, once again, very sugary sweet, making you root for them and that all turns out well. 


I still have some issues though. For one, I really didn't like that the issues in Sweetness were completely dropped in I'm Yours. There is only one mention of Emily's horrendous past in a long, long winded explanation to her ex-boyfriend Conrad. There was also an incident with a snarky character (Claire) that I thought would and should have made a bigger appearance in I'm Yours, but she was silent in one scene. I was curious to see how they would resolve the bullying issue, but there was nothing. Without those teeny references to Sweetness, there really isn't a continuation plot within this series, which isn't always necessary, but I felt that some of the issues could have been further addressed to give the readers a bit more closure.


And just like Sweetness, I felt that the characters didn't go through enough of an emotional struggle as each new curve ball was introduced. I felt that more time could have been spent on that rather than relaying the driving directions that either of the characters were taking. The important little details that I was left craving were replaced by details that didn't pertain to the story or the emotional aspect.




There was also one major thing that I felt was a little embellished, but that I doubt will be glaringly obvious to most readers. It's kind of something you have to go through to even be able to recognize the embellishment, and it was only mildly bothersome. 


As with Sweetness, I did enjoy I'm Yours, I just wanted to be drawn into the story more. 

Review: Uncertainty (Gravity #2) by Abigail Boyd

I was very luck to win a copy from LibraryThing

Genre

YA Paranormal/Fantasy

Publication Date

March 22nd, 2012

Publisher

Self-Published

Available At

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

Format

Ebook

Last year, Ariel's life was ripped apart. She's finally started to put the pieces together again, and is looking forward to summer break. That's when a dream brings her back to the mysterious Dexter Orphanage. 


With the return of an unlikely person in her life, Ariel begins to find out answers to the secrets that plagued her -- what was wrong with her grandmother? Why did Henry suddenly start dating the popular snobby girl whom he seemed to previously hate? And what really happened to Jenna?


As the threads are unraveled, Ariel realizes that she's peering into a world that no one else can see. 




Review
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars 


There's no way to go, but up. And that is what Abigail Boyd has done. There were still some issues, such as grammatical errors and also some things that were mentioned twice, one example, someone jumped off a stage and a few sentences later jumped off the stage again. These are errors that are hard to ignore and something that isn't expected from a published work. There is no doubt that Abigail Boyd has a talent in weaving tales, but the story still came off as slightly unfinished.

One thing that stands out without any blatant flaws is the characters, they are all well-developed with Ariel pulling forward as a strong female protagonist. Abigail Boyd is definitely strong when it comes to characterizations, there is never a moment where the characters or dialogue seem forced or unnatural. 

The plot still feels a little drawn out, there are things that are obvious, but the characters are oblivious to. Maybe that is the authors intentions, it's hard to tell. I can say that even though I know where the series is going, I have no idea how I will be taken there, and that's somewhat of a good thing. It lengthens the mystery yet at the same time frustrates me because it's a constant one step forward, two steps back plot. I want more information then what I'm fed, but I can admit that I'm fully reeled in.

My emotions were tugged at more than Gravity, most likely due to the fact that there were less errors,  allowing me to concentrate on the story rather the wording. Also, there was more descriptive prose rather than bare sentences, which was a HUGE plus. I'm looking forward to the next installment, and if this is any indication, the writing will only keep getting better.