Juliet Immortal (Juliet Immortal, #1) by Stacey Jay

 

Summary:

 

Fans of Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver and Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush will relish this intense paranormal love story featuring Romeo and Juliet, literary history's most tragic couple, who meet again, not as true lovers, but truly as enemies.
The most tragic love story in history . . .

Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

"These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which as they kiss consume."
—Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

Summary & Photo taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 307 page (Hardcover)

Source: Toronto Public Library

Publication Date: August 9th 2011 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

 

After ages of seeing this one being reviewed on a number of blogs I finally broke down and decided to read this after reading Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer's review of the second book in the series Romeo Redeemed (Click Here to read her review) I figured what the hell lets give the series a try.

 

I had really high hopes for this book. I'm not a big Shakespeare fan but I do tend to like novels that are a play on his well..plays. His among the only works that I don't overly mind being reused and modernized and I've been really lucky to read some very good ones. Juliet Immortal, was unfortunately not one of the good ones.

 

The book was more of a filler book for me. I needed a quick read and I was hoping that this one would be really good and it really wasn't. I mean yeah the book started off with a really intense scene where Juliet enters Ariel Dragland's body after they've been in a car crash but then things got a wee bit bizarre. All of a sudden the dead guy next to her is Romeo who is in another boy's body and she's running away into the arms of a perfect stranger that happens to be driving by and what do you know there's an instant attraction between Juliet and the boy named Ben.

 

You see Juliet is an Ambassador of Light, she pops in every once in awhile down the centuries to help soulmates stay together while Romeo (who murdered Juliet) tries to rip them apart  and get one of the soulmates to join the Mercenaries.

 

The concept of there being the Ambassadors of Light and the Mercenaries was really interesting when I first started the novel and I was really eager to find out more about both societies but that information was rather elusive throughout the length of the novel and very little was said about them. I found that really strange.

 

Then there were my issues with the characters themselves. Besides the bad dialogue between them they were so awkward, annoying and frustrating I found very little to like about any of them including Juliet because of what a miserable person she was deep down. I just couldn't handle all the low points her character had that weren't properly balanced out with good spots. The other characters might not have even bothered to be there they were so forgettable.

 

I also had issues with the fact that the story was told over only a matter of 3 days. I found it so completely weird and I hated the fact that the whole book seemed extremely rushed. I couldn't catch my breath and the story line from the middle until the end became very jumbled and disjointed leading me to get rather annoyed with the book and it got to the point where I just wanted to finish it so I wouldn't have to read any more about it.

 

Despite all that though I won't give it the dreaded one star rating because there was potential for the book to be really good if the book didn't have the issues I had with it. I'm not sure if I would recommend this book at all because it wasn't all that memorable to be honest but if I had to I'd probably recommend this to YA fans who like a different take on the classic R&J story though I suggest borrowing this book instead of committing to a purchase. I doubt if I'll ever read the second book Romeo Redeemed but if I do it won't be for a long time.

 

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*[Blog Tour Review]Never After by Jason Macumber

 

 

Summary:

 

The world of fairy tales is twisted and corrupted. Two years after her entrapment and torture at the hands of the Seven Deadly Trolls, Snow White now works as an assassin for hire. Rude, crude and with her princess status long revoked, she has become a dark angel for the Ever After's damsels-in-distress. A game of cat and mouse soon begins when two of the Deadlies, Pride and Wrath, return to exact revenge on the fallen princess for the murder of their brothers. Armed with her trusty dagger carved from the magic mirror, Snow finds herself drawn into a conspiracy that involves an ancient relic from beyond her world's borders and the destruction of her world. Taking perversion to a whole new level, NEVER AFTER is an estrogen-filled romp to save the Ever After as Snow slices and dices her way through beloved characters leaving no talking animal safe!

Summary & Photo taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 191 pages

Source: Review copy

Publication Date:  July 29th 2012 by Melange Books, LLC

 

Snow White isn't just another pretty face in this new and darker re-telling of the classic children's fairy tale. I was really surprised by this book, as a lot of you know I'm not a huge fan of retellings but when I got the tour invite for this one I really wanted to give it a try, I was also surprised to see that the book was written by a man. Maybe it's a bit sexist of me but I'm used to female authors writing retellings so I was curious to see how one penned by a male author would turn out.

 

I'm really glad that I gave it a chance because it was such unique twist on the classic tale and I have never ever read anything like it before. I loved Snow because she was kicking ass and taking names. Its about time that someone updated this story with a strong, female lead that is so different from any other retelling that I've read.

 

The violence, the gore, as well as the strong sense of independence that Snow exemplifies was great. I loved the thrills and chills in the book and I'm so glad that I was able to take part in this book tour, it introduced me to a new author and I can't wait to see what Jason writes next. For a 191 page novel it was more action packed that I would have expected and I hope to see more from this author.

 

I would recommend this novel to those who love retellings of popular fairy takes as well as those who like urban fantasy novels. It's a great read from a new and unique voice in the writing world and I highly recommend this one. It's one of my favourites of the year!

 

Author Bio:

 

 

Jason Macumber has been writing since he could first hold a pen, weaving stories so grand his teachers would usually have to pull him back down to earth on more than one occasion. After beginning his writing career in the Young Adult genre, he found that the medium did not suit his more mature tastes and tones that were dying to rip free from the far reaches of his mind. Thus, Snow emerged and became a force to be reckoned and the Ever After Chronicles was born. He is currently living in Florida where he is finishing his graduate degree and punching out the sequel to NEVER AFTER in the company of his three dogs and one mischievous cat.

 

 

*I received a free copy in exchange for my free and honest review. I was not compensated in any way and all thoughts and opinions expressed therein are my own.

Really Liked it!
★ ★ ★ ★

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The Duchess of Love (Duchess of Love 0.5) by Sally MacKenzie

Summary:

A Duke In Disguise...

The day was as hot as the pond was inviting. It’s not as if anyone in Little Huffington was going to happen upon a secluded vale on the Duke of Greycliffe’s lands. And Venus Collingswood didn’t want to get her shift all wet. It was the perfect setting in which to plan her lovely bookworm of a sister’s betrothal to the mysterious new duke arriving seven days hence. If only she had a suitable accomplice...

Andrew Valentine, Duke of Greycliffe, never thought arriving at his own household a week early would cause so much trouble. The housekeeper thinks he’s his own cousin. Actually, the chance to not be the duke for a while is a pleasant opportunity indeed. It might even help him interrogate the delectable little nymph he’s discovered swimming in his pond—if he can manage to get a word in edgewise...
Summary taken from Goodreads.com
Length: 106 pages (E-book)
Source: Kindle Freebie
Publication Date: April 24th 2012 by Zebra         

I'm all for trying new authors so when this author was recommended to me I started looking for her books in all the used bookstores I frequent but I just never saw any so when this one came up as a kindle freebie I jumped on it.

I was actually surprised by how much I liked this book considering its a take on the classic Pride & Prejudice and we all know that I detest Pride & Prejudice (I know it's shocking) and all the re-tellings of it really don't help endear the original to me.

However, there was just something about the way the author wrote this one that I felt compelled to like it more than any other re-telling I've read. What I think really worked for the author was that used her sense of humour quite a lot in the story of Venus and the Duke of Greycliffe.

Plus unlike Jane Austen you can tell that the author wrote this just  for the fun of writing it and that she intended for it to be a story that is light, easy and fun to read. I think it's the perfect read for a commute or just sitting on the beach beacause of it only being 106 pages long. If you like romance, and want a light hearted read this one may just be up your alley and for that I have no problem recommending it to a few of my friends. Just don't go into reading it thinking the writing will be superb it's just a fun bit of fluff to be enjoyed.

Do you like Pride & Prejudice re-tellings? Do you have any favourites?

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Liked It!
★ ★ ★

Fall For You: A Jane Austen Academy Novel by Cecilia Gray

Summary:

Jane Austen meets Pretty Little Liars in this fresh, new young-adult series!

* * *

The last thing that the girls at the elite Jane Austen Academy need is hot guys to flirt with. Please. They need to stay focused on something that lasts much longer: an acceptance letter from an Ivy.

But over the summer the school has been sold, and like it or not, the guys are coming. And it's about to turn the Academy--and the lives of its students--totally upside down...
* * *

To say Lizzie and Dante are polar opposites is the understatement of the century. He's a snooty Exeter transfer with more money than Google. She's a driven study-a-holic barely keeping up with tuition. It's obvious that Dante thinks he's way too good for Lizzie. And Lizzie knows Dante is a snob with a gift for pushing her buttons.

But things are changing fast this year at the Academy. And when Lizzie's quest to stop those changes blows up in her face, taking her oldest friendship with it, she has nowhere else to turn but to Dante, with his killer blue eyes, his crazy-sexy smile, and his secrets... Secrets Lizzie can't seem to leave alone, no matter how hard she tries...

Summary taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 128 pages (ebook)

Source: Book I won from Clean Romance Reviews

Publication Date: February 10th 2012

Ahh another modern retelling of one of Jane Austen's work...just what the world needed...or not. Now this might surprise you but I don't really care for Austen's writing...for whatever reason I can't just get into her writing and it's not because of the language of the time its just that I don't care for her. Maybe one day I will.

But getting back to Fall For You, I was planning on reading this one next month when the weather is nice outside in the backyard but one of my followers who "Likes" my Facebook page told me I should read it sooner. So last week I did.

I knew that the book would be a really light, cute read so I didn't go into it thinking that it would blow my mind. At the same time I'm not saying that light, cute reads can't be some of the best books but for me this one really wasn't one of the best ones.

The book had it's cute parts but I had one major issue. I hated Lizzie who is the main protagonist, I found her to be rude, stuck up, arrogant and all around unpleasant and I think that was why I really couldn't get into the book...well that coupled with the fact that it's set in a private boarding school. For some reason I never like books set in boarding schools because I find the characters pretentious.

Even though I wasn't a fan of the setting or Lizzie I did think it was a cute read, definitely one that I would recommend to fans of Austen, modern retellings of her stories and YA chick -lit. The over all story was actually pretty good but I couldn't get over the parts that I didn't like and believe me I did try because I wanted so much to really like the book but I just found it to be an okay read. Even though I wasn't a big fan of this book I am going to give the next one in this series a try and once again I'd like to thank Clean Romance Reviews for holding the giveaway where I won my e-copy of this book.

If I had to give the author a bit of advice it would be to make the story more believable because I think she could still retain a lot of the "theme" and be even more successful in terms of characters and plot development if she doesn't try so hard because if she wants to she could be really great at writing and that sometimes it's okay to stray away from the cliches.

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★ ★ 1/2