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Review – The White Mary – Kira Salak

11 Jul

The White Mary
Author: Kira Salak

Book Description:
Marika Vecera, an accomplished war reporter, has dedicated her life to helping the world’s oppressed and forgotten. When not on one of her dangerous assignments, she lives in Boston, exploring a new relationship with Seb, a psychologist who offers her glimpses of a better world.

Returning from a harrowing assignment in the Congo where she was kidnapped by rebel soldiers, Marika learns that a man she has always admired from afar, Pulitzer-winning war correspondent Robert Lewis, has committed suicide. Stunned, she abandons her magazine work to write Lewis’s biography, settling down with Seb as their intimacy grows. But when Marika finds a curious letter from a missionary claiming to have seen Lewis in the remote jungle of Papua New Guinea, she has to wonder, What if Lewis isn’t dead?

Marika soon leaves Seb to embark on her ultimate journey in one of the world’s most exotic and unknown lands. Through her eyes we experience the harsh realities of jungle travel, embrace the mythology of native tribes, and receive the special wisdom of Tobo, a witch doctor and sage, as we follow her extraordinary quest to learn the truth about Lewis—and about herself, along the way.

Review
If I hadn’t been purposely seeking out a book set in Papua New Guinea (PNG) for my Around the World challenge, I likely never would have picked up this book. Yet, when I did, I was immediately draw into Marika’s life (and for what its worth, I loved her name). She is the kind of kick-ass successful female character that could be used as a role-model in today’s society. The kind of woman that says, yes, I know I might get killed on this assignment, but I’m going to do it anyways. The book is took in two different styles, a present day narrative of her experiences travelling through the isolated jungles of PNG with only a local witch-doctor as her guide, and through flash-backs to her life before PNG – her experiences in various war zones, finding a life that isn’t in a war zone, discovering that her idol has committed suicide and her decision to write his biography and where that leads.

Kira Salak, the author, brings a world of experience to her characters and it seems as though at times, that Marika is a reflect of her and her travels. She has written for National Geographic as well as many other journals and magazines. The visual imagery found in The White Mary was so engaging that I felt like I was in PNG with Marika, and could almost even feel the leechs on me at various times (ick! – lol!). I plan on trying to find Ms Salak’s memoir of her backpacking journey through PNG in the future and see how it compares to the White Mary. Overall, 3.5 stars, but with a recommendation to people who like thought-provoking reads.

 
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Posted by on July 11, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – The Mephisto Club – Tess Gerritsen

09 Jul

The Mephisto Club
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Series: #6 in the Rizzoli and Isles series

Narrator: Kathe Mazur
Run Time: 11 hours 14 minutes

Book Description:
PECCAVIThe Latin word is scrawled in blood at the scene of a young woman’s brutal murder: I HAVE SINNED. It’s a chilling Christmas greeting for Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, who swiftly link the victim to controversial celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O’Donnell–Jane’s professional nemesis and member of a sinister cabal called the Mephisto Club.

On top of Beacon Hill, the club’s acolytes devote themselves to the analysis of evil: Can it be explained by science? Does it have a physical presence? Do demons walk the earth? Drawing on a wealth of dark historical data and mysterious religious symbolism, the Mephisto scholars aim to prove a startling theory: that Satan himself exists among us.

With the grisly appearance of a corpse on their doorstep, it’s clear that someone–or something–is indeed prowling the city. The members of the club begin to fear the very subject of their study. Could this maniacal killer be one of their own–or have they inadvertently summoned an evil entity from the darkness?

Delving deep into the most baffling and unusual case of their careers, Maura and Jane embark on a terrifying journey to the very heart of evil, where they encounter a malevolent foe more dangerous than any they have ever faced . . . one whose work is only just beginning.

Review
This past year, I have read or listened to all of the books in the Rizzoli & Isles series up to this point. In each and every one of them Gerritsen has taken the reader/listener for a ride. Sometimes I can figure out who the killer is ahead of times and sometimes not. While I enjoyed the Mephisto Club, I didn’t love it as much as I had previous books. Maybe it was the use of religious symbology and demons, maybe it was something else. I can’t quite put my fingers on it. It was good, don’t get me wrong, just not great…I did figure out early on that it was one of the members of the club that was responsible for the crimes being committed, but the original person who I thought it was, it definately wasn’t (mostly because he was killed early on…) – I also wasn’t surprised to see the psychiatrist Joyce O’Donnell killed in this installment – she had appeared in several of the previous books, but her character always just seemed to be on the periphery to annoy Jane and Maura and not really contribute. I did enjoy the character of Anthony and hope that he shows up in later books.

When it came to the narration of the audiobook, I was glad to see Kathe Mazur return to being the narrator – although, I believe that this is the last time in the series that she is the one (unfortunately). After Anna Fields, she definately has developed Jane’s voice into one that reflects her Boston Irish character, as well as Maura’s dark wit. Her diversity of character voices makes for an entertaining listen and I didn’t manage to confuse any of the characters – they all appeared to be individuals and it was almost like I was listening to a couple of different people narrate the book. I do know that I need to check her out narrating some other books to see how she does. I’m definately going to be following her as a narrator in the future.

I’ll definately continue to seek out Tess Gerritsen’s books and look forward to seeing what Jane and Maura get up to in the future

 
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Posted by on July 9, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Forbidden – Tabitha Suzuma

08 Jul

Forbidden
Author: Tabitha Suzuma

Book Description
She is pretty and talented – sweet sixteen and never been kissed. He is seventeen; gorgeous and on the brink of a bright future. And now they have fallen in love. But… they are brother and sister.

Seventeen-year-old Lochan and sixteen-year-old Maya have always felt more like friends than siblings. Together they have stepped in for their alcoholic, wayward mother to take care of their three younger siblings. As defacto parents to the little ones, Lochan and Maya have had to grow up fast. And the stress of their lives—and the way they understand each other so completely—has also also brought them closer than two siblings would ordinarily be. So close, in fact, that they have fallen in love. Their clandestine romance quickly blooms into deep, desperate love. They know their relationship is wrong and cannot possibly continue. And yet, they cannot stop what feels so incredibly right. As the novel careens toward an explosive and shocking finale, only one thing is certain: a love this devastating has no happy ending

Review

“How can something so wrong feel so right?”
I actually read Forbidden back in March and yet, I still think about it periodically, that is the kind of impact that it had on me. This is also the first time that I have tried to write a review of it because there was just so much stuff that I had to think about, process and try to understand. This is one of those YA books that is written in a way that most teens could read, and yet, the subject matter is definately more on the adult side of the scale. It definately breeches the gap between the traditional YA (with 13-16 year olds) and adult fiction – I would probably call it Mature YA (which I think is the classification people are starting to use with books similar to this).

The subject matter, sibling incest, is one of the most controversial that I have encountered in fiction recently and yet, I think that the author handled it in the best way possible. I have to say going into the book, knowing what it was about, I swore up and down that there was no way I was going to enjoy it…but I was sucked in. It was, more than anything else, an exploration of relationships and how they develop. Most of us would agree that a brother and sister falling in love isn’t right, and yet, Lochlan and Maya have gone through events in their lives that most people could probably never contemplate and in all likelihood are more experienced in traumatic events that most adults.

There were so many quotes that I wanted to write down as I was reading this, and I never seemed to have pen/paper handy – so thanks to goodreads and favorite quotes, here are a few that struck me as being pivatol to the book:

“At the end of the day it’s about how much you can bear, how much you can endure. Being together, we harm nobody; being apart, we extinguish ourselves.” – to me, this brings up a good question, what is the harm? I know there are likely a variety of responses, but in all truth, what is the harm – yes, its not socially accepted by society – well, neither was interracial marriage and yet now, it is…does this mean that in the future, people might become more accepting and there is truth in the state – who is hurt when people are in the relationship like this…I can’t think of any aside from the direct family should something happen to split the individuals up

“This whole time, my whole life, that harsh, stony path was leading up to this one point. I followed it blindly, stumbling along the way, scraped and weary, without any idea of where it was leading, without ever realizing that with every step I was approaching the light at the end of a very long, dark tunnel. And now that I’ve reached it, now that I’m here, I want to catch it in my hand, hold onto it forever to look back on – the point at which my new life really began.”

This is one of those books that got a rare 5 star review from me and I seem to recommend it regularly, but only to people who I think can handle the topic, which I know isn’t everyone. I hope that anyone reading this blog, who opts to read it, will find it a thought-provoking read like I did, and I would love to hear comments on it after you have 😉

 
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Posted by on July 8, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Elijah – Jacquelyn Frank

07 Jul

Elijah
Author: Jacquelyn Frank
Series: #3 in the Nightwalkers

Narrator: Xe Sands
Running Time: 11 hours 16 minutes

Book Description
They are called the Demons, one of the elusive Nightwalker races living in shadow and struggling for survival against their human enemies. Their proudest warrior is Elijah, a man who bends for nothing and no one…until one woman brings him to his knees…

Some Feelings You Just Can’t Fight

He is known as the Warrior Captain–a master of every weapon, a fierce soldier sworn to protect his kind. Powerful, relentless, merciless, Elijah has always won every battle he’s ever taken on–until now. Ambushed by necromancers, he is left for dead only to be discovered by the woman who could very well deliver the final blow…Siena, the Lycanthrope Queen.

With three centuries of warring, little more than a decade of uneasy peace has existed between the Lycanthropes and Elijah’s people. Now, after a lifetime of suspicion, the warrior in Elijah is consumed with a different battle–winning Siena’s heart by giving her pleasure beyond all boundaries. What starts as attraction and arousal soon burns into a passion with consequences that will echo through the ages for both their people. And as would-be enemies become inseparable lovers, another threat approaches, one with the power to destroy them all…

Surrender to the night.

Review
This audiobook was a total guilty pleasure for me. I normally have all my listening scheduled out for a month in advance between my commute to work and my work listening, but towards the end of the month I realized that I had finished all the stuff that I had planned on listening to, so I went rooting through my files and found Elijah. I had previously read the first two books in the series, but picked this one up in audiobook format after heading goodreads friends rave about Xe’s narration. The first thing that I learnt was that I was totally saying the narrators name wrong 😉 (Sorry Xe!). The second thing I learnt – OMG, I will totally be picking up more books narrated by her in the future.

In the previous two books, we had seen Elijah in the background – he was the guy essentially in charge of the military of the Nightwalkers – the guy that everyone would want on their side if they were to go into battle. And yet, there was something about him that made me want to know more – it was like he was scared to love…and then you met Sienna – she has previously appeared in Gideon’s book, and was the Queen of the Lycanthrope’s – she seemed very cold and honestly, I wasn’t sure if Ms Frank was going to be able to pull her off as a character that I could connect with, but wow did she ever. I was immediately sucked into their story and really didn’t want to take any breaks while I was listening because I was so caught up in what was going on.

I don’t know if it was the story, or the narration that made it for me. From previous experience with the author, I know that she can weave a tale that will suck you in, but when combined with Xe Sand’s narration – I was doomed (to not get any work done because I was soo absorbed in the story). I loved the various accents that were used, especially Sierra’s Russian-esque one and Elijah’s just made me go weak-kneed (thankfully, I was sitting down while I was listening). I highly recommend people who like Paranormal romance listen to this audiobook and I can’t wait to get my hands on the other ones in the series, or other books that Ms Sands has narratored. I think this is where I get to yell, give me more please! lol

 
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Posted by on July 7, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Twenty Boy Summer – Sarah Ockler

06 Jul

Twenty Boy Summer
Author: Sarah Ockler

Book Description
“Don’t worry, Anna. I’ll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it.”
“Okay.”
“Promise me? Promise you won’t say anything?”
“Don’t worry.” I laughed. “It’s our secret, right?”
According to Anna’s best friend, Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every day, there’s a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there’s something she hasn’t told Frankie–she’s already had her romance, and it was with Frankie’s older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.

Book Review
I have to admit that I love a good summer love story and I thought Twenty Boy Summer had potential, but ultimately, it left me feeling unsatisfied. Like when you eat a burger because you are craving it, but after you are done, you realize that wasn’t truely what you wanted…

The premise sounded interesting – two teenages on a summer vacation, finding themselves, coping with the death of a loved one (brother/secret boyfriend). But while I liked Anna as a character for the most part, Frankie drove me absolutely nuts. I understand that people cope with their grief in different ways and this was the way that the author choose for her, but she almost seemed mentally unstable at times…and she obviously wasn’t getting the support that she needed from her family because she was relying on her best friend. Her best friend that had been keeping a secret from her for the better part of a year.

I don’t agree with Anna keeping her secret, especially after Matt died, but at the same time, I can understand why. Her best friend had lost her brother, could she really step up and say, I lost him too…I just wish that the resolution between her and Frankie had been more definite – it just kind of happened. The ending was also just blah…I wish I had known what happened to her and the guys who worked at the Ice Cream Shack – did they stay in touch, did her relationship with the one last beyond the summer…I liked him and hope that it did…

That being said, I do think that the author has potential and I’ll likely seek out another book by her in the future to see if I feel the same way about her writing

 
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Posted by on July 6, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Shadow Man – Cody McFadyen

05 Jul

Shadow Man
Author: Cody McFadyen
Series: #1 in the Smoky Barrett

Narrator: Kate Reading
Run Time: 13 hours, 14 minutes

Book Description
Once, Special Agent Smoky Barrett hunted serial killers for the FBI. She was one of the best–until a madman terrorized her family, killed her husband and daughter, and left her face scarred and her soul brutalized. Turning the tables on the killer, Smoky shot him dead–but her life was shattered forever.

Now Smoky dreams about picking up her weapon again. She dreams about placing the cold steel between her lips and pulling the trigger one last time. Because for a woman who’s lost everything, what is there left to lose?

She’s about to find out.

In all her years at the Bureau, Smoky has never encountered anyone like him–a new and fascinating kind of monster, a twisted genius who defies profilers’ attempts to understand him. And he’s issued Smoky a direct challenge, coaxing her back from the brink with the only thing that could convince her to live.

The killer videotaped his latest crime–an act of horror that left a child motherless–then sent a message addressed to Agent Smoky Barrett. The message is enough to shock Smoky back to work, back to her FBI team. And that child awakens something in Smoky she thought was gone forever.

Suddenly the stakes are raised. The game has changed. For as this deranged monster embarks on an unspeakable spree of perversion and murder, Smoky is coming alive again–and she’s about to face her greatest fears as a cop, a woman, a mother…and a merciless killer’s next victim.

Review
I’ll have to admit, at first when I started listening to Shadow Man, I was skeptical. The first hour or so that I listened to, I was a bit confused over what was going on but that soon changed. I was glad that I was listening to this at work, because I could easily stop when I was at a more suspenseful part and take a break (aka, go and bug my co-workers) before resuming the listening. The author has a way with his writing that made me feel as though I was with Smoky as she was dealing with the crimes perpetrated by the killer. In this instance, I had an inkling of who I thought the killer was, but nothing was clear up until the final reveal and then it was a definate ah-ha moment.

I enjoyed Kate Reading’s narration – to my knowledge, I don’t think that I have ever listened to anything that she has narrated before. I know that I will def. look out for more stuff done by her in the future and will be continuing this series for sure (I already have the next one on my queue at booksfree.com). I would likely never have picked up this book to listen to if it hadn’t show up on the list of books that readers who enjoyed Vanish (Tess Gerritsen) also enjoyed and I am glad that I did.

 
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Posted by on July 5, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Redemption – Olivia Duncan Craig

04 Jul


Redemption
Author: Olivia Duncan Craig

Book Description
It’s a different world. Space has been colonized, the wealthy fly to work rather than drive, and slavery is legal.
Jason’s family has been ripped apart by tragedy. The only way he can save the ones left is to offer himself up as a bondmate. The more he’s willing to give, the higher the price he can command. And Jason is willing to give a lot.

Devin is wealthy and heartbroken after the wife he adored walked out on him. He isn’t looking for love. All he wants is a relationship he can control. Buying a bondmate seems like the perfect solution.

Yet when he purchases Jason’s contract, Devin gets more than he bargained for.

Review
Redemption is one of those books that if it had never shown up as a potential book in a reading bingo challenge (lesser known m/m books), I likely never would have picked it up and that would have been a pity. It is a book that makes me want to go out and keep trying self-published authors, because the quality of the writing and the presentation of the book were top-notch. I felt like I was reading a book that has been released through one of the bigger publishing houses.

When I was first asking people about what book I should pick (I had it narrowed down to this one and 2 others), I was told that it was a book with slavery and non-con scenarios, so when I started to read it, I was expecting something a lot harsher than what I ended up reading. Truthfully, it was rather sweet. There is slavery in the world, but the individuals enter into it through their own choice and then there are pairings made that seem to be very similar to being on match.com or chemistry.com (something like that).

I will definately be stalking this author for future books and can’t wait to see what she comes up with next. 3.5 stars (but I am really tempted to round up to 4).

 
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Posted by on July 4, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – A Book of Tongues – Gemma Files

20 Jun

A Book of Tongues
Author: Gemma Files
Narrator: Gordon Mackenzie
Length: 10 hours 58 minutes

Review Copy provided by audiobook producer as part of Audiobook Jukebox Solid Gold Reviewer program

Book Description:
Two years after the Civil War, Pinkerton agent Ed Morrow has gone undercover with one of the weird West’s most dangerous outlaw gangs-the troop led by “Reverend” Asher Rook, ex-Confederate chaplain turned “hexslinger,” and his notorious lieutenant (and lover) Chess Pargeter. Morrow’s task: get close enough to map the extent of Rook’s power, then bring that knowledge back to help Professor Joachim Asbury unlock the secrets of magic itself.

Magicians, cursed by their gift to a solitary and painful existence, have never been more than a footnote in history. But Rook, driven by desperation, has a plan to shatter the natural law that prevents hexes from cooperation, and change the face of the world-a plan sealed by an unholy marriage-oath with the goddess Ixchel, mother of all hanged men. To accomplish this, he must raise her bloodthirsty pantheon from its collective grave through sacrifice, destruction, and apotheosis.

Caught between a passel of dead gods and monsters, hexes galore, Rook’s witchery, and the ruthless calculations of his own masters, Morrow’s only real hope of survival lies with the man without whom Rook cannot succeed: Chess Pargeter himself. But Morrow and Chess will have to literally ride through Hell before the truth of Chess’s fate comes clear-the doom written for him, and the entire world.

Review
It was like book serendipity when this book showed up as a review copy on AudiobookJukebox. The previous weekend, I had been at a get-together for one of my Goodreads groups and one of the people there was talking about this book and how she highly recommended it. I went ahead and bought it on my kindle and then as I was browing audiobook jukebox, I saw it up for review and thought what the heck, why not ask for a copy and see what happens.

The premise of the book itself was intriguing, the historical setting with the use of Pinkerton agents, mixed in with hex-slingers so the magical aspect and then the GLBT factor of the 2 main characters made for some entertaining listening. I have to say in all my time of listening to audiobooks, this is the first time that I have actually listened to anything featuring m/m romance and I’m pretty sure that my face was probably an interesting shade of red at some points during the listening.

The use of a character who had previously been a reverend and his use of biblical passages scattered through-out provided an interesting theme, and you could tell that the author had done her research and had picked what appeared to be appropriate passages for various phases of the book. However, towards the end, my mind was starting to wander and it felt like overall, some editing and maybe paring down of the book would have been good – even if it had only been a few pages to tighten up the storyline.

This was also the first time that I had ever listened to Gordon McKenzie narrated and I actually went into his narration cold. I tried looking on my normal sources for audiobooks to see if I could get a voice sample, but apparently on that day my computer just decided to not like me and wouldn’t let me do a preview. But I don’t regret it for a minute. I really enjoyed his narration and felt that I could easily identify all the various characters that appeared through-out. I loved the voice of Jess that he came up with and he was probably the most entertaining voice of all of them. I will definately be on the look-out for more books narrated by him in the future.

The production, done by Iambik Audio, was also high quality and I have no complaints about the product received. It was nice to see that the product was easy to download and nicely priced. I’m looking forward to getting the next books in the trilogy.

 
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Posted by on June 20, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – I am Forbidden – Anouk Markovits

15 Jun

I am Forbidden
Author: Anouk Markovits

Book Description:
A family is torn apart by fierce belief and private longing in this unprecedented journey deep inside the most insular sect of Hasidic Jews, the Satmar.
Opening in 1939 Transylvania, five-year-old Josef witnesses the murder of his family by the Romanian Iron Guard and is rescued by a Christian maid to be raised as her own son. Five years later, Josef rescues a young girl, Mila, after her parents are killed while running to meet the Rebbe they hoped would save them. Josef helps Mila reach Zalman Stern, a leader in the Satmar community, in whose home Mila is raised as a sister to Zalman’s daughter, Atara. With the rise of communism in central Europe, the family moves to Paris, to the Marais, where Zalman tries to raise his children apart from the city in which they live. Mila’s faith intensifies, while her beloved sister Atara discovers a world of books and learning that she cannot ignore.

Review
Aside from reading some Chaim Potok back in high school, as well as Night by Eli Weisel, I have really not read a lot of fiction books in the past where religion, and specifically Judaism, play a huge role. However, after seeing I am Forbidden show up as a highlighted book on goodreads, as well as on another website, I was intrigued enough to pick it up.

Words can’t really describe how much I enjoyed the book, as well as how much I learnt from it. While I had heard of the Hasidic sect of Judaism before, I had never heard of the Satmar’s which is a movement within the Hasidic branch. The majority of Satmar jews come from the Hungarian/Romanian part of the world and many were Holocaust survivors. The book itself, started off in Romania during World War 2, followed the Stern family to Paris where the majority of Mila’s (one of the Stern daughters) takes place and then travels to Williamsburg (in New York, not Virginia, like I was expecting), when Mila Stern marries Josef. There was so much detail about life in a Satmar household, that a simple book review cannot cover it all. From the preparations that a woman goes though when she gets her period, traditions governing wedding night protocal and so many other glimpses into the daily life.

It came of no surprise to me, when I read the brief bio of the author on the dust-cover of the book, that she grew up in a Satmar household and then left when she was 19. As a reader, following this discovery, I had to wonder if she had modelled any of the characters on her family, whether Atara (Mila’s sister) was supposed to represent her in some form. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about Judaism as a whole, as well as the various movements within. As well as anyone that is looking for an intriguing family saga that encompasses over 50 years of living and multiple generations. The writing style is easy to get sucked into and I had a hard time putting it down.

 
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Posted by on June 15, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Review – Perfect Chemistry – Simone Elkeles

14 Jun

Book: Perfect Chemistry
Author: Simone Elkeles
Narrators: Roxanne Hernandez and Blas Kisic
Listening Time: 9 hrs, 45 minutes

Book Description:
When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created ‘perfect’ life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she’s worked so hard for: her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect.
Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more.

Review:
I’ll be a dork and admit that I love Shakespeare, in fact, I took an English class in college as an elective that was the first of two semester classes just about his various plays. While Romeo and Juliet is not a favorite of mine, I do enjoy it, especially for the forbidden love angle. In Perfect Chemistry, Ms Elkeles takes this take of star-crossed lovers and sets it in modern-day Chicago. I will have to admit I had been recommended this book many times over the last few months (after I started reading a lot more YA) but I kept putting it off and I don’t know why. Maybe because I was afraid of being disappointed since it had been so hyped up…but when I did decide to read (or in this case, listen), I wasn’t disappointed.

The main characters of Brittany and Alex were well-developed and I felt that through-out the book, I not only got to know them, but also see them grow and change as people (yes, I know that probably sounds a bit weird). The supporting characters of Paco (Alex’s friend), his brothers (who get their own books later on), as well as Brittany’s sister provided an interesting depth and development. Without them, I don’t know if the book would have been that good.

My recommendation for the audiobook came from a goodreads friend of mine and since I trust her recommendations (she hasn’t steered me wrong yet), I decided to go with that option. One of the things I did like about the book was that it was told in an alternating POV with each chapter dedicated to either Alex or Brittany, and the audiobook was the same. Roxanne did a great job as Brittany, I could see her in my head as I was listening to her narration. At first, however, I wasn’t so sure about Blas narration of Alex, he seemed almost too old for the teenager that Alex was supposed to be, but his voice grew on it. Especially as Alex’s background revealed itself and you realized that he had been forced to grow up too soon. I’m also not a spanish speaker, so I can’t really comment on the authenticity of the language used or how it is supposed to sound, but to my untrained ear it sounded good.

I’ll definately be reading more by this author in the future, especially the books about Alex’s brothers.

 
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Posted by on June 14, 2012 in Book Review

 

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