Day: July 22, 2015

Review: Pixelated by L.S. Murphy

Posted July 22, 2015 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Pixelated by L.S. MurphyReviewer: Rowena
Pixelated by L.S. Murphy
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Publication Date: June 30th 2015
Genres: Young Adult
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-stars

Senior Year. Middle of nowhere. What's the new girl to do?

For Piper Marks, the answer is simple. She's determined to have her photography rock the cover of National Geographic someday, and moving to Clarkton, Iowa for her last year of high school is not going to stop her. Even if her usual subjects have changed from bright lights and skyscrapers to fields, cows...and more fields.

But when photographer at the local paper quits in a huff, she steps into his spot. Her new job keeps Piper busy capturing tackles, and zooming in on first downs and end zone dances, not to mention putting her directly in the path of varsity football star Les Williams IV. Her new friends warn her off, but she can't resist the pull she feels toward this mysterious country boy. But this small town is keeping a secret, and it's one that could destroy any chance they have to be together.

It's up to Piper to decide what to do with the distorted truth. Can she risk exposing her heart? It might be worth it, 'cause Les is about to change her world from black and white to fully saturated color.

Praise for Pixelated:

"In Pixelated, L.S. Murphy weaves a complex web of secrets and lies with a 'will they or won't they' romance that kept me turning pages and holding my breath!" ~ Julie Reece, author of The Artisans and Crux

"Beautifully written, with a full spectrum of emotion and complex characters, Pixelated will tug at all your heartstrings. I easily lost myself in the world L.S. Murphy created and couldn't stop reading because I needed to see how the story ended." ~ Kelly Oram, author of Cinder & Ella

"L.S. Murphy brings something for every reader with Pixelated: romance, secrets, mystery, and a main character torn between two choices. Murphy's writing is sharp and steeped in emotions, deftly hooking her readers from the first sentence to the last." ~ Sarah Bromley, author of A Murder Of Magpies

Pixelated is about a young girl named Piper who moved from St. Louis to small town Clarkton, Iowa for her senior year. Her Mom and Step Dad bought two newspapers in Clarkton and they’re making a go of it in the country. Piper couldn’t stay back with her father since he took a college Professor job in Kansas so off to Clarkton she went with her Mom. She’s bummed about this new change in her life because she thought she would be graduating with her friends that she’s had since elementary but now it looks like she’ll be graduating with kids who have been friends or knew each other since they were in elementary school. Trying to get through it, Piper leans heavily on her photography. When she meets Les Williams, a cute cowboy boots wearing boy from her school, she develops a crush on him and tries to get over it because he’s already got a girlfriend. She makes friends and at first, things are going great until Les starts showing interest in her and she becomes the talk of the high school gossips.

Both Les and Piper were interesting characters. Piper couldn’t help liking Les and I immediately knew that there was more to Les’ than met the eye so I didn’t trust him at first. I knew that there was a story where his girlfriend was concerned and that story low key got on my nerves. The longer he went without fessing up to everyone, the more annoyed I was with him. Because he was playing with Piper’s emotions and I got that he was in a bad place but not hurting the girlfriend hurt Piper and I wasn’t okay with that. I think it took him too long to make things right but when he finally does, I was glad. I thought Piper wasn’t the most perfect of heroines (who is?) but I understood what motivated her and even though she got on my nerves every time she snapped at those around her when she was mad (hello, you don’t talk to your Step Dad like that, little girl), I still ended up liking her.

There were parts of this book that I felt dragged a bit too long but for the most part, it’s an enjoyable contemporary YA romance with characters that I liked. I was interested in getting to know Les and Piper more and I really liked how serious she was about her photography.

This book felt real, in the sense that the kids from school reacted the way that high schoolers react to gossip, to being betrayed and everything else in their lives. They drove me crazy and they made me laugh but overall, I didn’t exactly love them. This book is a solid read but the slow bits were enough to take me out of the story from time to time and I wasn’t a fan of that. I would definitely read more by this author because her writing style is good and I’d like to see what else she’s got up her sleeve.

I’d recommend this book to fans of contemporary YA romances, the kind of romances that are light and fluffy that aren’t bogged down in teenage angst.

Grade: 3 out of 5

This book is available from Bloomsbury Spark. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

three-stars


Tagged: , , , , , ,

Review: Earth Bound by Christine Feehan

Posted July 22, 2015 by Holly in Reviews | 1 Comment

Review: Earth Bound by Christine FeehanReviewer: Holly
Earth Bound by Christine Feehan
Series: Sisters of the Heart #4, Sea Haven
Also in this series: Water Bound, Spirit Bound, Air Bound, Fire Bound, Bound Together (Sea Haven/Sisters of the Heart, #6), Turbulent Sea, Hidden Currents, Magic in the Wind, The Twilight Before Christmas, Oceans of Fire, Dangerous Tides, Safe Harbor, Turbulent Sea, Hidden Currents
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: July 7th 2015
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 384
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
four-stars

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Air Bound returns to the mysterious coastal town of Sea Haven where six sisters of the heart are bound by the elements, and one is stalked by an inescapable past…
After escaping from a cult, Lexi found refuge with her sisters on the farm that more than sustained her body—it nurtured her soul as well.  But she never forgot the terror she left behind or the always present fear that the cult would find her again, and claim her. Then her nightmare came true.
Lexi was discovered and threatened—only to be suddenly saved by a stranger. He is Gavriil Prakenskii, and he’s awestruck by the woman he’s rescued. She is destined for him. He can feel it in his soul. But how can Lexi find happiness with a man steeped in secrets and shadows, one intimately acquainted with violence, and whose very love could be the death of them?
NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED
From the Paperback edition.

This is my favorite series of Feehan’s. I gave up on the Dark series long ago, and while I’ve read some of the Leopard and Game books, this is the one I get most excited for. I dove in as soon as I received the book for review. While I enjoyed it, I didn’t love it as much as some of the others in the series.

I think the part I struggled with the most was Lexi’s sexual abuse and how it was glossed over. Gavrill thinks about it quite a bit, but it isn’t addressed out in the open very well and there were no major issues because of it. I felt like that was missed opportunity to explore something that was clearly a deep, dark problem for Lexi.

I still love the relationship between the sisters and now the added bonus of the brother’s forming their own relationship. My favorite part of this book was Gavrill’s initial visit to Ilya. His need to protect his little brother coupled with his natural wariness over not knowing him at all came across very well. I also liked Gavrill’s natural protectiveness toward Lexi.

Aside from the lack of depth in dealing with Lexi’s past, I enjoyed Gavrill and Lexi’s relationship. He’s very protective of her, which could have been overbearing, but actually worked since I felt she needed someone to care for her and put her needs first. He got her to open up a bit and he really came to rely on her as well. Lexi didn’t just roll over and let Gavrill take charge of her life. She demanded he give as much as he took. This is a “fated mates” type series, wherein each Prakenskii male forms a bond with one woman. Feehan is one of the few authors who makes that work for me. Despite being “fated” to be together, they both worked to form a relationship and keep it going.

Though I struggled with how easy Lexi seemed to deal with her past issues, I enjoyed their relationship and the connection between the siblings. Feehan excels at writing believable and engaging friendships.

3.75 out of 5

The Series:

Water Bound
Spirit Bound
Air Bound
Earth Bound

four-stars


Tagged: , , , , , , ,