"Beating Ruby" Book Review

Title: Beating Ruby
Series: Book 2 of Spotless series
Author: Camilla Monk
Stars: 5 out of 5
Blurb (from Goodreads.com):
Life hasn’t been quite the same for computer engineer Island Chaptal since March, an OCD-ridden professional killer, burst into her life to clean her bedroom and take her on a global chase for a legendary diamond. Sadly, the (hit) man doesn’t just break bones; he breaks hearts, too.

Since then, Island has found solace in Alex—the perfect boyfriend—and Ruby, a software project about to revolutionize online banking security…for the worse. When Island’s boss is found dead after allegedly using Ruby to steal a vast fortune, it’s up to her to clear his name and recover the money. Someone else wants answers, though, and this time, Island might be in over her head.

From New York to Zürich, it’s going to take the return of a cleaning expert, a mini-octopus, and Island’s wits to beat Ruby. All while deciding whether to trust a man who already jilted her, or one who may have his own deadly secrets…

***

Another enjoyable, laugh-until-you-cry read! I enjoyed Beating Ruby just as much as the first book. If you'd like to see my review of Spotless, Book 1 of the Spotless Series, you can find it HERE.

Poor Island just can't catch a break. This time trouble has found her at work, and now she has to work with her new boyfriend (who is more than he seems) and her not-really-an-ex March. As one might expect based on the first Spotless Series book, there's plenty of humor, action, romance gone awry to go around. 

The characters are unique, interesting, and well-developed. This goes for both the main characters and the side characters. Nobody is neglected! I love Island's humorous and witty inner dialogue. Even more, she's intelligent, strong, and doesn't let the guys have all the fun. And speaking of the guys, the show-downs between Alex and March are entertainment gold. March is a complex character and I fell more in love with him in this book. Alex can go crawl under a rock, and if you want to find out why, pick up a copy and read the book for yourself! 😉

If you enjoyed the first book in the series (and I don't see how anyone possibly couldn't), then you will definitely want to read Beating Ruby. It's a page-turner that won't let you go until the end, and until your stomach is cramping from laughing too much. 

Writing Practice Prompt #1

Your main character wakes up having no idea where they are except that they are in some kind of forest. Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to describe this forest as your character tries to figure out their location. 

Suggestions:

• Keep in mind the 5 senses (sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing) as you describe the setting. 
• Is this a regular forest here on earth, an alien planet forest, a fantastical or magical forest?

Feel free to comment below with the scene you wrote! 

"Demons at Deadnight" Book Review

Title: Demons at Deadnight
Series: Divinicus Nex Chronicles #1
Authors: A & E Kirk
Stars: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Blurb (from Goodreads.com):
For seventeen-year-old Aurora Lahey, survival is a lifestyle.

DEMONIC DESTINY
Aurora has the crappiest superpower on the planet. And it’s just unleashed a hit squad from hell. Demons are on the hunt, salivating to carve her carcass into confetti. ´

CHARISMATIC KILLERS
The Hex Boys—mysterious, hunky, and notorious for their trails of destruction—have the answers Aurora needs to survive. But their overload of deadly secrets and suspicious motives makes trusting them a potentially fatal move.

LETHAL ALLIES
The battle to save her family, herself, and stop demonic domination may cost Aurora everything worth living for, and force her to reveal her own dark secrets. But no worries. She needs the Hex Boys to pull this off, and, chances are, teaming up with these guys will get her killed anyway. 

***

I really enjoyed reading Demons at Deadnight. I was drawn in by the premise of this story and was not disappointed. A&E Kirk have written an interesting story supported by a fun cast of characters. 

The main character, Aurora is strong, brave, and clumsy. She has the unfortunate ability of seeing demons and when they come after her she's got no choice but to kick demon butt (usually on accident) and find out what's going on with the help of the Hex Boys. The Hex Boys are an amazing(ly hilarious) group of guys. They all have their own unique personalities and quirks, and the dynamics between them and with Aurora are great. 

This book features plenty of kick-butt action, laugh-out-loud one-liners, and a side of smoldering romantic tension. Thank goodness there is no love triangle in this book, which I think has become annoyingly common for YA novels. 

I will warn though that this book ends with a major cliff hanger (the reason for the .5 deduction), but luckily book 2 is already out!

"Wendy Darling: Seas" Book Review

Title: Seas
Series: Book 2 of Wendy Darling
Author: Colleen Oakes
Stars: 5 out of 5
Blurb:
Wendy Darling: Seas finds Wendy and Michael aboard the dreaded Sudden Night, a dangerous behemoth sailed by the infamous Captain Hook and his blood-thirsty crew. In this exotic world of mermaids, spies and pirate-feuds, Wendy finds herself struggling to keep her family above the waves. Hunted by the twisted boy who once stole her heart and struggling to survive in the whimsical Neverland sea, returning home to London now seems like a distant dream - and the betrayals have just begun. 

Will Wendy find shelter with Peter's greatest enemy, or is she a pawn in a much darker game, one that could forever alter not only her family's future, but also the soul of Neverland itself?

***

Colleen Oakes is a masterful storyteller. I loved the first book in the Wendy Darling series and I was not disappointed with the second! Oakes paints a lush portrait of a wondrous and dark Neverland where our heroine, Wendy, is caught between a vicious boy who is obsessed with her and a crew of violent pirates. 

Wendy is a fabulous character - despite her fear, she's braving an impossible situation. She is also caring, intelligent, and strong. The new characters we are introduced to in this book are just as well developed as those from the first. Who knew pirates and wenches could be so multifaceted? By the end of the first book, Peter's darkness had been revealed, but in this sequel he becomes even more fearsome as we learn how he came into his dark, corrupting powers. 

The author did an excellent job developing the setting in the first book, but we only got to see certain parts of Neverland. In this book, readers get to experience Captain Hook's ship, the pirate town, and the mermaid's grotto. Each setting is described in detail and I could easily picture the beauty and wonder of Neverland. 

In addition to the vivid world building and deep characterization, there is plenty of action to keep readers on the edge of their seats. Wendy is not a passive character (thank goodness!) and she is often thrust into situations where she has to use her wits to survive. There are a couple of plot twists thrown in that I did not anticipate. Unfortunately, one of those twists comes at the very end, creating a major cliffhanger. 

Even without the cliffhanger ending, I am looking forward to reading the next novel in the series. I can only hope Ms. Oakes does not take too long to release book three!

Thank you to SparkPress for the advance copy via Netgalley. 

"Spotless" Book Review

Title: Spotless
Series: Book #1 of Spotless Series
Author: Camilla Monk
Stars: 5 out of 5
Book Blurb:
Island Chaptal—nerdy IT engineer by day, romance novel junkie by night—just walked into her messy New York apartment to find Mr. Right waiting for her. No, wait…Mr. Clean.

A gentleman professional killer with a bad case of OCD and zero tolerance for unsorted laundry, March isn’t there to kill her…yet. He wants the diamond her late mother stole for a sinister criminal organization. Island agrees to help him find it, facing the kind of adversaries who dismember first and ask questions later. Good thing she’s got March to show her the ropes. And the guns. And the knives.

The buttoned-up Island is soon having a blast racing from Paris to Tokyo following the clues in her mother’s will, and for the first time, she’s ready to get close to someone. But falling for a hit man may be the very definition of loving dangerously.…

Spotless marks the beginning of Island and March’s ongoing adventures.


***

It's been a while since a book made me laugh out loud as much as Spotless did. This was such a hilarious and enjoyable story with much to love. 

I really liked the characters, especially Island, the quirky, socially awkward heroine. She's computer savvy, intelligent, brave, and her thoughts/commentary are very amusing. Then there's her obsessively cleanly "cleaner" romantic interest- March (or whatever his real name is). When he's not too busy being intimidating and a bada**, he's literally cleaning up messes. There's also a fun, well-done cast of side characters from Island's roommate to some interesting villain characters. 

This book was lighter on the romance side, in fact, an ongoing inside joke is that the main character is still a virgin. So, don't expect any sex scenes but there's no lack of sexual tension between Island and March.  There is plenty of quick-paced action and  world-travelling adventure as well. 

I wouldn't say that the book ends on a cliff-hanger - it wraps up well - but it's definitely set up for a second book. I am looking forward to reading the next book and seeing what misadventure Island will find herself a part of next.

"Uprooted" Book Review

Title: Uprooted
Series: Standalone
Author: Naomi Novik
Stars: 5 out of 5 
Book Blurb (from Goodreads.com): 
“Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.”

Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.

Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood.

The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows—everyone knows—that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn’t, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her.

But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.

___________________________________________________________

Isn't that blurb awesome?! When I first read it I was super excited, and then instantly disappointed when I realized I had months to go until the book would be published. When I finally got my hands on a copy of Uprooted, I was not at all disappointed, hence the five star review. This book's got it all: action, adventure, magic, and a dash of romance. There's also an engaging plot that kept me turning pages until I finished the book a few hours later as well as  strong, well-developed characters. 

Unlike most books being published lately and that I've read recently, this book is a standalone - though I would be totally happy if Naomi Novik added a sequel. It was refreshing to have a book with a satisfying resolution at the end and no cliff-hanger making you wait in agonizing anticipation until the next book. Overall, the book was well paced. There were one or two spots where it felt a little slow, but it didn't detract much from my overall reading experience. I never once felt like putting the book down for a snooze. 

The setting was also interesting and well-described. This book is set in a fantasy-like kingdom where magic, both good and bad, is a common occurrence. Novik does a great job describing both the smaller settings, like the village and Dragon's tower, as well as the larger, overarching descriptions of the kingdom and land. I could easily visualize the places and people. 

My favorite part was the excellent cast of characters. There's of course the main character, Agnieszka, who is a very realistic character that I found relatable. She's brave, strong, stubborn, and cares strongly for her friends and family, but she's flawed; she gets scared, rushes into things, makes social blunders, etc. Most importantly, however, is the growth I saw in her character as the book progressed; she wasn't at all stagnant. There is also the wizard, Dragon, who is another key character. He's brooding, and grumpy, but what I found most interesting was his obsession with order and fashion. Whereas Agnieszka goes with the flow and is constantly disheveled, Dragon is precise and always perfectly put together. They contrast, but also compliment each other. The romance between them wasn't really a surprise, and while I get the whole "opposites attract" thing, I wasn't fully convinced of why Agnieszka cared so much for him. There are a number of other great characters in this book as well, including the best friend, Kasia, who is important throughout the book and well-rounded, even as side character. There's also the antagonist, who I won't go into much detail about to avoid giving away major spoilers. Let me just say, this book has a great villain, who is not just a flat evil character, but has an interesting backstory and a reason for their evilness. 

This is a book I plan to re-read and I would definitely recommend this book to readers who enjoy fantasy novels with magic and intrigue. I think young adults and adults alike will enjoy this book, however there are some more explicit romance scenes in the book so I wouldn't recommend it for younger teens. 

*Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for the advanced reader copy via NetGalley.

Yay New Blog!

Welcome to Adventures of an Avid Bookworm! I was going to call it "Adventures of a Book Worm" but apparently that title was taken already so I added in "Avid" and called it a day. :) This is not my first blog, but hopefully it will be my last. You see, I've not been very good about keeping up with blogs. I start out posting frequently, then maybe once a week, then once a month, and then I get so busy and so much time passes and I forget I had a blog in the first place! This is time will be different. I am determined to make Adventures of an Avid Bookworm last.

My goal for this blog is to share writing advice that I've learned from fellow writers and from my creative writing courses as well as reviews of books I've read recently. I read a lot of books - like 150 or more a year - so I probably won't review all the books I read, just the ones worth reviewing. There will also be random blog posts (as the blog description says) anything and everything. You might learn about a cool new recipe I tried (I love to bake!) or my latest travel adventure. Ya never know!

Well, toodles for now! I'll be back with a book review before you know it.