Top Ten Tuesday: Characters Who Need Their Own Books

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

I had to think long and hard about this topic. There are a lot of secondary characters whose POVs would be intriguing, but I don't think they always need an entire book or even a novella.

First up, Captain Carswell Thorne from The Lunar Chronicles. I know he got a short story in the back of the Target edition of Cress. BUT I'd really like to have a novella or book about a random adventure of his, perhaps after the events of the series and everything has calmed down.

2. Nehemia

You know, the princess from the Throne of Glass series? She's still such a mystery, and I'm dying to know about her and her past.

3. Sloane

Since You've Been Gone is easily one of my favorite books of 2014. But it was entirely Emily's side of the story. I'd like to delve into her BFF Sloane's head.

4. Trinity

In The Art of Lainey, I can say, without a doubt, Micah's little sister is my favorite character. I loved that we got to know her a little better in Micah's novella, Infinite Repeat. Still, I could easily read a whole book about her.

5 and 6. Bex and Liz

Why? Because I want more Gallagher Girls, but I have this feeling Cammie's story is over. But I totally want to read more adventures starring Bex and Liz.

7. Finnick Odair

I know we learned more about his history, but I'd really like to hear about his first Hunger Games from him and anything before that and why Annie became so important to him. *tries not to cry*

8. May Singer

May is that adorable, lovable younger sister from The Selection trilogy. Since we're getting an e-novella from Marlee's POV, there definitely needs to be one about May.

9. Eleanor of Aquitaine

Ok, I know she's an historical figure and all, but she is such a cool and important character in Lady Thief. A.C. Gaughen totally needs to write a book about a young Eleanor. 

10. Isaac

What happens after The Fault in Our Stars? Like with Cammie, I think Hazel's part of the story is over. But I'd like to see life from Isaac's eyes now (pun intended).

So what about you? What characters do you think need their own books?

Rewind & Review #25

Hosted by Shae Has Left the Room.

There are now less than three weeks until I get to go home for Thanksgiving, and I'm just so excited. I've missed my parents, and my dog, and my home, and my friends. I'm going to be able to sleep in my own bed and eat good, home-cooked food. I'll be able to visit my favorite bookstore and see family and hopefully Kate. But for now I'm making it through all my classes. I've reached that point where I'm just feeling pretty meh about all of them, but I know I need to make the effort to go each day. After all, my parents are paying a lot for me to be here and I need to keep my GPA up so I can keep my academic scholarship.

Book-wise, these last two weeks have been much nicer than last time, although I didn't get any books from the 26th through the 31st. I've also done a TON of rereading.

Books I Received

For Real by Alison Cherry (via NetGalley/Delacorte)
Inherit Midnight by Kate Kae Myers (via NetGalley/Bloomsbury)
When by Victoria Laurie
The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand
My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga (the last three via Read Between the Lynes)
The Ring and the Crown by Melissa de la Cruz (via Nicole through the YA Book Exchange)

Books I Bought

Two of Us by Elizabeth Eulberg (free e-book)

Books I Read

Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers (reread)
Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt (reread)
Two of Us by Elizabeth Eulberg (4.5 stars)
Top Ten Clues You're Clueless by Liz Czukas (reread)
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas (reread)
Sixteenth Summer by Michelle Dalton (reread)
For Real by Alison Cherry
When by Victoria Laurie
Hook's Revenge by Heidi Schulz (3.5 stars)
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (reread)

Blog Posts You Might've Missed

   (From 10/27-11/1)

• So You Like... #7
• Review: Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (5 stars)
• Review: Famous in Love by Rebecca Serle (3 stars)
• A YA Costume Party

   (From 11/2-11/8)

• 1989 ~ Thoughts on Taylor's New Album
• The Sweet Scent of Books
• Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Never Want to Reread
• A Bookish Swiftie's Recommendations Part 2
• Random Friday: Favorite Season

Upcoming Blog Posts in the Next Few Weeks (subject to change)

• Top Ten Tuesday: Characters Who Need Their Own Books
• Books Everywhere: a Dorm Room Adventure
• The Paris Dream
• Review: The Princess Spy by Melanie Dickerson
• So You Like... #8
• Review: Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers
• Top Ten Tuesday: Sequels I Need
• Review: Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay
• Random Friday: Books That Disappointed
• Because It's All We Know
• Surviving Fantasy Worlds
• Top Ten Tuesday: Winter TBR List
• What I'm Thankful For 2014
• Why Do I Buy a Book?
• Review: Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George

Random Friday: Favorite Season

Want to participate in Random Fridays? Just do the following: 

• Include the above image in your post and link back to my post.
• Blog about this week's topic.
• Add the link to your Random Friday at the bottom of this post.

Today's post was such a fun one to do, because I had three different people besides me contribute to it. As you can see, the topic is your favorite season, so I found three people whose favorite seasons are all different. Now you're about to find out why they're our favorites. :)

Emily ~ Winter

Winter is my favorite season because I feel like everyone is more positive and joyful around that time. You get to see family, friends, and everyone tends to be in a good mood. I also live in Florida, so that good mood may have to do with the fact that winter is the only time it's slightly cooler outside. 

The general holiday spirit is so fantastic. Gift-giving, family fun, and, if you're a Christian like myself (or if you are religious in any way), it is a great time for celebration. Even if you're not religious, the holidays are still fun. 

I particularly love to sit down and read in the winter. Hot tea and a great book are really all I need in winter time. Breaks from school + cold weather + holidays + books = happiness. 

Emma ~ Spring

Spring is definitely the season that makes me the happiest. I love that the weather is warming up (usually; Illinois is a fickle state), and that I can finally wear super cute clothes again, and that all the trees and flowers are blooming again. Warmer weather means I can go outside without a heavy coat and boots. It means I can go to Starbucks and order a passion tea lemonade instead of hot cocoa or apple cider. It means I can sit outside with my schoolwork or a book. And I really can't wait to experience my first spring in Kentucky. I visited my school in April 2013, and everything was so pretty then. I can only imagine spending every day here, surrounded by God's magnificent creation. Spring is just the season that makes me happiest.

Chris ~ Summer
Of all the times in the year, there are none quite like summer. Summer is a thousand different feelings and memories that transcend the three month space to which they were confined in my formative years, and goes far beyond the parameters of the calendar. It is simply more, everything from the brisk sunrise to the sleepy twilight and all the moments in-between that seem to last a lifetime. Summer is bare feet and scraped knees, running further and faster than you would at any other time. It is fireworks and long nights lying in the grass, sharing laughter and wondering which one is the little dipper. It is walks in the park under the shade of the weeping willow, with thoughts spoken like secrets in the late afternoon. It is dreams in all that they can be, dreams that are so much greater because the world is full and the world is alive when it is summer. It is love that is iridescent and beautiful in all the ways that it is one thing and another and always changing. It is smiles and hands and moments and life beyond all the words that would try to wrestle it down and preserve it on a piece of paper. It is a respite of stillness in a symphony of chaos, when creation slows down for everyone to see it, and understand why “alive” is such an incredible word.

Sarah ~ Fall

I love all seasons, more or less, but fall is probably my favorite. It's one of the prettiest times of year, with the leaves turning to bright red and yellow as if wanting to die in a blaze of glory. But the main reason I love it has nothing to do with nature. No, I love fall because it, more than any other season, is when things happen. It starts with fall fests through October, though my family doesn't go to nearly as many of those as we used to. Then there's Halloween, though my family doesn't do trick-or-treating. Instead, we go to Chuck-e-Cheese with a few other families, costumes optional. 

And once Halloween's over, it's November, the most exciting month of the year for me. It's NaNoWriMo, which keeps me busy (almost) every spare moment with weaving plot twists and character arcs for whatever novel I'm working on. My birthday's in November, and that almost always means my grandpa will come down to visit. And, of course, there's Thanksgiving- usually celebrated with a potluck with our Bible Study- and the day after Thanksgiving, the Christmas tree goes up and preparations for that holiday begin. With all that going on, is it any wonder fall is my favorite time of year?

A Bookish Swiftie's Recommendations Part 2

Two of my favorite things in the world are Taylor Swift (and her music) and books. I got the bright idea that I should recommend YA books, based on certain Taylor Swift songs. I've already done one post with this topic, but let's be honest: there's no way I could fit all the books and songs in just one post. So I'm gladly doing another!

"Enchanted" ~ meet-cutes

Wish You Were Italian by Kristin Rae

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith

"Tied Together With a Smile" ~ books about giving up

Falling into Place by Amy Zhang

"Dear John" ~ abusive (emotionally and physically) relationships

The Things You Kiss Goodbye by Leslie Connor (boyfriend-girlfriend)

Something Real by Heather Demetrios (mother-daughter)

"The Lucky One" ~ books about fame

Starstruck by Rachel Shukert

Being Audrey Hepburn by Mitchell Kriegman

Secrets of My Hollywood Life by Jen Calonita

"Fifteen" ~ books about starting high school or college

Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau

"Long Live" ~ books featuring prom or graduation

Ask Again Later by Liz Czukas

United We Spy by Ally Carter

One Past Midnight by Jessica Shirvington

"Sweeter Than Fiction" ~ bookish or hopeless romantic characters

  

Cress by Marissa Meyer

Pivot Point by Kasie West

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

"The Best Day" ~ books with strong family relationships

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Heist Society by Ally Carter

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George

I hope to do another of these soon! What did you think of my recommendations this time?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Never Want to Reread

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

I'm changing things up for this week's topic. I'm always rereading books, so I felt I wouldn't be able to list just ten books accurately. Therefore, I'm going to talk about books I never want to reread.

1. Starry Night by Isabel Gillies

2. There's No Place Like Home by Jen Calonita

3. Dark Metropolis by Jaclyn Dolamore

4. Vivian Divine Is Dead by Lauren Sabel

5. Bumped by Megan McCafferty

6. The Vanishing Season by Jodi Lynn Anderson

7. Royally Lost by Angie Stanton

8. Panic by Lauren Oliver

9. Salvage by Alexandra Duncan

10. Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu

11. The Juliet Club by Suzanne Harper

12. Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

13. Jane by April Lindner

I'm noticing how many of those books have pretty covers, and ugh, why do bad books get pretty covers? 

The Sweet Scent of Books

Have you ever thought about what scented candles themed after your favorite books would smell like? I got to thinking about that awhile back and realized it would make a great blog post. Now, I'm not saying all these candles would smell great, but I definitely think they hint at major things in the books.

The Lunar Chronicles Collection

So what would candles for Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress smell like? How about motor oil, antipasto (or tomatoes), and desert sand?

The Percy Jackson Collection

If Percy knew about this, he'd think I was pretty crazy. But can't you imagine PJO candles that smell like the sea, pine trees, and blue raspberry?

The Throne of Glass Collection

I could see Celaena Sardothien appreciating candles that are chocolate cake-scented, book-scented, and death-scented.

The Selection Collection

(yes, I'm laughing about that rhyme)

This one was a bit harder to do, but I came up with two The Selection trilogy scented candles. How about strawberry tart and pennies?

The Princess Academy Collection

So if you've read Princess Academy, what would you expect these candles to smell like? Well I thought of stone, goats, and miri flowers. I expect that the first two wouldn't sell well.

The Art of Lainey Collection

Ah, Lainey. I'm sure she'd want some girly-scented candles, but I decided on...a pancakes-scented candle, a coffee-scented candle, and a soccer-scented candle (it would likely smell like grass and sweat).

And last but not least...

The Being Sloane Jacobs Collection

This one was perhaps the hardest, but I think an ice-scented candle would definitely be reminiscent of Being Sloane Jacobs and I also think a poutine-scented candle would be awesome. (Not really. Please realize that most of these ideas are purely ironic.)

So that's it for my book-themed scented candle collections! Thoughts? What other book series would you want to see scented candles for?

1989 ~ Thoughts on Taylor's New Album

So I knew I wanted to talk about Taylor's latest album. It's been out for a week now (well, when this post goes up, it will have been), and I have so many thoughts. And I'm going to treat this a bit like one of my book reviews.

1989 produced by Taylor Swift, Max Martin, and Shellback, written by Taylor Swift and numerous co-writers, and performed by Taylor Swift

Grade: A

Release date: October 27, 2014

This album was provided by me. I preordered it from iTunes and went out and bought the deluxe edition at Target.

Summary: Taylor Swift's fifth album, her first album that is completely pop (before, her sound was country-pop with a bit of rock and dubstep thrown in at times). Less about love and more about her life now. There are still songs about a particular ex, but they're more nostalgic and bittersweet rather than finger-pointing and angry. Plus, check out my favorite lyrics from each song. ;)

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: So, like with my review of My True Love Gave to Me, which went story-by-story, I'm going to go song-by-song.

"Welcome To New York"
I liked "Out Of The Woods" better, but it was a good intro song for the album, and I love the bridge. 3.5/5
"Like any great love/It keeps you guessing/Like any real love/It’s ever changing/Like any true love/It drives you crazy."

"Blank Space"
The SASS. I love when Taylor pokes fun at herself and her image. I'm not the biggest fan of the beat and flow of this song, but it's still a lot of fun. 4/5
"'Cause darling I'm a nightmare dressed like a daydream"

"Style"
I had heard "Style" described as having a serious Miami Vice vibe. While I've never seen that show, I could really feel where that reference would come from. This is a cool, fun song that I love jamming to. Plus, it's perfect for my dance parties. Easily in my top faves. 5/5
"You got that James Dean daydream look in your eye/And I got that red lip classic thing that you like"

"Out Of The Woods"
So, so, so amazing. I love that the verses are slower, like when you're reminiscing, and the choruses are faster and more chaotic like in the moment of the relationship. And just this song makes me so happy. 5/5
The whole dang song. I can't quote just one lyric.

"All You Had To Do Was Stay"
This isn't one of my favorites, but it's still pretty good, and it isn't one I'll skip if it comes up in my playlist. I'm not sure, though, how I feel about the high "Stay" in the chorus. However, the song has been growing on me. 4/5
"People like you always want back the love they gave away/And people like me wanna believe you when you say you've changed"

"Shake It Off"
When it first came out, I loved it of course. But then a few weeks later, I realized it was exactly what I needed in this season of my life. So, thank you, Taylor. 4.5/5
"Hey, hey, hey/Just think while you been getting down and out about the liars/And the dirty dirty cheats of the world/You could have been getting down to this sick beat."

"I Wish You Would"
Taylor has some things she references on every album. I'm not going to say which one this song has, but it's a Swiftie favorite. I felt some of the chaos of "Out Of The Woods" and enjoyed it. 4.5/5
"I wish you knew that I'll never forget you as long as I live"

"Bad Blood"
Slay, Taylor, slay. (Just for the record, if you didn't know, this is about a female artist who did some very awful things to Taylor, NOT an ex.) 5/5
"Band-aids don't fix bullet holes/You say sorry just for show/You live like that, you live with ghosts"

"Wildest Dreams"
Am I the only one who was reminded a bit of Lana del Ray with this track? This one is a bit more suggestive than some of Taylor's other songs, but it's not too provocative. 3.5/5
"Say you'll remember me/Standing in a nice dress, staring at the sun set babe/Red lips and rosy cheeks/Say you'll see me again even if it's just pretend"

"How You Get The Girl"
Several of the songs on 1989 are repetitive, but this one feels possibly the most repetitive. It's got a catchy melody, but it's perhaps my least favorite of the record. It's not as memorable or as catchy as "Out Of The Woods" and "Shake It Off." 2.5/5

"This Love"
This is the only track written solely by Taylor (although make no mistake - she was heavily involved in writing all the others). It also sounds the most country-like to me, and it's beautiful. It has a very "Sad Beautiful Tragic" or "Safe and Sound" vibe to me. 5/5
"When you’re young, you just run/But you come back to what you need"

"I Know Places"
"I Know Places" has a darkness reminiscent of "Haunted" (which is one of my favorite songs ever, fyi). And I. Love. It. Taylor is continuing to slay. 5/5
"Love's a fragile little flame, it could burn out"

"Clean"
This is the only song I'm not sharing a lyric from because I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't heard it. It's one you need to hear for a full experience because it is beautiful. I keep using that word, I know. But I could feel Taylor's emotion and that was enough for me. If you don't get the deluxe version, this is the last track of the album and it's a magnificent closer. 5/5

"Wonderland"
I have mad love for the Cheshire Cat and Wonderland-related things, so imagine my excitement for this song. All the references to Wonderland worked well and weren't too cheesy or over-the-top. It almost doesn't sound like Taylor at times, which lessens my enjoyment just a little. 4.5/5
"You searched the world for something else to make you feel like what we had/
And in the end in Wonderland we both went mad"

"You Are In Love"
*sighs* Once again, beautiful. 5/5
"You understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars/And why I've spent
my whole life try to put it in words"

"New Romantics"
It's got a fun dance beat. I had to give it a couple listens, but it grew on me. 4/5
"Heartbreak is the national anthem"

Voice Memos
This was a new, different look at three of Taylor's songs. It was very raw and interesting. The second two felt more abrupt, though, and I think honestly I would've rather had three more bonus songs. 3/5

The Verdict: The 17 scores average out to 4.3 stars. I'd say that's a success. 1989 has me completely wonderstruck. Taylor hasn't done a 180 (a lot of Red was more pop than country), but I love this new direction. She still writes amazing lyrics and she isn't doing traditional pop. Bravo, Taylor, bravo.

A YA Costume Party

You are cordially invited to a bookish costume party.

The only requirement (besides RSVPing): dress up as a character from Young Adult fiction.

So who do you dress up as?

Costumes for the Girls

This is my personal favorite: Tris from the Divergent trilogy. I actually dressed up as her for a costume party at my co-op last spring. All you need are black clothes and Tris's famous tattoo on her collarbone. I also wore my hair in a ponytail and, when I posed for pictures at home, I held a knife.

But what if you're not blonde enough to be Tris? Well, you could create a costume based on Linh Cinder from The Lunar Chronicles. You could mimic her ballgown or her mechanic's wear. Don't forget the cyborg hand and leg, which you can create with body paint!

Looking for a group costume? Then look no further than the 4 Gallagher Girls: Cammie, Bex, Liz, and Macey. All you need is the Gallagher uniform. My friend actually went as Cammie to the same costume party I went as Tris to, so there are Divergent meets Gallagher Girls pictures.

For more YA fantasy suggestions, how about Celaena or Nehemia from Throne of Glass, or Kestrel from The Winner's Curse? I actually considered Kestrel when I was brainstorming costume ideas for that party last spring.

Or, if you're looking for an excuse to wear a hooded cape, you definitely need to go as Scarlet from A.C. Gaughen's Scarlet and Lady Thief.

One costume I'd love to see at this fictional party is Alyssa from the Splintered trilogy. You could mimic her Wonderland look or create something based on what she wears in our world.

Which leads me to...

Costumes for the Guys

One of the coolest costumes for guys at this party would have to be Morpheus from the Splintered trilogy. Imagine how elaborate and amazing a Morpheus costume would be.

But for a guy who prefers something simpler, he can throw together a Percy Jackson costume. All you'd need is an orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a sword.

Or how about Peeta from The Hunger Games? I'm not entirely sure how you'd pull this one off, but I'd like to see someone try.

Maybe you want to dress up as Morpheus, but the costume would be just a little too complex. How about the Darkling from the Grisha trilogy? Just as dark and mysterious, but simpler to put together as a costume.

And my last suggestion, for a guy who wants a fairly simple costume, has crazy hair, and is super tall... Cricket Bell from Lola and the Boy Next Door.

All right, so which character would you dress up as? Do you think people would easily recognize you were said character? Let's discuss and have fun with this topic. :)

Review: Famous in Love

Famous in Love by Rebecca Serle
Grade: C
This ARC was provided by On the Same Page ARC tours in exchange for an honest review. (I also won an ARC on Twitter from Little, Brown's YA publicity team. Thank you!)
Summary: When seventeen-year-old Paige Townsen gets plucked from obscurity to star in the movie adaptation of a blockbuster book series, her life changes practically overnight. Within a month, Paige has traded the quiet streets of her hometown for a bustling movie set on the shores of Maui, and she is spending quality time with her costar Rainer Devon, one of People's Sexiest Men Alive. But when troubled star Jordan Wilder lands the role of the other point in the movie's famous love triangle, Paige's crazy new life begins to resemble her character's.

In this coming-of-age romance inspired by the kind of celeb hookups that get clever nicknames and a million page views, Paige must figure out who she is -- and who she wants -- while the whole world watches.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: As love triangles for the sake of love triangles go, this one is a bit of a doozy. Paige Townsen is definitely drawn to both Rainer and Jordan. However, while her relationship with Rainer is a bit of a slow-burn, things happened way too fast with Jordan for my taste. My other primary problem with Famous in Love was that there wasn't much plotline beyond the romance. I like a good romance as much as the next blogger, but I prefer a little more to my books than just that. Also, there were some weird time jumps that made me reread sections a few times, just to make sure I understood what was going on. However, I did like the glimpses we got of the Hollywood scene through a newbie's eyes. And I really did enjoy Rainer and Paige's romance. There was some immediate attraction, but watching it develop was nice, and I look forward to what's in store for them in the sequel. (I think there's a sequel. I heard there was a sequel.)
Romance stayed fairly clean, maybe upper PG, lower PG-13. Language had its foul moments. The movie director was a bit fond of the f-word and a couple characters dropped the s-word.

The Verdict: As long as love triangles don't drive you batty, then this is a fun fluffy romance.

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble

Review: Killer Instinct

Killer Instinct by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Grade: A+
Release date: November 7, 2014
This ARC was provided by Disney Hyperion in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: Seventeen-year-old Cassie Hobbes has a gift for profiling people. Her talent has landed her a spot in an elite FBI program for teens with innate crime-solving abilities, and into some harrowing situations. After barely escaping a confrontation with an unbalanced killer obsessed with her mother’s murder, Cassie hopes she and the rest of the team can stick to solving cold cases from a distance.

But when victims of a brutal new serial killer start turning up, the Naturals are pulled into an active case that strikes too close to home: the killer is a perfect copycat of Dean’s incarcerated father—a man he’d do anything to forget. Forced deeper into a murderer’s psyche than ever before, will the Naturals be able to outsmart the enigmatic killer’s brutal mind games before this copycat twists them into his web for good?

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: I am trying so hard to write this review in English and not fangirl. One of my favorite parts was on page 30 where we get one of the first POVs from the new killer. Before I'd even read the last sentence on the page, I thought, It has begun. Wanna know what the last sentence on page 30 was? I'm sure y'all have a pretty good guess.
All of the characters receive strong development. We learn more about how each one ticks and why they are the way they are. The semi-love triangle from book one continues, but it takes a backseat to the character development and overall plot. I will say this: it's completely resolved by the end of Killer Instinct, and I am happy with its resolution. Back to the character growth, though. It was interesting to observe that Cassie has a bit of PTSD, from the events of The Naturals (I'm sure any sane person would). Her friendship with Sloane grows, and that was exciting. Lia continues to clash with Cassie a bit, but Lia is still seen as a strong female character. We also meet Agent Sterling, and she's pretty awesome, as well. Jennifer Lynn Barnes excels at writing women who are strong in a variety of ways. Plus, we got to know Dean's father. Let me just say, that man is creepy, and I can't even begin to imagine what Dean went through as a kid.
I was kept guessing throughout the entire book, although I did have my suspicions and I was more right this time than last. That's all I'll say on that subject because part of the fun is the guessing game. So if you're coming here for spoilers as to who the killer is...I won't be spilling the beans.
Violence is as bad as last time. The serial killer's methods are described a fair bit, so if anything along those lines would be a trigger for you, then you might want to avoid this book. Romance-wise, kissing happens and other stuff (an affair and so forth) are mentioned but not described. One of the best moments for me was the description of hand-holding between two characters. I won't say who, but it got me very excited and I actually posted on Goodreads: I've never been so into a description of hand-holding. Language is pretty clean, too.

The Verdict: Overall, I found Killer Instinct to be an even stronger book than The Naturals, and I absolutely loved both. I definitely need more books in the series. Oh, and that cover? It's very important to the book. ;) I'll finish this review with some favorite (non-spoilery) quotes (all taken from my ARC, so they may be different in the final edition).

"Self-preservation was not Michael's strong suit."

"Come on Dean... You don't have to dance. Just brood in beat to the music."

"Maybe, to do what you and I do, we have to have a little bit of the monster in us."

Buy: Read Between the Lynes  Barnes & Noble