ARC Review: Hinder by Kristin Ping

Title: Hinder

Author: Kristin Ping

Genre: New Adult Paranormal Fantasy

Publisher: Fire Quill Publishing

Release: May 15, 2018

Pages: 454

 

Ethan Sutcliff seems like a normal seventeen-year-old—at least that’s what he’s trying to portray. In a secret society run by the Supernaturals, Ethan is what witches call a Bender. Benders are Witches’ Guardians, who are able to control a witches’ ability, bend it, or move it away from harming humans. In Ethan’s case, he is able to bend the Earth element. But at the age of fifteen, he lost all connection to it, and the reasons behind it could only mean one of two things: His Wielder is either dead, or hiding out somewhere.

Alex Burgendorf has been living in her aunt’s locket for the past sixteen years with her mother—a Fire Wielder, and her father—a Water Wielder. For sixteen years, her parents vowed to protect her, and they have, as she is the last Earth wielding witch. However, time is running out. Alex must find her Bender, or the fate of the Supernaturals might be at stake.

Hinder is a Paranormal New Adult novel about witches (Wielders and Benders). The Wielders make the magic (elemental magic) and their Bender bends the magic, performs the magic. Alex and Ethan are one of that last pair of Earth Wielder and Benders in a world where their magic is dangerous and the most powerful. Dangerous people are out to get them and to help keep her safe, Alex’s family hide her in a locket for sixteen years. When Alex and Ethan finally meet and discover their connection it sets them in for quite a shock.

Now while I really wanted to enjoy this book, I couldn’t. In fact, within the first 3% of the book I already wanted to give up because there was so much info-dumping that it was hard to understand the world properly. In fact, I still don’t really understand what the point was. Benders can’t do anything without their Benders, but Wielders can do just fine without them. Ethan, for example, he is a Earth Bender and when he turned 15 years old he lost his magic because he never found his Wielder. However, Alex still had her magic even without finding her Bender. So what exactly is the point of a Bender anyway?

Another thing that was too over the top was Alex’s mother trying to hide Alex. Because so many dangerous people are out to endanger Alex, her mother, Meredith, uses a ridiculous glamour to hide her. Not only is the glamour ugly and she gets bullied, it didn’t really make sense to me when they are going to use her real name. So she wasn’t really in hiding anymore, she just had a different face. It just seemed a little much.

With underdeveloped characters, a bland plot, underdeveloped, but confusing world, I just couldn’t get into this novel. I wished I enjoyed it more because it sounded interesting and had a beautiful cover. Maybe the published edition will be better and more enjoyable.

Please note, this review is based off an eARC edition provided by Netgalley and the publisher. All thoughts are my own. 

ARC Review: The Becoming of Noah Shaw by Michelle Hodkin

 

Title: The Becoming of Noah Shaw

Author: Michelle Hodkin

Series: The Shaw Confessions #1

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Release: November 7, 2017

Pages: 384

In the first book of the Shaw Confessions, the companion series to the New York Times bestselling Mara Dyer novels, old skeletons are laid bare and new promises prove deadly. This is what happens after happily ever after.

Everyone thinks seventeen-year-old Noah Shaw has the world on a string.

They’re wrong.

Mara Dyer is the only one he trusts with his secrets and his future.

He shouldn’t.

And both are scared that uncovering the truth about themselves will force them apart.

They’re right.

Trigger warning: suicide/suicidal thoughts, self-harm, assault, victim blaming, death of teens, ill humor.

THE BECOMING OF NOAH SHAW was definitely a bit of a surprise. I had no idea what to think going into this book about what this was even going to be about. Because of the way the Maray Dyer trilogy ended, I felt like this book was a bit unnecessary, but because Noah Shaw is a gift I decided I needed to it. However, I still feel a little confused about where this new spin off is going and why it was even needed? The entire plot felt a little lack luster and underwhelming. Even though I loved being inside Noah’s head and his POV was definitely something I enjoyed more than Mara Dyer, I wish the story moved a little faster.

The book takes place some time after RETRIBUTION OF MARA DYER, where Noah’s evil father has “committed suicide” and while they are at his funeral, Noah and Mara discover a dead body of a fellow Gifted teen who presumably killed himself. As more and more deaths of Gifted teens turn up, the gang discover new secrets. Noah begins doubting Mara and if he can even trust her. Being inside Noah’s head was definitely something I didn’t expect. He is more morbid and it broke my heart. He truly loves Mara more than anything so it hurt when he began to doubt her actions (although completely understandable).

THE BECOMING OF NOAH SHAW was entertaining to read, but a little too slow for my taste. I look forward to seeing where this new spin off will go because of that cliffhanger, but it’s not really something I am super excited for. I am thankful that we get more Noah Shaw though because Noah is perfect.

Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.

ARC Review: Kiss Me in New York by Catherine Rider

Title: Kiss Me in New York

Author: Catherine Rider

Publisher: Kids Can Press

Release: October 3, 2018

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Pages: 200

 

It’s Christmas Eve at JFK in NYC.

Charlotte is a British student, waiting for a flight home after the worst semester of her life. Anthony is a native New Yorker, surprising his girlfriend at the airport after three months apart. Charlotte has just been dumped, and Anthony is about to be dumped, right in the middle of the holiday crowd.

Charlotte’s flight is canceled when a blizzard blows in, and Anthony can’t bear to go home. So, they set out into the city together, clutching a book Charlotte picks up in the airport gift shop: Ten Easy Steps for Getting Over Your Ex. For this one night, they’ll focus on healing their broken hearts … together.

Step-by-step, the two struggle to put the past behind them. But the snow is so enchanting, and the holiday lights are so beguiling, that soon their shared misery gives way to something else. Soon, they’re not only over their exes — they’re falling for each other.

Then a subway ride splits them up by mistake. Will they reunite before Charlotte’s flight leaves New York forever?

KISS ME IN NEW YORK is sweet, Christmas romance that takes place within 24 hours. Charlotte is on her way back home to London dealing with a break up when she meets Anthony, who just got dumped in the airport himself. When Charlotte’s flight is delayed, she and Anthony decide to spend the remaining hours of Christmas Eve going through the Ten Steps to Get Over Your Ex book. What comes next is a sticky sweet romance perfect for cuddling up to a fire and hot cocoa with.

What was really enjoyable about this book was it was fun. Charlotte and Anthony are realistic characters dealing with their heartache. However, what I didn’t like was that within nine hours of time spent together the “L” word was thrown out there. I know they spent a great night together and connected on an emotional level, (I mean I was really rooting for them to realize they’d be great together), but love? Way too soon, not very believable. But, you can’t deny how adorable it was that they pick up a little dog and she quickly becomes theirs. I loved all the scenes where they interact with the pup, Mistake.

The plot of this book was a bit slow and took a while to get into because Charlotte and Anthony were just walking around trying to complete these “steps”, but it was so cute at the end that it’s easy to overlook. I had fun reading this and look forward to reading Catherine Rider’s future novels.

This review is based on the eARC provided by Netgalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Her Book Boyfriend by K.R. Grace ARC Review

Title: Her Book Boyfriend

Author: K.R. Grace

Series: The Awkward Duckling

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Release: August 25, 2017

Format: eARC

She believes the secret to love is in the tropes of her favorite romance novels. He’s the best friend prepared to prove her wrong.
Then comes the bet.
If she can’t land a boyfriend for prom by recreating the ten popular tropes in her favorite romance author’s books, she has to go to the prom with her.
The glitch?
They’ve been close their entire lives. He’s the rock god and school legend, while she’s the brainy sidekick who does all his dirty breakups. Thus, finding a guy who doesn’t think they’re already an item is going to be a lot harder than she thinks.
Will she land the book boyfriend of her dreams? Or will she be forced to go to prom with her best friend.
The truth is in the pages.

HER BOOK BOYFRIEND was a fast, cute read perfect for the summer. It centers around Macey Greere who is obsessed with reading Wendi Cooper romance novels and has convinced herself that to land her perfect book boyfriend she must follow all the rules laid out in Cooper’s novels. Only problem is, her best friend, the school’s rock God and her best friend, Cam Davis doesn’t believe she can do it. His bet? Land a boyfriend for prom or go with him instead. Sounds like the perfect friends to lover story that is my kryptonite!

While i enjoyed the story (particularly the ending), I had a few problems with it. Macey was a bit ridiculous in choosing which boys she should go after. She would literally pick any guy and make him her next target without even liking in the slightest bit. Also, Macey outs another student to someone else for no reason and no thought at all that it might be wrong. When I read that I couldn’t believe what I just read. It was offensive. Plus, her whole “guys aren’t working for me so I am going to try girls” was just awful to me. Also, spoiler, what was with all those promposals? Every single guy that asked her even if things had been terrible after their meeting asking her to prom made absolutely no sense and wasn’t even explained. I still don’t get why it was included at all.

What was really enjoyable was the ending though. Cam’s jealousy over Macey’s trying to date different guys was a little obvious that I can’t believe she didn’t see how he felt sooner. But I enjoyed their connection so much more when she finally got it. I would have liked if their friendship was showcased more so we could have had a bigger picture of them as a couple, but this was a bit of a short book.

Overall, it was okay. I don’t really know if I would recommend it. But if you’re interested in a quick read, maybe give it a try.

A copy was provided in exchange for a review, but all opinions are my own. Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher.

Waiting for the Storm by Marie Landry

Title: Waiting for the Storm

Author: Marie Landry

Released: April 9, 2013

Series: Angel Island #1

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

Format: eBook

 

After the death of her mother, the last thing seventeen-year-old Charlotte O’Dell wants to do is spend the summer on Angel Island with her family. Her younger sister hates her, and her dad is in his own little world. It’s a recipe for a disastrous summer on the island, until Ezra Rhodes walks into her life.

The boy next door makes Charlotte forget her almost paralyzing fear of really living her life. Stunted from taking care of her mother in her last months, Charlotte is drowning. With Ezra, she feels something again, and as he repairs her family’s summer home, she dares to think he might actually be fixing her, too. Ezra challenges Charlotte to leave her comfort zone, and as their friendship slowly blossoms into more, Charlotte begins to come alive again.

But Ezra has secrets…secrets he isn’t sharing with Charlotte. Despite her new-found happiness in Ezra’s arms, Charlotte can’t help but feel there’s a storm on the horizon. And she isn’t sure if she and Ezra can weather it unscathed.

WAITING FOR THE STORM is a realistic novel about the heartbreak and grief over losing someone you love. When Charlotte’s mother dies, it leaves her entire family in turmoil trying to deal with their own grief and trying to piece together their family. Her sister is acting out and her dad is walking around in a zombie like state. When they go to a summer house on Angel Island at her mother’s request it may be just what they need to finally be able to move on together.

I enjoyed this book until the later half. Charlotte was a good MC and I enjoyed her connection with Ezra. However, how she reacts to some of Ezra’s secrets bothered me. She got upset over him not telling her one of his biggest secrets because they were hanging out for “an entire month” and she told him everything so why didn’t he trust her?! But see, that was her choice. Ezra has the right to withhold information until he is ready and I didn’t appreciate that it was such a big deal. I do enjoy that the author did give Charlotte insight and clue about why she might be blowing small issues out of proportion (ie anxiety) so she was able to forgive and move on.

I enjoyed this book for the most part and loved the overall message. It was a good ending and I’m happy to see some healing from this family. Also, happy Ezra makes me happy too. He is such a soft, lovable guy. Who wouldn’t love him?

Thank you to Marie Landry for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own.