Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer...

Series: Elemental (Book #3)
Published: May 28th 2013 by K Teen
Pages: 301
Date Finished: June 3rd, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: 15+ (Due to mature themes)

Synopsis:

With power comes enemies. Lots of them.

Hunter Garrity just wants to be left alone. He’s learned the hard way that his unusual abilities come at a price. And he can’t seem to afford any allies.

He’s up to his neck in hostiles. His grandfather, spoiling for a fight. The Merrick brothers, who think he ratted them out. Calla, the scheming psycho who wants to use him as bait.

Then there’s Kate Sullivan, the new girl at school. She’s not hostile. She’s bold. Funny. Hot. But she’s got an agenda, too.

With supposedly secret powers rippling to the surface everywhere around him, Hunter knows something ugly is about to go down. But finding out what means he’ll have to find someone he can trust…

Review:

I had extremely high expectations going into this book after reading and loving the first two books in the series and I was really interested to see what Brigid Kemmerer had in store for Hunter's character, and I wasn't disappointed.

The plot. I really enjoyed the plot of this book even though it wasn't what I was expecting at all. I really felt for Hunter in everything that he went through in this book and I thought that it showed just how strong he was in the way that he dealt with it all. This book was an emotional roller-coaster from the first page and it was a book that I couldn't put down, it was full of suspense, mystery and just a lot of unexpected twists and turns. Something else I really enjoyed in this book was the duel narration and being able to see the story from both Hunter and Kate's perspective and being able to see what they were both dealing with at the time and also things to do with their pasts. I thought that it was a really fast paced, easy and enjoyable read.

The characters. I find myself becoming more attached to each of the characters with every book I read in this series, I loved seeing how all of the brothers developed a little bit more and seeing how they all are starting to work more as a team.
Hunter. I really enjoyed Hunter's character in this book and I thought that he would have to have had the hardest life out of all the boy's books I have read so far. I really felt for him in everything that he went through in this book but I thought that he handled it all extremely well. I loved seeing how he grew throughout the book with the help of the Merrick family and also through the help of Kate. I really enjoyed seeing how he finally started to open up and trust people as he started to discover more about himself and also his past.
Kate. I also really enjoyed her character in this book. I thought that she was very quick witted, strong and very entertaining to read about. I loved seeing how great of a match her and Hunter were for each other and how they had gone through a lot of the same things and were trying to work through a lot of the same issues and eventually bought out the best in each other. I really admired her character and the sacrifice that she made for Hunter and it showed how in that short time just how close she had become to him.

Overall I thought that this was a great third book in a fantastic series and this would have to be one of the best YA fantasy series I have read for a while. Each book just keeps getting stronger and the characters all become more interesting the more I read. This is a series that I would highly recommend and I will be pre-ordering the next book in the series as soon as possible.

Reckless by S.C. Stephens...

Series: Thoughtless (Book #3)
Published: April 25th 2013 by Simon & Schuster UK
Pages: 532
Date Finished: May 27th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: 16+ (Due to mature themes)

Synopsis:

Can love survive when life gets Reckless?

When the band hits it big, Kiera and Kellan must ask themselves: Can their love for each other survive the constant pressures of superstardom? The friendships they've formed, the new family they've found, and the history they've forged will all play a part in helping them navigate the turbulent waters of the band's exploding popularity. A greedy executive hell-bent on success, a declining pop star looking for an edge, and a media circus that twists lies into truths are just some of the obstacles the lovers will have to overcome if they are going to remain together. Fame comes with a price-but will it cost Kiera and Kellan everything?

Review:

I. Am. Speechless. I had extremely high expectations going into this book after reading and loving the first two in the trilogy and I was really interested to see what challenges Kellan and Kiera would be face with in this book, and it didn't disappoint.

The plot. I completely fell in love with the plot of this book. I loved being able to have a behind the scenes look into what it takes to be both a writer and a musician and really just how annoying record labels can be. I also really enjoyed seeing how Kellan and Kiera's relationship grew throughout all the things that they went through in all three books and how they finally got the life that they each deserved and seeing how happy they were with each other. But most of all I loved the epilogue of this book, I really enjoyed seeing how S.C. Stephens finished Kellan and Kiera's story and I thought that it was a great way to tie up all of the loose ends in the series and I thought that it was perfect.

The characters. I thought that all of the characters were written extremely well in this book and I feel really attached to them all.
Kiera. I really enjoyed her character in this book and I loved seeing how she came more into her own especially when it came to Kellan and her relationship as she finally realized that she had nothing to worry about with him and that he was always faithful to her. I also loved seeing how she became more confident through her writing and how she finally wrote the story of her, Kellan and Denny which I knew was hard for her but I think that they had all moved on enough and it was time for her to write it.
Kellan. I really loved Kellan's character in this book as well as the whole series. though he did make a few mistakes in this book he did those to protect Kiera and to respect her wishes. But in the end everything worked out for the best and I was so happy to see all the success that the band was having by the end of the book and just how content Kellan was with his life with Kiera and his family.

Overall I thought that this was a great book to end the series on (even though I wish that their were a lot more books to come) and I thought that it finished the series very well in that there were no unanswered questions. This is a series that I would recommend to anyone and one that I will be reading again very soon as the characters and storyline was amazing and it is a series that you will stay with you long after you have finished it. It will make you laugh, it will make you cry and ultimately you will fall in love with the series.

Effortless by S.C. Stephens...

Series: Thoughtless (Book #2)
Published: November 22nd 2012 by Simon & Schuster UK
Pages: 496
Date Finished: May 24th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: 16+ (Due to mature themes)

Synopsis:

After being caught in the middle of a love triangle which led to a devastating betrayal, Kiera pledged to learn from the mistakes she’d made. She was determined to never again inflict that kind of pain on anyone, especially the soulful, talented man who held her heart. But life offers new challenges for every relationship, and when Kiera’s love is put to the ultimate test, will it survive? Love is easy . . . trust is hard.

Review:

I had really high expectations going into this book after reading and loving "Thoughtless" and this completely lived up to my expectations, I loved it!

The plot. I really enjoyed the plot of this book, it was an emotional roller-coaster from the first page but I loved every minute of it. I thought that it was a really well thought out book and I loved that Kellan and Kiera's relationship was what a real relationship is like and how it had it ups and downs and I think if S.C. Stephens had sugar coated their relationship (like a lot of authors do) this book wouldn't have been half as good. I thought that the book flowed extremely well and it was a complete page turner and had me up to the early hours because I had to see what happened next for Kellan and Kiera and I thought even though the ending was extremely cliché and predictable, it matched the book really well and I was happy to see that after all the hard times that they went through they had a happy ending in this book.

The charcters. With each book in this series that I read I become more invested in these characters and find myself loving them even more, even the side characters I think are written extremely well and have become some of my favourite characters.
Kiera. I thought that she was great in this book and I really enjoyed reading the book from her perspective. I thought that she was a really relatable and strong character and I loved seeing how she grew throughout the book. I really felt for her in her situation and how she felt doubt with Kellan and their relationship and though she made a few wrong decisions throughout the book I was glad to see that in the end everything worked out for her.
Kellan. I also really enjoyed his character in this book, like Kiera I really felt for him and the situation that they were both in. I also really felt for him as he came to terms with what he found out while he was on tour and I loved seeing just how he grew throughout the book and how maturely he handled the situation at the end of the book.
Denny. I found myself really liking Denny in this book. Even after everything that Kiera and Kellan had put him through he was still there for them and ready to support them which I think says a lot about who he is as a person and I was really happy to see that he had found someone that made him happy after what happened with Kiera.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and this is a series that I would recommend to anyone and I cannot wait to start reading the next book in the series.

Hopeless by Colleen Hoover...

Series: Hopeless (Book #1)
Published: May 7th 2013 by Atria Books
Pages: 406
Date Finished: May 19th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: 15+ (Due to mature themes)

Synopsis:
Sometimes discovering the truth can leave you more hopeless than believing the lies. In this #1 New York Times bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover, author of Slammed and Point of Retreat, Sky meets Dean Holder, a guy with a reputation that rivals her own. Holder has the ability to invoke feelings in Sky she's never had before. In just one encounter he leaves her terrified yet captivated and something about him brings up a rush of memories from the past that she’s worked so hard to bury away.

Sky knows Holder is nothing but trouble and tries to keep him at a distance, but he is adamant about learning everything he can about her. Sky finally caves to his unwavering pursuit, but she soon finds out that Holder isn't the person he's been claiming to be. When the secrets he's been keeping are finally revealed, every single facet of Sky's life changes forever.

Review:

All I can say is WOW... I had extremely high expectations after reading and loving the first two books in Colleen Hoover's "Slammed" series so I was really interested to see if this book would live up to what I was expecting from it and it definitely did.

The plot. I loved the plot of this book, I thought that there were so many unexpected things that happened in it (I will admit that I didn't actually read the synopsis of this book before I bought it). And even though I thought that it was somewhat of an unrealistic storyline Colleen Hoover was able to make it believable. There was so much emotion in this book and I felt for both Sky and Holder with what they found out towards the end of the book and how they were both connected with such a horrible thing. I thought that this was a very emotional book that was written extremely well.

The characters. I really enjoyed all of the characters in this book and thought that they were written extremely well. I loved seeing all of their individual personality traits shine through I their characters and how they all interacted with each other.
Sky. I really enjoyed Sky's character, I thought that she was relatable, funny and a great characters have the POV of the book told from. I really felt for her with all the things that she found out about her past throughout the book, but I thought that she handled it all very well. I loved seeing the change in her as her and Holder's relationship deepened and just seeing how he managed to help her through what she found out about herself.
Holder. I really liked Holder's character throughout the book and I thought that he was funny, witty and pretty hilarious when he wanted to be. I really enjoyed seeing just how much he loved Sky and all that he would do for her and how he helped her through what she was going though even though he was also dealing with the things that he found out about, he was strong because he needed to be for Sky. I loved seeing how they both bought out the best in each other and ultimately helped each other become better people.

Overall I really enjoyed Hopeless and it's a book that I would recommend to anyone. I'm going to be pre-ordering "Losing Hope" very soon and I cannot wait to read this story from Holden's POV.

The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend by Kody Keplinger...

Series: -
Published: September 7th 2010 by Little Brown/Poppy
Pages: 280
Date Finished: May 14th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: 15+ (Due to mature themes)

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.
Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

Review:

I had somewhat high expectations going into this book after seeing all the hype around this book when it first came out and then seeing all the rave reviews that it got on Goodreads. But this book was definitely not what I was expecting at all, it completely blew me away. The plot. I loved the plot of this book! When I first started reading this book I was expecting it to be just a light hearted fun read, but as I read further I found it to be a book filled with emotion and I found it to be very...more I had somewhat high expectations going into this book after seeing all the hype around this book when it first came out and then seeing all the rave reviews that it got on Goodreads. But this book was definitely not what I was expecting at all, it completely blew me away. The plot. I loved the plot of this book! When I first started reading this book I was expecting it to be just a light hearted fun read, but as I read further I found it to be a book filled with emotion and I found it to be very thought provoking. I loved seeing how Bianca and Wesley's relationship developed throughout the course of the book and seeing just how much Bianca's feelings changed by the end of this book. I thought that the book was set at a great pace and everything happened in a realistic way and I thought that it was just a fun, fast, light and surprisingly emotional read. The characters. I really enjoyed all of the characters in this book and I thought that they were all written really well and I also thought that there were just enough characters so I got to know each of them very well by the end of the book and I thought that they all had an impact on the story. Bianca. I really enjoyed Bianca's character in this book. I thought that she was very relatable and s great characters to have the books POV told from, I loved her snarky personality and I thought that it added a lot more to the book. I really felt for her in her home situation and how she felt like she needed to escape from what was going on in her life. I loved seeing her change throughout the book and how she went from being someone that didn't really believe in love to where, though, she still doesn't believe in love she is open to the possibility of it and that is all thanks to the effect that Wesley had on her. Wesley. I will admit when I first read his character in this book I really didn't like him, I thought that he was arrogant, self-absorbed and just not a very good person. But then as the book went on and Bianca became closer to him I got to see why he did the things that he did and I really felt for him. I loved seeing how he changed throughout the book and the impact that Bianca had made on his life and how she had helped shape him into a better person by the end of the book. Overall I immensely enjoyed this book and it is one that I would recommend to anyone and I will definitely be reading some more of Kody Keplinger's work very soon.

Spark by Brigid Kemmerer...

Series: Elementals (Book #2)
Published: August 28th 2012 by Kensington
Pages: 345
Date Finished: May 12th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

Gabriel Merrick plays with fire. Literally. Sometimes he can even control it. And sometimes he can't. Gabriel has always had his brothers to rely on, especially his twin, Nick. But when an arsonist starts wreaking havoc on their town, all the signs point to Gabriel. Only he's not doing it. And no one seems to believe him. Except a shy sophomore named Layne, a brainiac who dresses in turtlenecks and jeans and keeps him totally off balance. Because Layne has a few secrets of her own...

Synopsis:

I had very high expectations going into this book after reading and falling in love with the first book in the series "Storm" and hearing from my friends that the second in the series was so much better than the first and I have to say I completely agree with them. The plot. I really loved the plot of this book. I felt that this book had so much more emotion in it and that is something that I loved about this book. In "Storm" I saw Gabriel as a someone who was really stand-offish but in "Spark" I...more I had very high expectations going into this book after reading and falling in love with the first book in the series "Storm" and hearing from my friends that the second in the series was so much better than the first and I have to say I completely agree with them. The plot. I really loved the plot of this book. I felt that this book had so much more emotion in it and that is something that I loved about this book. In "Storm" I saw Gabriel as a someone who was really stand-offish but in "Spark" I got to see the reason behind that, his struggle with not being able to be close to his element, trying to protect the people that he cares about and how he struggles with the feelings he has about himself. I also loved being able to see into Layne's life and seeing all the struggles she went through to do with her home life, people at school and also how she saw herself. I loved how as their relationship grew throughout the book they bought out the best in each other. Gabriel managed to bring Layne out of her shell and Layne helped Gabriel start to be more trusting. I thought that this book was very fast paced and one that I found I couldn't put down. The characters. I thought that all of the characters were written amazingly well, they still felt like they all were individual from each other and I felt myself becoming more invested in the characters with each page that I read. Gabriel. I really enjoyed his character in this book. I loved seeing how he grew throughout the book and seeing just how much he cared for Layne and how far he would go to protect her and the people she cared about. I also really liked seeing how he started to grow into a better person and started to take responsibility for his actions and I think that has a lot to do with Layne and their relationship. Layne. I really enjoyed her character in this book also. I thought that she was very relatable and I really felt for her with her home situation, though I thought that she dealt with it very well and I thought that she was a very strong character throughout the book. She didn't let people's opinions of her influence her decisions and I loved seeing how she bought the best out in Gabriel. Overall I really enjoyed this book and I thought that it was a great second book and the best book in the series so far. This is a series that I would recommend to anyone and I cannot wait to pick up the third in the series ASAP.

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer...

Series: Elementals (Book #1)
Published: April 24th 2012 by Kensington
Pages: 353
Date Finished: May 11th, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Age Recommendation: -

Synopsis:

Becca Chandler is suddenly getting all the guys; all the ones she doesn't want. Ever since her ex-boyfriend spread those lies about her. Then she saves Chris Merrick from a beating in the school parking lot. Chris is different. Way different: he can control water just like his brothers can control fire, wind, and earth. They're powerful. Dangerous. Marked for death.

And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.

Secrets are hard to keep when your life's at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who's hiding the most dangerous truth of all.

The storm is coming.

Review:

I had pretty high expectations going into this book going off my friends recommendations as well as all of the rave reviews this series has gotten on Goodreads. But even with all that I was still wary as to if I would like it, because I have been finding lately that I haven't been able to finish a YA fantasy book, but I decided to pick this one up anyway and give it a go and I absolutely loved it.

The plot. I really enjoyed the plot of this book, I thought that it was a little bit slow to start but once the storyline picked up about half way through I couldn't put this book down. I thought that this book had a great storyline and I thought that it was unique to a lot of other YA books that I had read. I loved the idea of having control over the elements because I had read nothing like it before and it definitely put an interesting twist on the story for me. I also really enjoyed the duel POV because I loved being able to see things from both Becca and Chris's perspectives and seeing how they felt about the things that were happening throughout the book. Once the book started to pick up in the second half I thought that there was a lot of suspense and mystery and definitely a lot of things that I did not expect.

The characters. I thought that all of the characters were written really well. They all had their own personalities and were all unique from each other.
Becca. I really enjoyed Becca's character. I thought that she was very relatable and took everything that she was told throughout the book and everything that happened to her very well. I really felt bad for her in her struggle to figure out her feelings for both Hunter and Chris and also with her struggle to try and keep herself safe with knowing the information that she did.
Chris. I also really enjoyed his character. I loved being able to see inside his head for quite a lot of this book and also see a lot more of his family and the dynamic that there was within their family. I really felt for him in his situation and how he was struggling with his feelings for Becca but how he also wanted to keep her safe.

Overall I thought that this was a really enjoyable book and I thought that it was a great first book in the series and it would be one that I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of YA fantasy books.