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Unspoken by Jen Frederick

September 25, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I received a review copy from the author.

ETA April 2015: At the time I accepted/read the book and wrote the review, I didn’t know Jen Frederick was also Jane Litte from Dear Author. No Jen Frederick books have been reviewed by me, anywhere, since I became aware of this and, given my existing relationship with Jane, I will not be reviewing any more of her books. I will continue to update my personal Goodreads account with all the books I read as per usual but, consistent with my review policy, there won’t be further formal reviews of Jen Frederick’s work.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Whore. Slut. Typhoid Mary.

I’ve been called all these at Central College. One drunken night, one act of irresponsible behavior, and my reputation was ruined. Guys labeled me as easy and girls shied away. To cope, I stayed away from Central social life and away from Central men, so why is it that my new biology lab partner is so irresistible to me?

He’s everything I shouldn’t want. A former Marine involved in illegal fighting with a quick trigger temper and an easy smile for all the women. His fists aren’t the danger to me, though, it’s his charm. He’s sliding his way into my heart and I’m afraid that he’s going to be the one to break me.

Impulsive. Unthinking. Hot tempered.

I allow instinct to rule my behavior. If it feels good, do it, has been my motto because if I spend too much time thinking, I’ll begin to remember exactly where I came from. At Central College, I’ve got fighting and I’ve got women and I thought I was satisfied until I met her.

She’s everything I didn’t realize I wanted and the more time I spend with her, the more I want her. But she’s been hurt too much in the past and I don’t want to be the one to break her. I know I should walk away, but I just can’t.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): After reading the first book in the series, Undeclared, I was keen to see what the author would come up with next. The first book was a bit of a mixed bag for me but I certainly wanted to keep reading the series. This one was for me, a much stronger book. The plotting was tighter and more cohesive and there were barely any errors or typos. There were more of the things I liked in the first book (much more) and less of the things I didn’t like (much less). If the first book was a bit of a mixed bag, this book was a bag of goodness.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore, narrated by Emma Powell

September 23, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I listened to it: Most of my audiobook listening these days are review copies for AudioGals but every now and then I like to fit in a book from my own audiobook library and that’s what I did with this one. I have had it for a while and I was in the right mood. A number of my blogger friends have said the book is excellent and I’d heard good things about the audiobook too.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) In a world where people born with an extreme skill – called a Grace – are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of the skill even she despises: the Grace of killing. She lives under the command of her uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to execute his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him.

When she first meets Prince Po, who is Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.

She never expects to become Po’s friend.

She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace – or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away…a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone

What worked for me (and what didn’t): It had been so long since I’d bought the audiobook, all I remembered about it was that it was a fantasy. So I plunged in basically knowing nothing about it. I was caught up from the very start. Katsa is a girl of about 18 or so. She is the orphaned niece of King Randa who rules the Middluns, one of the Seven Kingdons in this alternate world. In this world, some children are born “Graced” – the outward sign of it is that they have bi-coloured eyes – but just what their Grace is, cannot be told from looking at them alone. Graceling children in King Randa’s realm are sent to the king to be of use. Those whose Graces are not useful are sent back to their families but they are treated with suspicion and are basically outcasts.

When Katsa was about 8, her Grace revealed itself. She is a very capable killer. Her uncle decides to train her as his own private attack dog. Quickly, Katsa gains a fearsome reputation. As she grows however, she dislikes being forced into breaking arms, removing fingers, knocking heads and killing for the king’s purposes. She starts a kind of resistance movement, called the Council and by it, uses her Grace for justice. I think that in doing so, she begins to understand her own power and that she can control it’s use. This is a theme which the book comes back to every now and then as Katsa grows and issues of power and control are extremely important to her. Continue reading

I’m Over at AudioGals…

September 20, 2013 / Kaetrin

with a review of Love With A Chance of Drowning by Torre DeRoche, narrated by Candice Moll. It is a biography, so a little bit of a departure, but there is romance and it is a fascinating story. See what I thought here.

Uncommon Passion by Anne Calhoun

September 19, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I have enjoyed other Calhoun books and read the first book in this loosely related series a couple of weeks ago. So I decided to bend my usual rules about how much I’m prepared to spend on books and get this one.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) After leaving a restrictive religious community, Rachel Hill is on a mission to divest herself of her virginity. Newly independent and struggling to establish herself, she’s not looking for anything complicated. She bids on sexy SWAT officer Ben Harris at a bachelor auction, confident he’ll give her the night of her life and nothing more.

But Ben is jaded and detached, living his life in an endless cycle of danger-fueled adrenaline jags, drinking, and sex. When he misses the fact that his bachelor auction hookup is a virgin, he’s shocked by his obliviousness, and by the risk she took. To make amends, Ben offers Rachel all he can: a no-strings-attached sexual education.

Ben’s lessons introduce Rachel to down and dirty passion, but she’s searching for something more profound than sex, and she’s willing to walk away to find it. Ben can’t get Rachel out of his head, but will he come to terms with his troubled past and learn to love?

What worked for me (and what didn’t): I enjoyed this one but why I enjoyed it kind of surprised me. I know a lot of my romance reading friends have read and enjoyed this book but I haven’t read any of the reviews yet. When I know I’m going to be reading a book very soon after release, I like to keep my thoughts “pure” I suppose and then go and see if other people picked up the same things I did.

The first 2/3 of the book has a lot of sex. Good sex. Hot sex. But, a lot of sex. In fact in all but about 2 of their encounters for that first section of the book, they have sex. They were all different and exposed something different about the character, but I found myself getting tired of and somewhat impatient with Ben’s detachment. Afterwards there is no cuddling. He disposes of the condom and gives Rachel the unspoken message that it’s time for her to go. Sometimes it’s not actually unspoken. That jarred for me a little because I felt that Ben wasn’t detached when he was having sex with Rachel and Rachel was anything but. She isn’t like the average virgin heroine. She is determined to sample what she’s been missing and is endlessly curious. I enjoyed her forthrightness. I loved how she didn’t play games or play coy. She was open and honest and incredibly strong.

I’m Over at Dear Author…

September 17, 2013 / Kaetrin

this time I’ve teamed up with Willaful to review JL Merrow’s newest release, Fall Hard. See what we both thought here.

Fading by E.K. Blair

September 16, 2013 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: After seeing Jennie review it positively at Dear Author recently I went to buy it only to realise I had already done so at some earlier point. Then DA Jane read it and said it was really good so I moved it up Mt. TBR.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Can a guilty conscience keep wounds from healing?

Fine arts major, Candace Parker, grew up with a mother who thinks image is everything, and her daughter’s perfection will never be good enough. About to graduate college and pursue her dreams of becoming a professional ballerina, Candace decides it’s time to let go and have a little fun. But fun is short-lived when a brutal attack leaves her completely shattered.

The memories that consume and torment Candace are starting to destroy her when she meets Ryan Campbell, a successful bar owner. He feels instantly connected and tries to show her that hope is worth fighting for. But is Ryan harboring his own demons? As walls slowly begin to chip away, the secrets that are held within start to become painful burdens.

At what point do secrets become lies?

Warning: The main character of the book is raped and it does happen on page. I don’t think it’s gratuitous but those will triggers will probably want to avoid.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): The book starts in Ryan’s POV in a “prologue” (which threw me a bit because Chapter One is actually before the events of the prologue – which I should have remembered from Jennie’s review but I forgot). He hears a girl screaming in an alley behind the bar he owns/runs and runs to the rescue, fighting off he rapist, covering Candace and calling an ambulance. Candace is unconscious and isn’t aware of Ryan’s presence at all.

The story then really starts with Candace starting her final year of college. She is a studying Fine Arts, majoring in dance (ballet). Her dream is to dance with one of the big New York ballet companies and it is clear she’s good enough to do it too. She is fairly shy and risk averse but decides to let herself loosen up a bit – she even gets a tiny tattoo to mark the occasion. Her parents are very wealthy and her mother in particular is very (like times a million) conscious of her social standing. She disapproves of Candace in many ways and both her parents are disapointed she will not conform to their version of “respectable”. I did find this a bit difficult to understand. The parents felt a little unbelievable to me and I found it hard to see how they had not noticed just how good a dancer she is over the many years she has been studying it.

Her mother sets her up on a date with Jack, the son of one of her wealthy friends. Jack is not really her type but she is trying to be more adventurous and at the time, she doesn’t want to rock the boat with her mother. She doesn’t think there is any future for them but she goes out with him on a second date to see if sparks develop. She does find out he is a good kisser – he is able to arouse her passions but nothing else about him really rings her bells so she decides to break it off – especially after he seems to be becoming clingy and possessive. She decides to tell him she doesn’t want to date him but as she has already agreed to go to a party with him, she decides to go and tell him at the end of the evening. This doesn’t go well at all, Jack accuses Candace of leading him on – she runs out, he follows her and then brutally rapes her in the alleyway behind Ryan’s bar. Candace wakes up on the way into the hospital where she is treated and a rape kit is done. She is extremely traumatised and is terrified of people knowing what has happened to her – she thinks she did lead Jack on and brought this on herself. She does call her best friend Jase and he (and shortly after Mark, Jase’s boyfriend) is the only one who knows what happened for most of the book.