Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

(Warm Bodies series, book 1)

A zombie who yearns for a better life ends up falling in love – with a human – in this astonishingly original debut novel.

R is a zombie. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. He doesn’t enjoy killing people; he enjoys riding escalators and listening to Frank Sinatra. He is a little different from his fellow Dead.

Not just another zombie novel, Warm Bodies, is funny, scary, and deeply moving.

“I don’t know what happened. Disease? War? Social collapse? Or was it just us? The Dead replacing the Living? I guess it’s not so important. Once you’ve arrived at the end of the world, it hardly matters which route you took.” – R

I fell in love with a zombie.

Yep. My newest book boyfriend is a gray-skinned, brain-eating, escalator-riding, Frank Sinatra-listening, sweet-as-all-fucking-get-out, zombie. (He may also need to star in an episode of Hoarders, but I guess I’ll let him deal with one problem at a time, and the whole zombie thing seems a little more important.) I never expected to like this book so much and was beyond pleasantly surprised – the story of R and Julie was odd and a little bit creepy, yet wonderfully sweet and endearing.

R isn’t your typical zombie – he doesn’t enjoy eating people, he only does it because it’s necessary for him to remain alive…well…not alive, but you get the point. If he’s going to continue wandering the Earth instead buried beneath it, homeboy has to eat. While out on a “food run,” R finds Julie and has an overwhelming desire to save her – he could never have known that in actuality, Julie would be the one to save him.

Warm Bodies was the perfect combination of humor, romance, violence, and hope. I mean, it’s a romance, but come on – you can’t expect a zombie book to be completely devoid of gore and cringe worthy moments! The way Isaac wove details into the storyline was pretty perfect; I want to get a mental picture in my head without getting bored. One instance in particular sticks out in my head: the description of the stadium. This required pages of descriptive details for the reader to really grasp what this “stadium-turned-city” looked like…and never once did I find myself skimming. Isaac found the perfect balance between a scarcity and an overload of descriptive information.

The story line was compelling and original, and the characters were wonderful. I loved R’s charm and compassion, and Julie’s sarcasm and bluntness were a nice dose of comic relief. The gradual connection between R and Julie was wonderfully done, and I adored watching her grow more and more fond of him.

I really, really enjoyed this novel, and the ending made my heart happy. I can’t wait to see Nicholas Hoult bring R to life on the big screen next month, and am even more anxious to read the sequel! If you want a paranormal romance that will blow vampire boyfriends out of the water, pick up Warm Bodies and get ready to have a charming, unlikely zombie steal your heart. (He won’t eat it, don’t worry!)

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A Beautiful Lie by T.E. Sivec

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(Playing with Fire series, book 1)

He saw her first, but his friend made the move.

She settled for the safer choice, but her heart knew the truth.

They love, they crave, they lie.

Garrett McCarthy, Annabelle Parker, and Milo Roberts were as close as friends could get. They shared in each other’s joy during graduations, promotions, and engagements. They consoled one another through heartache and loss.

When one of the friend’s life is cut short, it’s up to the two left behind to pick up the pieces and find out the truth – no matter the cost. As they slowly start to uncover the nature of his deception, and the very powerful people behind it, they begin to question everyone and everything, including themselves.

Everyone has secrets – some do it for love while others do it for power. Those secrets can change perceptions, alter reality, and sometimes destroy lives.

What do you do when you find out your whole life has been a lie?

Tara Sivec never ceases to amaze me. I fell in love with her writing after reading the Chocolate Lovers series, and was as giddy as a kid in a candy store when I found out she was writing another novel. That being said, I was a little nervous when I found out it wasn’t going to be anything like her previous books – I mean, the woman is freaking hilarious, how could I read something of hers and not want it to be funny?! Well, let me tell y’all something; this book doesn’t need funny and not once did I think to myself, “Man, I really wish this had some of her inappropriately hysterical humor in it.” You know why? Because it’s absolutely fucking perfect.

The story of Garrett, Parker, and Milo is one fueled by secrets, deceit, and guilt, then lit on fire with passion, what if’s, and so much sexual tension I wanted to jump into the story, smack both of them and yell, “JUST DO IT ALREADY, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, JUST PUT YOUR P IN HER V!!”Now, as much as I clearly wanted both of them to give into their desires and push their consciences aside, I feel like the sexual build up was absolutely necessary in this novel. They are both wrestling with a huge cloud of guilt; how could he betray his deceased best friend by sleeping with his former fiancée? How could she be disloyal to him and sleep with his best friend since childhood? It’s this constant tug of war between their heads and their hearts that kind of rips you apart a little.

Oh, and when they do finally give in to each other…holy mother of God; it’s everything I wanted it to be and so much more! If every author gave me a scene like that after a lot of sexual tension and word foreplay, I would never, ever complain about having to wait for shit to go down. It was that good!

The characters were easy to love, and the storyline and writing were both flawless; just when you think you have it all figured out, Tara unveils a new layer of deception that you probably never even saw coming. I know I didn’t. My heart broke for not only Parker, but Garrett as well; as more and more of the pieces started to fall into place, you could feel him questioning just how much of his friendship with Milo was real. How could he not have seen past his façade to see the monster that he really was? It’s the mother load of deceptions that will leave you slack jawed…or wanting to punch him in his stupid face. Yeah; definitely wanting to punch him in the face.  

A Beautiful Lie just reiterates why Tara Sivec is absolutely one of my favorite authors. Her writing sucks you in and doesn’t let go until the very last word of the very last page. Well, actually longer than that considering I thought about this book for days after I finished it. She effortlessly transitioned from the humorous brilliance we were all used to, to something…well…beautiful. While I don’t normally love stories written in third person, I understand why Tara did it. We needed to see exactly how both of them reacted not only to certain situations, but to each other. We needed to feel the chemistry and the want between these two, and I think it worked impeccably. This torrid love story coupled with the air of mystery, and a healthy dose of angst left me absolutely, 100 percent satisfied. 

And in case you're interested, here are my casting picks for Garrett and Parker:

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Waiting on Wednesday (11)

*This is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine. "Waiting on Wednesday" spotlights upcoming releases that I'm eagerly anticipating.*

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Fault Line by Christa Desir

Expected Publication Date: November 12, 2013

Synopsis from Goodreads:
Ben could date anyone he wants, but he only has eyes from the new girl - sarcastic free-spirit, Ani. Luckily for Ben, Ani wants him too. She's everything Ben could ever imagine. Everything he could ever want.

But that all changes after the party. The one Ben misses. The one Ani goes to alone. 

Now Ani isn't the girl she used to be, and Ben can't sort out the truth from the lies. What really happened, and who is to blame?

Ben wants to help her, but she refuses to be helped. The more she pushes Ben away, the more he wonders if there's anything he can do to save the girl he loves. 

Laced in Malice by Riley Gray

(Laced series, book 1)

Behind the creepy castle like exterior of Birchtree Academy is the sound of gossip, backstabbing, and malice. When Zara’s dad takes on the new principal job at the elite boarding school, Zara knows she’ll be an outsider. She dreams of true love and marriage instead of possible frenemies and secrets. Definitely not Birtchtree material.

In the cusp of everything are the twins. Oliver and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Nixon are renowned for their different – yet equally effective – methods of torture. And both have their eyes set on goody, goody Zara. Oliver wants to date her and Lizzie wants to befriend her.

At first, Zara is caught in the Nixons spell, but it’s not long until cracks begin to show through their dazzling façade. An anonymous email account, which targets students with their own secrets, has focused its energy on Zara using weapons only the Nixons could have provided. But have they turned on her? Is there a hidden agenda behind Lizzie’s interest in Zara? It’ll take four months, three warnings, two released sex tapes, and one dead body for Zara to finally learn the truth. And the truth can either destroy the boy she’s fallen for – and his twin sister – or save them both.

*This review does contain spoilers; although, they aren’t really spoilers if you’ve seen Cruel Intentions. Regardless, check yourself before you wreck yourself.*

It’s kind of hard for me to review this book – I love the story line, I really do, but it’s too familiar. Cruel Intentions has been one of my favorite movies since the day I first saw it, and I knew after reading the synopsis for Laced in Malice that it would be a similar plot; I just didn’t realize how alike it would be. Sure, there are a few tweaks but overall, it just seemed to me that this book was Cruel Intentions in book format.  

Here’s a brief rundown for you: Zara’s father accepts the position of principal at a prestigious boarding school, which she is will now be attending. Before she arrived on campus, she gave an interview to the school magazine that explained her stance on abstaining from sex until marriage, and she prided herself on the fact that she was still a virgin. Enter the Nixon twins: Lizzie and Oliver. Lizzie seems picture perfect on the outside, and immediately befriends Zara, while her twin brother, Oliver, continually tries to charm the pants of Zara – literally. It soon becomes clear the twins have ulterior motives for their actions with Zara, and everyone can see that…except her.

Now yes, there are a few differences between Laced in Malice and Cruel Intentions, but not many. When I started this book, I was hoping for a similar idea with a different direction, but (and this is just my opinion) what I got was a knockoff of a movie. I just wish the author had put more original concepts in this story, and then maybe I would have been able to enjoy it a little more. I just don’t like reading a book feeling like I’ve already seen the movie, when in fact; it’s a book that’s not even supposed to tie to a movie.

Here are a few examples of the similarities to support my opinion:

(The character names in Laced in Malice are Zara, Oliver, and Lizzie; in Cruel Intentions, they are Annette, Sebastian, and Kathryn)

1. The characters are essentially the same: Zara and Annette are both virgins who did an interview with a magazine pledging their vow of abstinence, and the importance of love and marriage before sex. Oliver and Sebastian are both womanizing, man whores that sleep with pretty much anyone, and then try to convince the virgin on campus that sex isn’t that big of a deal. Lizzie and Kathryn are both essentially the ringleaders; they have ridiculous control over their brothers, pretend to have a tremendous amount of faith in God, and on the outside they look like the model student.

2. Journals: Sebastian keeps a journal, Oliver keeps journals. Sebastian ends up giving his journal to Annette to read, hoping it will explain why he did what he did. Oliver ends up giving his journals to Zara to read, hoping it will explain why he did what he did. The notes that accompany the journals are awfully similar as well, but I don’t really feel like typing out both of them. Just know…they’re similar.

3. The hypocrite speech: Sebastian and Oliver both give a nice little speech where they call Annette and Zara hypocrites. They’re not identical, but pretty freaking close. Check out the comparison:

Sebastian to Annette: “You spend all your time preaching about waiting for love. Well here it is. Right in front you, and you’re going to turn your back on it. So I guess we’re just fucked. I’ll move on. But you’re going to have to live the rest of your life knowing that you’ve turned your back on love. And that makes you a hypocrite. Have a nice life.”

Oliver to Zara: “You’re a hypocrite, you know. You go on and on about waiting to find someone and love and intimacy and then when you finally find what you say you’ve been looking for, you run the other way. You did this to me, Zara. You made me fall for you and now I’m not good enough? You know what, screw you.”

4. The escalator scene: Anyone who has seen Cruel Intentions knows exactly what scene I’m talking about. It’s quite possibly the best…and most memorable…scene of the entire movie. It gives me chills every time. I love it. And that scene is duplicated almost exactly in Laced in Malice, even the dialogue is the same!

Cruel Intentions: Annette says, “I’m impressed,” to which Sebastian replies, “Well, I’m in love.”

Laced in Malice: Zara says, “Well, I’m impressed at least,” to which Oliver replies, “Well, I’m in love. With you.”

That scene was what irked me more than anything. How are you going to copy the dialogue and just add a few extra words?! Gaaaah, it drove me nuts! It was after that when I started to get really annoyed with the unoriginality; luckily I only had about 4% of the book left.

Ultimately, I gave it three stars because the book itself was very well written and Riley Gray obviously has talent as an author. I wish I could rate it higher, I really do, but the fact that it seems to just be a knockoff of Cruel Intentions bummed me out. You can’t top that movie, or even match it content wise, in my opinion. It appears Riley may be veering from the movie plot in the next book of the series, which would be pleasing; regardless, I’ll still read the sequel and hopefully I can produce a more positive review the second time around.   

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Shattered by Elizabeth Lee

Alyssa Boyd had big plans. Big plans that included getting the hell out of the little town she’d grown up in with her two best friends. When she decided it was time to let one of them know her true feelings for him; a change of plans resulted in a tragic turn of events. Now, Alyssa is left alone to find her way out of the darkness that an untimely death has left in its wake.

Jesse Vaughn was never good at letting people in. He’d learned a long time ago that it’s easier that way because people leave, or unfortunately, die. The one person he wanted to let in doesn’t want him anymore. The only problem is he can’t stop thinking about her. Jesse returns to the childhood home he left behind with one goal in mind…to convince her that they should be together.

When Jesse finds Alyssa she’s not the same girl he left behind. She’s wild, reckless and hell-bent on not giving Jesse a second chance. Lucky for Jesse, his stubborn streak has always been a mile-wide and he’s not about to give up on her.

When your life has been shattered can you really pick up all the pieces and move on?

*I was gifted a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review*

So, Elizabeth was sweet enough to provide with a copy of Shattered to review on my blog, and then you know what I did? I put off reading it. Not because I was trying to be a dick, or I didn’t have any interest in it; I pride myself on not being a dick and I had it listed on my TR shelf on Goodreads before she gifted me the copy. So what made me hesitant to start this novel? The inevitable feeling of heartache. I mean, the synopsis lets you know that things don’t work out great – she loses both of her best friends. I needed to get myself in the right state of mind for Shattered and thankfully I did, because it is an incredible story of love, loss, letting go, and finding happiness when you feel like you don’t deserve it.

I felt immediately bonded to Alyssa, mainly because I’m a country girl myself. Riding on 4-wheelers, going mudding, “booze cruising” on dirt roads, having a guy put the moves on you in the bed of his pickup truck…check, check, check, AND check. I loved her character and felt so much for her. The scenes where she shut out the world and went into auto-pilot broke my heart, and the overwhelming guilt she battled with over Garrett’s accident just made me want to pull her into a huge hug. When she was picking up glass off the road that night – my heart broke and so did my tear ducts. Sure, she frustrated me at times with her stubbornness towards Jesse, but that’s when I reminded myself that she is only in high school and let’s face it, we were all pretty damn stubborn and stuck in our ways in high school.

Jesse – well, Jesse was a little bit country, a little bit bad boy, and a whole lot of sexy…all rolled into a nice romantic package. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with alpha males; it’s weird, some of them I love, and some of them I hate. Jesse had a bit of an alpha personality, but he was vulnerable at the same time and after everything he had been through, you could easily see why. I absolutely love Jesse and Alyssa, and there is one moment in particular that sticks out in my head as the cutest, sweetest fucking thing ever. Two words: chocolate milkshake. (You didn’t really expect me to tell you the meaning behind that did you?!) Read it and I guarantee you’ll agree with me!

I loved that the story alternated between Alyssa and Jesse’s POVs, and past and present. I think it was necessary for the past and present to see how close these three really were before the accident. I really appreciated it because it gave us time to see just how great of a friend Garrett was…and he sounded pretty damn easy on the eyes, too! I’m convinced Elizabeth somehow read my mind and found out that a huge weakness of mine is a country boy in a flannel button down shirt, jeans, and a baseball cap…whew, so sexy.

Shattered is a wonderful novel that shows the unbreakable bonds of friendship, rekindled romance, and learning how to pick up the pieces of a shattered world and make it whole again. Elizabeth, thank you so much for gifting me a copy of your book and I’m fairly certain you and I are supposed to be best friends or something. Why? Because of this one line: “I’m not sure how good my coordination was at that point, but I knew one thing…when Luke Bryan told you to ‘shake it,’ by God, you shook it.”  You said it, girl – you always shake it for Luke Bryan!

PS – For those of you who have never seen sexy Mr. Luke Bryan shake it himself on stage…you’re welcome ;)

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Dirty Red by Tarryn Fisher

(Love Me With Lies series, book 2)

Dear Opportunist,

You thought you could take him from me, but you lost. Now, that he’s mine I’ll do anything to keep him. Do you doubt me? I have everything that was supposed to be yours. In case you were wondering; he doesn’t ever think about you anymore. I won’t let him go…ever.

Dirty Red

“He thought Olivia could hurt him, I’ll hurt him worse. I’ll keep hurting him. And if he goes after her again, I’ll rise up and do everything in my power to keep them apart. Some people never change. I guess I’m one of them. – Leah

Never in a million, billion, gazillion years did I ever imagine I would be saying what I’m about to say……….

I actually like and was rooting for Leah.

Yep. Let that soak in for a minute. Continue when you’ve composed yourself…

Dirty Red throws us into the deceitful, manipulative mind of Leah, and allows her to essentially tell her side of the story. Going into this book, I was freaking pumped. I was so pumped I might have even fist pumped a couple times (don’t you judge me). I wasn’t excited because I liked Leah after reading The Opportunist; in fact, two words kept replaying in my head while reading that book… “Bitch crazy.” I didn’t like her. At all. But if you had the chance to get inside the mind of a “crazy bitch” you knew, wouldn’t you jump at the opportunity? I sure as hell would. Hence, my excitement for Dirty Red and all the conniving antics that came along with it.

My change of heart for Leah didn’t happen immediately or even within the first half of the book. Her attitude and actions towards Estella disgusted me and made me want to reach through my iPad and smack the shit out of her. But then something happened that hadn’t ever happened before – I felt for her. My heart hurt for her a little bit. It was like Tarryn chipped away at her bitch exterior and finally revealed who Leah really was – a vulnerable, needy, desperate woman. A woman who had been so emotionally hurt in the past that she was willing to do absolutely anything to keep the one man she loved – even if he didn’t love her quite as much; even if she was just a second choice. It’s quite sad really, but it made me see her differently. It humanized her.

Although we did get a little of Olivia, I wanted more; I wanted more confrontation, I wanted more Olivia/Caleb moments, and FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY I wanted to know what the fuck was in that blue box!! I have my suspicions on what it could be…but damn it, I want to know! If it is what I think it is, what does that mean for Olivia and Noah? Or does it even matter? It couldn’t not matter, right? Ahhhh! Tarryn Fisher is an evil genius for leaving these little unanswered questions bouncing around in my head until she releases Thief.

Of course I have to discuss this – the ending. The ending…well…all I’ll say is, it gutted me. Plain and simple. And I don’t blame Leah for that last line, even if it’s not true. I mean, it’s a bitch move, but I’d pretty damn pissed off too if I found out my husband had lied to me about something so incredibly huge. Oh my God, it was just a perfect ending/cliffhanger…freaking perfect.

While I didn't love Dirty Red quite as much as The Opportunist, Tarryn Fisher certainly didn't disappoint with this second novel. It gave me something I wasn't expecting, which made it all the better, while continuing to give my emotions a pretty severe workout. I mean, not that I would expect anything less from this series…nor would I want anything less. Tarryn is 2 for 2 in making me never want to put down her book, while at the same time never wanting the story to end. The writing is fantastic, and I feel like everything I knew about this series got flipped on its ass. I don’t know what I want anymore! Do I want Caleb and Olivia together? Do I want Leah to find someone new? Do I want Noah and Olivia to have a HEA, while Leah and Caleb suffer? I. JUST. DON’T. KNOW. I’ll tell you one thing I do know… I need a drink after this and a dirty martini seems quiiiite fitting…

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A Beautiful Lie Promo Blitz & Blog Tour

A Beautiful Lie by T.E. Sivec is released today, and believe me, you want to read this novel. It is a departure from Tara's normally hysterical novels, but every bit as good. A Beautiful Lie is full of suspense, passion, deceit, and manipulation; in other words, it's damn good. My review will be posted on Sunday, January 13 for the blog tour, or if you are super anxious to read it (and why wouldn't you be), you can check it out on Goodreads now.

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Synopsis from Goodreads:

He saw her first, but his friend made the move.

She settled for the safer choice, but her heart knew the truth.

They love, they crave, they lie.

Garrett McCarthy, Annabelle Parker, and Milo Roberts were as close as friends could get. They shared in each other's joy during graduations, promotions, and engagements. They consoled one another through heartache and loss. 

When one of the friend's life is cut short, it's up to the two left behind to pick up the pieces and find out the truth -- no matter the cost. As they slowly start to uncover the nature of his deception, and the very powerful people behind it, they begin to question everyone and everything, even themselves. 

Everyone has secrets -- some do it for love while others do it for power. Those secrets can change perceptions, alter reality, and sometimes destroy lives. 

What do you do when you find out your whole life has been a lie?

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About the Author

T.E. Sivec is the pen name for Tara Sivec. Under T.E. Sivec, she delves into a more serious genre that is her absolute favorite to read -- romantic suspense. She loves reading a book and feeling her heart speed up with anticipation and wanted to be able to give that feeling to her fans. 

T.E. lives in Ohio with her husband and two children, living the dream of being a full-time writer. 

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