jbronderbookreviews

Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst

5 stars

(Excerpt from Good Reads) Pearl is a sixteen-year-old vampire… fond of blood, allergic to sunlight, and mostly evil… until the night a sparkly unicorn stabs her through the heart with his horn. Oops.

Her family thinks she was attacked by a vampire hunter (because, obviously, unicorns don’t exist), and they’re shocked she survived. They’re even more shocked when Pearl discovers she can now withstand the sun. But they quickly find a way to make use of her new talent. The Vampire King of New England has chosen Pearl’s family to host his feast. If Pearl enrolls in high school, she can make lots of human friends and lure them to the King’s feast — as the entrees.

The only problem? Pearl’s starting to feel the twinges of a conscience. How can she serve up her new friends—especially the cute guy who makes her fangs ache—to be slaughtered? Then again, she’s definitely dead if she lets down her family. What’s a sunlight-loving vamp to do?

Pearl is the typical sixteen year old vampire that is concerned with fighting, her next meal, and her boyfriend Jadrien. But all of that changes when she is staked by a unicorn. The first thing she notices is that she can go out into the light of day. After enjoying all the wonders that happen during the day, she learns that the King is going to hold his Fealty Ceremony at her families place.

The King wants to have the family provide enough humans to feed all the vampires at the Ceremony. But with Pearls ability to go out in the daylight, she is volunteered to solve that problem. Pearl goes to high school to try to find a solution. There she starts learning about the humans and thinking about them as much more than just food. Now she is trying to keep her family and her human friends happy.

I was completely thrown for a loop when it came to the unicorn, that was a great twist. I really liked how Pearl comes to think about humans as equals. This is a really good book. I have to admit that I really couldn’t think of anything to grump about. If you like paranormal young adult stories, you need to read this one.

I received this from the Simon & Schuster Galley Grab.

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Ted Saves the World by Brian Cohen

5 stars

(Excerpt from Good Reads) A possessed cheerleader. A cursed gang of criminals. Mysterious telekinetic powers. An angry ex-girlfriend in gym class?

One second, sophomore in high school Ted endures his first breakup in his favorite place in town. The next, a mysterious blue light turns him into a worldwide superhero sensation for taking down a posse of grisly murderers. As his views on YouTube increase and his friend Dhiraj tries to capitalize on the marketing potential, his dangers increase as well when a presumed-dead cheerleader begins taking a personal interest. Can Ted survive the his first week as a superhero in the public eye?

This novella is the first taste in a series of full-length novels about the adventures of Ted Finley and Erica LaPlante.

Ted is not the most manliest of men. He is rather shy and doesn’t really like confrontation. The story starts with Ted’s girlfriend breaking up with him because he doesn’t do anything. Then some bikers plan on killing everyone in the diner where Ted just got dumped. Ted is surprised to learn that he just got new super powers. He protects the diners and gets the bikers thrown in jail.

In the mean time Erica, a cheerleader from Ted’s school that disappeared a month prior, is brought back to life by a guardian that is on this plane to help Ted learn how to use his powers. Now the bikers are out a jail and on the way to take care of Ted.

I really liked this story. Mind you it is very short, roughly 70 pages. But it is worth it. I admit that I really like the stories where the nobody saves the world. This is one to keeps your eye’s out for. I cannot wait to read the full-length novels.

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Eve by Anna Carey

5 stars

(Excerpt from Good Reads) The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust…and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

The world has almost been decimated by a plague. Now small groups live together under the Kings rule. These groups have to be close or those that wander the wastelands of American will kill them for their goods. Eve has been on one of the all girl Schools for 12 years. It is the eve of her graduation when she learns that the girls are actually breeding sows that are used to repopulate the Kings world.

On the outside, Eve learns that the world is, for the most part, nothing like what she was taught. But some human nature is the same. The King wants Eve specifically to produce an heir for him and will do anything to get her. She also finds a pack of boys that grow to become a family to her. But in this new world, there is not much room for happiness and she is still on the run from the King’s men.

I really liked this story. Great setting and I love Eve’s growth. I got sucked in and finished the booking a day and a half. I have to admit that I was a bit irked at the ending but it does leave the story open for the next two books. I recommend that you read this book if you like post-apocalyptic stories.

I received this book from Amazon Vine in return for an honest review.

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