Mini Reviews: e-books

I've been reading a lot of e-books lately, and while they are just as great as physical books in their own way, I tend to read them really fast and usually in one sitting. So if I find that I finish an e-book in under 3 hours, I'm going to do a mini review for them. Here's what I've read in the past couple weeks that qualify (links to Goodreads):






The Secret of Ella and Micha by Jessica Sorensen (YA/New Adult)
Released: October 4th, 2012
Amazon e-book Price: $0.99

I'm a sucker for steamy scenes and this story had plenty of them. There's a lot of build up between Ella and Micha, childhood friends/neighbors, as they come face to face after Ella's disappearance when she left to go to college hundreds of miles away without telling anyone. She ran away from a confusing relationship with Micha, an alcoholic widow of a father, a judgmental brother, and the memory of her mother and how she did not want to follow in her footsteps. But a girl has to go home sometime, doesn't she? And who would have guessed, people were upset. She has an interesting relationship with Micha. It's typical in a lot of YA or New Adult(?) stories, the female character is indifferent to the male character and the male (in this case, Micha) trys throughout the whole story to get the girl and so on and so fourth. But that's why I like these books. It's not realistic in the fact that, most of what happens, drove me crazy(!!!) because their reactions weren't realistic, but it did make for a dramatic and entertaining read. Two supporting characters are supposedly going to have their story in a sequel which was due out last month, but that remains to be seen. Never the less, I will read it when it comes out. Sorensen's writing was enjoyable and fiesty, and at times, heartbreaking. It was worth the few dollars I spent to buy it on my kindle, and I can see myself reading it again when I've forgotten about it and enjoying it all over again.

Serial Hottie by Kelly Oram (YA)
Released: July 10th, 2012
Amazon e-book Price: $3.99

This story was hot! Although the main character was a bit young to have such a strong male character pursue her, I just made myself believe she was older and it was okay. This was another story where I was frustrated a lot by the main character's beliefs and suspicions. There's romance, family drama, mystery, murder, and did I say romance? Although I had trouble with the main character, I did come to enjoy the murder/mystery plot behind the obvious brewing romance between the female/male main characters. I realized who the killer was RIGHT before it became obvious in the story, and it was a big shocker. Oram definitely knows how to string you along and make things seem one way when they are the opposite. Oram has another book already out which I am considering checking out, as well as a new story coming out soon, V is for Virgins. Thanks to Serial Hottie, I'll read whatever Oram writes!

Losing It by Cora Carmack (YA/New Adult)
Released: October 15th, 2012
Amazon e-book Price: $3.99

Losing It implies exactly what you think it does: the female lead character wants to loser her virginity. What unravels from there is a humorous and embarrassing tale of a college girl who goes to great lengths to save face when she finds herself in a tight position. She's a theater major in college with an amazing set of friends that definitely add to the story's integrity, including a guy friend who's perpetually stuck in the friend zone and what do you know? She didn't know he had those feelings for her. There were a few "DUH!" moments I had with the female lead and while they didn't stop me from continuing, I wonder how many people actually mirror her actions and reactions. After meeting a guy in a bar, she's introduced to the main idea in the story, who he is and what they did. There are a few hot scenes between the female/male leads and it takes a while for them to finally straighten themselves out and just let things happen. By that point, I was happy for the story to end where it did, as it was sentimental and happy. While it tied all the loose ends up nicely, I wish there would have been room for a sequel for them, or maybe for some of the other characters in the series. I would have liked to see her best guy friend find someone and see where Carmack could go with it. But as it is Carmack's first book, I might just get my wish...

Marked (Eternal Guardians #1) by Elisabeth Naughton
Entwined (Eternal Guardians #2) by Elisabeth Naughton (Fantasy/Paranormal Romance)
Released: May 27th, 2010/ July 27th, 2010
Amazon e-book Price: $4.49/ $4.99

I'm not afraid to admit that I've been reading a variety of romance novels for a while now, and while I don't usually discriminate against genre in romance, I tend to enjoy fantasy, sci-fi, and paranormal romances. Every now and again, I go through a contemporary romance phase, but I always come back to what I enjoy the most. I also tend to stick to the authors I've come to be familiar with and know I'll get the bang for my buck (excuse my pun). But as a lot of authors that I am loyal readers of, they tend to become popular and have other projects going on, so their books come out less and less frequently. This is where I have to turn to finding new authors that don't make me cringe when they talk about "his throbbing member" and "my inner goddess" and what not. The major advantage of having the Kindle app is the ability to sample a story before I decide to pay the few dollars. By eliminating a lot of unwanted stories it helps me find the ones I really want to read, and end up spending money on.

One of these series, is the Marked series by Elisabeth Naughton. A parallel world where humans, half-breeds, and Argoleans/Argonauts live on different planes with the human race completely unaware. What else is new? But I enjoyed the story behind the romance. Yes, the steamy scenes are definitely a plus, but the plot can sometimes fail and become less than normal when it comes to romances. This is why I like Naughton's series. You care about what happens to these characters. They have children, family, friends, and you want to make sure their decisions and actions are followed through. Even though there is a lot of glaring and insults thrown around, it's reminiscent of how any family is. When it comes time to defend their family, none of it matters. Naughton easily weaves these characters into a web of connections and networking. There is background between two characters because every time they see each other in a scene, they ignore each other. Little things like this that might get lost in a silly romance novel with little depth shine through in Naughton's series. While each book does follow the relationship of one male and one female and their struggle, it doesn't get old. There are chapters told in other's POV's and upon learning they are the main leads of one of the future books in the series, makes you more interested learning about where their story will take them. Stories inside of stories, a literary inception, if you will. As far as I'm aware, thereare 4-5 stories in this series so far, and you can bet I'll be buying them all for my kindle within the next week!


Happy Reading!