The Book Cove

At The Academy for Girls, there is one girl who holds the key to social acceptance in her hands. Katrina. When sixteen-year-old Ricey Kennedy arrives at The Academy, she is instantly branded a non-Academy Girl. Nobody dares to make an enemy of Katrina, and so the class either join in her mission to destroy, or stay silent. Day after day, the verbal abuse crushes Ricey’s self esteem until she can’t take it anymore; the honey-coated barbs, the loneliness, the constant feeling that she is worthless. But then Ricey starts babysitting for Jessica Fox’s children. Jessica soon becomes a friend and mentor figure to Ricey. At the same time Ricey meets the charming Tom Wilson at Peter’s Plums fruit store. Tom is fascinated by the shy, smart Ricey who is completely clueless around boys, forever blushing, and has no idea how adorable she is. He is determined to show her how to have some fun. Ricey and Tom’s relationship slowly blossoms (with several hitches—induced by the jealous Katrina—along t...

(Blurb): Twenty-eight year old investment banker, Heather Rangel, has the perfect life. Great job and sexy, tennis star fiance from Texas, Brody Wainwright, who services her thoroughly in the bedroom. They're engaged to be married and Brody's status in the tennis world is set to skyrocket. He's about to go away for two months to compete in the annual tennis tournament circuit, leaving both he and Heather emotionally torn. She wants him to be successful, but she hates for him to go. He wants to finally make it onto the professional tour, but he hates leaving her behind. The emotional turmoil is hefty.  Aside from that, all is well until in their world one of Heather's wealthy, Russian clients, a man with known terrorist ties, decides he wants her too and he'll stop at nothing to have her. He inserts himself into her world in ways that will make your heart stop. This, as she tries to keep the invasion a secret from Brody so that he doesn't change his mind abo...

I'm a little late to the Divergent club. I've heard so much good hype about it from the general public and have watched it pop up on other reviewers' sites, but for some reason I have continued to put off reading it for this long. Because the movie is set to come out at the beginning of 2014, and I know I'll end up seeing it at some point, I figured I should probably read the book(s) first. ( Blurb ): In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including h...

( Blurb ):  For Kaeden Parish, life in Solace has always followed certain rules—everything makes sense, everything can be planned for, and everything is as it seems. Unfortunately, the secret harbored by his gorgeous, albeit guarded girlfriend is about to shatter all of that. After a successful attack on his life opens his eyes to a world of war, shadows, and supernatural creatures—a world he didn’t plan for—Kaeden finds himself resembling the sort of monster he has always feared. As he desperately struggles to resist a new temptation, danger draws ever nearer, threatening the ones he loves most. A prophecy tells of a final battle and great destruction, and Kaeden must decide which side he is on, a choice that could mean the end of the world. In Book 1 of the Solace Series, P.K. Gallagher pulls readers into a realm where good and evil are at war, and the outcome of it all rests on one young man’s decision to either go and live...or stay and die. This is where Parish begins. ...

I actually read this series a while back (early part of the year), but I loved it so much that I figured I'd  post my two cents on it. Slammed (#1) (Blurb): Following the unexpected death of her father, 18-year-old Layken is forced to be the rock for both her mother and younger brother. Outwardly, she appears resilient and tenacious, but inwardly, she's losing hope. Enter Will Cooper: The attractive, 21-year-old new neighbor with an intriguing passion for slam poetry and a unique sense of humor. Within days of their introduction, Will and Layken form an intense emotional connection, leaving Layken with a renewed sense of hope. Not long after an intense, heart-stopping first date, they are slammed to the core when a shocking revelation forces their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together, and the secret that keeps them apart Mini Review Sl...

Elite (Eagle Elite) By Rachel Van Dyken (Good Reads) When I won the annual Eagle Elite College Scholarship lottery, I was thrilled. After all, my grandma had just died and I wanted to take care of my aging grandpa -- he couldn't be a farmer in Wyoming forever. And graduating from Eagle Elite meant opportunity. But I wasn't counting on meeting Nixon. Nor was I counting on the rules of the Elect. 1. Do not touch The Elect. 2. Do not look at The Elect. 3. Do not speak to The Elect. And worst of all? Don't discover the secret they hide, because in the end, you may just realize... it's about you.   Review: One word: AMAZING! Rachel really nailed it with this one. Having read a few of hers now, I've grown to appreciate her as an author. Elite (Eagle Elite) is the first installment of the Elite series and I am definitely continuing on when the next book is out. Where do I even start with this?? It's a story about giving up a life you were comfort...

Ember X (Death Collectors, #1) by Jessica Sorensen (Good Reads) For nineteen-year-old Ember, life has always been about death. With a simple touch, she can see when someone will die. It’s her curse and the reason she secludes herself from the world. The only person that knows her secret is her best friend Raven. But that changes when she meets Asher Morgan. He’s gorgeous and mysterious and is the only person Ember can't sense death from. The silence he instills in her mind and body allows her to feel things she’s never been able to before, so despite her initial reservations, Ember lets Asher into her life and lets herself to get close to him. But the closer they get, the more Ember realizes that Asher is keeping secrets from her. When unexplained deaths begin to surface in her town, Ember questions why she can’t see Asher's death and what it is he’s hiding from her. Once again, Jessica Sorensen has decided to turn one of her young adult series, Death Collect...

New Blood (Vampire in the City, #1) Published September 30th 2011      Good Reads: Emma Hammond is a normal young woman living in New York City whose life changes forever when one misstep brings her very close to death. Luckily, Alex Thompson, a handsome stranger (who also happens to be a vampire), jumps in to save her, turning Emma into a vampire. She quickly discovers the numerous advantages (no more allergies, glasses, or acne) and slight drawbacks (wanting to eat her boyfriend) of joining the ranks of the creatures of the night. But Emma soon finds out her new undead life isn't all it's cracked up to be when she gets pulled in to an age-old dispute between two feuding vampire clans. Vampire in the City is a circa 2011-2012 trilogy that I just happened to run across this year. It started out as me looking for something random in the paranormal genre and turned into me reading all three eBooks in a days sitting! As far as I know, this serie...

Damaged 2 by H.M. Ward Sydney and Peter are back and hotter than ever in this second installment of the Damaged series. Sydney’s mother has taken ill and her family has requested her back in New Jersey to make some final reconciliations. She’s finally preparing herself to make the trip home after all these years, but Peter has a damning secret that he lets Sydney in on that changes everything. The way she sees him will never be the same, and for Peter, Sydney’s changed perception of him is something he can’t handle. Talk about some major excitement! As I said in my previous Damaged  review, the only downfall to the first book was knowing virtually nothing about Peter’s history. I had a feeling that it would be saved for Damaged 2 because no writer as good as H.M. Ward would leave something that crucial out. Guess what?? The author delivers! From the first page, Peter’s background is peeled back layer by stunning layer. I definitely was not expecting what was thrown ...

Rises The Night (Gardella Vampire Chronicles, #2) by Colleen Gleason Rises the Night is the 2nd installment in the Gardella Vampire Chronicles . Check out The Rest Falls Away first. This review contains spoilers of previous installments. Sti ll mourning the death of Sir Phillip Rockley, Victoria must figure out how to balance London Society life and her new life as a Venator. While Lady Melly and her fellow companions are busy pushing Victoria back into the lifestyle of The Ton , Victoria is getting a crash course in the rich history of thousand year old Italian vampire politics. As she attempts to stop an impeding army of death, her morals, trust, and biggest fears are all put to the test. It just gets better and better! The Rest Falls Away was a great introductory piece that showed the initial struggles of Victoria having everything she has ever known ripped out from under her. In Rises The Night she faces the next levels of grief, denial, and anger as the reality of wha...

The Rest Falls Away (Gardella Vampire Chronicles, #1) by Colleen Gleason This is a five book series that takes place in the Regency era (early 1800's). Our heroine is the one and only Victoria Gardella, an heiress in the Ton society. Young, beautiful, and saucy, this is a young woman who's struggling with the idea of entering into society. In a very Jane Austen-esque fashion, she fights for what she believes in and has a sharp tongue that can put any man to shame. But when she discovers her family secret, the riches of society become the last thing on her mind. Can she hold up to her family values as well as a secret society's? Or will she choose true love? The Rest Falls Away is a great intro book to the Gardella series. Colleen Gleason does an excellent job portraying Victoria's advancement from a girl that once only knew formal balls and husband searching, to a woman that has a secret family tradition to uphold: vampire hunting. The writing takes y...

The Gardella Vampire Chronicles by Colleen Gleason This is a five book series that takes place in the Regency era (early 1800's). Our heroine is the one and only Victoria Gardella, an heiress in the Ton society. Young, beautiful, and saucy, this is a young woman who's struggling with the idea of entering into society. In a very Jane Austen-esque fashion, she fights for what she believes in and has a sharp tongue that can put any man to shame. But when she discovers her family secret, the riches of society become the last thing on her mind. Can she hold up to her family values as well as a secret society's? Or will she choose true love? I love this Gardella series for many reasons and you will too if you LOVE: 1.) Jane Austin-esque style: I love Jane Austin and this is a completely different spin on that time period 2.) Witty banter and passionate encounters 3.) To feel a part of the book: It's one of those series that you can really invest yourself into ...