Banana's Book Blog

OMFG! I hate myself for not jumping into this book the day the it was releases. If I liked I Hunt Killers I want to marry and spend the rest of my life with Game. It was freaking awesome. Every Part, Every Chapter, Every Paragraph, Every sentence, Every Word, Every Punctuation Mark, absolute perfection. And I think the audio made the experience even better. I loved this book (if didn't already notice). I think that this what a great series is made of, these characters who have blurred lines when it comes to good and bad. These places, that you can envision to the point that you can taste what they are tasting, smell what they are smelling, and best (or worst depending on the scene) you can feel what your characters are feeling. Jazz Dent is a phenomenal lead character, he is funny, smart as hell, and most of all conflicted. Conflicted about the thoughts he has and person he was raised to be, and the person he wants to be. Jasper holds in his hands the potential to be the world's nest greatest serial killers, he has been taught from a child all the rules, he has also learned from Billy's mistakes and now though he is called to hunt killers, in order to find them it appears that he might have to become one of them. I think that this book is written so well, the moments when Jazz can still hear Billy teaching him, or just giving him practical advice are so well done, and again in the audiobook it made so clear, I actually got very scared a few times. Then there is Connie, Jazz's beautiful and typical teenage girlfriend, who wants more than anything to help Jazz understand that he is so much better than this father, that he has so much to offer the world, and most of all that he is normal. But Connie actually spends most of her time in the book playing a completely different game from the one that Jazz is currently playing, and unlike Jazz we know that Connie has not be tutored in how to beat this game, and therefore the odds are dangerously against her. And of course the awesome, bruised and battered Howie, who more and more I'm realizing really is Jazz's conscience. It is made clear in this book as the two of them are separate for so much time, how much Jazz depends on Howie to pull him back when things get dark, when he can't control the thoughts or the voice of his dad. The truth is Howie being to fragile, and having Jazz as a best friends works more to Jazz's advantage than Howie's. Also Howie's love interest in this book was just so.... out there but I loved it! The Hat/Dog killer mystery was so much fun, it was high paced, and the way it unfolds is just so seamless. One reason I'm glad I wanted to read this book honestly is because I don't know what I would've done if I had to wait after that last sentence. Yes something completely new is revealed in the last freaking sentence of his book! Something beyond words awesome

So beautiful, the depth of the love these two feel for each other, I see the love story as the best part of this entire series. Watching Cat try to deal with her feelings, the feelings that Bones already knew he had, and would do everything to get his Kitten back. So awesome!

Thank you Netgalley for giving this book in exchange for an honest review.

High-paced, while thought provoking murder mystery/thriller!

I really enjoyed how this book was written, there are two seemingly (at least for the first quarter) unconnected worlds, and seem to collide at just the right moment. I think that Henning made a fantastic lead, because he is so lost in his personal life, that his murder actually helps him, it allows him to focus his energies on something else, on a killer who murdered an elderly woman in the most gruesome way. There is Hennings' sister Trine who is the Justice Secretary who finds herself involved in very scandalous situation as well, one that later will collide with her brother's case.

Then there is the story of the investigator of the murders who has his own story line which wasn't as good as the aforementioned, but still kept the story moving at a great pace. I love the way in which Enger weaves his worlds, they are so intricate but every detail has a place, it has a story, it has somewhere to be, and something that it means. Really, really enjoyed this story.

This was a bit darker of a book for the series. I think we are seeing somehting happening in Eve she will have to get help to face her past, and I know that Roarke has been trying to help but she doesn't seem to want to help him. But overall I loved this book! This series has been too much fun!

This book had so many characters, so many time periods, so many places, but at its heart it was a story of all of us, of our dreams, and how important it is that we allow those dreams to adapt over time. There is a lot to be said but in the end it was the dick-head Michael Deane who said it the best

We love who we love. We want what we want."

So many characters but I don't want to spoil it for anyone because this book had some very unexpected turns. At the heart of hte book was two main characters, Pasquale Turssi and Dee Morray, two people in their early twenties who both want more. Pasquale born in a tiny Italian fishing village the sheltered last son of two parents who lost their older two sons and so hid their last for safety. He was so sweet, so good, and just the hero of this entire story. This young man who wanted to be with this American actress who came o stay at his hotel by accident. But the truth was so much than that. And Dee Morray, a young actress who had just been given the opportunity of a life time to be the maiden to a young Cleopatra played by Elizabeth Taylor, her big break finally coming. And then she falls ill, with cancer nonetheless and decides before she seeks further treatment to wait for her lover to come visit her, she wants to be remembered without cancer first. And so these circumstances given birth to a beautiful story, about the stories we wan to tell about ourselves, and the actual ones that we star in every day. So many beautiful quotes, and even more beautiful scenery. Jess Walters is a wonderful writer, this book is just so well crafted, and unique int he way it ties together distant past, future past and present. I think that in these pages anyone who picks up this book will find a character or several characters to identify with, and I will also like to say that the end is perfect, it is exactly what all the characters deserved, stick with it.

Great Book!

Such a beautiful story, though it is filled with hateful people, I have met just the most beautiful characters in these pages. I have to admit that I was drawn into this story initially because on of the characters is from my country, but the beauty really is in the character not from my country. Dot is a heroine in every sense of the word, the things she had to ensure, and woman she became after, I believe that Amanda Prowse is a realist but she is also a brilliant writer. Sol was just such a great male lead for someone like Dot. I couldn't believe how kind and caring he was, and how much he loved this girl.
So why 4 stars?
Well the ending was not as happy as I wanted it to be, while it was realistic, I didn't want real for these 2 I wanted the fantasy.

Oh man this book was a slam dunk!

I loved everything about this...
Loved Ally
LOVED DERREN,
Loved more Nick and Shaya and Willow,
Loved more Trey and Taryn and Kye
And of course more Greta
Also Loved more Roni and Marcus (cause those 2 are insanely kick ass)

I can't wait to learn more about this pack, cause I felt like that's what this was really missing more interaction with the pack I don't really think I learned all that much more about Zack, Bracken and Jesse, but over all Suzanne Wright please keep writing!

ARC provided by Montlake via NetGalley

Shucking Hell! This book was awesome!

That was so good I know I'm late to jump on the Maze Runner books but I saw the movie last year and just fell so in love! This is a world that is so real, so character driven, so heart breaking that its addictive! I can't wait for the next movie but more so I have to say that this was an unexpected ride.
The Scorch Trials were so much more than the Maze Trials, while the Maze Trials focused on the relationships between the boys, the Scorch Trials put those relationships to the test, we have been Thomas go from the new guy with the curious mind, and out-of-the-box ideas, to a reach leader, who makes his own decisions, who analyzes the situations from so many angles, who has made new friends, lost old ones, and who has learned that he can't trust anyone. I think the highlight of this book came at 75% where it was clear that everything that Thomas and his companions believed once again were proven to be wrong. I love the new characters I think they have challenge the gliders in the best ways possible, I also loved Minho and Newt and how strong they came through in this book, how honest and how loyal these boys are to each other, how they cope with loss, with challenge and without each other. I loved every minute of this book, I'm finding it really hard to put off reading the last one for a year. But I shall try.

Just when I thought KA couldn't write a book to take my breath away, she did! I think this was one of the best books I have read for the year thus far. I thought that Joker and Carrie were fantastic leads for this story. Not only that but I could feel their connection from the beginning. I think KA just knows how to set up a couple more than anyone else, she does the best Prologues and Epilogues that I have ever read, and this story was no exception.
Here we have it these two people who had only one tiny moment in the past, and when they reunite, it is so beautiful. I think Joker might just be my favorite KA Badass of all time (I am so sorry Luke and Ty), he has it all, he is so freaking hot, he is willing to open up for his girl, he is willing to do anything to make his girl happy, and he is great with kids off the bat. I could not believe how amazing he really was. Joker on the outside and for the longest time to his brothers, was just shell, a man who didn't talk much, or who didn't want much, he lived at the club house, worked on the custom vehicles for the club, and he was a brother and an underground fighter, but that was the most that anyone knew about him. And then he helps out a poor young single mother who has a flat tire on the side of the highway and everything changes.
Carissa has not had the most stable life, losing half her family before she was 18, then having a dick for a boyfriend and then husband later and losing everything, and then she was found herself alone with a baby to care for, but somehow Carrissa being who she was, just put it in her mind that she could do it, and would make it through. I think the climax of this book happened when she realized who her knight in shining armor was, I think it was the perfect moment for her to have a hissy fit and really make things difficult but she didn't cause she is just that kind of woman. I loved her nickname, I think Butterfly is beautiful and kind, and very very very appropriate for Carrie.
I haven't felt the need to immediately reread a book as much as felt it today! I can't imagine how KA is going to top this one, but just reading this gives me hope!
If you were having doubts READ THIS BOOK ASAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ITS WORTH IT.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for review

I have to say that Lily and Max are my favorite couple from this author so far. I think that they were great characters, I was expecting to hate Lily who seemed so spoiled and out of place with her more responsible and respectable younger siblings int he previous books, but boy was I wrong. She is so strong and caring, and she is also incredibly insecure because of what she has had to endure as a result of her mother's death all those years ago. I think the fact that Lily is very intelligent but she likes to act like this is not the case, which throw me and everyone else for a loop. I also liked Max, he was so honorable, it was cute when he got trapped between a rock and hard place, but they made it out. Great end to the series!

Blood doesn't always tell, character does.

Such a great short, I think that we see that though Roarke and Eve have been through quite a bit, there is still a lot more for us to learn, especially about Roarke and his past. This book really focused on Roarke's father and his past. I find it hard to believe that he really is unaffected by what his father had exposed him to, but Roarke is pretty special, although I'm sure it will come up again at some point. I liked the new characters especially Darcia the detective on the Olympus planet where the story takes place. I think that this was a short but a profound story for the couple, Eve and Roarke got to see how far from their fathers they really are now, and we got to see how much trust exists between these two.

"You have a good heart."
"And clear vision," Roarke added when Mira walked away.
"Clear vision?"
"To see through the dreck and the shadows to the core of the man."
"Nobody gets through life without fucking up. He gave fifty years to the badge. It wasn't all what it should've been, but it was fifty years. Anyway." She shook off sentiment. "I've got to check on Peabody."

Off to be Seduced in Death!

Now I have to be upfront, I do not like YA books, its a genre I avoid as much as possible, but I have a challenge to read a book from an author with the same initials as me and this feel into my lap. That being said, I really really enjoyed this book. I think it was so honest, and real, I think the fact that Maggie held on to her hate and hurt for such a long time, that she would be so isolated from everyone, and that she would be so insecure, is very realistic. I think that teenagers are their own species of people and this book reflects that. But Caleb was so complex, so beautiful, so lonely, and so damaged I fell for him so early in the book. I think he is just a really real hero, someone who just made a mistake, and is trying to fix it. But life is bitch of course, I think the addition of Mrs. Reynolds was awesome as well, this old lady who inadvertently (or maybe on purpose) brings these two together, and allows them to get through their problems. She leads them to a place of healing that would impact them for life.

Now based on all the reviews I read I knew that the ending of this book would not be easy, but I was not prepared for how hard it would be. Hard but so real, I think that everyone made the best decision, but I am very very happy that there is another book to see where these two end up at the end. I really didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I have, and I look forward to the next book in the series!

While I enjoyed this mystery, nothing much happened between Eve and Roarke, expect that Eve was the logical one in this book, but thats expected at some point. Still I'm not bored yet.

This is a good start to a series that I see a lot of potential in this series, but this book was just a set up and that's clear, I thought it was really anticlimactic until almost the very end, and then everything just went up all at the same time. I do like the relationship between Pietro and Lucy, it makes sense why there was so much sexual tension, but he wasn't willing to act on it. I do believe that there is a shit storm coming and while there is real love between these two I don't think its going to easy. I excited to see what Missy Johnson is going to do with the second book because there were so many huge revelations at the end of this book.

Another wonderful story in this series, I think I liked Vanity from here intro in Yvette's book, I love a BFF who will drop everything to support her friend, and one who is so much fun is even better. I have to say that these two were very teasing but not as steamy as I was hoping. I think that Stack was a great hero he was so sweet and caring, and I loved his relationship with his mom and sister (though I didn't really like them so much). I have to say that Vanity and Stack had such great chemistry, but I could understand why they had so many disagreements, they both had been burned in the past. I just loved the scenes when they were playful and together, Stack is just such a good guy, and Vanity really deserves ad good guy. I hope we get to see a few more snippets of these two in the future. I also really liked Tabitha who is Stack's sister, I mean she made some seriously stupid decisions, but I think that she s on a good track right now, so I hope she too gets her HEA, because it would make Stack so happy.

I have to say once again I CANNOT WAIT FOR ARMIE'S BOOK I NEED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ARC provided by Harlequin via NetGalley

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! way more than the first. I think that Layna is a powerhouse, even when she breaking down because of the crazy circumstances surrounding her life. When Blaze heads back to Afghanistan on active duty it becomes clear that Layna is not good at being alone, but she somehow pulls through, and when Blaze returns to her it is after a serious accident in which he injured, and this is where so much happens. I think Blaze really feel like he has to be a hero for Layna all the time, which was why he did not even tell her he was coming home, but the problems that they face in a relationship that is so young but under so much strain is expected, and I think they deal with it in a very realistic way. The truth is this book was hit after hit after hit for these two, and it kept me on my toes, and it really liked it. I think that this a well written glimpse into a few months of their lives, and relationships that make them who they are. I loved having Talon back, I think he is just the sweetest, and we finally learnt his story as well and there was so much to take in with that story, it was unbelievable, but Talon needs a girl, and I hope he gets one soon. Meeting some more of Blaze's friends was also a fun treat, they are all so Marine but so different. I hope that we will get to know what happens with these two in a few months, cause I don't think I'm ready to shelve them just yet.

ARC provided by Carina Press via Netgalley