I'd give 3. 5 stars if I could, ...
343191
I'd give 3.5 stars if I could, but it wasn't quite a 4 for me. Cute, not raunchy, unique concept.
3744590
All say 5 - got 3. - - .5 stars as I was not completely ripped off.
3728626
Once again, I really want to be able to give 3.5 stars.  I had a tough time deciding whether to round up or down but ultimately just couldn't give this four stars.

The story begins with a young Irish girl arriving at a Virginia plantation.  Her parents died in the journey and, as an indentured servant, she ends up living and working with the slaves that manage the house and the kitchen (vs. the plantation workers).  Lavinia becomes closely bonded to the men and women in service but doesn't understand the socisl rules that control their lives.  She becomes tangled up in these rules as she becomes part of the white family that owns the plantation as well.  There are many sad stories tangled up in the book, and these feel real given the time in history.

I enjoyed that the novel used two narrators -- Lavinia and Belle (a kitchen member who is the daughter of a slave and the plantation owner).  I thought it was a useful contrast since Belle made observations that Lavinia failed to understand.  I have seen people seem disappointed by the number of tragedies in the tale, but that didn't bother me.  It was a good story and told of a complex social network.  I just never fell fully into it.  I did care about the characters but was more than ready to leave them behind at the end.  There isn't much specific that I can point to...it just didn't capture me.
628117
I'm torn on how many stars to give this book, once again wishing for half stars. I'd go 3.5 if I could. I mostly liked it, but some parts of the writing style made it feel like it was just ok.

I like re-tellings as a rule. It's always fun for me to see a different take on a familiar story, and though I love Disney, I don't take their versions of the fairy tales as the untouchable definitives. Ms Thomas does a nice job of imagining what it really would be like to wake up with all around you gone, in the future, with a prince you didn't fall in love with, but who merely kissed you. In this version, the castle didn't sleep, so her family is gone. Many princes had tried before to wake her - the one who managed it doesn't seem particularly worthy, and why would she love him immediately? Why would he love her?

Add to that a kingdom that's been in civil war since her father died, the current king with dubious motives, and a girl who doesn't seem to even know herself, and it's a good story.

However... Maybe it's just a function of Aurora not being on an even keel herself, but I had a harder time connecting to her than most main characters. I get that there is conflict between her mother's (echoed by the current queen's) strictures, being raised to be a perfect princess, and her own sense of right and wrong. But I found her to be wishy-washy and therefore kind of annoying. Maybe that's the Disney lover in me, but if she's going to be a spunky heroine, be one. Perhaps I'm just impatient.  I will say that this aspect was when the book dragged for me. She'd do something fun or thoughtful, then agree to do nothing and that led to a lot of sitting in her room, thinking. So, that's where I'd disagree with the editorial review on the product page that says it's a "dazzling" story.

Also, we are clearly going to get a sequel. I don't mind sequels. In fact, as I say in lots of my reviews, I actually adore series that involve long character development arcs. But those that I adore can always stand alone, with a clear beginning and end, even if you jump in out of order. Sadly, Ms Thomas seems to go with the "Empire Strikes Back" school of sequel thought, without a definitive ending, and that just ticks me off.

Overall, I was entertained, though, and I'll keep an eye out for the next. There is a good possibility going here, and the writing skills aren't bad, so I hope the next will improve a little.
4711579
I would have given it 5 stars, but I found some of the descriptions of the murders off-putting.
3272112
I wanted to give this 3.5 stars, but I opted with 3 because I felt there were things that could be improved upon causing the book to fall short of it's potential.
First of all, the author is a great storyteller.  I didn't mind the different timelines, I thought they coincided well to reveal significant portions of the story.
Even though I liked the story, the killer was easy to tell straight off.  Too bad.  And there is one mystery left hanging at the end of the book, but if you read carefully, all the clues are there, but the author doesn't address it at the conclusion.  If I was Reggie I would want to know so that I could give that person closure, but I guess the author didn't feel it was necessary.
I flip flopped on the characters, but ultmately decided that I liked Reggie, I just didn't like her when she was around Tara.  Their relationship would almost be considered toxic.  I felt bad for Tara, I just didn't like the person Reggie became when she was with her.
Also, the Sid storyline felt contrived and just plopped in.  It didn't flow with the rest of the story and with something that significant I would've thought it would affect the characters more.
1805892
After reading such eloquent, positive reviews, I was excited to read Lydia. Overall, I felt like this was an above average romance, but it didn't quite make it to the 4/5 star level for me. I appreciated the well-written dialogue and enjoyed the evolving relationship between young Charles and his uncle. I thought the secondary characters were well done, too. I wasn't that crazy about Lydia herself, though; she seemed pleasant but a little unremarkable to engage the hero's devotion. With only about 20% left in the book, the plot took a bit of an unexpected turn--the action didn't seem to fit with the feel of the rest of the book. I would love to rate this 3.5 stars, but since I can't, I will bump it to 4. It was a nice story, but I didn't find myself highlighting passages or going back to reread. I do believe most will enjoy this. Plus, it's at a nice price point.
4321359
I liked this book, probably not as much as "Undeniable," but it was good. Two things: the time travel scenes are well-written, and the conceit she used to move the characters from present to past was pretty well conceived. Also, the characters--especially when they're interacting in the past--are well written.

However, I wish that the introductory chapters had been more fleshed out to reveal more about the main characters--their history up to the point they meet, their personalities, etc. It felt as if the author rushed the introduction just to get to the meat of the story, which was quite good. All in all, a small sacrifice, and I look forward to reading more of Ms. Alexander's work.
1683664
I wish I could give it 3.5 stars, because I'm not sure it's a 4 star but definitely better than three stars. At times the pacing is odd, it plods along for the first three quarters and then the ending comes suddenly. I know there are follow up books and there is something to be said for lead ins to sequels but I feel there was far too much glossed over.

There was very little development in the two main characters. The author is definitely capable of character development since the two "main supporting" characters seem much more rounded out and real.

All of that aside, the story was good and I enjoyed reading it. I look forward to reading the sequels.
4497647
I liked this book and would give it 3.5 stars if I could. My reason for 3 and not 4 would just be that it contained so many statistics and quotes from other books that inspired her journey, but I was hoping for more personal story. She did share their story, but it was a little vague and didn't really capture my heart or inspire me. But I love Jen and the way God provided for them was amazing and encouraging
644467
If I could give 3.5 stars, I would. The writing is very well done, the characters are fairly true to themselves, and there are no gaping plot holes.  I don't know if it would bother others, but there is an inconsistency to how the characters refer to each other. There are a few little missteps, like Carter calling O'Neill "Jack" instead of "General," though never out-loud, or Daniel not being "Daniel Jackson" to Teal'c. These are little things, though.

*KREE, SPOILERS!*
The main thing that kept it from being a 4 star book is the lack of wrap-up. SG-1, with the addition of O'Neill, as this is after he is General and no longer on the team, travel through a device constructed by Janus. Instead of taking them where they want to go, however, the device transports them to an alternate reality of Atlantis, where they make a hasty retreat through the 'gate to where the Atlantis expedition fled. They, there, deal with the Wraith and a difficult group of Marines, which is all well and good. Face-paced adventure, Daniel getting scooped up, Carter doing sciency things, the usual.
But when it all comes to an end, SG-1 returns home with no conversation of the importance of Janus' device, or how Janus managed to build such devices across the timelines and galaxies. With more exploration of the device itself, instead of the medical research of Wraith, the social structures of the Athosians, and the mutiny (?) of the Marines, the book would have felt more solid.

*END SPOILERS*

If you are a fan, especially of SGA, I would recommend this book. From a SG-1 fan, there was a bit too much of Atlantis and a bit to little of Earth.
2210419
I would probably have given it 3.5 stars if I could.  It was a good story, and well-worth the low cost, but lacked the plot and character development for me to rank it higher.  I hate giving away plot points in a review, so I will just say that if you enjoy creature novels and thrown-together people fighting to survive then you find this story worth reading.
532258
I would say this was more like 3.5 stars, but I'm averaging up. Good start to the O'Malley series (actually a prequel). I enjoyed the story overall, but felt having Dave in the middle of Sara and Adam's budding relationship was a little creepy. I know he was around to protect Sara, but I just got a somewhat creepy feeling with how close they were. Hopefully that will disappear as I now read Kate & Dave's story.
680086
Even now, after finishing it, I'm not quite sure why I did. It's a well-written slice of Dominican life. The author does a reasonable job with keeping control of multiple points of view in the narration, but my first negative would be that the "Yunior" narrator was too omniscient for the piece. Way too much telling about Oscar, not nearly enough showing. For what the author was trying to do, perhaps a single, consistent omniscient narrator would have been a better choice. And I still see little point in the ricocheting around in time; with a not-very-compelling main story arc, interrupting it to go to another character in a different time, or back a generation or two didn't seem to make any narrative sense.

But my main problem was simply indifference: I never cared deeply about these characters, and consequently it was a bit of a slog to finish. I kept hoping that something truly wondrous would happen, and for me, it never did.
3869426
We'll settle with a 3.5. You'll know if this is the book for you within the first paragraph. I wanted to enjoy it, I really did, and I'll say right off the bat that the way the dialogue is constructed is excellent. There is an abundance of action and fountains of gore, which help this to be a quick and exciting read. However, I couldn't get attached to the characters. Yes, I know they were goblins and trolls and they're not traditionally depicted as heroes, but the only character I liked was alpha wolf Luther. The others were a little too brutal for even my taste (seriously, can they not take a break from the torture and dismemberment?), and it took me a little while to understand where the setting was, as there were references for Asgard and Norse lore. I didn't love this one, but I still would definitely recommend it to readers who enjoy brutal, gory high fantasy and want to see a story told from the perspective of goblins, trolls, wolves, and witches!
360459
This is my review of the audio version as posted on Audible:

Spoiler alert!

Well, first of all, it's really 3.5 stars overall.

I have ambiguous feelings towards the book. On the one hand, it has a really involving and somehow emotionally moving criminal plot - the revenge of a man on people responsible for his sister's suicide and the moral dillemmas the investigation into the killings poses for the leading detective. On the other hand... well, that's just it, that's the problem I have with the book: the appearance of demons in flesh and body.... Maybe I had just overlooked the part of the book's description that said 'the real demons show up and change everything' or maybe I hadn't taken it literally - and I should have. Because demons do appear, take over the mind and body of Charlie, talk to him, talk to his victims and so on... I'm not sure what it was exactly that clashed for me at that point; maybe it was the fact that the demons looked exactly what we imagine the Devil to look like, with horns, and a tail, and yellow eyes, or maybe the fact that Charlie became almost immortal right then and there, with wounds healing immediately and so on... but the book changed into a B movie for me at that point, almost all feelings of sympathy or support I had had for the main characters before just going away, leaving me totally indifferent... And it could have been so much more interesting if the demons existed only in the minds of Charlie's and Fletcher's, if it was their internal battle to win or lose... So generally it's a 4-star plot with 1 star deducted for the cartoony demons unnecessarily thrown into the middle of an otherwise really interesting crime plot.

As for the narration by Mr Halligan, I liked it although it could have been a little faster at times:) Generally it's a good interpretation of all the characters, very well conveying their emotions, with some acting added to the pot. There were moments when Mr Halligan kind of slowed down, especially in the descriptive parts, with the effect of sounding a little too monotonous, but it didn't disturb me in any way nor made me lose focus, so that's OK. On the whole t's a steady, good performance.

DISCLAIMER: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
4862132
If there's one thing I can say about The Promise of Amazing, it is that it truly lives up to its name. The book definitely contains the promise of an amazing story, but sadly fell short of what I was expecting. Even though I kind of liked Wren and Grayson, and even thought their story was pretty darn cute at times, there was just something about this novel that didn't work for me. (Sidenote: it kind of reminded me of this particular book, though I might have enjoyed this one a smidgen more.)

As mentioned, the characters in this book were kind of likeable. Wren Caswell is a girl looking to find her own place, which is something teens and adults alike will be able to relate to. As someone who enjoys watching people discover the truth about themselves, it was no surprise I liked seeing Wren figure things out, though a lot of those realizations came a bit too conveniently. Plus, I adored her friends - Jazz and Mads - who were the best! Grayson Barrett, on the other hand, almost felt stereotypical: the bad boy who finds something someone that inspires him to be better. This is not to say I didn't like him, because I did - especially when I witnessed how he was around his family. His friends, unlike Wren's, are pretty much jerks.

The story is told from alternate points of view, which gives readers a sense of knowing everything that's happening for Wren, Gray and Wren + Gray together. Their individual stories were pretty compelling, which sort of made up for how quickly these two fell for each other. It's not quite clear whether it's simply a case of insta-lust, serendipity or love at first sight, but the romance certainly happens fast. The book had an odd combination of authenticity in some parts and dramatics in others, particularly towards the ending, which kind of left me feeling confused and a teensy bit irritated.

The story might have had a bit of a heavy hand on the dramatics and sweeping statements; it also somehow managed to be tongue-in-cheek and sweet in a few rare moments. Even though it didn't particularly wow me, The Promise of Amazing was okay.