Closer to 4.5 stars for me than 4
594759
The forbidden romances always add that little something that push it to the next level making the story better.  This book had great characters and felt realistic.  I loved Cameron and her strengths.  An overall great book.
3716313
Until We Find Home has a lot of elements that I really enjoyed: a protagonist that I found interesting, two romances that ran gently underneath the main plot and weren't too sensual, an interesting setting and conflict, and a good incorporation of Christian elements.

First, the protagonist. Claire had just enough flaws to make her interesting, and her slight anxiety over her faults wasn't drawn out long enough to become annoying. Her development is believable, and by the end I was whole-heartedly cheering her on. Things didn't go quite so far in certain areas as I was hoping, and I felt that there were definitely some areas where things were resolved too quickly (especially at the end, where something in particular was glossed over, which really needed its own scene or more explanation, I felt), but overall, Claires characterization was great.

The two romances were good, too. Im glad that David didn't become the typical male protagonist of Christian romance novels. In fact, he wasn't around too much at allthis is very much a book much more focused on Claires (and Mirandas) development than romance. I do wish he didn't seem quite so perfecttheres multiple times when the characters think, He always knows exactly what to do and say! but his role makes sense, at least. Both of the romances in the book revolve around growth, which is nice.

I always enjoy a novel set during the time of World War II, so of course I enjoyed the setting and conflict of this book. Im torn as to how I feel about Gohlkes approach to Judaism in the bookits respectful and accurate, but Gohlke seemed unwilling to even try to broach some of the more major differences that would undoubtedly have arisen between Jewish and Christian people living in the same household. Beyond that, I loved the inclusion of C. S. Lewis in the book, and Gohlke gets his voice exactly correct.

The things I didn't like about Until We Find Home are relatively minor, but overall reduced my rating of the novel. I thought the book was slightly too long and dragged in places. I thought much more could have been done with Claire and her mother, and especially her mother and Miranda. In addition, while the setting and conflict were good, I thought the final bit of tension at the end of the novel was almost too mucha little cartoonish and dramatic.

Until We Find Home has many things going for it: good character development, subtle romance, and an interesting setting. The Christian elements are also done well. However, I thought there were too many missed and wasted opportunities, and occasionally the books pace was too slow and the action too clunky.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
4343489
Really I'd give this a 3.5 rating.

Things I liked:
I thought this book had loveable central characters and an overall good core storyline.  The relationship, while in a compressed timeframe, showed growth and was endearing.

Things that weren't my favorite:
I did feel this wasn't the easiest writing style to read, it took a few chapters in before I could adjust.  There are parts that seem disjointed and don't quite flow within the details although to be fair does still work within the big picture.  The Jade arc seems more of an afterthought rather than something to build tension throughout; it could have been used to create more depth.

I will probably read another by this author before passing further judgment.
2891399
I find myself in the odd place between knowing this is a great book and not enjoying it as much as I wanted to. There is so much that this book has going for it but there are also quite a few things that brought it down for me.

The book starts off rather strong with a  great opening line and  a seemingly immediate pull into the world, however it slows down significantly after that initial opening. It has a lot to do with the fact that the overall story is one of detail and depth, it requires set up to get to that point the book opens with. I found that my interest waned quite a bit towards the beginning because it took so long to get to the meat of the story. The writing is similar to what you would find in literary fiction, it's very fluid, with wonderful details and noticeably higher vocabulary...however while this is a good thing it is also a downfall for me. There are moments where things are far too lengthy, for instance there are some sentences that are literally a paragraph long. It felt like I was going no where fast, I'd read for hours and then realize that I'd only managed about 60 pages at most. The overall plot is one of mystery, intrigue, and historical clue finding; much like the DaVinci Code but targeted for the YA audience. I enjoyed seeing the past unravel in an unlikely fashion and I loved seeing real history being incorporated with fiction in a way that other than few points it could have very well been an actual event that occurred. I thought having actual people from history involved in this storyline was a fantastic touch and brings  a sense of realism to it.

The characters are interesting in their own rights but I found that i didn't connect to most of them. Nora, our main character and narrator, is a extremely intelligent high school student who takes classes at the university on scholarship. She knows Latin which is a skill she uses quite frequently throughout the novel as she translates letters from a woman named Elizabeth. She also has a entertaining wit about her, but the company she keeps leads to me dislike her a bit. Chris is likeable but besides his humor he's fairly forgettable in the overall story, he felt like a plot piece. Adriane has far more personality and it's one that I simply couldn't stand, she's a closet-smart girl and she's fairly impersonal when it comes to most situations yet she's friends with Nora. This is actually a subject that comes up in the book and I like that it was acknowledged but I failed to see the point of their continued friendship when it's obvious there is very little there. Max is interesting and for most of the book I wasn't exactly fond of him, he has a temper and he seemed too emotional about fairly stupid things but I liked where his character ends up. Then there is Eli, who is the only character in the book I actually liked. He's funny, sarcastic and one of the only ones capable of thinking things out clearly; I found myself looking forward to the scenes where he was involved.

All of the characters have secrets, and it's not something they are good at hiding. To me it was obvious when someone didn't seem right and there are even a few instances where Nora knows she's being lied to, but it adds a level of intrigue to the story that makes it hard to put down. The ending was a tad disappointing and while most of the story is tied up I found myself wanting more out of the ending.

This is one of those books where I can see why everyone loves it so much and I can completely understand their reasoning. It's certainly a finely crafted novel with fantastic depth and it's like an ultimate historical mystery, but due to personal issues with it I couldn't enjoy it to the fullest.
3190537
Alana and her son Caden help Justin's family learn sign language when his niece goes deaf; they develop an unexpected relationship.

(Though reviews are inherently subjective, I prefer to provide some organization to my opinions through the use of a personal rubric. The following notes may contain spoilers.)

Plot and Setting: 4.5 -- Plot has unique elements, no major holes, and a sense of focus. I love the interesting look at the challenges of having a deaf child/niece, and even with the slightly convenient fire and house available across the street, those elements worked. A good story. Setting is clear and believable. Timeline may be a bit hard to follow. The training gone wrong and fire happen Tuesday night to Wednesday morning, and then after spending Wednesday together and texting on Thursday, there are still apparently 'a few days' before Friday?

Characters: 5 -- Relatable, realistic, interesting, dynamic characters. Alana has a low opinion of her value, stemming from an abusive relationship. She puts Caden's needs before her own not just because she loves her son, but also because she doesn't feel like she is worth anything good. Justin struggles to deal with his beloved niece's deafness, but in fact the events that follow lead him to open himself to friendships and love with people beyond his small family. Even minor characters have depth, as do the relationships between characters. Loved Beth and her family, and especially Caden. Good stuff.

Mechanics and Writing: 3.5 -- A handful of typos, punctuation issues, or word errors; though several are rather glaring, none seriously hinder understanding. Good use of POV (Justin and Alana). Generally skillful writing. Although, slightly annoyingly, chapters almost never end at a reasonable break in the action--those breaks are all mid-chapter ones. That gets old.

Redeeming Value: 4.5 -- Well-developed, central, uplifting themes. God causes good things (like Justin's relationship with Alana and Caden) to come from bad things (like a little girl going deaf). Alana also deals with issues of self-worth, and verses she has memorized from the Bible help her focus on a hopeful future and stop obsessing over her past shame. Sex, alcohol, violence, etc, are not glorified, though Alana has physical and emotional scars from past domestic abuse, and there are guns and fighting--mostly for security/self defense and training purposes, but not all.

Personal Enjoyment: 4.5 -- I loved it. Highly enjoyable and very entertaining, with perhaps an issue or two that tempered my pleasure. One I'll definitely read again.
2319142
I liked it quite a bit, even if the journey might have gone a bit too easily
190632
3.5 ALMOST THERE STARS.

I LOVED this book.

I loved the character development.
I loved how awesome Layne was.
I loved how amazing/addicting the writing was.
I especially loved how delicious Beau was.

What I DIDN'T really like was how the author split the book into two endings.

Admittedly, it's an interesting concept, letting the reader decide.
Almost like those mini-horror novels for kids.
To me, though, the book didn't feel whole, complete.
It felt open-ended. And I didn't really appreciate that.

I want something SOLID, something COMPLETE.
This wasn't it.
Which breaks my heart, because everything UP until that point was pretty much perfect.

Oh, well.

3.5 STARS.
4392793
I adore the complexity of the characters, the Shop Around the Corner Theme, the nerd joy, and the shoes.

I don't tend to love enemies to lovers tales and because of the level of animosity between the hero and the heroine at first this element is here. Also, the plot takes a long time getting them together and then they are apart a lot still so I was not happy with the level of couple time, falling in love, and romance I got here.

I loved the first book in this series and snapped Maria's story up as soon as it came out. I wish for a softer look at the cast of characters for the series but enjoyed going deeper into this world.

There has been a great deal of thoughtful discussion on this book and the balance between the leads being themselves and the intersections of their various identities. I felt what was here was good but I wanted more. I wanted the relationship to move beyond where it rested so that the characters could reckon with more of their own intersection. Couples, especially couples as relatively young as there two, spend a great deal of time sharing who they are and who they are becoming and the most vulnerable parts of themselves past and present and future. We get some of that but I am greedy and think the book would have been more richer if this tenderness would have been explored.
3681584
It was really nice to be caught up in a story enough that I found myself wanting to get back to my book. In that sense, I enjoyed this book. There is just something fascinating about the idea of choosing a husband or wife under such circumstances, and I couldn't help being swept along by the story, despite the fact that I kept having the eerie feeling that Chris Harrison was about to walk into the room...

The characters were pretty good, and for the most part I felt able to connect with them. There were moments where the dialogue wasn't all it could have been, and some elements were pretty predictable, but none of those things were enough to ruin my enjoyment of the book.

Probably the weakest aspect of the book for me was the fact that nothing outside of the romance really happens - other than the rebel attacks, but those didn't feel very weighty. It really would have been nice if someone had actually been in danger at some point, or if we'd at least seen something a little more threatening. Nevertheless, watching America and Maxom was interesting enough to keep me reading, and I really appreciated the pace of the book.

I do wish I had a little more idea what the over-arcing conflict of the series is going to be (other than I'm guessing it has to do with the rebels). There are some sketchy spots in the overly-simplified explanations of the world as it is in the story, and it would have been nice to have things explained in a little more detail - such as how the castes came to be in the first place. I kind of have an idea, but why did people accept it? That whole aspect of the story was underdeveloped, and I felt like it could have carried a lot more weight.

Not life-changing, but fun to read and a solid page-turner. Overall, I'm giving this book 3.5 stars because it held my interest and I'm actually looking forward to the sequel.
49639
This is a difficult book to rate. The beginning captured my attention straightaway, especially with it being told entirely from the male POV. The characters were well flushed out, interesting, and likable- but something was missing. I never felt a connection to them. I wanted them to find their HEA undoubtedly, but with so many emotions swirling throughout the book, I felt less than the story warranted. The pacing threw me a bit too. There were quite a few times I considered sliding the book to the DNF pile and moving on. I'm so glad I kept reading though because for the last two thirds, things kicked into a new gear. There was angst, heartbreak, hope, etc, and I couldn't stop reading. I did like the way the dialogue was written, it felt honest to each character and flowed well. The banter between friends and relatives worked well to establish believable relationships. I should mention the sex scenes too. Those were definitely steam worthy. The book focuses a lot on them, as you'd expect from a young male POV, so don't read this book if descriptive sex isn't your thing. I'm surprised to say I'm now planning to continue the series. Though it's not jumping to the top of my TBR list, I definitely am interested in reading more about this group of friends.
3565562
I really enjoyed BURNING GLASS, especially the worldbuilding (psuedo-historical fantasy based on Imperial Russia) and the idea of an empath's abilities being utilized for protecting the monarch. I have minor empath tendencies myself, so I could relate to the idea of not knowing if your feelings are your own or someone else's, and the confusion and frustration that can cause, and I liked seeing it magnified to this scale. That said, there were a couple times I felt that note was played a bit too often--mostly just that the MC kept repeating it in her thoughts so often that it got a little old. Actually, there were a couple times I got frustrated with the MC. That's why I dropped it down to 4.5 stars.

Overall, the writing is great, the story is fun, and the world is beautiful. I'd recommend it.
1145797
There's a lot to enjoy with this book. First, I should say I did a book swap for reviews. The cool thing is we both finished on the same day. Unfortunately, a migraine slowed me down and I'm just now getting to my review. The second cool thing is both of our books tackle the idea of soul mates (with some spectacular colors manifesting).

Here's what worked for me--
~I loved the characters. They had well rounded personalities that I believed. Hope tugged at me. She wants to help others no matter the cost, and yet she also wishes for that normal life mentioned above.
~The pacing is perfect. I never had a moment that I wished it moved faster. The action and secrets come out at a steady pace.
~I enjoy a good romance, and although there are lots of other things going on, the romance is lovely. The chemistry between Tie and Hope is electrical. There's just something about what you can't have.
~I really wanted to find out what happened to Hope in her previous life. Which means I have to read the next book in the series!
~The Japanese connection and mythology is wonderful.
~The scene where Hope fights. Yeah. That.

A few nitpicks--
~There's quite a bit of passive voice. It's something I notice, especially when coming out of editing mode. It isn't too bad and I don't think most people will notice.
~The trope feels really familiar. The love triangle, reincarnated demi-god with amnesia, best friend that's fiercely protective, et. BUT having said that, the details in the story telling make it fresh. Plus, I like most of those tropes. :)

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I mean, I couldn't sleep when I finished. The story and how it ended kept running through my head. How would the next phase play out? How? How? How?

For this reason, I give The Healer by C.J. Anaya a 4.5.

1-5 scale and what it means:
1: I couldn't even finish it / just plain bad
2: I hope I didn't pay for this / disappointing
3: I didn't hate it, but it was still missing something / forgettable but inoffensive
3.5: On the line between good and ok / like, not love
4: Solid mind candy / worth reading
4.5: So very close to perfection! / must read
5: I could not put it down and Im still thinking about it! / a true treasure
2133909
I finished reading this book a few days ago.  I have to say that I really, really enjoyed it.  I stumbled upon it quite by accident, when it was posted on facebook as being a free read, so I got it.  During the last year I have downloaded quite a few free books, most of which I have never gotten around to reading.  So what made this book pop out at me and beg to be read right away?

1. It was YA, which meant that I could read it without the fear of an explicit sex scene.  In that, I was right.  I have been searching for books like this; I am making a list of them on my website.
2. The setting is Norway, enough said.  Not only that, but in Bergen and its outskirts; where most of my ancestors come from, and where several of my cousins currently live.
3. The cover is very beckoning, and yes I know I am bad, but I do judge a book by its cover.
4. This is the first book by a debuting author.

So those are things that made me begin reading it right away, but what made me keep reading it?

I see that there are plenty of reviews that objectively list the positive things in this book; therefore my review will be a more personal review.

It pulled me in from the start.  Of course the heroine is quite a bit younger than me, but it wasn't that long ago, relatively speaking, and I still remember what it felt like to be a teenager.  With two older brothers who most definitely take center stage anytime they are in the room; I could identify with the whole "I am the invisible baby sister" syndrome.  Even though I have been a full-fledged adult for quite a while now, I still don't think they get the fact that I know how to tie my own shoelaces.

Right about there, is where our similarities ended, however.  Instead of resenting my older brothers, I worshipped them, sort of; and I was never attracted to any of their male friends.  Since both of my brothers were Batman, neither one would play Robin to the other; they were always surrounded by their own group of followers, who were quite willing to play the role of Robin.  Mostly, I just observed from a distance.

Since so many other reviewers state that they hate Graham, even if they love the book; I guess I am the odd one out. My favorite character in this book is Graham; he just reminds me too much of either one or both of my brothers.  I feel like Ells never gave him a real chance, she was too busy resenting him to actually get to know him other than from afar.  I admit it is too easy to do this, as I did myself, but I always knew deep down that it was my own fault.  This story is very one-sided, written in the first person, it has to be; and I feel that Graham was misunderstood and possibly even calumniated, as we see him solely through his sister's eyes and her assumptions.
About Tuck: It's just my own personal quirk, but I never wanted to date a Robin and that is why I was never attracted to any of my brother's friends.  I needed to find my own Batman to fall in love with, and I did.  My Batman could hold his own with all of the other Batman's out there.  The thing about Batman though, is that they don't function well without a Robin.  Therefore I played Robin to my Batman, and we all lived happily ever after.  Yeah, I know the analogy is getting overdone, but it fits so well.  See the thing about falling in love with a Robin is that ultimately, their Batman will always be the central factor.  Whereas, if you fall in love with Batman himself, and he accepts you as his Robin; then it really is just the two of you battling the evils of this world together.

Final thought: I really wish I had known beforehand that I was going to enjoy this book as much as I did.  There is nothing better than to anticipate something and have it live up to its expectations.  However, this one just broadsided me with how much I liked it and I was totally unprepared.  I barely realized it was a great read and then it was done.  I give this book 4.5 stars, which I thought I would never do for a debut book.  It really is that good, at least for me it was.
2886963
I'd definitely give this book 4.5 stars if I could. I'm a big fan of urban fantasy detective stories, and this one certainly fits the bill. The story shared a number of elements with Jim Butcher's Dresden Files (one of my favorite series), but was able to find its own niche and own voice that made it distinctly different.  To me one of the biggest high points was that it kept me guessing - I didn't put together who the baddie was until the final reveal, but there were enough clues left along the way that I didn't feel completely misled; it all clicked into place.
My main complaint comes from some stylistic choices. Descriptions felt very front-logged and heavy - it seemed like we got a paragraph or two snapshot every time we met a new character or entered a new location, rather than having details sprinkled without. This sometimes broke the tension for me, and pulled me out of my reading groove.  Same with certain stretches of dialogue - just seemed to break tension a bit more than would be good for even comic relief.
That being said, the storyline and distinct narrative voice have me hooked. I'm hopeful that future books will find a bit more of a balance on stylistic things, the end provides the perfect setup for a sequel, and I look forward to reading on in book 2!
1299533
If half stars were a possibility, this fine novel would merit a 4.5.
1138080
3.5/5 stars

So. Believe it or not, I bought this book the day it came out. After putting it off for more than a year now, I decided it was time to finally bite the bullet and go ahead and read it. I loved The Golden Lily and was desperate to see how Sydney and Adrian would move forward after that soul-shattering kiss they shared at the end.

I'll admit- I had some trouble getting through this one and even found myself a bit bored at times. I did love all the tension between Sydney and Adrian throughout the book and the whole 'will they or won't they' Mead has going on for them. The storyline, however, fell a little flat for me. I was engaged, but not overly so. I kept waiting for the action to happen, and it just didn't quite do the trick for me. After reading The Fiery Heart, I do see how important the events in The Indigo Spell were, as they play a huge role in redefining our heroine and really make her reexamine everything that has been ingrained in her from the Alchemists.

I felt this book gave us a lot of character development, especially for Sydney. She is testing the magical waters with her teacher Ms. Terwilliger (ok maybe thrown into the water is a more accurate phrasing), and is learning to harness the power she has within, even though she knows the Alchemists would flip if they ever found out. Ms. T is worried for Sydney's safety, as there is a witch going around draining young women of their youth to keep for herself. Aside from that, she is suspicious that the Alchemists are hiding things, important things, such as a possible connection between them and the Warriors of the Light, a group of vampire hunters. She is determined to find ex-Alchemist Marcus Finch and hope that he can provide answers. When she does find him, he encourages her to join his band of rebels and to go on the run, leaving the Alchemist life behind. However, it wouldn't just be her Alchemist life she would be leaving...

Sydney has a lot of decisions to make in this book and none of them are easy. She really shows how much she has evolved just by her struggle to do what's right versus what's in her heart. And Sydney Sage definitely proves that she has heart in this book.

One of the biggest draws of this series is without a doubt Adrian Ivashkov. I think I can speak for all Vampire Academy fans when I say how upset we were when we saw him get his heart broken by Rose. So for Adrian to open himself up again, this time to Sydney.... whew! I was dying! Never would you think these two would work together, but they do! As Mead slowly breaks down Sydney's prejudices, she is also opening her up to possibilities she never thought she'd ever have, including feeling something for Adrian. I love that they have developed a true friendship first, and even though Sydney tries to keep things strictly platonic between them, they keep getting thrown in situations that make it very difficult to avoid the feelings brewing underneath the surface.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite in the series. It did pick up and get more interesting towards the end, especially with the big decision Sydney made that will change everything....
3685414
I really enjoyed it, and I thought it was a great addition to this series. I have to admit that I was a little annoyed that two books would be spent on characters and events that happened hundreds of years before the "current" storyline (so many hints have been dropped about other worlds and characters that I want to meet, and I want to meet them now!) but I enjoyed it a lot more than I had been expecting. I was quickly pulled into the story, and I think that having two books is a strength--it's still about the same length as the others, but there's a lot more that can be done with the plot and the characters without making the reader feel like they've gone from zero to sixty.

The grammar and spelling are good, as I've come to expect of Shea. The storytelling is captivating, and the main characters are distinct, intriguing, and generally likeable. The story is fast-paced without feeling rushed, and most of the characterization is believable. I'm looking forward to the sequel, and I'm just adding it to the many things that I want that are happening in 2016.

It's an awesome book, and I highly suggest reading it, but it isn't perfect. I liked where Rakel started, and for the most part I liked the path she's taken. While I don't necessarily agree with the whole no-killing thing, it's an understandable--however disappointing--character trait for her to have. What would be interesting to see in the sequel is her having to struggle with those moral codes for the sake of the greater good. I will say that a lot of Shea's female leads in this series sort of feel the same (I haven't read "Wild Swans" so I can't take that one into consideration). The heroines tend to be dry, which I appreciate, but for me Elle is still the only one to stand out. I've liked all of them, but it would be nice to have someone like Phile the Robber Maiden be the lead. My only other thing about Rakel is that I'm wondering if someone is teaching her how to find in normal people combat, because that would really come in handy, and there's no way she automatically knows how. Just because you can make an ice spear doesn't mean you know how to use it.

One minor complaint is about the love interest--it took a while to figure out who it would be. I feel bad for complaining about that since it's obviously not the focus of this (or presumably the next) novel, but I went back and forth between Oskar and Halvor until Farrin made himself a serious contender and stole the focus. Farrin seems the most likely to me, but I have my reservations.

The only other thing is the purpose that the Chosen had in Verglas. The first one they described was weak, acknowledged as weak, and then established as a cover. But I still don't think that the apparent actual reason is all that much better. I mean, was invading the country really necessary? I'll bite at the fact that they need to get through Verglas to get at it, but the invasion itself seems a little pointless. Wouldn't it be easier--and cheaper--to send in a small group to sneak through and steal the object of interest? Because, all the reasons for why Verglas isn't a good starting place for their grand takeover still stand after everything is accomplished. That line of reasoning still seemed thrown together to me, and I'm not convinced.

But, all in all, a wonderful book. Definitely recommended for fans of Shea (and for new readers!) because it's an engaging addition. Also, I appreciate the presence of Gerta and Kai. No "Snow Queen" retelling is truly complete without them.