Publisher: Epic Reads

Friday, February 5, 2016

Review: The Distance From A to Z by Natalie Blitt

Posted by Irish in 3.5 Stars, Review, Young Adult • 1 Comment

The Distance from A to Z by Natalie Blitt
Published by Epic Reads on 12 January 2016
Genres: Adolescence, Contemporary Romance, Emotions & Feelings, Friendship, Love & Romance, People & Places, Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance, Sports & Athletics, Young Adult
Pages: 316
Format: eARC
Source: Edelweiss
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Goodreads
three-half-stars

Place(s) Traveled To: Merritt, New Hampshire // Montreal, Canada

First Line(s): It starts when Jed makes the final turn off I-495.

From the moment I first heard about THE DISTANCE FROM A TO Z by Natalie Blitt I was curious about it. And with a pitch like this “perfect blend of Stephanie Perkins and Miranda Kenneally that proves the age-old adage: opposites attract” it made it even harder to resist. It also didn’t hurt that my friend Andi at Andi’s ABCs who is a HUGE fan of both Perkin’s and Kenneally loved DISTANCE FROM A TO Z. So I picked it up with high expectations and then found myself disappointed in the end result. I think that I wanted to love it so much that it was just hard for this story to meet those expectations.

My main problem with DISTANCE FROM A TO Z was Abby, our heroine. This girl had a chip on her should a mile wide and just as high. She was so judgmental of everyone around her and was often mean to others as well. Well, not to everyone, mostly to Zeke. THE DISTANCE FROM A TO Z is billed as an opposites attract story but in reality Abby and Zeke have a lot in common. She just has this irrational hatred towards baseball that drives a wedge between her and anyone around her that happens to like the sport. A sport that she once loved as well since she grew up in a baseball fanatic sports store owning family until she had some bad experiences dating baseball players.

There is much I could say about Abby and her baseball issues but I won’t get into all of them here as there just isn’t enough space. Let’s just say that Abby often rubbed me the wrong way and leave it at that. Zeke though, Zeke was a sweetheart and I don’t get why he put up with Abby and her shenanigans but he did and that makes me love him even more. Even if he had a hard time choosing a baseball team to like. It kind of bothered me a bit that he’d wear the shirts/hats of every team and while there is kind of a reason for it, its not enough of one to satisfy me. A person usually is a fan of one team and you don’t intermingle the gear. It just isn’t done.

THE DISTANCE FROM A TO Z is a fairly quick read and its one that I would have finished faster if Abby didn’t bug me as much as she did. What kept me reading was Zeke and the promise of a good story when I hit the end. While I didn’t love THE DISTANCE FROM A TO Z as much as some I still mostly enjoyed the book. If Abby had been a little less mean and judgmental then I probably would have rated this higher than I did. I also really liked Natalie Blitt’s writing and I know that she’s an author that I look forward to reading more stories from. And I think that you will like this book, as well as her future reads as well. So go on….head over to Amazon and one-click this one today.

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Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Mini Review: The Glowing Knight by Jodi Meadows

Posted by Irish in 3.5 Stars, Review, Young Adult • 0 Comments

The Glowing Knight by Jodi Meadows
Series: The Orphan Queen,
Also in this series: The Orphan Queen, The Hidden Prince, The Mirror King
Published by Epic Reads on 01 September 2015
Genres: Abduction, Action & Adventure, Assassins, Death & Dying, Emotions & Feelings, Epic Fantasy, Espionage, Friendship, Mystery & Detective, Royalty, Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance, Short Story / Novella, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 58
Format: eBook
Source: Library
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Goodreads

Also by this author: The Orphan Queen, The Hidden Prince, The Mirror King

Place(s) Traveled To: Skyvale, The Indigo Kingdom

First Line(s): James was down there fighting. I was not. And this was what jealousy felt like.

THE GLOWING KNIGHT is the second prequel novella in Jodi Meadow’s Orphan Queen universe. It is the continuring adventures of Tobiah and James as Tobiah becomes the Black Knife. I loved this early look at James and Tobiah and I totally ship the bromance that is between them. I also love how James and Meredith interact and I would love to see a romance between them but alas fates and kings have different plans for those two. In THE GLOWING KNIGHT we also get a little glimpse at the start of the glowmen and of Wil and her Ospreys. It was a fun look at how things were before the paths of all these characters started to cross years later.

THE GLOWING KNIGHT is a fast read and includes some more preview chapters of THE MIRROR KING (Goodreads), which are totally killer! Its a great little snippet to help tide one over after the crazy ending of THE ORPHAN QUEEN (my review) although its still not enough. It is never enough. I love this world that Meadows has created and I hate it each and every time when I have to say goodbye. This world is so rich and detailed that it almost leaps off the page. I also love these characters and I like these little glimpses into their lives. I love to see the world through Tobiah’s eyes and reading these makes me wish that the main books were dual POV stories as I’d love to know more about his thinking.

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Mini Review: The Hidden Prince by Jodi Meadows

Posted by Irish in 4 Stars, Review, Young Adult • 0 Comments

The Hidden Prince by Jodi Meadows
Series: The Orphan Queen,
Also in this series: The Orphan Queen, The Glowing Knight, The Mirror King
Published by Epic Reads on 02 June 2015
Genres: Action & Adventure, Assassins, Emotions & Feelings, Epic Fantasy, Family, Friendship, Politics & Intrigue, Royalty, Short Story / Novella, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 58
Format: eBook
Source: Library
Buy on Amazon|Buy on Barnes & Noble
Goodreads

Also by this author: The Orphan Queen, The Glowing Knight, The Mirror King

Place(s) Traveled To: Skyvale, Indigo Kingdom

First Line(s): “You’re dead again.”

If you’ve followed this blog for a bit or even kept track of me on Twitter than you know that Jodie Meadows’s THE ORPHAN QUEEN (my review) crushed me. It was a killer book and when it was over I knew I needed more in this world and while THE MIRROR KING (goodreads) is still a little ways off Meadows is releasing a series of novellas that feature James and Tobiah that are set two years before the events in THE ORPHAN QUEEN take place. The first novella is THE HIDDEN PRINCE and is set against the backdrop of Tobiah’s 16th birthday. At 58 pages THE HIDDEN PRINCE is a very quick read and is an interesting peak into Tobiah’s life before he started to rebel a bit.

As with, THE ORPHAN QUEEN, I loved the relationship that existed between Tobiah and James and while I did miss Wil’s POV I did enjoy this glimpse into Tobiah’s head. It was easy to get whisked back into this world and I loved seeing how Tobiah becomes who he becomes in THE ORPHAN QUEEN. Its a fast paced story that feels longer than 58 pages and yet is over too fast. Especially since there is also a bit of a cliff hanger to it which I am sure is the perfect lead in for the next novella, THE GLOWING KNIGHT (goodreads). While I liked this little glimpse into a young Tobiah there is also a part of me that wishes that the four planned novellas were all released together in one volume instead of piecemeal. The high price point for so few pages of story is a bit off putting so I was really glad that I was able to check this one out of the library. If you are a fan of THE ORPHAN QUEEN then I do encourage you to read this novella. Its fast and fun and I can’t wait to get more of Tobiah’s story.