Indigo Awakening by Jordan Dane

Title:  Indigo Awakening
Author: Jordan Dane
ISBN: 9781743562413
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publish Date: January 2013

Synopsis:

Voices told Lucas Darby to run. Voices no one else can hear. He's warned his sister not to look for him, but Rayne refuses to let her troubled brother vanish. On her desperate search, she meets Gabriel Stewart, a runaway with mysterious powers and far too many secrets. Rayne can't explain her crazy need to trust the strange yet compelling boy — even though he scares her.

They discover Lucas is running from the Believers, a fanatical church secretly hunting psychic kids — gifted 'Indigo' teens feared to be the next evolution of mankind. Now Rayne's only hope is Gabe, who is haunted by an awakening power — a force darker than either of them imagine. A force that could doom them all.

My Thoughts:

Indigo Awakening throws you straight into the action following Lucas as he runs to escape from the Believers and his sister Rayne as she desperately tries to find him.

I really enjoyed the intriguing story line but found that the constant changing between many different points of view made it feel disjointed and hard to follow at times. Although it was interesting to see the story from the 'bad guys' side and it help build suspense.

Even though there was a large number of main characters I found them to be well written and easy to relate to, it was hard not to feel for them as their worlds were turned upside down.

A fast paced, action packed and suspenseful read, Indigo Awakening is a great young adult paranormal read and I look forward to the next one in the series.

Thanks to Harlequin Australia for the ARC.

Man Drought by Rachael Johns

Title:          Man Drought
Author:      Rachael Johns
ISBN:        981743560167
Publisher:  Harlequin Mira
Publish Date:  January 2013


Synopsis:


Imogen Bates moved to the small rural town of Gibson’s Find to start a new life for herself after the death of her husband. Tired of being haunted by the painful memories of her old life, Imogen set her last remaining hopes on the little town and, in particular, pouring her heart and savings into restoring The Majestic Hotel to its former glory. But while the female-starved town might be glad to see a young woman move in, not everyone is happy about Imogen’s arrival.

Sheep and crop farmer Gibson Black once dreamed of having the kind of family his grandfather reminisces about, but he’s learnt not to dream anymore. Living in the mostly male town suits Gibson down to the ground...and he won’t have anyone — least of all a hot redhead from the city — change a thing.

Imogen has never been one to back down from a challenge, especially when it concerns her last chance at happiness. She’s determined to rebuild the pub and create a future for the little town. But can she create a future for Gibson and herself, too?

My Thoughts:

Man Drought is the first rural romance book I have ever read and honestly, I am a convert.
Imogen buys an old hotel in a small country town, Gibson's Find, after the death of her husband, desperate to find a new start. She becomes passionate about restoring the hotel to it's former glory and breathing new life into the tiny community.
Gibson's Find like many other small country communities is mostly populated by men, and after a difficult marriage  that is exactly how Gibson likes it. But the other members of the community find Imogen's arrival refreshing and are more than happy to go out of their way to make her feel welcome and much to Gibson's frustration, he can't keep this redheaded beauty out of his thoughts.

It is impossible not to fall in love with the characters in this book. Imogen and Gibson are so determined and passionate, making it impossible for them not to lock horns, but they are also in their own ways slightly damaged which makes it impossible not not to feel their pain.
Although Gibson's grandfather Charlie, was my favourite character. Charlie is just the right mixture of sweet and stubborn, and he really brings the story together.

Rachael's writing style paints a perfect picture of country WA, for me it brought back memories of times spent on the farms of my friends, I could really picture dusty paddocks and smell the gum trees and sheep. Man Drought reminded me that despite my suburban upbringing I am really a country girl at heart, and the love of the country really does run in my genes.

Overall Man drought is a touching and heartfelt story of love, loyalty and community spirit. Easy to read and delightful, a great holiday read.

Thanks to Harlequin Australia for the ARC

Happy New Year

Hi Everyone!

Just a quick note to wish you all the best for the New Year. I hope it is filled with loads of lovely books!
Last year I did not quite reach my goal of reading 40 books so I am choosing a more conservative goal this year of a mere 25.
I hope you all had better luck with your reading challenges than I did!

Garden of Stones by Sophie Littlefield

Title: Garden of Stones
Author: Sophie Littlefield
ISBN: 9781743560136
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Publish Date: January 2013

Synopsis:


In the dark days of war, a mother makes the ultimate sacrifice. Lucy Takeda is just fourteen years old, living in Los Angeles, when the bombs rain down on Pearl Harbor. Within weeks, she and her mother, Miyako, are ripped from their home, rounded up-along with thousands of other innocent Japanese-Americans-and taken to the Manzanar prison camp.

Buffeted by blistering heat and choking dust, Lucy and Miyako must endure the harsh living conditions of the camp. Corruption and abuse creep into every corner of Manzanar, eventually ensnaring beautiful, vulnerable Miyako. Ruined and unwilling to surrender her daughter to the same fate, Miyako soon breaks. Her final act of desperation will stay with Lucy forever...and spur her to sins of her own.

My Thoughts:

I knew nothing about what happened to the Japanese-Americans during WWII so this book was educating and confronting. The story starts in 1978 with a murder investigation involving Lucy, then through flashbacks we learn of Lucy harrowing past. After the death of Lucy's father, Miyako and Lucy are forced into Manzanar prison camp, this is the beginning of a series of harrowing events that test the strength of both Miyako and Lucy as they struggle to survive and protect each other in this horrendous place.

 Atmospheric and haunting this book was hard to put down and even harder to forget. This book has left me lost for words.

Thanks to Harlequin Australia for the ARC.

After Moonrise by P.C. Cast and Gena Showalter

Title:               After Moonrise
Author:           P.C. Cast & Gena Showalter
ISBN:             9781921796432
Publisher:       Harlequin Mira
Publish Date: November 2012


Synpopsis:


Includes the stories Possessed and Haunted

Possessed by P.C. Cast

Being a psychic detective who can channel only negative emotions makes Kent Raef good at catching murderers, but bad at maintaining relationships. Then Lauren Wilcox arrives with a most intriguing case: her twin sister has been murdered and is communing with Lauren's spirit - and sharing her body. Raef's the only one who can track the killer and free the spirit. But soon he begins to wonder just which twin he wants to save...and why...

Haunted by Gena Showalter

Artist Aurora Harper is convinced she's witnessed a crime - a murder so brutal she's repressed the memories, only to paint the scene by the light of the moon. Now she needs her new neighbour, Detective Levi Reid, to help her track down the victim - and the killer. Levi's dealing with his own memory issues, but one thing he knows for sure: Harper is meant to be his, and nothing can take her away from him - not in this life...nor in death…


My Thoughts:
After Moonrise consists of two short stories by two great authors. This combination makes After Moorise a must read for any paranormal romance fan. It would also be a great starting point for anyone new to the genre.

Possessed by P.C. Cast:

Possessed is a fast paced story, making it perfect for a quick read. Enjoyable although perhaps a little predictable, with an unusual and unique ending Possessed is easy to read. Overall a well written tale.

Haunted by Gena Showalter:

I have not read a lot of Gena Showalter, but what I have read certainly does not disappoint, and this story is no exception. Mysterious and raunchy Haunted was a delight to read and I found myself savoring every paragraph. Full of twists and intrigue, Haunted was a great read.   

Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter

Title:                Alice in Zombieland
Author:            Gena Showalter
ISBN:              9781921796609
Publisher:        Harlequin Teen
Publish Date:  October 2012


Synopsis:


She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real….

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….


I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish




My Thoughts:

I was initially attracted to this book by the title, Alice in Zombieland, it filled me with visions of a magical world filled with wonder and excitement and creepy rotting corpses around every corner waiting  to devour even the wariest of travelers. But it turned out to be not quite what I was expecting. Instead of a magical world it was an everyday one, and the zombies were not the usual run of the mill, brain eating zombies (points for creativity though.) Was I disappointed? Perhaps a little to begin with, but the small amount of disappointment and doubt soon vanished as I became eager to know what fate would deal Alice next.

Alice is strong character but is not without her flaws, and lets face it who wouldn't have flaws after having their life turned upside down in a instant. It is interesting to see how she transforms throughout the course of book.
Then there is the love interest, Cole, after all what is a Gena Showalter book without a good love interest. A typical bad boy, or is he? There is more to this boy than first meets the eye. Alice and Cole's relationship is not by any means 'normal' it develops at a good pace despite the fact that at times I found their indecisive attitudes toward each other frustrating at times.
My overall favourite character was Alice's best friend Kat. She is wacky, confident, loyal and impossible to ignore. Definitely one character that has stuck in my mind long after the book has closed.

The plot moves along at a steady pace making it easy to lose track of time and left me not wanting to put it down as I eagerly devoured each chapter. There was a distinct lack of creepiness radiating from the zombies that left me a little sad, although this makes it a perfect read for a wider audience and makes this a perfect novel for those eager to 'test the waters' of a genre that may be out of their comfort zone.

Overall I found Alice in Zombieland to be a great read and I can't wait for the sequel Through the Zombie Glass.

Thanks to Harlequin Australia for the ARC.

January First by Michael Schofield

Title:          January First
Author:      Michael Schofield
ISBN:        9781742739380
Publisher:  Hardie Grant Books
Published: September 2012

Synopsis:


January First is the extraordinary story of a father's fight to save his child from an extremely severe case of mental illness in the face of overwhelming adversity.

At six years old, Michael Schofield's daughter, January, was diagnosed with one of the most severe cases of child-onset schizophrenia that doctors had ever seen. In January's case, she is hallucinating 95 percent of the time that she is awake. Potent psychiatric drugs that would level most adults barely faze her. January, "Jani" to her family, has literally hundreds of imaginary friends. They go by names like 400-the-Cat, 100 Degrees, and 24 Hours and live on an island called "Calalini," which she describes as existing "on the border of my world and your world." Some of these friends are good, and some of them, such as 400, are very bad. They tell her to jump off buildings, attack her brother, and scream at strangers.

In the middle of these never-ending delusions, hallucinations, and paroxysms of rage are Jani's parents, who have gone to the ends of the earth to keep both of their children alive and unharmed. They live in separate one-bedroom apartments in order to keep her little brother, Bohdi, safe from his big sister--and wage a daily war against a social system that has all but completely failed them. January First is the story of the daily struggles and challenges they face as they do everything they can to help their daughter while trying to keep their family together.

My Thoughts:

I don't read a lot of memoirs but this one grabbed my attention right from the beginning. It is a raw and emotional read as you are placed in the middle of the lives of an extraordinary family who struggle daily with reality of mental illness. This book is not an easy read, there is no 'sugar coating' on the challenges that the family faces as they struggle to find help for their daughter and keep their family together while the illness tries to tear them apart.
An honest and heart wrenching view into the world of mental illness and how it affects not only the sufferer but also the family, January First is a book that will make you think twice before judging the family with the screaming child on the street and count your blessings. This book kept me up late into the night and lost for words.