Review: Pale Moon Walking by Paula Altenburg

Title: Pale Moon Walking

Author: Paula Altenburg

Series: N/A

Publisher: Entangled: Select Otherworld

Publication date: September 28th 2015

Format: Kindle | Netgalley | 282 pages

Genre: Adult | Paranormal Romance

Goodreads

Where the outlaws are out of this world...

US Marshall Sam Kyote has been sent to the dry old town of Coyote Bluff to recuperate from a top-secret government experiment that's left this law man a little...well, different. But Sam's about to find out that the town of Coyote Bluff has a whole lot of secrets. Most of which lead to Libby Mayden-the sexy, long-legged, and tight-lipped sheriff who saved his ass from an alien ambush.

The last thing Libby needs is a US Marshall poking around her town, especially one who's hotter than the Nevada desert sun. She can't let Sam find out most of her town are wanted outlaws. Between the aliens, the gunfighters, and a searing sexual attraction to Sam, she's in a whole heap of trouble. And Libby'll stride both sides of the law-and Sam-until she's forced to choose between self-preservation...and her heart.

 

 

My thoughts:

I wasn't a big fan of this read. I mean, I finished it, which was something in itself, but it was more of a chore than anything.

The characters of Pale Moon Walking didn't do anything for me. I wasn't enamoured by the romance and there were no moments in the read that made me wonder about any backstories of the characters. I just couldn't bring myself to care and that's why I can't say I enjoyed this book very much.

I found it difficult to get behind the whole alien aspect of this book as well. I have read books featuring aliens before so it wasn't the idea itself I didn't like, but it seemed really out of place in this one. I don't know if it was because I didn't think it was explained or introduced very well, or if they didn't play enough of a part in the story compared to the romance, but either way, it seemed like they weren't important in the grand scheme of things.

My rating: 3/10

 

Paula Altenburg:

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Review: A Change for the Good by Melanie Jayne

Title: A Change for the Good

Author: Melanie Jayne

Series: N/A

Publisher: Big Dog Publishing

Publication date: Jul 7th

Format: Kindle | Netgalley | 146 pages

Genre: Adult | Romance

Goodreads

Two people starting over, making much needed changes in their lives.

Zoe crawford has moved to a new city after being dumped and humiliated by her ex-husband. She is going to put her wants and needs first and get her life in order.

Tony Alessi has returned to his hometown to rehab his body and soul, leaving his ATF career behind.

When Tony meets Zoe, he likes what he sees. She appreciates the attention from the younger man but doesn't want to participate in a cougar challenge. As Zoe learns to trust Tony, she admits to some odd happenings in her life. The feelings of being followed, call hang ups and an apartment break-in. When the attacks turn physical, she accepts Tony's help.

Soon Zoe's life is threatened, the couple hides in Tony's cabin and grow closer as they discover who they were and who they hope to be.

Will Zoe's past ruin her chance to change her life for the good?

 

 

My thoughts:

This is going to be an extremely short review since, unfortunately, there isn't much to say about this one.

I really didn't get on with this read. I honestly wish it was just the storyline, characters and plot issues but it wasn't. The writing needed a lot of work. So much so that I regret finishing the book. Harsh, I know. The timings were off a lot of the time in that one minute Zoe would be talking to her friend on the phone and the next minute it's a week later and she's shopping. It was annoying. 

It just needed work. It has so much potential to be a great story with the idea of a divorcee and a guy going through a lot of pain. I understood what the author wanted the story to be, but it missed the mark.

To keep this from being just a whole lot of me complaining here's what I couldn't stand:

• Writing - didn't pace well, time skips, horrible dialogue.
• Rushed the whole way through.
• Back story and relationships weren't believable.
• No real turning point at the start of the characters getting closer.

 

My rating: 3/10

 

Melanie Jayne:

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Review: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Title: The Forest of Hands and Teeth

Author: Carrie Ryan

Series: The Forest of Hands and Teeth #1

Publisher: Orion

Publication date: 01 Mar 2010

Format: Paperback | 336 pages

Genre: YA | Horror | Zombies

Goodreads

In Mary's world there are simple truths.

The sisterhood always knows best.

The Guardians will protect and serve.

The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from  the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But, slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future - between the one she loves and the one who loves her.

And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands of Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death?

My thoughts:

The Forest of Hands and Teeth follows Mary as she dreams a way to escape living like cattle in a fenced in village to avoid being eaten alive by the 'Unconsecrated'. Mary is one of the only residents who dares to dream about whether or not there's a life outside the fences and if it could possibly be any worse than the way she's living trapped on the inside.

I might as well come out with it straight off and say I really didn't get on with this read. Actually, I regret finishing it. The biggest problem I had was the characters. All of them. I hated every single one. I thought Mary was a brat that couldn't focus on anything but herself and that the rest of the characters were completely spineless. It made it so hard to carry on reading even just a couple of chapters in, there wasn't much action in the beginning which didn't help, but my hate for the characters was always at the forefront of my mind which made the read a chore. 

The one aspect of this book that kept me going was the action. When it got going, this read has tons of suspense. It really was its saving grace - after the halfway point of the read I actually couldn't put it down just to find out what direction the author was going to take things.

Aside from that, everything seemed to frustrate me. Not just the characters, but the plot seemed incredibly all over the place and the love interest completely over dramatic and unrealistic. I thought there were a lot of loose ends that weren't cleared up, especially from the beginning of the book, I carried on thinking eventually it would be brought back up and explained but it never was. 

Overall I wouldn't recommend this book. There wasn't enough action or suspense that could make up for all of the characters I didn't like and all of the inconsistencies in the plot. 

My rating: 3/10

Carrie Ryan:

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The Forest of Hands and Teeth:

1. The Forest of Hands and Teeth
2. The Dead-Tossed Waves
3. The Dark and Hollow Places

Review: Dyed and Gone by Beth Yarnall

Title: Dyed and Gone

Author: Beth Yarnall

Publisher: Entangled Select

Publication date: March 25th 2014

Format: ebook | 298 pages

Genre: Mystery | Adult

Goodreads

Hairstylist Azalea March is looking forward to a wild weekend in Las Vegas with her friends. Oh, sure, they’re supposed to be there on business, attending the biggest hair show on the west coast, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a little fun. But fun quickly turns to drama. On the first morning of the show, Dhane, the biggest celeb of the hair-styling world, is found dead. As it turns out Azalea’s friend Vivian not only knew Dhane, but the tale she weaves of how they met is faker than a showgirl’s uh…assets. When Vivian confesses to the murder and is arrested, Azalea knows there’s no way she could have done it and suspects Vivian may be trying to protect someone. But who?

Azalea now has to convince Alex, the sexy detective from her past, to help her prove Vivian’s innocence and comb through clues more twisted than a spiral perm. But the truth is stranger than anything found on the Las Vegas Strip, and proving Vivian’s innocence turns out to be more difficult than transforming a brunette into a blonde.

My thoughts:

Dyed and Gone follows Azalea March as she tries her best to solve the murder of well known celebrity, Dhane - well known in the hairdressing world at least. Azalea soon finds herself turning into trouble at every corner so enlists the help of Alex, the hunky detective that she just happens to be having a little bit of a spat with. 

I have to admit straight off, I didn't like this book. It was one that I didn't connect to at all - I couldn't relate to most of the characters and the plot didn't captivate me as much as I would have liked. However, I really liked Alex, the detective, and Juan, one of Azalea's best friends. I thought Alex was a cute character that played off the 'protective guy' feel really well seeing as he's already a member of the police force. Juan just made me laugh, end of. Especially towards the end of the book - he came out with some amazing one liners that made me giggle.

I don't really have much else to say about this one. It was just one of those reads I didn't get on with. I couldn't connect to most of the characters and I lost interest really quickly. Finishing it became more of a chore than anything which is not something any reader likes to happen. If this sounds like something you'd be interested in please don't let me put you off.

My rating: 3/10

Beth Yarnall:

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Review: Velveteen by Daniel Marks

Title: Velveteen 

Author: Daniel Marks

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Publication date: Oct 9th 2012

Format: Hardcover | 464 pages

Genre: YA | Paranormal

Goodreads

Velveteen Monroe is dead. At 16, she was kidnapped and murdered by a madman named Bonesaw. But that’s not the problem.

The problem is she landed in purgatory. And while it’s not a fiery inferno, it’s certainly no heaven. It’s grey, ashen, and crumbling more and more by the day, and everyone has a job to do. Which doesn’t leave Velveteen much time to do anything about what’s really on her mind.

Bonesaw.

Velveteen aches to deliver the bloody punishment her killer deserves. And she’s figured out just how to do it. She’ll haunt him for the rest of his days.

It’ll be brutal... and awesome.

But crossing the divide between the living and the dead has devastating consequences. Velveteen’s obsessive haunting cracks the foundations of purgatory and jeopardises her very soul. A risk she’s willing to take—except fate has just given her reason to stick around: an unreasonably hot and completely off-limits coworker.

Velveteen can’t help herself when it comes to breaking rules... or getting revenge. And she just might be angry enough to take everyone down with her.

 

 

My thoughts:

This isn't going to be a good review, unfortunately, since I really didn't like this read.

This book became a chore for me to read which, of course, is what any reader does not want to happen. I think the biggest problem I had was that I couldn't connect to the author's style of writing. It seemed all over the place to me - I would find myself finishing a page and having to read it over because I didn't take anything in.

 

I also didn't like the main character, Velvet. I get that she was supposed to be a little bitchy but I think it was a little too much since I eventually just got sick of her. 

 

I did, however, like the other characters. I thought Nick was sweet and that the twins were hilarious. Also, I enjoyed how different the settings were and the creepy purgatory aspect to the story. Regrettably though, this wasn't enough to live up to my idea of a good read.

 

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this one. It has its moments, but it wasn't enough for me.

 

My rating: 3/10

 

Daniel Marks:

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