Convincing the Secretary, from Ava March (London Legal #3)

Good night! I know, the blog is on fire, haha! And it is about to burn all the way up because the reviewed book of the evening is HOT HOT HOT!

Ahem, do you remember when I did this mega post talking about the release of Convincing the Secretary, third book in the London Legal series, from Ava March? So, Ava sent me a copy two days ago as an early Christmas gift and allowed me to open and read it on the spot! 😀 ❤ Thanks so so so much, again!

from my Instagram!

 

I finished the book on the same day, but Ava plays so hard with my emotions that I needed to breathe before posting this review, haha!

Ok, I’m in control again. Without any more giber jabber, let’s do this and THANKS AGAIN, I LOVE YOU, AVA! ❤

The Story

Edward Fenton has always fantasized about a lasting relationship with someone that he truly loved and that felt the same way towards him. At first, his boss Arthur Barrington sounded like the perfect choice for his dream to come true. Except that the man is already way taken by his lover, Leopold Thornton. One can’t win them all.

With the arrival of a new solicitor in Barrington’s office, Edward is relocated as his secretary. Lord Grayson is the perfect definition of tall, black and handsome and sends Edward’s imagination to depths that he never knew himself capable of. But can a relationship with such a powerful man work out the way Edward dreams of?

Gray, in the other hand, knows he found the perfect match in the moment he understands Edward’s interests on him, but how to convince the young man that he is Mr. Perfect?

The Analysis

Just remembering that those were my impressions and opinion as a reader 🙂

Ava always catches my heart unguarded. I was completely okay with life, minding my own business, when I opened my e-mail and saw her gift. As the book isn’t going to be published until March of 2016, I was trying to lead a mental healthy life without being too much of a goner and counting the minutes for the pre-ordering to start on Amazon. But the heart attack was so worthy! This book was awesome! It is a short book (my copy had 100 pages), but the romance is so intense that you are breathless for the whole time! (Or maybe I was, because it was a gift from my favorite author and a book that I already knew about for quite a while.)

I’ll try to be professional now, but I won’t promise that I’ll be impartial, because that’s impossible when working with perfect books. #justsaying

I really love March’s narrative style. Third person, alternating points of views between the couple present in the book ❤ Both Edward and Gray had their own minds and you could see who was doing the thinking very clearly. Once again, March showed how important is communication in a relationship, as words unspoken do the damage in both men’s feelings.

The plot was simple, but not obvious, not for me. I mean, okay, boy meets boy in the 19^th century, boy is not sure if other boy likes boys as well, both give the relationship a try and things go wrong. To explain why I wasn’t very sure of the outcome of this particular work of March, I’ll have to talk about the characters, so hold that thought. Back to the plot, we get to see Arthur and Leopold again, which was awesomely cool (I always like to see my boys again; those two are the heroes of the first books in the series, Convincing Arthur and Convincing Leopold, respectively). There were no loose ends; it would have been nice to know a little more about Edward’s and Gray’s past, but no information was lacking inside of the proposition of the book.

The characters are the best part. You see, in a regular March novel, you’d have two individuals that really need to find true love, that feel incomplete and don’t know what they need until they meet their soul mates, for say. On this book, it was different. Both Edward and Gray are pinning for a happily ever after, but not necessarily with each other. Gray realizes faster that he needs Edward, that Edward is the one, but Edward was more down on the earth. He felt the need of having Gray around, but could (cof and did cof) survive a break up with him without dying the emotional death of break-ups, you know? Honestly, Edward impressed me. He made a cameo appearance previously in the series and I never paid much attention to him, he was so… Bleak? Haha! But being inside of his head, it all made sense and oh boy, he grows up SO MUCH! He is officially one of my favorite males from March now ❤

I always like her males, for God’s sake…

And, dealing with a book written by March, I can’t treat sex scenes as a bonus point, because they are always there and she never EVER disappoint her readers. Did I mention that NEVER happens? Okay, haha! Since the beggining, the bed roles between Edward and Gray are pretty clear and I was waiting for them to have a kind of Oliver and Vincent relationship behind closed doors. Once again, I was wrong! =O I mean, none of them gets to really submit and I thought that AWESOME. Neither was the “fragile” part, always so equal even inside of the bedchamber. AVA, YOU ROCKED HARD!

Bonus point: oh, this cover. Do I need to say more?

also from my Instagram! 😀

Overall, I knew I would love this book since Ava told me she was beginning to write it and I did, a lot. Ava, Thanks again for sending me this, it was the best Christmas present EVER! 😀

That’s it! Thanks for reading and humoring me as I once again talked about Ava March’s work 😉 I bet you all can’t wait until next year, when I’ll do a big re-reading and reviewing of ALL OF HER BOOKS, MWAHAHA MWAHAHA.

 

 

Ps: don’t worry, there will be Harry Potter and The Vampire Diaries reviews too, haha!

TOP 3: Vampire Books

Hello, there! Today there is a NEW SECTION OPENNING AT THE BLOG, OMG!

But why? Oh, you see, I’m not the kind of person that, upon asked, can easily say that just likes one book of X genre or one author from Y genre. I simply can’t, I don’t know how to choose, so I created this section lamely called TOP 3. Every two weeks, I’ll select a topic, like today’s Vampire Books, and talk about three elements of it 🙂 Let’s get started!

TOP 3: Vampire books

3. Demons of the Ocean – Justin Somper (Vampirates #1)

Goodreads’ blurb:

Twins, Connor and Grace, find truth to Vampirate shanty their father sang to them before he died, after they are shipwrecked and separated. Connor, aboard a pirate ship, learns to swordfight. For Grace, aboard a ship of vampire pirates, danger is great. What will it take for them to find each other?

What I thought: This book series is meant for elementary school individuals, but I don’t care. I didn’t finish it, but no other series had such perfect elements or major cliff hangers than this one. Besides, are you a cowboys person? Or a pirates person? Maybe you may prefer vampires? You have all three on these books, so you, like me, is safe.

A Pirate Cowboy Vampire for me, waiter!

 

2. Interview with the Vampire – Anne Rice (The Vampire Chronicles #1)

Goodreads’ blurb:

Here are the confessions of a vampire. Hypnotic, shocking, and chillingly erotic, this is a novel of mesmerizing beauty and astonishing force—a story of danger and flight, of love and loss, of suspense and resolution, and of the extraordinary power of the senses. It is a novel only Anne Rice could write.

What I thought: I had a strong vampire phase on high school, as it was when the Twilight movies erupted and all, so I read lots of books from this theme then. This was one of them and it is FREAKING AMAZING. I love gay romances and the way that Rice plays with the reader about the Louis/Lestat relationship got me hard, haha! I need to keep reading this series, as I only read this book and The Vampire Lestat, but I already can say that I love Anne Rice and she has the best vampire couple in town, haha! Ps: I prefer to pretend that the movie never existed, as I don’t agree with casting matters, sadly. Sorry, Brad and Tom. I’m fine with Kirsten, though.

Thanks, sweetie ;D

 

1. The Awakening – L. J. Smith (The Vampire Diaries #1)

Goodreads’ blurb:

A Love Triangle of Unspeakable Horror…

Elena

Searching for the ultimate thrill, she vowed to have Stefan.

Stefan

Haunted by his tragic past, he struggled to resist her passion.

Damon

Driven by revenge, he hunted the brother who betrayed him.

The terrifying story of two vampire brothers and the beautiful girl torn between them.

What I thought: Worst blurb ever. I’ll do a decent review for this book series in 2016, but it is awesome. 5 out of 5 stars! I know many people prefer the TV show (which is totally okay, as it gave us Ian Somerhalder, among other hot men), but I love the book series to this day! I read it on high school, months before the TV show was out and I became oh-so-obsessed.

I don’t know what came into me, sorry, but even after watching the series (which is amazing!), I still love the books.

That’s it! Thanks for reading! Which is your favorite vampire book or series? 😀

Match Made in Mondays: the villain fight of the century!

Hello, there! Today it’s my first scheduled Monday and I’m sooo happy for that, haha! There’s just one thing that I love more than schedules: being on them LOL. Anyway, let’s start the week with my participation on my dear friend Audrey, from the Forwards and Bookwords, Monday-ly meme:

This week’s theme is:

THIS VILLAIN FROM ONE BOOK + THIS VILLAIN FROM A DIFFERENT BOOK, in a fight (What’s the ultimate face-off that you’d love to see happen? How would it go down? Who would win?)

Oh, Lord. I don’t have a clue.

I guess I would love to see Katherine, from The Vampire Diaries book series, and Neferet, from House of Night series, to get into a real fight. Feminine power and all…

I have NO idea who would actually win, haha! I mean, Katherine has CENTURIES of experience, okay, but Neferet is such a controlling and manipulative bitch with very scaring powers… Hm, it would be a very fair match, in my opinion.

As for who I would be supporting, it would be Katherine. I don’t really like her, both on show and books, but I TRULY HATE Neferet. MADDLY.

Sorry, I can’t control myself, haha!

Maybe Katherine would have better chances at winning, after lots of awful bites and bone breakings, thanks to her advanced age. Neferet’s power, in my opinion, depends on too many outside elements for it to reach it’s top. Katherine just needs some blood to destroy humanity, haha!

That’s it! Thanks for reading! Which villains would you love to watch getting into a fight??

Summertime Madness Book Tag!

Hi, there! I was tagged FOREVER ago by my friend Ellen, from the Eveningreads, to do the Summertime Madness Book Tag and I finally did it! Yay! And it is actually summertime on my country, so I guess I’m not that late, LOL! Thank you so much for the tag and for being my friend, Ellen! ❤

Let’s go:

1. Show a book with a summery cover:

Surprising Lord Jack (Duchess of Love #2), by Sally MacKenzie. I’m totally feeling the summer in this cover ❤

2. Pick one fictional place that would be the perfect destination for a summer holiday.

I thought about going with the Middle Earth on this one, but I bet it is more pleasant on Spring time, haha! So, I’ll go with Regelence, a dystopian planet created by J. L. Langley. To see all the Townsends to fall in love personally would be awesome – besides, their palace is amazing, haha!

3. You’re about to go on a flight for your summer holidays, but you want to read a book that lasts the whole flight. What Novella do you choose?

That would highly depend on the flying time, haha! If it was a 40 – 60 minute flight, as the ones I actually do during vacation, I would go with one of my tbr books like Alice’s Adventures in Underland, from DeAnna Knippling.

If it would be a very long flight with more than 4 hours, it would be Game of Thrones.

4. You have a case of summertime sadness. What happy book do you pick up to shine a smile on your face?

To be honest, any book, haha! I’m that kind of person that uses reading for everything: for a break, for happiness, for concentration, for escape of reality, for information, as a weapon… So I just keep reading the one that it’s my current read, haha!

5. You’re sitting at the beach all alone… Which fictional character would be your beach babe?

Damon Salvatore because I would have this by my side:

Someone call 911 because I am on fire LOL

6. To match your ice cream you want an icy cool sidekick! Which fictional side kick do you pick?

Hmm, that’s a tough one! I guess I would choose Kara from Finding Forever (review here!) because she is fun and flirty, two things that go very well with summer, haha!

7. Share the Summertime Happiness! Who do you TAG?

Anyone that wishes to play along! ❤

That’s it, people! Thanks for reading and this was very fun, thanks again for tagging me, Ellen! ❤

The Fireworks Book Tag!

Hi, there! I was tagged by my sweet Audrey, from the Forwards and Bookwords, forever ago in the Fireworks Book Tag, thank you! Let’s answer it 😀

1. Screamers: a book that made you want to scream! (in a good way)

Hmm, I would say Viscount’s Wager, from Ava March. Ava sent it to me as an early birthday present and I freaked out both when I won it and when I finished it, haha!

2. Bombers: a book you read before it exploded in the book community

Hmm, I would say The Book Thief and The Vampire Diaries 🙂

3. Banger: a banned book you read

I honestly don’t know, haha! I’m not aware of any banned books in my country or estate, so I don’t think I have read anything banned so far…

4. Peony: a book/author you think everybody needs to read

Emily Rodda, for sure. I loved the whole Deltora Quest saga and now I’m totally digging Rowan of Rin series. Love her!

5. Crossette: a book/series with a complicated plot

The Fellowship of the Ring, first book in the Lord of the Rings saga. Really, I didn’t think it was so entwined when I saw the movies, haha!

6. Diadem: a book/series with amazing central characters

The Selection, by Kiera Cass. I loved America (and I usually have deep issues with narrator characters), Maxton, Celeste and Aspen… Everything!

7. Atches: light your own fireworks by tagging five people

Ellen, from Eveningreads

Erika, from Erika.reads

Kim, from LazyCaramelReads

Jenaca, from jenacidebybibliophile

Bianca, from The Ultimate Fangirl

And anyone else that wants to do this tag ❤ Thanks for reading!

Shattered Blue, from Lauren Bird Horowitz (The Light Trilogy #1)

Hi, guys! In the beginning of August, I entered to NetGalley, that’s a website that provides books for professional reviewers. The first book that I received and read from there was Shattered Blue, the first in The Light Trilogy, by Lauren Bird Horowitz. Now it’s time to say what I thought of it!

(updated picture, as I now have a beautiful paperback edition <3)

Here’s the story: Noa is a girl that recently lost her older sister, Isla, and it’s trying to have a normal life without her. Noa studies on an intern school with her best friends Miles and Olivia and her younger sister, three-year-old Sasha. One of the few things that keeps Noa moving forward is her poetry. She loves to write and the words slip through her fingers to paper, translating all her feelings.

One the first day of school, Noa meets Callum, the new mysterious student. At first, Noa feels Callum very distant and hostile towards her – until their first English class together, when Noa shows how much she understands of poetry, a shared passion between her and Callum.

After many twists, Noa discovers that Callum is Fae (a fairy) and was banished from his realm to the Earth for a crime that he swears he didn’t commit. A romance is born between them and Noa finally fells that her life was coming back to normal – until Callum’s problem-brother, Judah, arrives to Earth as well.

Noa sees her life shatter again when Callum is kidnaped by a dangerous Fae Hunter and she can only count with Judah to help her saving him. But is Judah the real villain here or just an underestimated boy?

Now let’s go to the analysis! Just keep in mind that those were my thoughts and opinion while reading the book 🙂

I loved Shattered Blue. Even with some of my most hated elements present on the story (high school love triangle, juvenile love indecision, just to name a few), I still loved it, haha! I had never read a fairy book before and it was a great experience. I admit I also enjoyed this a lot because the basic plot is the same as The Vampire Diaries’ one. I feel like I’ve entered Fae’s world with the right foot, haha! 😉

In narrative matters, Horowitz was brilliant. She was able to solve one of the most difficult problems, that is loose ends where they weren’t supposed to exist. All the holes in the story clearly will be explained in some point of the trilogy. Horowitz managed this miracle by switching narrative perspectives during the book. Noa starts it, and then we have some parts from Callum and Judah later. This made me very happy while reading, because I tend to get frustrated by holes that won’t be full filed at some point, you know? All narrator characters are very describing, so the transition is very smooth. A+ for Horowitz!

The plot was nice, full of action and twists, besides the romance and a good shot of mystery, but, like I said, it reminded me very strongly of The Vampire Diaries plot. I got a bit disappointed to be able to foresee every step on the love triangle of Noa, Callum and Judah since the beginning and that this part of the book wasn’t surprising at all. Since the moment that Judah appeared on the story, I already knew I would be Team Judah and that I would want to shoot Callum at some point, haha! Even with this back down, I still got surprised by the end of the book and I can’t wait for the next one ❤ And that’s why I gave it 5 starts on Goodreads anyway. The book was able to surprise me despite many known facts and that is awesome 😀

I liked Noa very much. In the beginning, I thought I was going to hate her, but we connected through the book and now I think she’s an amazing protagonist, even when she makes mistakes. There wasn’t one time in the book that made me think “omg, what an stupid girl”. I can’t say the same for the boys, though, haha! I didn’t like nor Callum or Miles in a general way. Both seemed so artificial to me – Callum for reasons what you’d understand only reading the book, as it would contain huge spoilers if told – and Miles just because. Olivia, Sasha and aunt Sarah are wonderful characters and I loved all three of them 🙂 Noa’s parents are very real, it’s impressive. They reflect all the emotions of a couple that lost one daughter and try to get over it in the best way possible.

Noa’s poetry is really cool bonus on the book. Her poems are very well written and structured, besides truthful and soul-touching. I mean, she reached even broken Judah with her words, haha! Noa sees so much of the world, of people, but not always can transform this in words to speak her mind. Not until she writes it all down in a poem. I’m a bit partial to say so, but my favorite poem on the book was the last she wrote: Imposter. It was about Judah and so so sooo perfect! ❤

The supernatural element of the book was also fantastic. Horowitz rebuilt my notions about fairies – now Faes – that were basically Tinker Bell and Winx Club, haha! I admit that I have no reference point, as this was my first Fae book, but I really liked this and can’t wait for the next book of the trilogy 😀 And now I have to find many more with this theme, haha! If you have a good suggestion, please, leave it on the comments for me to take a look ❤

If I had to pick a strongest trait on Shattered Blue, it would be the unexpected. Even with my correct predictions about the amorous triangle, I couldn’t never tell when another twist was coming to the main plot and how things would stay after it. I loved having this experience and biting my nails until the very last page, haha! (I wish I was joking on this one, but you can see on this picture how my nail suffered from the end of this book, haha! It’s the ring finger one…)

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it if you like Y&A supernatural romances and poetry. Also, I have to bow to this cover. I wish I had a high definition file of this cover to use as a phone background, honestly. It’s so pretty!!! I don’t usually judge a book by its cover, but a nice cover do make me feel loved, haha! 😉

That’s it, guys! Thanks for reading! Shattered Blue will be realeased on September 15^th, in digital and paperback versions, and I can’t wait! I’m that kind of person that, if I like an ebook too much, I want a paperback version as well, haha!

 

Liebster Award: double nomination! =O

Hello, everyone! Some days ago, I was nominated for the Liebster Award twice! I’d like to thank so so sooo much to my lovely friend Ellen, from Eveningreads, and to sweet Shannon, from For The Love of Words, for the nomination! You are amazing!!

And here’s the rules for the award:

Thanks again, girls! Let’s go to the answers:

Eveningreads’ questions:

1. Do you have a favorite Harry Potter book? If yes, which and why?

Yes! I love The Goblet of Fire. All of it. The year, the quests, Voldemort’s trial to kill Harry… Really, this is my favorite book of the series all time, haha!

2. What is your current read and how is it?

I’m currently reading a book called Shattered Blue, from Laura Bird Horowitz, that I received through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I just start reading chapter 1, I think it’s not fair to say anything good or bad yet, haha!

3. Your top 5 TBR?

• Sigmund Shaw: A Steampunk Adventure, by Mark C. King
• Vexed by a Viscount, by Erin Knightley
• What Lies Within, by James Morris
• Secrets and High Spirits, by Lou Harper
• Cemetery Tours, by Jacqueline E. Smith

4. Top 5 favorite characters of all time?

• Damon Salvatore, from The Vampire Diaries
• Sherlock Holmes
• Addie Hayes, from Chasing Rainbows
• Mr. Darcy, from Pride & Prejudice
• Snape, from Harry Potter

5. Can you read and listen to music or are you the silent reader?

I really like to read while listening to music, but I read well in silence too – I prefer to have some kind of background noise, especially during afternoons, because I usually get sleepy, no matter what I’m reading, haha!

6.Which standalone/series do you wish had just one more book?

Omg, there’s so many! But I will go with The Tutor, from Bonnie Dee (review here!). It’s a standalone book and I really wished to see how the characters went with their lives after so many things, haha!

7. What is your go-to book?

Right now, it’s Chasing Rainbows (review here!), by Linda Oaks. It was a life-changing book and I will re-read it many times, I’m sure!

8. Who is your most owned author?

Just physical copies, I would say Emily Rodda (18 books). However, counting ebooks + paperbacks, I’d say Ava March, with 22 books.

9. What is your favorite read of 2015 so far?

I CAN’T CHOOSE! This year, I’ve read some exceptional books, like the complete series of Percy Jackson and the Asylum series books, besides Austenland from Shannon Hale (review here!), Viscount’s Wager by Ava March (review here!), The Tutor from Bonnie Dee and Chasing Rainbows by Linda Oaks. I can’t choose one, sorry, haha!

10. If you could visit one fictional place, where would it be and why?

The Middle Earth, from Lord of The Rings. I spent so many hours of my childhood pretending I was there that it would feel wrong to choose any other amazing place, haha!

11. What’s the book you had to put down before you could go on with it?

The Host, by Stephanie Meyer. I really hated it, haha!

Now, For the Love of Words’ questions:

1. Are you a morning person, or a night person?
   I’m definitely a night person, I do everything after dusk, haha!
2. What’s your favorite color of food?
   Yellow or red/brown, because I love massa and meat, haha!
3. Most read and reviewed genre?
   Romance, of all kinds: YA, Historical, Contemporary, Supernatural… Romance ❤
4. Favorite pastime (besides reading)?
   Eating, what is very sad, haha! Third thing on my list is sleeping. I’m basically a cat that learned to read.
5. What’s your dream city?
   A place in Brazil called Curitiba. I would give anything to live there 🙂
6. Favorite Olympic sport to watch?
   I like masculine water sports and volley. I love Brazil’s volley team, both masculine and feminine, and love to see all those worked up guys on bath suits, haha! *blushes*
7. Do you consider yourself an introvert or extrovert?
   I’m very extrovert, I talk to pretty much anyone and everything, like the walls.
8. What’s your favorite television show?
   Hard one! I watch too many things and never finish one. I would say Vampire Diaries and Suits, as everything seems to be getting cancelled nowadays…
9. What’s your dream job?
   Being paid to review books, because that’s pretty much what I do best 🙂
10. Who’s your favorite artist? (can be either musical or fine arts)
    I love miss Britney Spears and a band named Epica. If I had to spend the rest of my days listening to only two musical figures, they would be my choice ❤
11. How long have you had your blog, and what keeps you writing?
    My blog is a baby! I started it on Blogger in April and moved to WordPress on June, so this blog has only three months! I’m very selfish with my blog: what keeps me writing is my desire to do so. I always read a lot and I love talking about the books I read, but my offline friends couldn’t keep up with my passion, so I unleash it all here and on my bookstagram 🙂

Now, I’ll tell 22 random facts about me because I was nominated twice, it’s only fair 🙂

1. My favorite flowers are gardenias and hydrangeas – the bluish purple ones especially
2. I love sweets, especially my mom’s chocolate cake
3. I mentally date at least one boy from every book I read ;D
4. My Hogwarts house is Slytherin, according to Pottermore
5. I love notebooks and I have to control myself to not buy every cute one that crosses my way, haha!
6. I used to play with my books as a child, pretending they were dolls (and I had so many Barbies…)
7. My favorite heroine is Wonder Woman ❤
8. I like to collect movies and tv show seasons in DVD even with Netflix times
9. I’m really small, Hobbit sized (1,54m = 5’05”)
10. I have an issue with shoes. I own about 60 pairs and regret nothing, haha!
11. I wanted to be an Italian opera singer when I was a child
12. My favorite color is black ❤
13. I’m too expressive; every time I feel something, you can see it in my face
14. I’m often mistaken by a high school girl (and I’m 21 lol)
15. I love to try new kinds of food, specially if it is junk food
16. I own about 700 books and 800 mangas xD
17. I can’t eat salad to save my life
18. I graduate in Journalism school within 5 months and I’m freaking out, haha!
19. My favorite male actors are Ian Somerhalder, Matt Bomer and Misha Collins ❤
20. I love porcelain dolls and my favorite one plays The Swan Lake song (my friends always scream in terror when I touch it and the song plays for a bit, ugh *rolls eyes*)
21. I have a big magnet collection of places around the world
22. I love Disney and fairy tales ❤

Now my nominations! Sorry I didn’t got to 11, but I’m super new here 😦

The Ultimate Fangirl

The Amazing Life of a Bookworm

And, of course, the girls who nominated me! Shannon and Ellen, thanks! If you girls don’t want to do this again, as you already were nominated, you can pass, haha!

Here’s my questions for the nominated ones!

1. How did you start to like reading?
2. Do you prefer reading paperbacks/hardcovers or ebooks?
3. If you were send to a desert island and could only bring a small non-Hermione bag, what would you put in it?
4. Do you rate the books you read? If you do, what’s your criterion?
5. What’s your most loved gender for books? And most hated?
6. What’s you zodiac sign?
7. Do you like to eat while reading? If you do, what’s your favorite food to go with a book?
8. Do you like to read comics/mangas?
9. If you could move to another country, which would you choose?
10. Do you have any pets?
11. In which Hogwarts house are you?

That’s it! Thanks again for the award, girls! Thank you for reading this long post and I hope you guys could get to know me better 😀