Book Review: Finding Cinderella

Finding Cinderella (Hopeless #2.5)
by Colleen Hoover
ebook, 105 pages
Published October 14th 2013 by Atria Books
Source: Amazon (freebie)

This novella is a companion novel to the Hopeless series, but can be read as a standalone.

A chance encounter in the dark leads eighteen-year-old Daniel and the girl who stumbles across him to profess their love for each other. But this love comes with conditions: they agree it will only last one hour and it will only be make-believe.

When their hour is up and the girl rushes off like Cinderella, Daniel tries to convince himself that what happened between them only seemed perfect because they were pretending it was perfect. Moments like that with girls like her don’t happen outside of fairytales.

One year and one bad relationship later, his disbelief in insta-love is stripped away the day he meets Six: a girl with a strange name and an even stranger personality. Daniel soon realizes the way he pretended to feel about Cinderella and the way he really feels about Six may not be so different after all. Especially when the two loves of his life end up being one in the same.

Unfortunately for Daniel, finding Cinderella doesn’t guarantee their happily ever after…it only further threatens it.

Finding Cinderella is a companion novella to the Hopeless duology that focuses on the story of Holder's and Sky's bestfriends, Daniel and Six. I haven't read the books yet so I have no knowledge about these characters' backgrounds. But what encouraged me to read this, apart from it being free, is that it comes so highly recommended by peers and even has an average rating of 4.6 with over 7,000 ratings in Goodreads. It's probably one of the most highly-rated books I've seen in GR, which means that I was also all the more wary about it since me and popular, well-loved books don't always go well together.

I didn't fall head over heels in love with Finding Cinderella but I had lots of fun reading it. Daniel and Six are both funny characters. They are so much alike in their personalities and I loved that they are also bestfriends as much as they are a couple. They are like the opposite gender of the other. Both are overly flirty, smooth talkers and they're so solid together that Six doesn't get mad when Daniel calls her a slut. She calls him douchebag or asshole in return. This was enough to scandalize me at first really, but that's how their playful banters are always like.

Daniel also has a very supportive family that likes to humiliate him. I almost laughed out loud when they made masturbation jokes in front of Six when he first brought her to his house. They are also infamous for playing reverse psychology on him. Additionally, I enjoyed reading about Daniel and Holder's relationship as best friends. I love it when boys display pretty bromance so I'm glad that Colleen incorporated one in the book. I just wish there were more (platonic) "I love you's" between them in the story.

However, much as I had fun reading Finding Cinderella, there were quite a few issues about this that I found difficult to get over with - the main one being, wait for it... insta-romance! *Cue deflated groans* When Daniel was first introduced to Six, he already wanted to put her spoon in his mouth - that's literal, by the way - and he couldn't stop narrating how spectacular she is. Six's name was also a bit distracting for me, like a phantom itch I can't scratch. I have nothing against all the Six in the world and this is the first time a fictional character's name bothered me so much. I don't know why, but it does, so please spare me. Another issue of mine is that moment when Six first stumbled into Daniel in the room and she was crying. I really don't know what she was crying about and Colleen didn't explain it any further. I thought I was going to get a proper one as the story progressed because I was really intrigued, but sadly, I didn't get any.

With only a little over a hundred pages, Colleen did a fantastic job interweaving Six and Daniel's story together. The romance might have developed a little too fast for my taste but compared to other full-length novels with speedy romantic progress, I say that Colleen did it better. This is focused more on the romance, but I'm glad that Colleen didn't forget to incorporate a plot, covering almost all the aspects a normal-length book has. It is well-paced as far as novellas go with a jaw-dropping shocker near the end.

I enjoyed Colleen's Slammed and Finding Cinderella reminded me so much of it. The tone used in this novella is reminiscent of Slammed's. And while it's probably one of the reasons why I enjoyed this, I'm afraid that this also made Finding Cinderella a forgettable read for me.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

[Blog Tour] Review: Snowed Over + Giveaway

Snowed Over
by Angie Stanton
Kindle Edition, 126 pages
Published October 12th 2012 by Vanguard Management, Inc.
Source: AToMR (Blog Tour host)
Purchase here: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

To college student, Katie Brandt, ‘Home for the Holidays’ sounds like hell. When her parents separated, their holiday traditions shattered like a dropped ornament. What could be worse than celebrating Christmas with her suddenly single mom and mom’s new boyfriend?

Alex Walker, an engaged 20-year-old, dreads going home for his own reasons. He has a daunting task ahead of him and wishes he could skip the holidays altogether. So when a friend of a friend needs a ride north, Alex finds that having beautiful Katie seated by his side proves to be just the distraction he needs.

A simple ride home for Christmas turns into a nightmare when light snow rages into a full-scale blizzard. Katie and Alex find themselves stranded, and a vacant cabin becomes a haven from the storm. Under different circumstances, time alone with Alex would be the ultimate Christmas gift, but Katie knows Alex is engaged and she must hide her growing attraction.

However, Alex harbors a secret that just might change this holiday from the worst Christmas ever, to the best.

Snowed Over is the sort of short story that everyone would enjoy more if read in a more appropriate environment. Like for example on a cold Christmas night while sitting near the hearth, wrapped in a comfortable blanket with a hot chocolate on hand. Honestly, I was almost guilty for reading this without the aforementioned non-requirements! But that aside, Snowed Over is a feel-good short story and no type of surrounding could have stopped all the grins that kept creeping up to my face on the entire course of my reading this.

Snowed Over, though leans more on the romantic aspect, also tackles familial relationships albeit underdeveloped. I like that Angie incorporated backdrops of Alex and Katie's families. Katie's parents are facing divorce and she has been having a hard time accepting that fact as well as the fact that her mother is currently dating Not a Boyfriend. Alex has things easier with his family with a fun and supportive younger brother, and parents who both seemed caring. His relationship with his family is tight. The only downside in his life is his current fiance, Trina, whom he has been trying to break up with but to no avail.

Katie is a very rational character and I love that about her. I notice in most books that characters tend to abandon logic when faced with possible hot makeout session so I admire Katie because despite being attracted to Alex, she didn't set aside the fact that he is engaged to another girl and actually calls him out for kissing her. She doesn't only know, but she also acknowledges that no one deserves to be cheated on, even if that person is the ultimate bitch fiancee. I only wish she was consistent on this train of thought.

Alex, on the other hand, despite kissing another girl even when he's about to be married, is not entirely an asshole. He's actually an incredibly nice guy who was forced to be committed into a difficult relationship with a manipulative girl. And I was ultimately pleased by how he handled things with Trina toward the end. It was harsh, but even I couldn't see a better way to do things the way he did.

As a short story, I feel like there are a couple of points that Angie did not cover. Moreover, some parts also lacked in depth descriptions that could have given the important scenes more impact. But ironically, I'm also grateful for that because I have only ever pegged this to be a soul-soothing novella and I don't think it could have managed that had Angie included way too much drama.

If you're into cute and romantic reads, Snowed Over is the perfect novella for you. It has chocolates, wine, mice droppings, and, dude, SNOW! 

Rating: 4/5 stars!

Disclosure: A copy was provided by AToMR as part of the Snowed Over Blog Tour for review purposes only. No compensation of any kind was received for this review and my opinions are all honest and mine.

Giveaway

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About the Author

Angie Stanton never planned on writing books, she wanted to be a Rockette. However, growing up in a rural setting with her brothers' 4-H pigs as pets, dance didn't work out. Instead she became an avid daydreamer. After years of perfecting stories in her head she began to write them down and the rest is history.

She loves dipping french fries in chocolate shakes, natural disaster movies and Broadway Musicals. When not writing, Angie is concocting ways to make more dreams come true, whether it be tickets to a Broadway show or convincing her family they should rent an RV and travel the country. She's still working on that one.

Angie is a proud double finalist of the 2011 National Readers Choice Awards for Love 'em or Leave 'em, as well as a finalist for the Golden Quill Awards.

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To see other stops on the tour for reviews, guest posts, and excerpts click here or the tour button below.

Review: Iron's Prophecy

Iron's Prophecy (Iron Fey #4.5)
by Julie Kagawa
Kindle Edition
Published September 1st 2012 by Harlequin TEEN

From Goodreads:

Meghan Chase is finally getting used to being the Iron Queen, ruler of the Iron Fey. Her life may be strange, but with former Winter prince Ash by her side at last, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

But when they travel to the Summer and Winter courts’ gathering for Elysium, the oracle from Meghan’s past returns with a dire prophecy: “What you carry will either unite the courts, or it will destroy them.” Now Meghan faces a devastating choice that may determine the future of all fey—and her and Ash’s unborn child…

A novella from the bestselling Iron Fey series.

Review:

I had mixed feelings for this novella and the spin-off series of The Iron Fey. I was excited for both but after reading The Iron Knight, I sincerely thought that Ash and Meghan's story could finally be left alone and that any other additional story was unnecessary. The rainbows, butterflies and peace and quiet at the end of The Iron Knight screamed happily ever after to me and now this! Poor Ash and Meghan. Julie can't seem to stop torturing them.

Iron's Prophecy starts off like having a big ball of fluff thrown at you square in the face. Imagine yourself Meghan waking up to see a sleeping half-naked Ash and then you Meghan and Ash coddling...I could feel my toes curling in their sweetness! I was grinning like an idiot while flailing my arms around and kicking the air like a lunatic because of all the emotions I could not contain.

However, on the second part, when I started really noticing things beyond Ash and Meghan's sweetness, I couldn't help realizing how Julie always inject romance wherever she can even when the scene doesn't call for it. After that, all those sweetness between Ash and Meghan seemed forced. It was hard to enjoy their cuteness after. Though of course, Puck and Grim were there to rescue my decreasing interest for the story. Puck's humor was very refreshing however, there were also moments where I found his humor not so very spontaneous. I also loved the detailed descriptions of how Grim did all those cat-like gestures in between the dialogues. So cute!

In the end, I'm still not sure what I think of this novella as an addition to The Iron Fey series. But as an individual novella, I enjoyed pretty much most of it though there were also some parts that I found hard to make sense of.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Book Review: Summer's Crossing

Summer's Crossing (Iron Fey #3.5)
by Julie Kagawa
ebook
Published June 1st 2011 by Harlequin Teen
Source: Free from Harlequin ebooks

Summary:

A Midsummer's Nightmare? Robin Goodfellow. Puck. Summer Court prankster, King Oberon's right hand, bane of many a faery queen's existence—and secret friend to Prince Ash of the Winter Court. Until one girl's death came between them, and another girl stole both their hearts.

Now Ash has granted one favor too many and someone's come to collect, forcing the prince to a place he cannot go without Puck's help—into the heart of the Summer Court. And Puck faces the ultimate choice—betray Ash and possibly win the girl they both love, or help his former friend turned bitter enemy pull off a deception that no true faery prankster could possibly resist.

An ebook exclusive novella from Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series.

Review:

Summer’s Crossing picks up right after The Iron Queen. In The Iron Queen, Ash vowed to find a way to be with Meghan no matter what. In Summer’s Crossing, he is about to set off on a journey to fulfill the vow with the help of Puck, who unabashedly invited himself. However, a fey suddenly steps in the way, interrupting Ash and Puck’s plan, to collect a bargain from Ash - one that involves setting up a very dangerous prank top retrieve an object from a very powerful fey from the Summer Court.

The plot covers Ash and Puck’s journey to the Summer Court. As we all know, Puck + Ash = Neverending amusement, so their constant banters and Puck’s infamous pranks provide for a very entertaining read. I just wish this was a novel instead of a novella. I love reading from Puck’s point of view. Here, readers get to take a glimpse on how Puck truly and still feels for Meghan. I know Iron Fey readers already know that he’s deeply in love with her, and was really hurt when Meghan chose Ash over him. But as he is Robin Goodfellow and is known for being awfully cheerful and sarcastic, sometimes, it is easy to forget that he’s still in love with her in a romantic way. And is actually capable of being hurt.

Summer’s Crossing is a perfect read for all Iron Fey lovers out there, whether you’re on Team Puck or Team Ash. You may download this for free from Halrequin ebooks.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Download HERE for free.