MFB: Lost and Found (Lost and Found # 1)

“Sometimes we just have to cut off the dead branches in our life. Sometimes that's the only way we can keep the tree alive. It's hard and it hurts, but it's what's best.” 

     Lost and Found by Nicole Williams has officially become one of my favorite books. Why, you ask? It's simple. I think by now all of us have heard of at least one story about a good girl falling for a bad boy and whatnot, but stories of bad girls falling for good guys are a bit harder to find. And I really, really love bad girls in books. So when I found this book, I was extremely happy.

     Rowen Sterling is a broken girl. Having had a tough life and a horrible mother who could care less about her, Rowen starts following the wrong path. Drugs, alcohol and boys make her forget about the awful life awaiting for her back at home. But when recently graduated Rowen finds her dream art school, her mother sends her to a ranch in the middle of nowhere to prove that she's worthy of her paying Rowen's bills at the school.

Here is the official description of the book: 

"There’s complicated. And there’s Rowen Sterling.
After numbing pain for the past five years with boys, alcohol, and all-around apathy, she finds herself on a Greyhound bus to nowhere Montana the summer after she graduates high school. Her mom agreed to front the bill to Rowen’s dream art school only if Rowen proves she can work hard and stay out of trouble at Willow Springs Ranch. Cooking breakfast at the crack of dawn for a couple dozen ranch hands and mucking out horse stalls are the last things in the world Rowen wants to spend her summer doing.
Until Jesse Walker saunters into her life wearing a pair of painted-on jeans, a cowboy hat, and a grin that makes something in her chest she’d thought was frozen go boom-boom. Jesse’s like no one else, and certainly nothing like her. He’s the bright and shiny to her dark and jaded.
Rowen knows there’s no happily-ever-after for the golden boy and the rebel girl—happily-right-now is a stretch—so she tries to forget and ignore the boy who makes her feel things she’s not sure she’s ready to feel. But the more she pushes him away, the closer he seems to get. The more she convinces herself she doesn’t care, the harder she falls.
When her dark secrets refuse to stay locked behind the walls she’s kept up for years, Rowen realizes it’s not just everyone else she needs to be honest with. It’s herself."

     At the Willow Springs Ranch, Rowen's life becomes significantly more complicated when she meets the nice, handsome Jesse Walker. Jesse is nothing like Rowen and he's nothing like any guy she has ever met. Desperately trying to stay away with him, Rowen finds herself drawn to Jesse all the more. When things start getting serious between the two of them, Rowen does the one thing she knows how to do best - she pushes him away.

     But as Rowen convinces herself that staying away from Jesse is the best thing for the both of them, she realizes that she can no longer live life the way she has until now. And Jesse is responsible for that. Convinced her heart was hidden deep behind the walls she'd put up, Rowen struggles with her new feelings for Jesse.

     This book is basically a book about a bad girl struggling to find her way again and to do it before it's too late. When even her own mother thinks of her daughter as nothing but a worthless freak, how can Rowen think any different of herself? But Jesse sees past all of that and helps Rowen realize she's more than what everyone keeps calling her. Jesse's family also helps with her discovery of her true self because in them, Rowen finds a family read to help and support her if she needs it.

      I really liked Lost and Found and I'm happy to hear that there are more books in this series. I am definitely going to continue it. One of the reasons this book grew on me so much is that it's similar to one of my other favorite books, Dare You To, by Katie McGarry. I recommend Lost and Foundto anyone who wants to read a very nice story about discovering who you really are.

Update: Extras!

     Hello, everyone! I'm just writing this post to let you guys know that I have had quite a bit of free time lately, which means I got to read some new, interesting books. A while back, I was very busy with my exams and planning my future as a student and even if I did sometimes find a few moments to read books, I might have forgotten to review all of them. 

     And so, I might just have a couple of reviews pending, which means that I will post them the following days, even if that means getting out of my posting routine. I think it's safe to say that some of this reviews might make up for not posting on Fridays anymore, simply because I ran out of favorite books to write about. But as I have more free time now, I'll get back to my reading habits and surely I will discover new books that will become favorites. And when I do, I'll write about them right away!

     Having said this, stay tuned and keep an eye on my blog to read the reviews as soon as I post them. Also, since I stopped posting favorite books, I decided that I might try to make a couple different posts and I kept thinking about what I could write on the blog. I might have just come up with a few interesting ideas! Make sure to check back in with me and the blog to see what I'm talking about!

     

Review: What I Thought Was True

My Rating: ★★☆☆☆

     What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick is a summer romance about the somewhat interesting life of Gwen Castle. I was really excited to read this book. The classic tale of shy, ordinary girl meets rich, hard to get, handsome boy was very promising. Instead, I was presented with one of my most disappointing reads. Like, this book could easily make its way on my Top Five Worst Books. 

     First of all, let me just say that I found this book to be extremely boring. Most of the time, nothing was happening and when something did finally happen, it lasted a total of a few pages. Also, I found it extremely annoying how we kept reading about the so-great-mistake that Gwen Castle made with Cassidy Somers but we only got to learn about that mistakes to a couple of flashbacks that lasted forever to get to. I understand that the author did that to probably create some sort of mystery to the book, to why Gwen wanted to stay as far away as possible from Cassidy and to make us all hold our breaths, but by the time we finally learned what had happened between the two of them so very long ago, the book almost came to an end and we barely got to see what was happening in the present time. 

     Another issue I had with this book were the characters. I felt like they were boring, dull, and totally uninteresting. I don't even know how I managed to finish reading this. I usually like to finish the books I start but never before have I read something so boring. I felt like there was nothing appealing to any of the characters. I can't say that I loved one, hated another, or that one of them was funny while another one was annoying. However, like Gwen's friend, Viv, pointed out at some moment, I did find it extremely annoying how Gwen only ever talked about Cassidy, about her and Cassidy, or about what Cassidy thought of what she was doing, wearing, saying, etc.

     I don't know why, but it took me forever to read this book. It took me forever to even read a few chapters of it. It was just so slow and uneventful and lacking in...everything? There was too little of everything, not enough of anything. By the end of this book, I was both frustrated and relieved. Completely frustrated because I had high expectations of this book that were definitely not met. Completely relieved that I had finally finished it and that I didn't have to bother with trying to convince myself to keep on reading it in hopes that something interesting might happen. Because it doesn't.

     Having said all this, I cannot rate this book higher than two stars. I definitely did not like it, but I won't give it one star because I do believe that there are worse books than this one. I am not trying to sound harsh, this is simply my honest opinion. I am sad to say that What I Thought Was True was one of the worst books I have ever read and also one of the most disappointing. Unfortunately, I do not recommend this book to anyone. Just don't waste your time with it, for it is nothing but boring. However, I am willing to overlook all this, erase this unpleasant reading experience and give the author's debut novel a try, in light of all the praise it has received.

Smashwords Deal: Summer Reads

     Hey, guys! After I made a post about what books I had on my Kindle, I decided it was time to make a similar post about some books I got from Smashwords. For those of you who don't know, Smashwords is a site dedicated to ebooks where you can find a lot of interesting reads & deals. I made an account sometime ago, when the author whose book I was going to review asked me to. Ever since, I like going on the site and browsing ebooks every now and then, particularly because you can always find interesting books for free!

     So, in the few months that I have been a member of Smashwords, I found some books that were free and I decided I wanted to check them out. I got two summer romance books and two fantasy books and I am very excited to read all of them. However, there are other books that made the top of my to-read list which I am currently reading, and so I keep postponing these books - which is funny, really, because isn't it ideal to read summer romance during the summer? But here are the books that I'm talking about:

The books can be found here:

• Eternal Eden (Eden Trilogy #1) by Nicole Williams

• Summer Unplugged (Summer Unplugged #1) by Amy Sparling

• Lost and Found (Lost and Found #1) by Nicole Williams

• Captivate Me (Captivated #1) by S.J.Pierce

     I repeat, all of these four books I got for free - simply by finding the right time&opportunity to get them. I am planning to read these books soon, at least some of them. I am especially excited to read Lost and Found, as I have been hearing a lot of good things about it. I have a habit of always checking for more free books even though I still have a lot of books to read on my Kindle. I prefer getting cheap or free books whenever I can find a good deal, because you never know when you run out of books to read, and when I finally do, I can pick up one of the books that I have been stocking.

     I recommend checking Smashwords, Amazon and any other book site you might visit for cheap or even free books at all times, because you never know when you will find an interesting book or maybe even that book you have been wanting for so long but didn't have the money to buy! I am NOT getting anything out of this - it's simply a recommendation and it does NOT benefit me in any way. I just thought that I could share with all of you that you can find good deals on various sites. Some of these books might still be free at the moment, so if you hurry and visit the sites, you might be able to get them for yourself as well!

Review: Ignite Me (Shatter Me # 3)

My Rating: ★★★★★

     I read Ignite Me in ONE day. A SINGLE DAY. What does that say about this book? That it was amazing! (Or maybe I was just desperate.) In my review for the previous installment in this series, I mentioned that I was hoping for this book to be amazing. To surprise me. To exceed my expectations. To make me rate it five stars. Everything I wanted from this book, it provided. And I am so, so very satisfied with it. Definitely one of my favorite dystopian books, definitely one of the most exciting reads of my life. Even if the ending was somewhat of a blur, I managed to overlook it simply because my Warner feelings were all over the place. Isn't that silly? I don't even know anymore. Or care.

     I won't even split my review in things I liked/disliked about this book. I'll get straight to it. I liked this book, period. It had a little bit of action, it had drama, it had romance and it had character development. Finally, finally Juliette acknowledges her full potential, her true nature and what she's capable of. And the best part is that she actually puts it to good use. And if you're going to say that it's wrong that what she sought was revenge, my friend, you're wrong. Because the awful Anderson deserved it all. Surely he couldn't have lived happily ever after, right? Not after he ruined Warner,not after he ruined Adam, not after all the awful things he had done. And he got what he deserved. A big round of applause for that!

I     'm not going to lie. What I wanted most from this book was Juliette&Warner. Mostly Warner. I cannot believe that I hated him in the first book. Never had it crossed my mind that he wasn't supposed to be the villain. Never had it crossed my mind that he was broken. And oh, how broken he was. I think it's safe to say that Warner is, from now on, my #1 book love. I love him. So what if he was ruthless? So what if everyone thought he was a monster? They didn't know him like we had gotten to know him. Who cares what the others think, anyway? In the end, Warner proves his motives and his true face and he does that without even trying to! He isn't trying to prove anything to anyone. He only cares about Juliette. And Juliette already knows exactly who he is. And that makes me so happy. Because it gives me hope that sometimes, even if it's only in the books we read, sometimes even the most damaged, broken people can be redeemed. Even in our worst, darkest moments someone can see through the darkness and can guide us towards the light. 

     I loved Warner&Kenji in this book. I absolutely hated Adam and I think I was clenching my teeth at his every single line. I don't care what anyone says, he showed his true face when he felt cornered. He didn't love Juliette. Maybe he thought he did, but he didn't. Not like Warner loved her. Not like she loved Warner. It took so long for her to figure out that she didn't actually love Adam, or not like that anyway and it made me desperate. I kept rolling my eyes every single time she tried to deny it, every single time she tried to make good with Adam. JUST FORGET HIM ALREADY. 
It took a very long time for Juliette to finally realize what she wanted and who she wanted. And I so desperately needed her to realize who she wanted. But it has been an amazing, emotional journey. And when she and Warner finally collided, I was oh so happy. So relieved. 

     The ending felt a bit rushed but it is good to finally find a dystopian book with a happy ending. Don't get me wrong, I like some drama here and there, but this? This ending made me hopeful. For just a second, along the final lines of the ending, I was terrified that Warner would end up dead. But when I read the ending, I could not contain myself. I loved it. I really, truly loved it. 
I'm sad that this series has ended but happy that it ended on a positive note, with a positive outcome. And while we may not know the aftermath, surely we can imagine it. Thank you, Taherah Mafi, thank you for this wonderful series. You truly have outdone yourself!

Review: Unravel Me (Shatter Me # 2)

My Rating: ★★★★☆

My first thought after having finished reading this book was: Boy, what a rush!I was really impressed with this book and I honestly don't know where to begin and where to finish my review. After I finished reading Shatter Me, I said that this book would be at the top of my to-read list. However, I somehow ended up reading other books meanwhile and this got put on hold. I ask myself now, Why? This book was so good!

Juliette is back. Shatter Me sort of left us hanging with an open ending, wondering what will happen next and how the upcoming war will be dealt with. Unravel Mecontinues the intriguing plot in what succeeds in being an interesting, action paced, exciting read. We're introduced to new surroundings and interesting new characters and we're being shown another side of the damaged world of Shatter Me. With old enemies and new dangers looming around the corner, Juliette begins a training process in order to better understand her power and to learn how to efficiently use it.

Things I liked about this book:

-Warner! Warner. Oh boy, how I liked him. I know how I said he was disgusting in the first book because he really, truly was. But, oh, how wrong was I! In this book, the writer shows us a whole other perspective. A completely different side of Warner. And I loved it! I loved every minute of it. I loved all the scenes with him and as I kept reading, I was praying for more and more of him. We learn that there's a reason why Warner is ruthless and the shocking part is that his life is so similar to Juliette. Maybe that's why she starts thinking different of him, too. He is so intense that when I was reading his scenes I almost got shivers. He is simply a boy, he is capable of emotion, he is human. And so gorgeous, so breathtakingly gorgeous.

-Kenji. Since the little twist about Kenji in the first book, I began to like him. In this book, I grew to like him even more. His character was an invaluable addition to this book, in my opinion. He is funny and he's the one you love being around but he's also down to earth and aware of his duties. We learn that Kenji is an important member at Omega Point, somewhat of Castle's right hand if you will. We also get a glimpse at his story in order to have a better understanding of the bond between him and Castle. Against all odds, he's the first one to offer to help Juliette, even though she's being somewhat of a pain in the - but more of this later. He trains with her, he sort of protects her and I simply loved his character. 

Things I didn't like about this book:

-Adam. I didn't really like him that much in the first book either, I thought he was kind of a boring character and I really didn't care too much about him. His relationship with Juliette I thought was the most interesting thing about him because I was curious to see where it was going. In this book, he grows even more annoying, at least to me. He learns that he, like everyone else at Omega Point, has a special power which threatens to tear him and Juliette apart. (Which I couldn't be happier with, because as of now, I'm on Warner's side. Yep, you read that right!) Now, from this point on, I really disliked what became of his character and instead of being intrigued by his new-found power, I became rather bored with him.

-Juliette. And I don't mean it in a bad way. I understand that she was scared of hurting people because of what happened in the past. I even understand the cliché "I want to be better than this, I will live in solitute to not harm anyone" blah blah. What really annoyed me was that she seemed so weak in this book. Like she couldn't do anything right and was more a burden than helpful in the important task of preparing for war. What annoyed me more was that she was so insecure, so afraid of being herself and always, always had to act different because it was just so damned important to her how the rest of the people perceived her. Always desperate to be accepted by people whocouldn't care less about her. This seems to change in the later part of the book and I hope it stays that way in the next one.

That being said, I'm extremely curious to read Unravel Me next. I'm curious to see what happens with Anderson, I'm curious about Warner & Juliette and I'm curious to see if the author has more plans of dramatically changing our view of some characters.Who knows, maybe Adam will finally become interesting. All in all, I'm really looking forward to the conclusion of this series and I pray that it won't disappoint me because I rated the first one in the series 3 stars, I'm rating this 4 stars and I really, really want to rate the final one 5 stars. I want it to surpass the previous two books and I'm hopeful that it will!

What's On My Kindle?

     Hey guys! Having run out of favorite books that I could post, I decided it was time for a different post. I thought that I could show you all what's on my Kindle. I got some pretty interesting books from Amazon. I haven't read all of them yet but I did read a few and enjoyed them. 

     

          Every once in a while, I like to go on Amazon and browse books. Since they have a lot of sales going on, you can find books that you want to read at a cheaper price if you keep checking them. Sometimes, you can even find interesting books for free - and who doesn't love a free book?

     Here's what I have on my Kindle so far:

The books are as follows:

Atancia (The Durand Duology #1) by Wren Figueiro 

Forever Bound (Bound by Darkness #1) by C. L. Scott

Open Minds (Mindjack Trilogy #1) by Susan Kaye Quinn 

The Perfect Distraction (Perfect #1) by Melissa Rolka

Silence (Silence #1) by Natasha Preston

Red at Night by Katie McGarry

Brightest Kind of Darkness(Brightest Kind of Darkness #1) by P.T.Michelle

Bloodline (Forgotten Origins Trilogy #1) by Tara Ellis

     As you can tell, the only books I've read from this list are Red at Night, Brightest Kind of Darkness and Bloodline. The rest will follow but I am currently reading something else and I have a couple other books that are at the top of my to-read list. It's always good to have some books put away, and when you run out of ideas you can quickly grab one of them. I got all of these books for free from Amazon - you simply have to wait for the right time - except for Bloodline, which was gifted to me by the author in exchange for an honest  review. I am looking forward to reading all of these eventually and, meanwhile, I'll make sure to keep my eye on Amazon as well - you never know when you will find a good free book!