Sunday 23 February 2014

Review: The Collector

Title: The Collector (Dante Walker #1)
Author: Victoria Scott
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Released: 2nd April 2013
Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

The Collector could very easily have been a miss for me.  Dante was, by all accounts, rude, unfair and arrogant.  I was prepared for this to go into the cluttered vault at the back of my mind labelled 'Meh'.  What I was not prepared for was for it to creep past my walls and insist upon my liking it.
 
Dante is a collector.  Not like stamp collector, but soul collector.  His new assignment is Charlie Cooper.  He's not sure exactly why his boss wants her, but whatever.  This assignment is his chance to escape hell and he has ten days to complete it.  He probably won't even need ten days, since no-one can do the job like him.  But when he meets Charlie and unwillingly gets to know her, he finds himself putting off his task.  It's problematic to say the least, but her can't stop emotions he hasn't felt in ages from rising to the surface.  Looks like this won't be such a simple assignment, after all.
 
First of all, Dante is rude, unfair and arrogant.  I spent a good deal of time marvelling at his attitude, especially when it came to Charlie.  I have never come across another protagonist so sure of themselves and if the poor girl knew what was running through his head when he met her I'm not sure she'd have been so happy to have him around.  But she didn't and things progressed and Dante actually turned out to be a redeemable character.  His growth was very gradual yet pleasant to see, and I think I preferred the second half because of the added depth that came with connecting with him more.  With his emotions came an entirely different side to him, one not so cocky, and that was nice.  What might have been even better would be to see more of his work and get a greater feel for that.
 
Charlie was the complete opposite of Dante.  Bubbly, friendly, always seeing the good in other people, she made for a genuinely nice character.  Admittedly I found her a little too gullible - surely her past experiences would teach her to be more wary? - but perhaps that's just the cynic in me.  Either way she was a fresh character, and I have to commend Scott for bringing to life two characters different from the norm.  Actually, 'different' and 'unpredictable' appear to be themes that run through this book, as I was not entirely expecting the level of humour that there was, and there were a couple of twists that had me blink in surprise.  As soon as there was one revelation I made the mistake of getting comfortable with it, only to find myself having to readjust to what was actually the truth.  This one certainly keeps you on your toes.  The mythology isn't just recycled material, either.  A fresh spin was put on it to renew my interest, and the ending in particular had me sitting up straight.
 
There were areas of doubt with this one, but if I overlooked the problems - which wasn't too hard to do - I did find myself enjoying it.  If nothing else there was the humour, but there were some genuinely good attributes, all of which makes me sure I'll be coming back to this author.

Friday 7 February 2014

Cover Reveal: Flawed Perfection

Brown paper package with torn section

Hey, guys!  I'm so excited to be working with Cassandra Giovanni again, this time for the cover reveal of her new novel, Flawed Perfection!  I think this is her best cover yet - it's simple, yet everything comes together nicely.  I like that, although there's a model, it doesn't entirely fall into the NA cover trend of couples kissing/holding hands/gazing at each other.  It's thoughtful, plus there's greater meaning added with the flaw cutting across the corner and up the side.  I'm also a fan of the colour scheme and fonts used.

Okay, here it is.  What are your thoughts?  Let me know!
 
 
 
Flawed Perfection Cover
Flawed Perfection Paperback Wrap
Goodreads-badge-add-plus
Flawed Perfection
Beautifully Flawed, #1

Author: Cassandra Giovanni
Publisher: Show N'ot Tell Publishing
Cover Designer: Gio Design Studios
Released: 7th March, 2014
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
 
Bobby Beckerson was the American All-Star hockey player--he was the spitting image of perfection to his family.  Goofy, sweet and undeniably gorgeous, he had everything but the one girl he wanted: River Ahlers.
River Ahlers is successful in everything but love.  She's been in love with Adam Beckerson since they were kids.  Worst of all she's stuck right in the middle of the brothers' duelling over everything and anything, and she doesn't even know she's the ultimate prize.
Adam Beckerson was a boy with a guitar, a smile that sunk girls' hearts and a stone wall around his own.  He was anything but perfect, and no matter how hard he tried he was nothing compared to Bobby.  Sweet, damages, with boyish good looks, nobody thought Adam loved anyone but himself.
Bobby loved River, River loved Adam and Adam only loved himself--or so everyone thought.  Then one night everything changes, and as it threatens to destroy everyone involved a tragedy strikes that will break them all...

About The Author

Cassandra doesn't remember a time when she wasn't writing. In fact, the first time she was published was when she was seven years old and won a contest to be published in an American Girl Doll novel. Since then Cassandra has written more novels than she can count and put just as many in the circular bin. Her personal goal with her writing is to show the reader the character's stories through their dialogue and actions instead of just telling the reader what is happening. In 2012 she became a published Young Adult author, releasing In Between Seasons (The Fall, #1) and the Amazon bestselling thriller, Walking in the Shadows. In 2013 she branched out by using her artistic illustrating talents to publish her first Children's novel, The Adventures of Skippy Von Flippy: Tales of Friendship (Skippy Tales, #1). Cassandra released her first New Adult novel, Love Exactly, which became an Amazon Bestseller overnight in June of 2013. She's currently working on her new New Adult Contemporary Romance, Beautifully Flawed. The first novel in the series, Flawed Perfection is scheduled to be published on March 7, 2014.
Besides being a writer, Cassandra is a professional photographer known for her automotive, nature and architectural shots. She is the owner of Gio Design Studios Photography and Gio Design Studios Publication Marketing . She is currently studying to receive a degree in Marketing. Cassandra is happily married to the man of her dreams and they live in the rolling hills of New England with the other loves of her life their dogs, Bubski and Kanga.

Cassandra can be found on: