Book Review: The Billionaire's Counterfeit Girlfriend (The Pryce Family Book 1) by Nadia Lee

Title: The Billionaire's Counterfeit Girlfriend
Author: Nadia Lee
Series: Pryce Family #1
Pages: 302
My Rating: ❤❤❤

Curvaceous beauty Hilary Rosenberg doesn't believe in love. She only goes out with nice guys who won't expect passionate romance--until a notorious womanizer demands she repay a favor with four weeks of counterfeit dates.

Billionaire playboy Mark Pryce doesn't do relationships. In fact, he's never been with the same woman for more than three months. But when his matchmaking mother tries to sabotage his bachelorhood, he needs a stand-in girlfriend. Luckily, Hilary owes him big time. But as they start to spend more time together, he finds himself wanting to break his first rule: never get too close...

The Billionaire's Counterfeit Girlfriend was a cute fluffy read. At times, it did delve into some hard topics, but didn't really flesh them out. One of my favorite parts was how Hilary was no stick. She seemed to be secure with her body type though, until people would make fun of her and talk bad about her. I will never understand what possesses people to do that. Some individuals are just mean.

Both Hilary and Mark have a lot of baggage, and I mean a LOT of baggage. They are so hung up on their past for the majority of the story. For them, the past pretty much dictates their future, and is the reason behind many of their decisions. For Mark, his parents' relationship is not loving. Instead, his mom is supposedly trapped in this marriage, while his dad cheats on her with just about every woman he happens across. As for Hilary, I won't get into too many details, but her family is Jerry Springer worthy. Let's just say her aunt and her mom have similar taste...

I think the author meant for Hilary to be in her late 30s, but the Hilary that I came to know in the book was not in her late 30s. Instead, I pictured Hilary to be in her late 20s, maybe early 30s. That just made way more sense to me. I know it's probably not what the author intended, but I'm just stubborn that way.

"Surviving is what any animal would do. It's making something of yourself that earns the badge. Nobody can choose how they were born and raised, but everyone can choose how they're going to live."

"Nothing's ever simple. I just don't want you to ignore possibilities out of fear. Sometimes you have to take a leap of faith, believing that somebody's going to catch you."

Book Review: The Phoenix (Daughters of Destiny Book 4) by K.R. Grace

Title: The Phoenix
Author: K.R. Grace
Series: Daughters of Destiny #4
My Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Star Allistar:

I always felt out of step with everyone else. I never dreamt it was because I was some sort of mythological freak.

My whole world has been flipped around with Drake’s return, Brighton’s aloofness, and my Phoenix-thing going on, but instead of having time to adjust to the latest developments in what has become the saga that is my life…I have to save the world once again.

Only this time, I have to save it from me.

K.R. Grace, you are an absolute rockstar! I am so glad I came across The Loner, because it introduced me to a world I absolutely love. The entire concept behind Star's story was amazing, I mean coming up with the idea of having a book dedicated to each suitor was pure genius! This series is definitely in my top ten!

The Phoenix was so much more than I hoped it would be, and that's saying a lot, because I had super high expectations. The pace of the story was absolutely perfect! Things were happening quickly, yet slowly at the same time, which made for some extreme anticipation building. At one point I just decided I couldn't stop until I finished the book, I was that into it!

The built up anticipation and suspense really got to me. There were so many twists that I think my face may have froze in a position of shock for a while. Don't worry, it wasn't permanent. Eventually my expression changed from one of shock to one of pure happiness.

Even with all the shock-worthy moments and constant action, the story did manage to wrap itself up in a perfect package, complete with the perky bow and all. The ending had me grinning from ear to ear. I probably looked like the cheshire cat, but who cares! The story was just perfect. It's as simple as that. Perfect.

If you haven't read this series yet, do yourself a favor...READ IT!

"...and yes that was meant to be interpreted in a sarcastic bubblegum tone complete with clapping and jazz hands."

"Babe, I hate to break it to you, but you're one messed up mess."
"I know!" I exclaimed before breaking off into a fit of laughter. "I ought to be admitted or put on some serious medication or something."

"I invited Onyx to be my plus one. Of course she was all in when I added that Grandma A had a massive swimming pool and was within a short driving distance to a two-story bookstore."

"Seriously, why was it tradition to stand when the bride came in? It blocked her from seeing her groom, who was the only reason she was there in the first place."

Book Review: Escape from Witchwood Hollow by Jordan Elizabeth

Title: Escape from Witchwood Hollow
Author: Jordan Elizabeth
Pages: 178
My Rating: ❤❤❤❤

Everyone in Arnn - a small farming town with more legends than residents - knows the story of Witchwood Hollow: if you venture into the whispering forest, the witch will trap your soul among the shadowed trees.

After losing her parents in a horrific terrorist attack on the Twin Towers, fifteen-year-old Honoria and her older brother escape New York City to Arnn. In the lure of that perpetual darkness, Honoria finds hope, when she should be afraid.

Perhaps the witch can reunite her with her lost parents. Awakening the witch, however, brings more than salvation from mourning, for Honoria discovers a past of missing children and broken promises.

To save the citizens of Arnn from becoming the witch’s next victims, she must find the truth behind the woman’s madness.

How deep into Witchwood Hollow does Honoria dare venture?

I was asked to read Escape from Witchwood Hollow in exchange for an honest review. I read the description and knew it was different from my typical fluffy, angsty paranormal reads. But, I thought "Hey, why not?" and ended up giving it a shot. And yeah, this was different from my usual reads, but I actually really enjoyed it!

Going into this book, I didn't know that there is actually some switching between points of view. This absolutely made the story that much better! It reads like an awesome mystery, where you get random pieces, but finally towards the end, everything starts to click into place and make sense.

I absolutely loved how everything came together and clicked! This book definitely gave me one of those lightbulb moments where I just had to stop and think "Wow, so that's how all of this works!" And as for how exactly everything does work out, I've got one word for you...WOW! I don't know if there is any other possible way the book could have wrapped itself up. It was just meant to happen that way.

Elizabeth truly managed to weave together a young adult story not about angst, but about grief. There was no whiny teenage girl, but instead one that is broken and completely relatable. Escape from Witchwood Hollow shows just how important and what individuals will go through for family and a sense of belonging.

"The school should teach a class on deciphering obscure images in bad photography. Amanda's photos could make up the textbooks."

"The darkness became an envelope and she the letter, seeking a destination she couldn't foresee."