Review: Alone In Paris by Ashley Earley + GIVEAWAY! (CLOSED)

Hello, everyone! I'm super excited to bring you guys my stop on the blog tour for ALONE IN PARIS by Ashley Earley hosted by THE FANTASTIC FLYING BOOK CLUB. I'm so happy I got the chance to read and review this novel and be a part of this blog tour so let's not dilly dally too much.

I was sent an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as part of this blog tour.

Down below is my full review of this book, the author's links, the link to the rest of the blog tour (which you should really check out), the purcahse links for the book should you fancy buying yourself a copy, and finally, a GIVEAWAY! 

NOTE: The giveaway is taking place over on the author's Instagram page which I've linked down below.

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Add It To Goodreads!

Rating: PG

Genre: Contemporary

Score: 4.5 stars

Page Count: 310

Stand Alone

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: April 1st, 2017

Breathe, Taylor.

Taylor Clay's family isn't exactly perfect. They may look the part with the nice, big house and her dad's fancy job, but that's what's tearing them apart. That, and her dad's sudden recurring drinking problem.
Though her family is close to falling apart, she never wished for something like this to happen. She never wished for her father to drive off a bridge. Especially not while they were on vacation; especially not when her and her mom were in the car with him at the time.

Breathe.

She's devastated after the fact. And it isn't helping that the papers are gossiping about how the pristine lawyer could have driven off the bridge on purpose. And just when she thinks nothing could possibly make things worse, she realizes she's left alone with no relatives to care for her.
So she's alone. Her parents are dead. And she's stuck in the country her family was visiting for their vacation. She's alone in Paris.

Just breathe.
Then Nathan walks into the picture. Funny, snarky, persistent, and sometimes, just flat out rude, he annoys Taylor to no end. He won't leave her alone, but Taylor doesn't know whether or not she should push him away.

Review:

PROS:

1. So . . . that cover. If I hadn't known about the author for some time, the cover would've been enough to get me curious about this novel. I've actually known Ashley for a little while now as we've been Instagram buddies for almost a couple of years. I have no idea how I came across her books and writing but I've been meaning to read her other novel The Darkest Light ever since it's release. It's been collecting dust on my tablet (I tend to forget eBooks are a thing) so when the chance came to review Ashley's newest novel, I couldn't turn down the chance. I was SO EXCITED when I got a confirmation for my spot on the tour, I can't even describe it to you all in words. Having finally been able to read something written by her, I promise my review is NOT biased. Just getting that out there. Okay, here's my review: 

2. As I said, that cover. Upon actually reading the book, I was hooked from the very first page. Our main character Taylor is a girl living all alone with no friends, relatives, or anyone at all to care for her and watch over her in the way that a young girl needs to be taken care of. She's lived on her own for a little while and trusts no one with her secrets or in general. She's not sure where she's going, how or when she'll get there, but she's very closed off from people and doesn't interact with anyone if she can help it. Taylor learns throughout the book how to open up to people, learn to trust people again even if it's just one person, and that life wasn't meant to be lived alone drowning in a pain that she can only escape with someone's help. As an aspiring artist, Taylor is a shy, quiet, and observant character which made her very easy to relate to as the story progresses. Not to mention her character development was quite nice and had a good pace.

3. The story was really deep at some points and very fluffy at others but had a good balance of both. There was a constant underlying tone to the book that kept it from being too heavy or too light and for it to be such a quick, short read, I was impressed with the range of emotions and themes we get in its short pages. Trust and grief are two main themes that we see. Taylor isn't sure if she should trust anyone, let alone a stranger who seems to show too much interest in her for her own comfort and is in a constant roller coaster of grief, pain, and even suicidal thoughts as she struggles to move past the pain of losing her parents. Taylor fights a silent war inside herself and as the story pans out, we get to see her thoughts and deepest, darkest fears and worries as she wonders if her life will ever be different from the aching pain she feels every day.

4. The romance was very sweet and had a very nice development, though I would've liked a little more time for the relationship to develop to allow for just a tad bit more angst. This story is also very character driven which I loved. There wasn't much setting to the book or description of the sights, other than a mention of a few places to set the story up in Paris, France, so if you're looking for a quick read that cuts to the chase and doesn't focus too much on setting, I highly suggest this one. It had just enough set up to place the story in Paris and focused mainly on the characters which was a big reason why I enjoyed this book so much. Overall, I really loved reading this one. It was fast, sweet, heartbreaking yet funny and quirky at the same time. A perfect summer read that I think a lot of people would totally enjoy as much as I did. 

You Can Purchase The Book Here:

Amazon

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About The Author:

Ashley Earley is a 20-year-old author that is working toward her B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing. When she’s not writing, she’s posting on her blog, reading, obsessing over a book character, or spending time with friends. Her obsession with books started at the age of twelve, before developing into a love for writing at the age of fourteen, when she wrote her first novel. 

Her Thriller/Suspense short story, Chasing Hair of Gold, won first place in the 2016 Writer’s Digest Popular Fiction Awards.

Author Links:

Goodreads

Website

Twitter

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Instagram

Pinterest

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Review: 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

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Rating: PG

Genre: Contemporary

Score: 3.75 stars

Page Count: 317

Book #1 of the Little Blue Envelope series

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: August 23rd, 2005

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous–though utterly romantic–results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

Rating:

PROS:

1. I first read this book a few years ago when I was about twelve or thirteen and it was pretty much my first step into the YA genre of books. I remember falling in love with this book and wanting to read more of Ginny's story but I never ended up reading the sequel to this book. I bought a copy a few weeks ago since I thought it was about time I reread the book just to see if I ended up loving it as much as I use to and run something of an experiment. Happily, I was able to buddy read this book with a friend of mine Olivia from Olivia's Catastrophe and I had a lot of fun discussing the different events that occurred in the book. Here's my review:

2. I thought Ginny was a nice main character as she was more of a quiet and shy type who didn't like being the center of attention and wasn't one to just go out and do something crazy, unlike her aunt who was a wild and free spirit, someone who would go to work one morning then fly to Amsterdam that evening. The contrast between Ginny and her aunt made it really entertaining to read since Ginny is following in her aunt's footsteps, following the letters she reads and their instructions and traveling to the same places her aunt went, meeting the same people her aunt once knew, and encountering new things, trying to understand her aunt and the person she really was. I also liked the side characters such as Richard who plays a guardian role for Ginny. I thought he was very thoughtful and looked after Ginny quite well even though he barely knew her. I also liked Keith mainly because of how honest and forward of a character he was. He didn't hold anything back about his opinions on things and had an air of confidence that was complementary to Ginny's character type.

3. I loved being able to travel around Europe with Ginny and get to know her crazy aunt in that way. The descriptions were nice and easy to imagine, especially if you've seen movies or pictures of the sights that Ginny gets to see and travel through. There were some errors with some of the settings and tiny little details that were overlooked and took a little bit away from the book but overall, I thought it was written nicely and was a quick enough read that I was able to relax with. It's lighthearted, wanderlust filled, and had this colorful, old-world, European feel throughout the book that I adored.

CONS:

1. While I liked the book overall and thought it was fun to reread before the end of the year, I did feel like the book needed a better ending. After everything that Ginny went through, everything she saw and experienced, both the good and bad things, the ending didn't really fit in with the rest of the book. It was a bit of a let-down as I felt that the ending was a little too nicely packaged and maybe even a little too realistic in a sense. I know that sounds strange but the way the story wraps up, it was just too easy and smooth. I think I would've enjoyed the book a little more had Ginny done something a little crazy herself before the story ended, especially since she didn't do anything crazy all on her own throughout the book, she was merely just following the instructions her aunt gave in her letters. 

2. There were quirky moments strewn throughout the story, funny moments, sad moments, and happy moments but I would have loved just a little bit more of a climax. I think at some points, there was some conflict that was dealt with and then resolved to move on to the next part of the book but there wasn't anything too exciting that happened. Yes, it had a nice pace and it was interesting to read, but this book needed that little extra punch that I think would have benefited the character development of Ginny who doesn't really have any development. She does have to find a way out of some sticky situations but she handles them like a shy and quiet character would, not like someone who's starting to realize how big the world really is like her aunt is trying to teach her through her letters. 

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I hope you all enjoyed this review! Read on, bookworms! See you in the next chapter! 

All Fall Down by Ally Carter

All Fall Down By Ally Carter

Rating: PG

Genre: YA Fiction, Action & Adventure

Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Page Count: 310

Book #1 of the Embassy Row Series

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Published: January 20, 2015

 

This exciting new series from NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Ally Carter focuses on Grace, who can best be described as a daredevil, an Army brat, and a rebel. She is also the only granddaughter of perhaps the most powerful ambassador in the world, and Grace has spent every summer of her childhood running across the roofs of Embassy Row. Now, at age sixteen, she's come back to stay--in order to solve the mystery of her mother's death. In the process, she uncovers an international conspiracy of unsettling proportions, and must choose her friends and watch her foes carefully if she and the world are to be saved.

 

Review:

PROS:

1. I'm not only a huge fan of the lovely and talented Ally Carter but I'm also such a huge fan of this new novel by her! I seriously couldn't wait to get my hands on it and even though I wasn't able to pick it up immediately after buying it, my excitement only increased. Here's the review!

 

2. One thing I seriously loved about this book was the characters! I loved the witty and sarcastic banter between them and it was exactly what you'd expect from a band of misfits trying to unravel the mystery of a murder. Grace was definitely my favorite out of all of them however. I loved how Grace knew she wasn't perfect despite her grandfather's important place in society and I loved how she accepted it but also used her imperfections to drive her to do whatever it took to catch her mother's killer. I also loved how Grace and Alexei had some major chemistry between them but Grace, however, chose to put her feelings aside and focus on her mission. I felt she was a strong character and very daring and a big risk taker.

 

3. The whole book had an air of mystery from the first page to the last. I loved how the story unfolded and how, at first, things seemed somewhat normal in Grace's life until different events started happening which revealed the true nature of Grace's personality and anxiety. It also felt like there were multiple twists and turns and even some pretty exciting, heart pounding moments that kept you on the edge of your seat. I wasn't sure where the story would go when I first picked it up but then things started falling into place, secrets were revealed, rumors were spread and a path was opened up for the story and boy did I love where it headed!

 

4. This book was an exciting, heartbreaking, heart pounding, action and suspense with a touch of romance read that I seriously want to reread it already! Not only did this book have an amazing band of characters, very well developed ones at that, and a really amazing world and surprising truths, but it had a mind blowing and all around freaking amazing plot twist about 20 pages from the end! Needless to say, I almost had a heart attack while reading and because of the amazing ending, I need the sequel to see what happens next! A sequel that I know will be worth the wait!

 

I hope you guys enjoyed this book review! If you have any more book requests you would like me to review, just leave a comment or send me an email! Read on bookworms! See you in the next chapter!

 

Purchase On Amazon

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A Time To Reap by Jonas Lee

A Time To Reap by Jonas Lee

Click Here To Purchase

Rating: PG

Genre: Sci-fi, Time Travel

Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Page Count: 250

Book #1 of the Legend Of Carter Gabel Series

Publisher: Createspace

Published: July 2014

 

Pemberton Academy is not just a school, it’s a gathering place for the children of the future that are afflicted with Temporal Displacement and Telepathy; in short, time travelers and mind readers who have been diagnosed with this “disease.” The Academy is not all as it seems after an explosion nearly takes one of its classmates, but not before Carter Gabel rescues her by using an unknown symptom related to his described illness. An unsanctioned group called the Program begins taking notice as the two classmates exhibit stronger abilities when they are together. Carter's sense of reality begins to unwind as he learns more about his estranged father's involvement with it all. Carter will have to overcome the past of his father leaving, the present of an unknown adversary hunting him down and a future that seems to change with each decision he makes. He will have to learn who to trust out of the people in his life if he wants to conquer the looming notion that the government may be hunting him down because of his developing abilities.

 

Review:

PROS:

1. First off, I was pretty excited when I was sent this book for review not only because it sounded freaking cool, but also because it was the type of book that I'd been wanting to read. There are quite a few things I liked about this book so without any more rambling, let's just jump right into the review!

 

2. The characters in this book were so loveable in many ways. I have to say that our main character, Carter, is definitely my favorite, hands down. He was very funny with his sarcastic comments and snarky personality and pretty much had the perfect image of a typical teenage boy with a sometimes overprotective mom and not enough sleep to handle his very exciting and unpredictable life. I really loved Carter because he made me laugh out loud with the things he said and was just a fun character to follow in this book.

 

3. The storyline was fast-paced from beginning to end which, of course, is always a good thing for a sci-fi book. I loved getting to know about Carter's world, the abilities he has, as well as going along for the ride as he has to not only stay out of harm's way but also fight to keep the people he cares about alive. There was a lot of twists and turns that kept me hooked, wanting to know what happens next and also had a few mind blowing moments and plot twists that were pretty awesome.

 

4. I really enjoyed the writing in this book as well. I really loved how the sarcastic comments from the characters gave the book a lighter and fun loving feel even though the story was a bit dark and serious. I also loved how everything was well explained from Carter's ability to Leap, to how him and his gang planned on pretty much shutting down an entire government system. It was an exciting read and I recommend this book to anyone who wants something fun, fast-paced, and is full of exciting moments that will have you on the edge of your seat.

 

Age Recommendation: +13

 

I hope you guys enjoyed this book review! If you have any other book requests you would like me to review, just leave a comment or send me an email! Read on bookworms! See you in the next chapter!