Speed Date: Wish I Might by Coleen Paratore

No Clue what this cover has to do with the story

The Deal: Willa's perfect summer in Bramble, Cape Cod isn't going as perfect as she hoped for. Her best friend Tina is boy crazy and she and their other friend Ruby are making Willa feel left out. Joey, Willa's boyfriend, is spending the whole summer away from her in Miami. Even her new dog, Salty, has deserted her for a boy named Will*. 

Only that Will claims Salty was his dog first, and that Willa is actually his sister - something Willa can't deny as they look so much alike. What's more, Will is in Cape Cod on a mission that has everything to do with the birth-father they never met.  

And Willa has to deal with it all, largely on her own as she wonders how Will's mission will turn her life upside down, if he's right. 

My Thoughts: I'm a huge fan of The Wedding Planner's Daughter books, which followed Willa's adventures when she was younger. Sadly, I can't say I find this second set of books - about Willa's teenage years - to be quite as charming.

Willa is growing up, and some of her more lovely traits as a kid don't translate so well now she's a teenager and she often comes off as naive, goody-goody and a bit too perfect. I still like her and her love of books and all, but she is a bit too sweet sometimes. 

She's alone a lot in this book too, and I sort of missed the Willa of previous book who was always trying to help other people, she's no longer quite the cupid she used to be and that takes away some of the whimsical aspects that I used to love so much about the series. 

I'm curious about the next book, though (From Willa, With Love) even this this particular book, Wish I Might, wasn't my favorite of the series. 

Favorite Quote: "Enjoy it, little girl, enjoy it. Every little spark, every second.

You'll grow up soon enough, and nothing will feel simple again." - Willa.

What's a Book Speed Date, you ask? It's a quickie review--about 150 words or so--of any genre book (variety is the spice of life, after all).

If you want to join in or just read other speed date reviews, check out The Book Swarm

*Call me crazy, but during Forget me Not, the previous book of the series, I never got the feeling that Will was quite as old as 17. But suddenly, in this book he is, yet he still sounds like he's Willa's own age (14), actually.

The Girl Games Blog Tour - Character This or That and Giveaway!!!

Hello everyone!! On the occasion of the release of The Girl Games - the first Goddess Girls Super Special edition featuring Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite and Persephone all at the same time! - I'm happy to welcome Goddess Girl Artemis who's going to play This or That with us!

Without further ado, lets jump right to it. 

Artemis answers This or That

Dogs or Cats? Dogs, of course. I’ve got three of them: Amby, a beagle, Nectar, a greyhound, and Suez, a bloodhound. (Suez is Zeus spelled backward.) Aphrodite and Persephone might disagree with me, though. They’ve both fallen crazy in love with a black and white kitten named Adonis. They fight over him all the time. And they’re keeping him a secret from Principal Zeus. I do not see a good end to this.

Fruits or Vegetables? What’s a vegetable? No, seriously. I’m not fussy about food. I like everything. Except maybe broccoli. Apples are my favorite fruit. I’d try to shoot one off the top of Apollo’s head if he’d let me. He says my aim with a bow and arrow is good, but he still wouldn’t trust me not to miss. Humpf.

Hugs or Kisses? Usually I’m not a big fan of either. Only I wouldn’t mind a hug or kiss from Actaeon. So far we've only held hands a few times. I wish I knew how he really felt about me.

Sunrise or Sunset? Sunrise. Before everyone else is up. Out of one of the trails below Mount Olympus with just my dogs.

Half-Full or Half-Empty? I’m confused. Are we talking about my quiver here? It only needs to be half-full to hold my three silver arrows. Those are the ones I intend to use to beat that boyfriend-stealing Amazon, Penthesilea, in the archery event in the Girl Games.

Scream or Cry? Scream. Like this: “Back off. Actaeon’s my crush!” But I never do it out loud. Only inside my head. 

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Click HERE for further and previous stops of this tour!

Book Review: Just Say Yes by Phillipa Ashley

At First Sight: Lucy Gibson's life changed the moment hunky Nick Laurentis followed her out of the sandwich shop where he worked and asked her out, and soon she finds herself in a 'relationship'.

Lucy has her reservations - she doesn't really know much about Nick and their first couple of dates went really badly (as in they didn't happen 'cause he messed up) - but she tells herself she doesn't really want a relationship, but she's not against taking advantage of Nick's gorgeous body.

Things go well enough for a time, until Nick enters Hot Shots - a low-budget reality TV show - and actually wins. Suddenly he's proposing in front of a live audience and Lucy is left in the spotlight.

With the paparazzi following her around, and everyone against her because she turned Nick down, Lucy decides to escape with her best friend Fiona to a cottage in Cornwall.

There she meets Josh, a windsurfer who is trying to make something of himself after spending most of his youth getting by on his looks and doing the bare minimum. Soon Lucy and Josh hit it off, but there is one small problem: Josh's bitchy fiancé Sarah.

Second Glance: Just Say Yes wasn't the kind of book I was expecting - at first, I didn't even realize it took place in England, for example - and for me it was more chick-lit-ish at times than actual contemporary romance. 

Lucy was likable enough but the way she acts around and about Nick made me think she didn't have a healthy self-esteem (sure, she tells herself she's using Nick too, but that didn't rub well with me either), plus Nick isn't nice or sharp or anything really, other than good in bed.

Also I felt like the pace of the book was a bit off, it took a long while for the story to get going as the first seven or eight chapters are ALL flashback/recap of Lucy's relationship with Nick, so I felt like I never really saw that relationship develop and a lot of it was glossed over, and part of me just plain didn't care about this relationship that was obviously over and obviously bad for Lucy. 

Josh was okay, but I didn't feel anything even remotely swoony toward him (he's not a bad guy, I just didn't see the appeal). He is nicer though, so that gives him points. 

I did like Fiona and Lucy's neighbor Charles - I usually found the scenes where he was in to be funny. 

Bottom Line: I wasn't crazy about Just Say Yes, I thought the characters needed a bit more development and the pace was a bit off but it's not a bad book and it did have some enjoyable moments.

1/2

Book Review: Scandalous Desires by Elizabeth Hoyt

At First Sight: Ever since her husband was lost at sea, widower Silence Hollingbrook has devoted her life to the Orphan Home her family runs in St. Giles, and to a particular little girl she found at her doorstep, Mary Darling. 

As far as both of them are concerned, Silence is Mary's mother, and she'll protect her with everything she has, even if that means striking a bargain with the notorious river pirate Mickey O'Connor. Mick claims to be Mary's father and that he left her in Silence's care to keep her safe, but now his enemies - and he has plenty of those - have found out and he has taken Mary to his palace so he can keep the baby girl safe. 

Silence doesn't like or trust Mick - having tangled with him once before with disastrous results - but her love for Mary makes her follow her to Mick's lair, just as he planned. Ever since that night when they struck a bargain that shattered Silence's reputation, he has been fascinated by her and will not rest until she's truly and forever in his grasp.

Second Glance: Though Elizabeth Hoyt has written some of my most favorite books ever, I've been struggling with her Maiden Lane series. I thought the first book, Wicked Intentions,  was okay, not nearly as good as I expected but OK enough. I could never get into the second book - Notorious Pleasures - because I just didn't connect with the characters. Still, I was so excited about Scandalous Desires since it featured a pirate.

And yeah, I liked Scandalous Desires more than I did Wicked Intentions but it was far off from the books I love the most from this author. Mick's past was a bit contrived and I'm not sure I believed it all the way - maybe believed it's not the word, I guess I just didn't care, and it's his past that's fueling the story.

Silence was likable and I enjoyed seeing her take care of Mary and how she starts to make a little place for herself at Mick's palace. But I don't care about her family - and from what I see many of the future books will be about her family - and she has a tendency to run after Mick a lot. 

Also there is this thing that really annoyed me, it regards Mick and his pirating and the dumb reasons he has not to quit and what ends up happening in the end, it felt like a bit of a cope out. 

Bottom Line: Scandalous Desires is an okay read, it's well written and the premise is interesting enough but it's not the best by this author and I actually don't think I'll be continuing with this series. 

2/3

Book Review: Missing You by Meg Cabot

In the spirit of the Meg-A-Readers Blog Hop, I'm going to be reviewing one book by Meg Cabot every sunday for the duration of the event!

I think this might be one of the last ones I do, so I wanted to review Missing You, the last of the books in the 1-800-Where-R-You series and one of my favorite.  

The Deal: Jess Mastriani - the once well known psychic who could find anyone in her sleep - has lost herself. After a year working for the FBI and helping catch bad guys, she was struck by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, as swiftly as she was once struck by lighting and now she can't sleep well, so she can't find anyone. 

Instead, she's focusing on living a 'normal' life in New York, where she is attending Julliard and living with her best friend Ruth, trying to put her past behind her. Until Rob Wilkins shows at her doorstep with a strange request: that Jess helps him find his sister. 

Jess isn't happy to see Rob - when she first returned from her stint working for the government, things didn't end well between them - but she can't say no, and soon finds herself up to her old tricks. 

My Thoughts: I can't tell you how much I waited and wished and hoped for Missing You. When I first began to read the 1-800-Where-R-You, the series stopped with book four, Sanctuary, but if you have read that book you realize that a few things are left hanging there.

Those lose ends were tied quite well in Missing You. It addressed the downfall and price that Jess had to pay in exchange of a gift that she didn't want or ask for, it addressed her relationship with Rob and with her parents - particularly with her mom who was always trying to make her be someone she wasn't, even if she meant well - and also makes her realize what is it that she really wants in her life, and what she doesn't. 

Missing You is a great conclusion to one of my favorite series by Meg Cabot, and for me it was definitely worth the wait. Jess and Rob are still one of my favorite couples and I loved being back in Jess's small Indiana town. Oh and I loved seeing how Douglas moved on with his life and learned to live his his disease. 

1/2