Flora Reviews.... Forever Charmed (Halloween LaVeau Series Book 1) by Rose Pressey

Read: 21^st-23^rd November 2014

My Goodreads rating - 2 Stars - It was OK.

So I really liked the premise of this book; our main character is a second-rate witch called Halloween LaVeau (although she prefers Hallie, well wouldn’t you?!), who’s inherited a mansion from her Great Aunt that she’s trying to turn into a Bed & Breakfast. She finds a book hidden in the attic that’s written in some strange language, she reanimates a ghost and there are two amazingly handsome men Nicolas Marcos and Liam Rankin who just happen to turn up wanting to stay! Great, I do enjoy paranormal romance books with a bit of fun and mystery!

I downloaded this because it was cheap and had a good number of 4 or 5 star ratings on Amazon and the Goodreads website. I’ve enjoyed reading the Jolie Wilkins series by H.P. Mallory and “Haunted on Bourbon Street” by Deanna Chase was expecting something similar but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations.

Now you need to know that I’m in my early 40’s and I don't have the patience for YA novels; their characters full of angst, relationship naivety, a MC’s inability to see the bigger picture,  "read between the lines" or know that the world isn’t just black & white,  good or evil but a myriad shades of complex grey.

Hallie was a very frustrating character for me, she felt like a teenager or pre-teen most of the time when in reality she was supposed to be 28 years old. In fact most characters in this story were rather frustrating in one way of another and lacked the depth I was hoping for.

...So, basically what I’m saying is...

So, although I realised that this book wasn’t going to live up to all my expectations after the first couple of chapters, I did generally enjoy the story. I tried to let it just wash over me as I was reading and simply enjoy the ride. Sadly, I didn’t engage enough in Hallie, Nicolas or Liam enough to want to read the next book but this one did make me laugh out loud a few times. However, as it has received some 5 star reviews from other Goodreads readers obviously it ticks all the boxes for some people.


Find it on my Goodreads bookshelves: contemporary-paranormal, young-adult-teen

Flora Reviews... "No Knight Needed (Ever After #1) by Stephanie Rowe

 

 

Read from November 16 to 21, 2014

What a wonderful contemporary romance story. I usually read paranormal romances but I have to say that this did feel rather magical, it definitely had a spark! I loved it!

Stephanie Rowe has a great writing style, I find her books easy to read with a varied cast of characters and a wonderful depth to her main protagonists. 

 

I thought that this love story story progressed at a good speed, the relationship between Clare Gray and Griffin Friese developed at a realistic pace; both with their own concerns, doubts & hopes, with enough trials and twists to keep me guessing whether this tale would be one of  a "Brief Encounter" that changed them both for the better  or "...and they lived happily ever after".

This is "No Knight Needed"  Book 1 in the "Ever After" series but you can read it as a stand alone story.