Title: Before
Author: Cambria Hebert
Series: Heven and Hell #0.5
What if your life was charmed and everything in it was perfect…Before.This is the story of my past. Of what things were like for me when everything was normal. Of what every teenager’s life is like. Clothes. Parties. Boys and summer vacation. What’s so wrong with that? I liked it. I was happy. Until things changed. I changed.I didn’t know that lies and secrets were about to take over my existence. I didn’t know there was someone out there, someone meant just for me. I didn’t know that I was about to go on a journey, a journey that would lead me to the girl I am today.This is the beginning of the worst year of my life. Would I go back and change things? Erase everything that has happened to go back into these moments? Not a chance.This is a story of before.
My Review:
I got this book free from Amazon, so I really shouldn't complain...but it was just so effing short! I kid you not, it is about 10-15 pages and is more of a teaser than anything of substance. I guess it is definitely something that will inspire a reader to go out and get the first book because they are intrigued by this little clip. I have read Masquerade, book one in the series, so I actually appreciated it because it gives depth and more of the story that you never get in the book, but I was still disappointed because of how seriously short it is. You only get a quick glimpse into the main character Heven's mind as she was before the accident that scarred her forever. I like seeing a different side of Heven than the morose one who appears in Masquerade, but I only get a quick flash of that girl and if I hadn't read Masquerade before it I probably wouldn't appreciate all the little nuances of Heven's old personality. To be honest, I'd only read this if you are wondering whether or not to read Masquerade...It is a nice teaser, but doesn't really give you anything to go on other than...What Happens Next?!?!?
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Title: Between
Author: Cambria Hebert
Series: Heaven and Hell # 1.5
Synopsis:
I grew up in a comfortable house with two parents and a white-picket fence. My brother, Sam, and I used to play with sticks in the backyard and pretend they were swords. There were always cookies on the table and milk in the fridge. Then, one day, things changed.Sam changed. Life was never the same again. Sam left. My parents abandoned him when he needed them most, and I was left to survive in a house that was merely a shell of what it used to be. Mom cried all the time and Dad expected me to fill the void my brother left behind. But mostly, all we did was pretend. We pretended that things weren’t messed up. We pretended that Sam never existed.Until I changed, too. Now, everything’s a mess and I’m so confused. It’s like there are two different people trapped inside one body—my body—and one of them wants out. I do things. Bad things and I don’t know how to stop. I’m not sure I want to. The only way I can be normal again is if I find Sam. He’ll know what to do. He has to.
My Review:
To be perfectly honest, the description of Between is almost as long as the novella is. It was so short that I finished it in less than 10 minutes, I kid you not. Like Before, it seems like it is just a teaser, something to get you to buy the larger novels. Yet...it works. If I hadn't already been given a copy of Charade by Cambria Hebert, I would probably have immediately run out and bought it because of how intriguing of a character Sam's brother Logan is. He's been hurt so many times, first when his brother was forced to leave, then when the same thing happened to him. You can tell he loves his brother, but there's this kind of insidious darkness to him that gives you pause. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that there are problems with him in the the next book and how he deals with Hevan. I would hate to see what Sam does to Logan if he tries to hurt Hevan, but it looks like that's where this is going. I'm kind of hopefull for him...he doesn't SEEM evil..but you can tell that something might be twisted. Between is a stab in the gut for those who don't have their copy of Charade yet. It makes you want to drop everything and jump on the Heaven and Hell bandwagon, and who would blame you? With characters like Sam, Logan, China, and Hevan, Cambria writes a really compelling and fascinating series that has a lot of originality to it. Check out Between if you need that little nudge to get yourself to buy the series!
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Title: The Coven
Author: Cate Tiernan
Series: Sweep #2
Synopsis:
Cal, now Morgan's boyfriend, helps her accept the truth: Wicca is in Morgan's blood. As Morgan learns more about Wicca, she realizes that she needs to find out more about her parentage. The answers are there, but she doesn't know how to find them.
My Review:I think I'm going to include the majority of the Sweep series in my "mini-reviews" section. They are all about 180 pages, and though that is slightly more than the typical novella or short story, I don't feel like giving the time for a full review of each book. The review would practically be as long as the books are! Anyways, The Coven starts right where Book of Shadows leaves off (literally...there is no re-cap, no details about what happened before). It's a good thing that I'm planning on reading the series straight through or I would probably forget everything that happened in the last book. Morgan seems to be well on her way to becoming a witch. During circles at the newly formed Cirrus Coven, she is able to harness the magic better than any of the other novitiates, and spreads healing magic and joy through her friends. Unfortunately this power leads to two HUGE complications in Morgan's life. For one thing, her best friend is so overcome by jealousy that she literally turns into the villain of the story, and Morgan also starts to wonder why her parents never told her that she was a witch. Obviously if she is a blood witch, then they have to be....but why are they so secretive about it? And what happened to make the family so anti-witchcraft? All I can tell you guys is that there are some major shockers in this book. If you aren't on the lookout you will be completely blindsided and as shocked as Morgan is about some of the big reveals. Another huge plot point in the book was Cal and Morgan's relationship. I am tempted to say it moves too fast, but it really doesn't. The whole series moves as quick as lightning, and this is already book two, so I was happy when Morgan and Cal finally dealt with some of the electricity that's been bouncing off them since day one. They really are cute and sweet, but I have a few misgivings about Cal. He just seems a little...sneaky? I don't know what it is really. I should love him, but his mom makes me hesitate, and it bugs me how much he seems to know but doesn't share with the rest of the coven. Oh well...we shall see won't we? I'm probably making stuff up in my mind because I'm crazy and love to do that...lol... I give The Coven 4 Keys. It was short but sweet, and if the first three books were pressed together to make one book, I would gladly give it a five-er...
Hope you guys enjoyed these little flashes into some excellent novellas and short stories! I plan to do this a lot, especially with anthologies of short stories, because I feel like sometimes those kinds of little nuggets of awesomeness are lost in the shuffle and bustle of reviewing bigger, more popular books. Thanks for checking me out and have an amazing Tuesday!
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