The Rebound Girl by Tamara Morgan

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

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Summary from Goodreads


Plastic surgeon Whitney Vidra knows all about getting over a cheating ex. She followed her boyfriend halfway around the world before she found out about his infidelity. Now she's focusing on her career and her friends, and using men just for single-serving, no-strings fun. Until she meets charming Matt Fuller.



Newly single Matt is captivated by the vibrant Whitney, in every way the opposite of his cheating ex-wife. When he confesses to Whitney that he hasn't had sex since his divorce, she volunteers to be his rebound girl. But Matt's not a no-commitment kind of guy—he's either all in, or all out.
Whitney is determined to remain attachment-free, but Matt is equally determined to prove to her that what they have is more than just a rebound fling.



My Review

A typical story of two persons moving on with their lives from a heart-breaking past and found each other. It's easy to find out where the story is going with the two main characters. But what made me continue reading is the chemistry of the two characters. Matt and Whitney are two persons you shouldn't put together, but with the story and set up, the author had successfully created a very adorable love team. Though adorable should be the last word that should describe them, I can't help myself. But before adorable, we could put hot, irresistible and entertaining. But I'll stand up on my adorable description. A conservative teacher and a liberated plastic surgeon's love story is something I cannot pass on hearing.

Though I know where would the story ends even before I open the book, this book intrigued me on how they will end up together. The humor, sexiness, and depth of this story is really entertaining. In this book, it's not the "how they met" or "how the book ended" what's important. It's what's in between. On how these two found forgiveness and acceptance when they found love together.

Ink by Amanda Sun

Saturday, April 20, 2013

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Summary from Goodreads


I looked down at the paper, still touching the tip of my shoe. I reached for it, flipping the page over to look.

Scrawls of ink outlined a drawing of a girl lying on a bench.

A sick feeling started to twist in my stomach, like motion sickness.

And then the girl in the drawing turned her head, and her inky eyes glared straight into mine.

On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. She doesn’t know the language, she can barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and she can’t seem to get the hang of taking her shoes off whenever she enters a building.

Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they'll both be targets.

Katie never wanted to move to Japan—now she may not make it out of the country alive.


My Review

It's nice to have a breathe of fresh air. And a story with Japan settings is something new for me.  At first, it's really confusing what the story is all about and how all the characters fit in. But as the story goes, everything is coming to its perfect place. I just find myself enjoying the love story between Katie and Tomo.  

The mystery surrounding Tomo is really intriguing that I almost got frustrated how Tomo denies everything when the truth is so obvious, but the story behind the truth is quite hard to get.  I'm not familiar with Kami or any other Japanese legends, so I was hoping that the story would give more details on it. Even how Tomo and Katie got involved in this legend was not elaborately explained, which I'm hoping would be shared in the next book. I guess it would explain a lot.

I also love how American and Japanese culture was mixed so naturally. I didn't even feel confused everytime Japanese words are uttered even though I have no idea what the words are, but as I said, it's quite entertaining to read something different.

What I also loved about this, other than the supernaturals, is how Katie found her home in a foreign place. At first, Katie is lost, a stranger in a foreign land, but as the story goes, Katie comes to love the place and found her place in a place she never thought she could find.  It makes me realize, that sometimes, changes are good. We just have to be open about it.

The After Girls by Leah Konen

Friday, April 12, 2013

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Summary from Goodreads


Ella, Astrid, and Sydney were planning the perfect summer after high school graduation. But when Astrid commits suicide in a lonely cabin, the other girls' worlds are shattered. How could their best friend have done this--to herself and to them? They knew everything about Astrid. Shouldn't they have seen this coming? Couldn't they have saved her?

As Ella hunts for the truth, and Sydney tries to dull the pain, a chilling message from Astrid leaves them wondering whether their beloved friend is communicating from the after life. The girls embark on a journey to uncover Astrid's dark secrets. The answers to those questions--questions they never dreamed of asking--will change their lives forever. http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2568999292484262172#overviewstats


My Review


When their friend Astrid committed suicide, Sidney and Ella are left to pick up the pieces. Pieces of guilt, what ifs and memories of their friendship. Both tried to handle their grief in their own ways. Sydney was the one who wanted to let it go, move forward and just forget everything. I understand her, at least that way, she never have to be reminded of all the opportunities she could have in helping Astrid, and maybe, Astrid would not kill herself. In parties and drinking, Sydney could pretend everything is fine, and even for just a moment, she could forget that one of her best friend died. 

Ella on the other hand wanted to solve the mystery of Astrid's death. They thought everything is fine with Astrid, that all of them have planned the future together. Ella could not accept the fact that Astrid gave up and left them, that Astrid chose to end her life than choose to ask their help in whatever she's going through. She believes Astrid is telling her something, that her ghost is possible reaching out to her ,telling her a message, and he won't stop until she finds out all the mysteries behind their friend's death.

It shows two ways of moving on, one is Sydney's way-- forget everything and move on, and the other is Ella's, that is face all the feelings and facts before moving on. Both are effective I guess, it's the individual's character on how to cope up with the hurt of losing someone. Just one thing remains, both are hurting really bad. :(

It's a little bit confusing where the story is going. Is this a paranormal story or just a simple story of friendship, life and death. But in the end, it doesn't matter. What the books wanted to tell has successfully been expressed by the story regardless if ghosts are real or not. It's that in life, we lose some, we gain some. Losing someone would hurt a lot, it comes with regrets of things we could have done to save them, to stop them from leaving, but when it comes in the end, all we have to do is accept the fact the they're gone, but we still have our lives, to live it and move on and let ourselves be healed.