Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Book Review: Sin City by Jennifer Samson


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Las Vegas, 1966. 

There are parts of Sin City the neon lights don't reach, and only the desperate and dangerous venture into the city's seedy backstreets, where gangsters rule, the floating poker games never stop, and people disappear without a trace. 

Ruby Gordon is desperate. She has nowhere else to go when her brother opens his home to her. He runs an off-the-books juke joint, and she is fascinated by the most dangerous – and handsome – of his clientele.

Tim Kelly is dangerous. His father never achieved notoriety with the Chicago Outfit, but Tim has aspirations to strike out on his own. He has plans, and they don't include a naive newcomer.

Jake Wheeler is both. The Airman-turned-rodeo-rider is as gorgeous as he is foul-tempered, and he's Tim's not-so-friendly rival. When he notices Tim's interest in Ruby, he's determined to derail Tim's plans. 

The three of them are on a collision course, but there's only one rule in Vegas: The house always wins.



Book Review: Talisman of El Trilogy by Alecia Stone



Click the titles to read the synopsis on Goodreads.


Talisman of El

Blackout

Ground Zero


Saturday, December 24, 2016

Book Review: Broken Faith by Brandy Nacole



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"This is it. The moment Heaven and Hell clash. But which unearthly being will win, the fallen angel or Hell's hounds?

Overtaken by fear, I close my eyes."

Kayson is a Fallen Angel who has spent decades running from the Hell Hounds while searching for something that no one else believes can be so, not even God. Kayson is determined to find a Blood Child. But when a hound finds Kayson first, he is sure his end has come.
Falon, Alpha of the Hell Hounds, destroyer of the blood children, and devoted believer in his master’s plan, is bound and determined to drag Kayson back to Hell with him.
Sabrina is a Vampire, a half-breed created from one of Lucifer’s original blood children. After years of hiding, Sabrina’s fate changes when she finds Kayson barely alive. Against her instincts, Sabrina saves him. Now she and Kayson are both marked by the Hell Hounds.
Emma is an ordinary human, whose only problem is making ends meet, and getting over the hurt caused by her untrustworthy brother. Her everyday problems become supernatural ones when she finds Kayson and Sabrina hiding in her parent’s backyard shed.

Kayson, Sabrina and Emma are unlikely allies, thrown together by chance to fight against the most powerful creatures of the underworld in order to follow their world-changing quest. But will the broken faith of one break the faith of all?
 

Saturday, December 10, 2016

Book Review: Taken by the Beast by Conner Kressley and Rebecca Hamilton



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Taken by the Beast A Sexy Beauty and the Beast Spin Off
When Charisse Bellamy takes the job at New Haven’s first ever Night Club, it’s only intended as a short term solution to make ends meet. But she soon discovers there is no resisting the pull of her new boss, Abram. Despite worrying how her feelings for Abram will impact her budding relationship with police deputy Dalton, she can’t seem to stay away, and it’s not until a missing girl is found chained up in Abram’s home that this beauty realizes one of her romantic interests is a beast.

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Book Review: Picture Me This by Marina Lovechild


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"One snap with the shutter of my camera, and you will be mine forever," he whispered.

My name is Sam, short for Samantha. I’m regular, boring and plain. The only time I can ever relax during my time in college is in photography class, or at least… It was.

That all changed when I met my new photography teacher. He is too sexy for his own good, and his mind too twisted for words to describe.
Together we tumbled into darkness, slowly spiralling out of control, and honestly...? I think I like it.



Friday, December 2, 2016

November Wrap-up




Oh wow!





How time flies so fast! It wasn’t long ago when it was still October and everyone’s enjoying Halloween but now it’s December! It’s almost Christmas!!!

Though I am more than glad that November is already done. Haha! Why? Because November was my final exam week! And now that it’s done, it means no more exam for this semester and say hello so Christmas Holiday Vacation!!!!

Alright. Let’s go to my wrap-up. This is actually my first time posting a wrap-up. Yup. I’m too late I guess?


Anyway, my November TBR list were a bit long and they were getting longer as the days go by. But, the books I’ve read this month are the following together with their Goodreads Synopsis and details and links for each of my reviews about it:



Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Book Review: The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane


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She couldn't stop it.Not then.Not now.

If she'd only turned her head, she would have seen the car containing her daughter, struggling to get out. Struggling to escape her kidnapper.

Despite all her years determining the fates of families, veteran family court judge Hope Willis couldn't save her own. Now she's frantically grasping at any hope for Krissy's rescue. Her husband dead–set against it, she calls Casey Woods and her team of renegade investigators,Forensic Instincts.

A behaviorist.A techno–wizard.An intuitive.A former Navy SEAL. Unconventional operatives.All with unique talents and personal reasons for being part of Casey's group, they'll do whatever it takes.

Able to accurately read people after the briefest of encounters, Casey leads her crew to Krissy's home. There, she picks up the signs of a nervous spouse, a guilty conscience, a nanny that hides on her cell. She watches as secrets beg to creep into the open.

Forensic Instincts will dig through each tiny clue and eliminate the clutter. But time is running out, and even working around the clock, the authorities are bound by the legal system. Not so Casey's team. For they know that the difference between Krissy coming back alive and disappearing forever could be as small as a suspect's rapid breathing, or as deep as Hope's dark family history.



Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Book Review: The Delphi Effect by Rysa Walker


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It’s never wise to talk to strangers…and that goes double when they’re dead. Unfortunately, seventeen-year-old Anna Morgan has no choice. Resting on a park bench, touching the turnstile at the Metro station—she never knows where she’ll encounter a ghost. These mental hitchhikers are the reason Anna has been tossed from one foster home and psychiatric institution to the next for most of her life.
When a chance touch leads her to pick up the insistent spirit of a girl who was brutally murdered, Anna is pulled headlong into a deadly conspiracy that extends to the highest levels of government. Facing the forces behind her new hitcher’s death will challenge the barriers, both good and bad, that Anna has erected over the years and shed light on her power’s origins. And when the covert organization seeking to recruit her crosses the line by kidnapping her friend, it will discover just how far Anna is willing to go to bring it down.

Saturday, November 5, 2016

Book Review: The 5th Horseman by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro


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An angel of death is stalking the halls of a San Francisco hospital. Recuperating patients on the verge of release are suddenly stricken and die. Nobody can identify the cause -- or the culprit. In their most gripping case yet, James Patterson's Women's Murder Club convenes to track down a killer who hides among healers. A powerful hospital and courtroom thriller.


Monday, October 31, 2016

Book Review: A Stranger in the Mirror by Sidney Sheldon



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Toby Temple is a superstar, the world's funniest man. He gets any woman that he wants, but under the superstar image is a lonely man. Jill Castle is a sensuous starlet. She has a dark and mysterious past and has an ambition even greater than Toby's. Together they rule Hollywood.



Sunday, October 30, 2016

Book Review: The Belgrave Legacy by Zara Hoffman



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A Reluctant Heroine. A Snarky Angel. A Big Mess.

Fawn doesn't believe in magic. But when she is unexpectedly thrust into the middle of an ancient feud, she must learn to control her powers.

Caleb is sick of Hell. But when a simple seduction becomes complicated by real feelings, he is forced to pick between keeping his past or fighting for his future.

Can this young witch navigate a dangerous world with the dark angel assigned to romance and seduce her by her side?

The Belgrave Legacy is an upper-young adult paranormal romance novel with a feminist twist. Filled with magic, witches, angels, demons, Zara Hoffman's "coming of age" story will keep you turning the pages until the very end.



Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Book Blog Tour (Book Review + Author Interview): Sensing Light by Mark A. Jacobson


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March 1979, a young street hustler in San Francisco stumbles into an emergency room with lungs so congested he can barely breathe. Seen by a perplexed young medical resident, the patient becomes the first of many thousands to die from a yet-to- be named plague. Sensing Light is raw, compelling novel that reveals the personal and professional lives of men and women on the front lines of the emerging AIDS epidemic.

This breakout book by Mark Jacobson, a leading Bay Area HIV/AIDS physician, follows three people from vastly different backgrounds who are thrown together by a shared urgency to discover what is killing so many men in the prime of their lives. Kevin is a gay medical resident from working class Boston who has just moved to San Francisco in search of acceptance of his sexual identity. Herb, a middle-aged supervising physician at one of the nation’s toughest hospitals, is struggling with his own emotional rigidity. And Gwen, a divorced mother raising a teenage daughter, is seeking a sense of self and security while endeavoring to complete her medical training.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Book Blog Tour: Four Letter Word (Dirty Deeds Series #1) by J. Daniels


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Sydney Paige was never so mortified to hear the words "wrong number" in her life. She meant to tell off the guy who broke her best friend's heart, but unleashed her anger on a perfect stranger instead. And now her world is turned upside down by the captivating man who wants to keep her on the line.

Brian Savage is living a life he's quickly come to hate-until Sydney's wild rant has him hooked and hungry for more. Soon the sexy woman on the phone becomes the lover in his bed. But Brian has secrets, and the closer he lets Syd get, the harder it is to shield her from the devastating mistakes of his past . . .


Sunday, August 28, 2016

Book Review: The Age of Amy: Mad Dogs and Makeovers by Bruce Edwards




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"We're all guilty of something, aren't we?"

A late-night phone call from a stranger implicates 16-year-old Amy in a terrorist plot. But when the nefarious caller suddenly vanishes, she becomes the FBI's prime suspect. To prove her innocence, Amy embarks on a fantastic journey to find her mysterious night caller. The clues to the peculiar man’s whereabouts all point to a dingy, old barbershop that caters to the rich and powerful. What draws them to the shop's eccentric barber is puzzling, until Amy stumbles upon the secret to his success: a magic shampoo that removes guilt!


Book Review: Sparrow by L.J Shen




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Troy Brennan 

Every Southie in Boston knows that name. The son of a dead mobster. The heart-throb with steel-blue eyes. "The Fixer" who can make or break you in this city.

Oh, and my new husband.

Sparrow Raynes 

That's me. No one seemed to remember my name up until he barged into my life.
But then he caged me.
Kidnapped me.
And killed every chance I had to run away from the place where we grew up.
Put simply, Troy Brennan clipped my wings.

I have dreams, big ones, but I doubt he'll ever let me chase them. I have no idea why he decided to take me as his wife. But I do know this: pissing off this man will not do me any good. At all. 

Book Review: Four Seconds to Lose by K.A Tucker



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When a gorgeous young dancer walks through his door, a strip club owner must decide whether to follow his rules or his heart in the third novel by the author of One Tiny Lie and Ten Tiny Breaths.
 

Owning a strip club isn’t the fantasy most guys expect it to be. With long hours, a staff with enough issues to keep a psych ward in business, and the police regularly on his case, twenty-nine-year-old Cain is starting to second guess his unspoken mission to save the women he employs. And then blond, brown-eyed Charlie Rourke walks through his door, and things get really complicated. Cain abides by a strict “no sleeping with the staff” rule. But being around Charlie challenges Cain’s self-control... and it’s been a long time since any woman has done that. 
 

Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Rourke needs a lot of money, really fast, in order to vanish before it’s too late. Taking her clothes off for men makes her stomach curl but Charlie tells herself that at least she’s putting her acting and dancing skills to good use. And though her fellow dancers seem eager to nab their sexy, sophisticated, and genuinely caring boss, she’s not interested. After all, Charlie Rourke doesn’t really exist—and the girl pretending to be her can't get distracted by romance.
 

Unfortunately, Charlie soon discovers that developing feelings for Cain is inevitable, and that those feelings may not be unrequited—but losing him when he finds out what she’s involved with will be more painful than any other sentence awaiting her.


Wednesday, August 3, 2016

NEW BOOK RELEASE: The Summer Games: Out of Bounds by R.S Grey (08-01-2016)



Fire the fireworks!!!



The second book of The Summer Games Series is now out! And I got the privilege to share and announce it with you peeps! For some reason I received an email about the release blitz without me knowing! If I haven’t checked my email earlier, I wouldn’t see it! Still, it’s not yet late!

If you, peeps, still don’t know what this book is about, let me help you with that. Here’s the blurb!

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I despise Erik Winter.
He’s arrogant and cruel—a man I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy—aCovernd by some twisted turn of fate, he’s my new Olympic gymnastics coach.
I’ve had to contend with gruff coaches in the past, but Erik is far worse. His stern demeanor complements a body built for intimidation, and his reprimands come from a mouth so cunning, I know it could strip me of my defenses—if I let it.
Though each of us would love to be rid of the other forever, we are bound to each other by need and necessity. I’m his rising star, his best shot at proving himself to his critics. And without a coach, I have zero chance of winning gold in Rio.
The easiest way forward would be to wave a white flag and make peace with the man I’ll be sharing close quarters with for the foreseeable future, but he is intent on war.
Fine. By. Me.
If he pushes me, I’ll push back harder. If he wants to test me, to play with my head, I’ll show him just how many boundaries I’m willing to cross. Because I know it’s not a choice between winning or warring—not if you can have them both. At the end of it all, I plan on leaving Rio with gold around my neck and his icy heart in the palm of my hand.

Sounds awesome, right? And just look at that book cover. Isn’t that enough to trigger some curiosity? If not, I don’t know what anymore! *grin* So go ahead and grab your own copy!
Available in Amazon and Goodreads!


About R.S Grey


Author
I am a lover of books, chocolate, reality TV, black labs, and cold weather. Seriously, if I had it my way, I would be curled up on the couch with all of those things… everyday.

I live in Texas where I spend my free time writing and reading. My favorite authors include Mindy Kaling, Jonathan Safran Foer. I’m a comedy geek and love all things “funny”. Women like Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, and Mindy Kaling are definitely the biggest inspirations for my writing, though I think my work tends to skew a bit smuttier than theirs.


Make sure to follow R.S Grey in FacebookInstagram, and Twitter to be updates about her recent adventures and reads! Also visit her website andGoodreads for the latest news about her books!

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Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Book Review: The Reluctant Sacrifice by Kerr-Ann Dempster




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Centuries ago, sibling rivalry tore Aramith apart. As punishment, the losers were stripped of their immortal birthright and banished to Earth. There, they wasted away from old age and diseases. However, there is hope… 

If a Shaw child, born on the 12th day of the 12th month offers her soul in a public sacrifice, then the exiles will be forgiven and welcomed home to Aramith. 

Aubrey Shaw is that child, but dying for the exiles is not on her to-do list. Using her gift as a Jumper, Aubrey leaps between bodies to escape relentless shape-shifting hunters. Only, shedding her skin is not enough. Not when Joshua, her best-friend-turned-hunter, is hell-bent on dragging her to the altar. 

Will Aubrey’s love for Joshua change his mind? 

Or, will she have to trust the scarred stranger who shows up out of the blue cloaked in lies and secrets? Doing so means giving up on Joshua. But betting on Joshua's love could do more than break her heart. 

It could kill her.


Title: The Reluctant Sacrifice
Author: Kerr-Ann Dempster
Pages:263 pages
Publisher: Ink City House
Date Published: August 7th 2015


Review:

I received an eBook copy from For Love of a Book in exchange for an honest review.




Now this book is such an amazing read! It has the action and thrill from the very first page of the book up to the last. It is so indulging and the story is quite unique. Though the beginning was a bit confusing because there was no discreet introduction of characters or the situation or anything, the story just flowed. But it’s not that hard to catch up on the story.


Aubrey is a unique character. She’s brave but she doesn’t know it. And it seems to me that there a lot of good characters of Aubrey’s that she doesn’t see. For her, she’s a coward who is good at nothing but running away and jumping. For me, Aubrey is fearless. And I somehow understand why she doesn’t want to be caught by the Hawk Unit. Even though the reason sound heroic to other people but when you’re the one being the sacrifice, it’s hard not to escape.


Let’s go to Joshua’s character. Right from the start of Joshua’s appearance to the book, I didn’t like him. Though they way Aubrey talk about him, it’s like you’re supposed to like him because he’s her love interest. But I just can’t. I hate him. And there’s something about him that I really don’t like.


And then there goes, Coy. His name sounds so awkward in my head because I have a classmate whom I called Coy because it’s her nickname. And yes she’s a she so it’s a bit awkward to picture Coy as the tall-and-creepy without thinking my classmate. (LOL) I always have a thing for mysterious boys whenever I read books, the kind of boys who can’t be trusted but is actually the one that can be trusted. Also, Coy is tall and big and just so dreamy. Despite his scars, he sounds so handsome to me. And I knew from the start that Coy loves Aubrey. I can feel it. Though again, the mystery that’s wrapped around him seems to doubt you. Just follow Aubrey’s reminder to her, trust your instinct. Coy loves Aubrey.


Now let’s head over to the story, one word: wow! I could say that the story is so inspired to the series Supernatural. Not to mention Aubrey’s best friend, Tessa, is so obsessed with the series. When Charr explained what happened between him and his twin brother Celo, I thought about the Season 11 of the Supernatural Series. If this book hadn’t been published last year, I would say that it really is based in that season of the series. However, it only made me amazed at the author because for some reason, she predicted or had an idea on what’s about to happen on the series and she based her book in it. Like seriously. Charr and Celo sounds like Chuck and Amara. The light and darkness who created a world and the darkness destroyed the world and blah blah blah. It’s so amazing.


Then ending though, it didn’t have the action I was hoping. I had expected more fight, more something but it didn’t have it. The climax seems to happen five chapters before the end. And it wasn’t even that much of a climax. The epilogue is my favorite chapter. If you’re asking why, please read the book. (Haha!)


And then their gifts! Out of all the gifts on the characters that were introduced, the one that I like is Joshua’s gift. (Yes, I know I said I hate him. I do hate the guy but I didn’t said I hate his gift too.) Joshua’s gift is hydrokinetic, the ability to control the weather. For me he sounds like Jason Grace the son of Zeus. Even Coy joked about Zeus in the book. When he’s mad, lightning bolts hit and thunder rumble. Though he can’t fly unless he folds himself into a hawk. But then, he’s gift is what I like the most.


This book is so good even though there are parts that the transition is so fast and sometimes confusing. Like, one minute they are talking calmly and then the next minute they are on each other’s throat. It’s an amazing read. It has love, action, humor and pain all combined in one book.


The ending is somehow satisfying but it will build the urge to read both the companion book (The Reluctant Huntress) and the epic conclusion (The Reluctant Kings).


I seriously want to read the companion book. Is there a way to read the companion book? I really really want to read the rest of the book! Because, obviously, I still want more.


Rate: 4/5 stars!



About the Author...



Kerr-Ann Dempster lives in Michigan where she is often found with her nose in a book, her toes in the sand/snow, and online fan-girling over fictional characters and fellow authors. She is a graduate of Loyola University, Chicago where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. After working in Visual Communications and as a Flight Attendant, Kerr-Ann decided that life was best spent being happy. With that in mind, she published her first novel, Beneath Scarlett Valley, in August 2014. She then published her second novel, The Reluctant Sacrifice, in August 2015. 

To know more about Kerr-Ann, visit her website here.

Friday, July 29, 2016

Book Review: The Trials of Apollo: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan


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How do you punish an immortal?
By making him human.
After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disorientated, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus’s favour.
But Apollo has many enemies – gods, monsters and mortals who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and he can think of only one place to go . . . an enclave of modern demigods known as Camp Half-Blood.



Review:
I’m gonna say that when it’s a work of Uncle Rick, it’s never a long read. Yes, though I admit that I didn’t finish the book immediately because there are a couple of authors who requested me to read their books in an exchange of an honest review. So I kind of paused in reading this book. But the story didn’t leave my mind.
In this book, I get to know the god Apollo more. When I read the series of Rick Riordan’s Greek and Roman myth, I always thought of Apollo as a funny god though somehow silent. Sure Apollo is not a minor god but he’s always been in the limelight. And when I heard that Rick is having a series about Apollo, I thought, what could be the story of it?
When I read the first page of the book, I somehow had the idea that Apollo is a bit arrogant. And as I go deeper into the book, I found out that Apollo is arrogant indeed. Though not in a way that you want to strangle him or punch him but in a funny way. He keeps saying in his narration that if he’s a god, he could crush these puny mortals easily. Or something like that. Though, all throughout the book, Apollo is really really funny.
And then there’s Meg McCaffrey, Apollo’s master. That girl is a mysterious kind of pumpkin. When Apollo and Meg first met, Meg already gave an impression that she’s strong and has power. Though from the beginning of Meg’s appearance, I already knew who her godly parent is –if you’ve been reading Rick Riordan’s books for so long, you don’t need a lot of clues to figure out a demigod’s godly parent.
As the book go on the adventure of Meg and Apollo, I find their tandem cute and funny. One arrogant used-to-be-god and one mysterious pumpkin (Yes. I call Meg a pumpkin because she seems like one). I was actually glad that Percy gave a cameo in the book. Ha! Kind of expecting that one though.
Most of the book happened in Camp Half-blood so there wasn’t really that much adventure compared to the other Greek myth series of Rick. Sure they somehow ended up in the cave where Python is but there wasn’t much that had happened there. They just eavesdropped. And then the rest of the book remained in the camp. And most of the time I was reading the book, I cringe. Not because there are parts that are really cringe-able but I cringe easily on weird things. Like, I didn’t even know that one of Apollo’s great lover was Hyacinthus and Hyacinthus is a man. I’ve read the book Percy Jackson and the Greek Gods to know that Apollo had a dryad lover named Daphne. And all throughout as Apollo keep saying his failed love with Hyacinthus, I really thought that he’s a she. And yes, that’s weird for me. Also, I didn’t expect that Rick would put something a little gore in the book. That wasn’t in his previous books. But I just thought that the book isn’t in the same age level with the PJO series and HOO series. Still it’s under Disney. (Whatever)
In the part where things got revealed, I didn’t expect the plot twist Rick had in store. Though it’s actually a bit common plot twist in the first books of some of his series, I didn’t expect that he’ll also apply it to Apollo’s first book. I guess, most authors just have their signature everything, writing patterns, sense of humor, and even plot twists. It was both shocking and heartbreaking.
When the battle begins, I was hoping that Percy Jackson would show up but I didn’t expect it. Because that would be like Percy is still in the spotlight and this is not his book. So even though I’m hoping he’ll show up, I’m also expecting he won’t. But he did. (That’s the only spoiler I’ll give). And I didn’t expected the ending either. Seriously, who would’ve thought he’d show up at the end of the book to help Apollo in his mission? Not to mention he brought someone with him. Dang!
The ending only gave me more urge to read the second book. I guess I just need to wait yet another year for the sequel. I’m so excited! For those who haven’t read the book yet, you should! I promise you won’t regret it!
P.S
This is a bonus. I put the book’s prophecy. Although it was said on the part where it’s about to end, I think it’s also good to know the prophecy before reading the book. That way you’re brain will explode thinking what it means. (I’m also an author so I know the pleasure of torturing readers! Haha!)

“There once was a god named ApolloWho plunged in a cave of blue and hollowUpon a three-seaterThe bronze fire-eaterWas forced death and madness to swallow”

Rate:
I'm giving it a 5/5 stars because of the ending!

About the Author...


Rick Riordan is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of over twenty novels for young readers, including the Percy Jackson series, the Kane Chronicles, the Magnus Chase series and the Trials of Apollo. He is also the author of the multi-award-winning Tres Navarre mystery series for adults.
For fifteen years, Rick taught English and history at public and private middle schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and in Texas. While teaching in San Antonio, Saint Mary’s Hall honored him with the school’s first Master Teacher Award.
While teaching full time, Riordan began writing mystery novels for grownups. His Tres Navarre series went on to win the top three national awards in the mystery genre – the Edgar, the Anthony and the Shamus. Riordan turned to children’s fiction when he started The Lightning Thief as a bedtime story for his oldest son.
Today over fifty million copies of his books are in print in the United States, and rights have been sold into more than 37 countries.
Rick Riordan now writes full-time. He lives in Boston with his wife and two sons.
Know more about rick Riordan in his site rickriordan.com.
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