Blue Moon by Alyson Noel

Eager to learn everything she can about her new abilities as an Immortal, Ever turns to her beloved Damen to show her the way. But just as her powers are increasing, Damen’s are waning. In an attempt to save him, Ever travels to the magical dimension of Summerland, where she learns the secrets of Damen’s tortured past; a past which he has always kept hidden from her. But in her quest to cure Damen, Ever discovers an ancient text that details the workings of time. Now Ever must chose between turning back the past and saving her family from the accident that claimed their lives—or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows sicker every day...

From Evermore, Blue Moon took a turn I never expected, in a good way. The atmosphere felt somewhat different (and I liked it.) There is more on Damen and Ever's previous lives and a focus on more paranormal elements such as Summerland a world between worlds, potions and Ever's development in the use of her 'powers'. My attention was grabbed right from the start and I felt there was never a dull moment in the book. The only annoyance I had was at the likeness sameness of the character's speech namely Riley, her sister and Haven, her friend ("Like, Seriously Ever", I never really could distinguish between these characters as they just get pissed at Ever).

Ever's choice towards the end of the book albeit stupid and thoughtless will definitely pan out in the next installment and provide for some interesting situations and speculation as to how things will be resolved.

★★★★.5

Princess for Hire by Lindsey Leavitt

When a well-dressed woman steps out of a bubble and wants to know if you'd like to become a substitute princess, do you
A) run
B) faint
C) say yes?
For Desi Bascomb, who's been longing for some glamour in her Idaho life, the choice is a definite C). Desi has a rare ability: with the help of "Royal Rouge," she can temporarily transform into the exact look-alike of any princess who needs her subbing services. Dream come true, right?
Well, Desi soon discovers that subbing involves a lot more than wearing a tiara and waving at cameras.... In this winning debut, one girl's dream of glamour transforms into the desire to make a positive impact. And an impact Desi makes, one royal fiasco at a time.

First of all, I have to say that Princess for Hire is the most pinkest book/thing I own plus it's glittery and I love it! I was expecting some fluff and fairytale but instead I was blown away about how good it was in exploring real life issues. The main character Desi is a girl who is easy to relate to. Reading in her perspective was really fun and hilarious and at other times made me empathize with her. My heart was literally wrenching during some of the events Desi had to experience.

I really liked how the book was half about Desi's subbing jobs and half about her own life. In subbing, Desi lets herself go, expressing what she wants while at her own life, she fails in doing so. As the story progresses, the confidence Desi receives from her subbing jobs slowly transfers to her own life and this provides for great character development!

One particular character I liked was Prince Karl. Desi mentions that Karl was alright looking but not as good looking as his brother. The extremely good looking prince turns out to be arrogant and full of himself while as the readers follow Desi in getting to know Karl, we find his character and personality is swoon-worthy. Too many books I have read are about falling in love with handsome guys with every good trait imaginable so this was a pop of fresh air.

A downside of the book was that some characters felt like cardboard cutouts such as the crush with no likeable traits whatsoever and the villain who does bad things for no reason though I'm sure if the book weren't so short, they could/would have been fleshed out a little more. I'm anticipating the next in the series for sure!

★★★★★

Winner of First International Giveaway

Thanks to all for participating and I hope you had fun! There were 14 entrants and 91 entries.

Answers:
1. You wish
2. Elixir
3. Hexbound
4. Halo
5. Misguided Angel
6. Please ignore Vera Dietz
7. Crossing over
8. The Secret of Ka

The random number generator chose:


The winning entry belongs to Sara @ YA Vampire Books! Congrats! An email with the e-voucher will be sent your way. Enjoy your prize!