Mini reviews: Facade; Spring Fling: A New Adult Anthology; Lead Me Not (Twisted Love #1); Like Clockwork: A Clare Hart Mystery

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Façade (Games #2)
by Nyrae Dawn
New Adult contemporary romance
paperback/eBook, 291 pages
Published July 2nd 2013 by Forever
My rating: 3.5

Secrets have a way of festering and increasing in size until something is made to happen. Two individuals living with secrets, each broken, meet and begin to fall in love. Adrian is tortured, Delaney is a nice girl trying to right past wrongs. The writing was good but there were moments when the language crossed the line into eye-rolling with its corny sentiments. 

 I enjoyed the story even when spots seemed to drag. The two main characters were likable but I couldn't fangirl over Adrian since I didn't learn a lot about him. What Delaney was doing was admirable and yet I wondered why she felt the need to do so much, especially when she wasn't responsible for some things. All in all, I liked the author's style and characters. 


Spring Fling: A New Adult Anthology
by Julia Kent, Sara Fawkes, Lauren Hawkeye, Cathryn Fox
New Adult contemporary romance
ebook, 416 pages
Published March 11th 2014 by Avon Red Impulse
My rating: 3.5

Four stories--Share Me by Julia Kent, Shake Me by Sara Fawkes, Show Me by Cathryn Fox, Shock Me by Lauren Hawkeye--all take place in New Orleans so this mystical setting only helps deepen the total hotness of these four novellas. Each story featured an equally likable couple and lost of steamy romance during Spring Break. There wasn't one story I liked better than another. These authors are new to me and each wrote a highly engaging, addictive story. Pure escapism and lots of fun. Taking a trip? Take this along for pure entertainment.


Lead Me Not (Twisted Love #1) by A. Meredith Walters
New Adult contemporary romance
paperback/eBook, 288 pages
Published August 5th 2014 by Gallery Books
My rating: 3

There sure are a lot of 'broken' people in New Adult and I'll admit this trope can get tiring, but when the writing is done well, the story line original and fresh, and the characters fully realized, I will be the first in line in grab a copy. In fact, some of my top NA favorites are about damaged people. I had mixed feelings with Lead Me Not. The story--a college student named Aubrey is studying to be a counselor and still grieving over losing her younger sister to drugs. As part of finishing her program she has to assist with heading a group of drug addicts. By day Maxx is also a student. At night he works at a club. He deals drugs and uses them. He's a bad boy; she's a good girl. Despite their dual narration, I still didn't feel for their characters or connect to them like I wanted. The writing was nice so I will check out this author's other works.

Like Clockwork: A Clare Hart Mystery (Clare Hart #1) by Margie Orford
Mystery/crime
paperback/ebook, 320 pages
Published April 22nd 2014 by Witness Impulse (first published January 2006)
My rating: 4

Deep, dark, even depressing at times due to its subject matter, Like Clockwork was the first book I've read by Margie Orford. Dr. Clare Hart is an interesting character as was this story. Working to find a serial killer in Cape Town, the story doesn't skip over the gruesome details, giving it a gritty, realistic essence. Not an easy read by any means, I did learn about South African terms and a different way of life. Human trafficking, sex slaves, abuse, murder, this is a gripping mystery. Some parts were difficult to read and I found myself reading in spurts. This may sound like a reason not to pick up this book, but my comment is more of a testament to the author's talent and ability to draw such strong emotions from her material. As much as I became uncomfortable in spots, Like Clockwork was such a gripping mystery I needed to continue to find out what Dr. Hart and Detective Faizel do.

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