The Pixie Reader

It was a little hard to get into this book, but I'm glad I stuck with it. I found the premises really interesting and quite different from what I read so far. The world building was equally "zan". What I did not love was how incredibly flawed was Jarra. Yes, flawed, despite the fact that she was "amaz" at EVERYTHING.At times she was nice to read about, and I could sympathize with her, but her constant use of the word "ape" really made me cringe. The book would have been so much more enjoyable without that word screaming once every few pages. I found the use this term completely unnecessary. The opposition handicapped-norm provided plenty of conflict. And it was saddening enough. It would have also been more realistic if the off-world people looked down on those with immunity deficiency because they were stuck on Earth and they could never leave it and experience the colonies and the rest of the Universe like they did, instead of despising them and just saying they were neanderthals and they smelled and they were dumb apes. Seriously, this part did not make any sense to me and I felt that this was used just to force drama which was not even that obvious except in Jarra's head. Almost everything happens through her head and it's not really a reliable head, is it? The way she saw the world in black and white was at time really frustrating. And she was pretty hypocritical because she was constantly judging the "exos" too. Character development also lost a lot of territory to world-building. The description was great, but the characters were too neglected. Fian was made out as such a pansy, which is really unappealing. Then Jarra never apologizes to the rest of the people for lying to them so blatantly. She deals with the loss of her parents and her entire abandonment issues so quickly. She loses for mind for a few weeks, then she snaps out of it and she's just suddenly cured? Also, she doesn't seemed to have matured by the end of the book. She is Earth Girl extraordinaire talked about in the "newzzies" and nobody hold her lies against her. Not one soul. But, at the same time, she is to bothered glowing from all the attention to be bothered to do anything redeemable. Maybe all off the negative aspects occurred just because the author took a much bigger bite than she could handle with the hole after Exodus universe and she just needed more pages to fill in the gaps. Overall, I did enjoy it and maybe I would even recommend it.

I only wanted to read this because supposedly it gives insight into the life Linden’s first wife, Rose. In the books it is hinted that Rose did not really choose to marry him but that she grew to love him, she even tried to escape, before she started falling for him. I hoped that The "Seeds of Wither" would explore all. But, instead, we have first 6 chapters of "Wither" and then 6 pages called "The First Wife" which barely brushes Rose’s relationship with Linden. No mention of her parents or her attempt to escape. No mention why she ended up loving Linden. So, yeah, this was disappointing and basically just useless.

What can I say, this one was a little hard to get into, at first, because I have nothing in common with the main female character, nada, zero, zilch. So I took me a while to empathize with her, but after about 3/4 I got there. I almost loved Cricket, but he wasn't present enough in the book for me to be able to have a clear opinion. The characters where so much more flawed than the ones in "Anna and the french kiss" (but so fun to read about) and the twists so much more frustrating. However, there's just something about Stephanie Perkins' books that makes you feel you are breathing the same air as the characters and I love that about a book. Quite a few things I disagreed with in the plot, yet I couldn't help enjoying it tremendously, so I just can't give it a lower rating. But I'll say this, the thing that bother me quite a lot was how the author pulled a 360 on Max, who seemed a pretty decent guy, for the first part. Alone from the age difference. Tough, where I come from you're considered pretty much still a kid at 22 and most 22 year-olds I know are still very much in touch with their teen selves. I think he was purposely made to seem older and "experience" just so we wouldn't like him and find their relationship creepy. But he sat trough all those brunches with the parents and he seemed to genuinely care about Lola. Then all of a sudden she meant nothing to him. This part was too much of a stretch and I think there could have been a better way to wrap-up their romance.

I had avoided this book for over a year, despite all the glowing reviews, just because I despise aaanything French. But, once I finally decided to let go of that fact and start it, I could not put it down.I get both the people that are extremely excited about it and the ones that were disappointed because the main characters were so incredibly flawed. To me, they just seemed real. Like I was actually following a real story. I also found them endearing, no matter how immature they were behaving. Because I get where they're coming from and why they behaved like that. Anna, is one of the most relatable fictional character I have read. And perhaps even Étienne. And I am definitely opposed to leading someone on when you're in a relationship and not ending that relationship despite being in love with someone else just because you are too scared to be alone. They way they handled their love and basically just any relationship with the people around them was obviously so wrong, many time, but so natural. I am older now and I know better, but when you're a teenager and you grew up and a family where one of the parents is such a dominant and controlling figure, life can be pretty confusing. And you end up doing questionable stupid things, like these two. They were teenagers for God's sake. They were just barely starting to learn about making decisions, take responsibility for their actions and just figure out what they want. And even though, deep inside, I was hoping the plot would take a different course, in the end, I was not disappointed because what happened was actually more realistic than what I had in mind.There was one point where there was so much drama, drama, drama that my enthusiasm was dying like deflated balloon. But then I though about the first serious crush I had and how the world seemed to be crumbling around me because he seemed to like me, but he didn't confess his feelings either. And then every other non-love related issues I had during that time seemed to be unbearable. Now, when I look back I can hardly understand how I could be such a silly, stupid, naive child. But all that "drama" and all the things I used to overreact when I was younger were amongst the things that helped shape who I am. I looove Stephanie Perkins' writing, and I especially enjoyed the cute humor. At one point my boyfriend was watching me amused because I was giggling like crazy from under the blanket, barely able hold on to my Kindle.

I picked this up thanks to some glowing reviews by a few of my favorite booktoobers and I'm happy I did. I thoroughly enjoyed it, great great read, but I did I have quite a few rolling-out-my-eyes moments. Even tough I could empathize with her because of the self-esteem issues and the family problems, I could not connect with her all the way. I did not agree with her decisions and I found myself many times wanting to slap her. Her constant denial and running away from her problems really frustrated me. Her toughness is just an appearance and, despite the fact that everything was nicely wrapped-up in a happy ending, nothing was really solved. Actually, if I think about this book objectively, I would definitely give it a lower rating (those characters don't need a happy ending, they need years and years of intensive therapy, that's what they need!). But I won't do that, because it was so charmingly written and I loved all the characters so much that I'm just going to let that go. It's fiction. And I going to avoid picking it apart just because I had so much fun reading it.

I truly loved the first part of the book. Even though I had to throw away everything I thought I knew about zombies and, at times, it felt that R is more of a senile vampire than a zombie, I really enjoyed his inner monologue. It was so sweet and funny and just very well written. I also loved the airport setting and his daily routine.I kept thinking "this book I so awesome" until the part where he and Julie got separated, when she took the car to return to the stadium and she left him behind. From there, it seemed like I was reading a different book. The passages where R was daydreaming were the only ones that kept me going because I lost interest in the rest of it. There's a lot happening in just a couple of days and I didn't like that. Their bonding was rushed and just about everything that was happening felt that way too. Another thing that was pretty frustrating throughout the book was the fact that nobody really treated R like a monster, not even just for a while. Both Julie and Nora dismissed the fact that he killed Perry way too quickly. "Perry" forgave R way to quickly. They kept making up excuses for him. But normal people don't react like that when one of they're loved ones is killed by someone else, even if it's not that person's fault. They freak out, even if it's for just a little bit. They have to blame someone, even if it's irrational. She was supposed to be angry with him, even if she had to come to a different conclusion later, she was supposed to be angry with him and even fear him. I know it's a fantasy novel and things are supposed to be different, new and strange, but, personally I would have loved a more realistic approach to Perry's death.The book had potential.R is a special character and his relationship with Julie could have been special, but if felt underdeveloped to me. I found myself wanting more. I didn't care much for their "love" at the end. All of the characters needed more time to work their way through things properly. R needed to find redemption for the crimes he committed and Julie to warm up to him, forgive him and start loving him. I do get it that this was intended to be lighthearted humorous read, but some well placed moments of tension would have only made it better. Especially since the book has a lot of humor at the beginning, but gradually gets away from that. I wouldn't say the last part of the book gets serious, it just isn't funny anymore. I would have bought the whole "we started something, the other zombies are changing because of us" if I actually believed they were in love. "R" needs to learn to love Julie through his own "alive" self and Julie needs to deal with Perry's death before feeling something for R. Also, Julie's and Perry's relationship was too downplayed. She once loved that boy, and even if their love was pretty much zombified by the time he died, there had to be a part of her that needed to mourn him. Why isn't anyone morning Perry for God's sake??! I definitely liked that fact that she wasn't your usual helpless heroine and that she was a tough cookie. I loved that she wasn't afraid or melodramatic, but I needed to see a softer side of her as well. Just a little bit. So I might seem to be criticizing this more that praising it, but overall I highly enjoyed it and even if it's just for R, I would definitely recommend this book.

This book was a little hard to get into at first. But I liked the idea of it, so I decided to stick around. And after the first 50 pages or so, it got better. Some parts of it were beautifully written, some parts felt like they were there just so that the author could make the story last longer. And some of the ideas that I really loved weren't explored as they should have been. The narrator's voice bothered me, a well. There was just something off about it. The way she was telling the story made her thoughts sound really erratic, disjointed, like she was reading from her journal and she was skipping pages that were torn out.I would have probably enjoyed the book more if I liked Terra's character. But, I did not empathize with her, only on a few occasions. I did not like her personality or her decisions, even tough I do get where she's coming from. I know how it is to grow up in a dysfunctional environment. I also do know what's it like to grow up feeling ugly or just not good enough. I did not have a birthmark on my face, or a deformity of any kind, but being brought up in family like that makes you feel that there's something wrong with you. Even if you look like a completely average person, in your own little universe, you still feel the ugliest. However, I think that you have to overcome the traumatizing part of your upbringing and the unhealthy habits you might pick up and try to become a better person. You can learn how not to behave around people. And challenge the status quo. Stand up for yourself and stand up for others. As much as you can, in order to avoid becoming a bitter, passive-aggressive person yourself. And also, you can try to show people you care about them. It's so hard to do all this, but you have to try. Or, at least, you have to want to change. And I didn't see Terra trying or wanting. I didn't see her get any wiser or nicer. She was so self-centered and, at times, outright mean towards people. I felt that her birthmark was the only thing keeping her decent. But, at the same time, she was obsessing so much about it that at one point it became way too annoying. I've met people with issues like hers, maybe even worse, that could really qualify them as ugly. And no amount of make-up could fix that. Yet, they were warm, fun persons to be around with. They were terribly frustrated that they were born that way, but they fought not to let that dominate their lives. They had hobbies and they worked hard to be good at things and they made friends. They made friends because they were people you wanted to be around with despite the discomfort people felt about the way they looked. And I do get it that for some people it's harder than for others, but like I said before, I didn't even see her try. For her, almost everything revolved around her not being beautiful, despite that she had people that cared about her. She could have spent some of her energy nurturing them. I also thought her relationship with Erik was ridiculous. If he was such a tool what did she get out of being his girlfriend? If he was so ashamed of her and since they had absolutely nothing in common, why would she feel good about being with him? I do grasp on how she could have ended up giving this a shot at first, before Jacob appeared, but why would she continue dating Erik after she realizes what she is to him and what he is to her?Then, I really did not like the fact that she never stood up for her mom, at least in the mildest manner possible. She never tried to comfort her either. I felt she was so cold-hearted at times or just lacking any kind of backbone. I understand that she did not want to wake up the dragon and that she didn't want to challenge her dad because he was absolutely horrible and she was afraid of him. But she gave up way to easy on finding a solution to do her thing and keeping it away from her father, especially for a person that knew what she wanted to do with her life. I still don't know what to do with mine, and I still fought harder. I listen to my parents just enough to give them the illusion they still have a say in my life and keep them out of my business. I compromise just enough not to compromise myself and my principles. It's not a walk in the park, but at least I'm dealing with it. I didn't expect Terra to be great all the time or do all the right things, but she had so many flaws that I can't think about anything redeemable about her. Not even the pain she has to go through, because of the port-wine birthmark, can save the this character. I did not care about Jacob, even though I know I'm supposed to. He seemed flat to me, despite the many attempts at making him appear this smart, thoughtful, great guy. I did not care about their relationship either.I did care about her mother, but her arc was just a small percentage of the plot. Since, for the rest of it, the book was little more than about Terra, I can't say this is ending up on my favorites list. It's not a terrible book, definitely readable, but that's about it.

Seth Andrews sure has a way with words. I enjoyed this book a lot and no just because I found similarities to my own journey. He is an adequate storyteller and I love his humourish, snarky style. Well, sometimes, I did felt he was kind of tip-towing around what he was trying to convey. But that was out of fear of hurting his family, I suppose. I had the feeling that he didn't go all the way because he had in mind that fact that his parents might get to read this and he wanted to ease the discomfort. This didn't bother me too much, though. I appreciated that he was so polite with the faithful and he stressed the fact that it was their beliefs that were stupid, not them, as people. Overall, I was glued to my kindle, even though this books was non-fiction, and I've lost the habit of reading non-fiction quite a while ago. I was scared I might not have patience with it, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out I had nothing to worry about.

The book is not perfect, but I loved it for many reasons. I simply could not put it down, even when I had to go to bed, I kept postponing pressing the shut off button on my Kindle. I finally went to sleep, only to pick up where I left off first thing the next morning. I loved the characters, especially the lead, Kami. It's so refreshing to read about a strong character. She was funny, nerdy, energetic, and lovable. Most of the YA leading ladies are eternally tormented and whinny. I liked the particularity of her relationship with Jared, though this arc didn't leave me completely satisfied. I would have tackled it differently. I wish they'd argued less. Or that the connection they had when they were just voices in each other's heads had been explored deeper. I wasn't entirely convinced of their strong bond. They sounded like they were pretty much strangers to each other, not people who knew their deepest thoughts. But, overall, this didn't bother me enough to stop enjoying the book. It was also great to discover that, neither of the main characters, Jared and Kami, were drop-dead gorgeous. In most YAs, the guy is always perfect, always had the most perfect features, so I was pleasantly surprised when it was mentioned that Jared was a pretty average looking guy, compared to Ash, the beautiful one. And so was Kami, compared to Angela and Holly. Though, I do think this was stressed a bit too much throughout the book. I also appreciated the rest of the characters, they were a pretty fun group to follow. The atmosphere was great, I enjoyed the twist about the Lynburns being sorcerers, buutt, would have love to know more about their history and origins. All the suspense around this seemed a little overdone, at times. Perhaps the next book will clear up all of these question marks.(less)

Gosh, I don't know what to say about this book. It was fairly entertaining, I suppose. There were certain things I really did enjoy, like Bug's character and descriptions of the dinner's atmosphere. But I couldn't really connect with Hudson's character. I didn't feel her passion for skating, even thought she mentioned that competition obsessively. To me, it felt that skating was all about her father pushing her to do it and then about the fact that she really needed the money from that scholarship. And I didn't feel for her in general. Well, maybe with one exception.I did care for her when I saw how her mom treated her. I kind of hated her mom. Their relationship pissed me off. I mean, her parents had been divorced for over 3 years, yet Hudson and her mom never really talked about it. The book suggested that Hudson felt guilty for her parents splitting up because she showed her mom the other woman's bra, but they left it at I wish I never showed you that bra (Hudson) Some days I really wish you didn't (her mom). Seriously?!! You're gonna leave your daughter thinking she was to blame for the dissolution of your crappy marriage? You married the wrong guy. He cheated on you. You had irreconcilable differences. You got a divorce. Now what? Accept your irresponsibility and move on, instead of taking it out on your kids. Moreover, I was so sick of the I'm sacrificing so much to put food on the table for you and pay the bills card. I get. She was working hard to keep the family financially afloat and she was heart broken because of the divorce. But that's not an excuse for being a bad parent. If you can't be there for them because you're too busy, at least have the hart to make up for it some other way. Also, the mother was so upset that her 16 year old daughter wasn't jumping with joy about having to work long hours at the dinner, waitressing, and then running a cupcake business to help with the money. What 16 year-old knows about self sacrifice, especially after growing up with no such issues until a certain point? What about school, homework, friends?To a certain point, I do get why Hudson had to help her mom out. But was demanding so much of her daughter really the only option they had? Even if that were the case, I would have loved to read about them having a heart felt conversation about it. And about many other things.Teenagers have a tendency of keeping secrets and not allowing their parents into their little world, but I guess I wanted to see her mom try to find out what's going on in her daughter's life. Instead, all she cared about that dinner. Not once have I seen her worry about school, or about where Hudson is when she's not at the dinner, who does she spend time with. Not sure if the author did mean to mean her seem like a lousy parent, but that's how it appeared to me. Anyway, just my 2 cents about this.Also, for a book that's supposed to have romance as one of the themes, the romance was pretty unsavory. I found the whole triangle completely unnecessary. They way we got to the triangle is also very much questionable. She helps a hockey team skate better, because they suck so far. Okaaay, I'll allow it. But did it have to be so fast? After 2-3 practices they're on a winning streak. Really?Then the crush mush began. She assumed that Abby was Josh's girlfriend so she decided so would get it on with one of his friends? Why did she like Josh so much anyways? The boy seemed sweet, but we hardly know anything about him. Also, why didn't she realize she had feelings for him until that far in the plot? Why did she go so far with Will if she didn't even like him. I would have liked to see her develop at least some feelings for him, not just melt like a marshmallow because he was a good kisser. And why was she she trying so hard to be with Will if she didn't like him, anyways? It's not like he was trying that much to be with her. He just invited her places. Then she left her baby brother alone at New Year's Eve to be with him, only to forget all about him after one steamy night in his car. It doesn't make any sense. Don't get me started on her relationship with Dani and Kara. Why was it such a big deal to Kara that Hudson tanked the Empire Games? If they were such bffs why did they just stop talking for 3 years. Why was Hudson apologizing to Kara for failing at the competition? It was her future she threw away, not Kara's. It was Hudson that was going through the divorce of her parents, not Kara. Later, when Kara tried to reconnect with her and tried to warn her about Will Hudson kept brushing her off. For the love of God, just let the girl say what she has to say, ok? And then we have Dani. What a hot mess that girl was. Why were they even friends? Beats me.There was a point when I couldn't get why all those characters weren't just spilling their guts about they way they felt. I was reading some paragraphs and I was like Jeez, stop beating around the bush already! In the end,she's guilt tripped so much by her friends and family that she doesn't even compete, after all the effort she put into training o her own. Just like that, she quits for the second time without even trying and goes back to the dinner. That would have been ok, if that was what she really wanted. But to me, it felt that she was just bullied into forfeiting. I don't think figure skating was really her dream either, but she was fortunate enough to be insanely talented at it and she could have used that into getting the money she needed to get out of that town and go to a good college, which actually is her true desire. But no, she allowed herself to be brought down by the stupid selfishness of those around her.If I think about it, I don't even know why I gave this book 3 stars. Maybe thanks to the fact that I was pretty engrossed by it. The writing kept me glued to the book, even though the plot was, to me, utterly ridiculous.

Desert Angel is a short and fairly easy read. It’s a story about a tough 14-year old girl with a strong survival instinct. She finds herself on the run from her latest “step-father”, Scotty, a ruthless man who is hunting her down, after he killed her mother during one of their monster fights. He believes the only way he will walk away with what he did is to silence Angel for good.The begging of the book was quite gripping, depicting intense survivalist scenes. Then, the book makes a turn and we see Angel getting the help she needed. Several Mexican-American families go out of their way to hide her, despite putting themselves in great danger. The cat and mouse chase continues, but at a slower pace.Angel isn't necessarily a likable character, nevertheless, as the story unfolds, you do understand why she keeps lying and stealing. She has had a terrible childhood, neglected by her drug-addict mother, Lila, and often hurt by Lila’s abusive boyfriends. She is used to not being able to rely on anyone with her well-being. Therefore, Angel’s inability to thrust other people or the “system” becomes one of the great forces behind the conflict. To me, it seemed that the second half of the book was supposed to show Angel’s transformation through this ordeal, but I failed to see any growth or depth added to her character during her stay at Rita and Vicente’s.However, what really bothered me, at times, was the pacing. Certain parts of the book seemed so disjointed, like whole sequences were skipped, which made it difficult to understand what exactly was going on. It’s almost like the author didn't have the patience to fully unfold those particular scenes.I found the ending a bit abrupt, everything seemed wrapped up too quickly. Though, overall is was a pretty enjoyable book.P.S. You can also view this review on my blog.

I'm having a tough time rating this. I found most of the book kind of ridiculous, though I really enjoyed certain bits that caused the occasional chuckles (like some of Lucius' sarcastic remarks or the letters to his uncle).First of all, the story was pretty inconsistent, some parts gave the impression that we were supposed to view it as a satire, but then it would take a serious and melodramatic shape. Which was pretty darn confusing. The main characters were partially ok, I guess, and I was pleased with the dynamic of their relationship until they fell into the emo stereotype of star-crossed lovers. Boy keeps his distance from girl to keep her safe and makes up excuses instead of telling the truth. Because she's way too vulnerable and can't handle it. Of course, the more he rejects her, the more she'll want him. Boy loses his marbles 'cause he can't be with girl. All of which is fine, I guess, but as long as it's a short phase. I do love a plot twist sprinkled with suspense, but in this case, it was dragged to the point I lost interest. All that struggle and dancing around what's really going on and the constant denial of their feelings just made me squeamish. Too much drama. Relationships are complicated enough, even without the weight of terrible secrets and heart-ripping betrayal. The girl ended up having a stake piercing her chest just so he could finally confess his love. What happened to communication? One of the basis of solid relationships. Even when the couple is made of two teenage vampires. I guess the key word is teenage. A lot of teenagers seem to think the world starts and ends with them. And too often mistake attraction for a deep meaningful connection. Anyways, moving on to the next point.I've had some issues with Lucius' and Jessica's background which was supposed to be dark and mysterious. The Romanian vampire mythology did not work well for me. Instead of being believable (as believable as fantasy can be), it made me giggle every time it was mentioned. The way she envisioned it seemed really silly to me. The same with some of the names she chose, which, by the way, are not actually Romanian. Not that I'm trying to nitpick here.Additionally, the bad-boy theme is getting a bit tedious for me. Can't a guy be mysterious without being a major toll? And do they always have to be so darn perfect, physically speaking? What about the Josep Gordon-Levitts of the world? They are perfectly capable of sweeping a girl off her feet even though they don't look like a Greek sculpture. Nevertheless, I did have my fun with this book and it's certainly better than the latest paranormal romance books I've read. So I'll give it 2.5 stars for the humor and a few neat moments between Jess and Lucius.

I loved the book. Charlie is such a relatable character and he seemed so real to me, even though I had a completely different high school experience, and also a very different family life. The letters are wonderfully written. At first, Charlie's inner voice seemed way too juvenile for a 15 year-old boy, then I remembered I had my old diary with me and I could see how my 15 year-old self sounded like. Guess what, I sounded pretty much the same in my "Dear diary" entries. I also loved the rest of the character in this book.But, the ending kinda ruined it for me.I really wanted him to be just this odd, sweet, extremely lovable kid that perhaps had Asperger's Syndrome. I was so sad when he disclosed he was the victim of child abuse, even more since his aunt played such a special part in book before that.I wish the author hadn't pulled this twist out of his sleeve. Yes, Charlie is just a character, but, like I said, he felt very real to me.Nevertheless, this now one of my favorite books. 4.5 stars

At first, I wanted to give it a 2 star rating because it was an easy read. But, the more I think about what I read, the more frustrated I get. First of all, I can't make peace with Nora's ridiculous and disturbing reactions. She is terrified by Patch, yet she is so passive to the danger he poses. She does make a few weak attempts to convince her teacher to let her switch partners, but that's it. She's like:Nora: I don't want Patch to be my partner because he makes me feel uncomfortable.Teacher: No can do.Nora: But...Teacher: Hush, hush, now. By the way, you also have to tutor him. Nora: Okay.Seriously? S-E-R-I-O-U-S-L-Y? You are convinced your lab partner is a creeper that has been stalking you and has been peeking through your window while you’re sleeping and that’s all you do? Your teacher ignores you? Then go to a counselor, or the principal, or the police, and, most importantly, talk to a family member. Does she do this? No. Even more, she keeps talking and flirting with him, she even lets him enter her home while she is alone! While not having a shred of proof that he wasn’t behind the attacks. Sure, it turned out he wasn’t responsible for all that, but that doesn’t make him less of a mess. For the first part of the book Nora keeps saying how appalling and off she finds Mr. Creepy Mccreeperson. Then, suddenly she has the hots for him and is unable to fight off the feeling that she’s utterly drawn to him. All this without him having done anything remotely nice for her or without showing any signs that he has a heart of gold underneath that rough exterior or that he gives a rat’s ass about her. Instead he ignores he wishes, repeatedly, and tries to get her alone so he can reveal his lust. Not love, LUST. Even if I strip down the creepyness and take away the stalking and I wanted to kill you thing I can’t figure out why those two were “in love”. So Patch is described as hot and sexy and Nora is said to be easy-going and pretty…other that that I can’t find a reason to like her. They hardly spend any time together and it’s not like they have any quality conversations when they do meet up. They author could have used the teacher’s comment about tutoring Patch as an opportunity to bring them together, to get them to know one another. Instead she passed right by what could have been a great opportunity for character development. Secondly, I have to say, I get the bad-boy appeal, I really do. But the good kind of “bad”. The kind that means he doesn’t wear his heart on his sleeve at the beginning, not just yet. The kind that teases you (I said tease, NOT HUMILIATE OR INSULT) because he’s fighting off his feelings as he’s not used to dating girls like you and he’s scared. The kind that may drive a motorcycle, may have a dark look, may have tattoos and piercings just because that’s his way of making a fashion / lifestyle statement, and not because he’s a dangerous sociopath. The kind that has HEALTHY hobbies. The kind that DOES NOT abuse women, nor takes pleasure in harassing them. Patch is not a bad-boy. He is a simple-minded loser, whose main pleasures in life are playing pool all day long, throwing punches at people, possessing and terrorizing humans. Oh, and also, when Nora comes along, he wants to do stuff to her body, out of “love”. But wait, the book screams, there’s more to him that than. Apparently Patch wants to be human, because he can’t feel. He feels with his heart, but can’t feel with his skin (I think it has more to do with feeling with his little one). Boo-hoo! I really hoped I could discover something redeemable about him but not even the ending could change what a fraking train wreck he was. If I lived in a world where angels existed and creatures like him were assigned as guardians, I’d say No thanks, I’ll take my chances with the Evil Forces. Finally, the mythology and the characters’ motivations seemed paper thin to me. I'm not going to start listing them all, but I’m going to mention a few that really bothered me. So Nora decides to commit suicide so that the Patch that had been stalking and harassing her, whom she barely kissed once or twice, could become human. She’s going to get killed by Jules anyway, right? Why not make the best use of the situation? Leaving aside her "heroic and romantic sacrifice", let’s say she had died and Jules hadn’t. Patch, the now human, would be left alone in the same room with Jules, the immortal that had been hating his guts for hundreds of year and that would love nothing more than to snap his little neck like a twig. Are you sure you thought this through, Nora Becca? But hey, it’s your book, you can do what you want with it, even make up stupid reasons like Jules dropping dead because he doesn’t have a soul. Also, I can’t wrap my head around the lack of balance between the good and evil in this book. It’s a book about and with angels so one would expect at least something angelic about them. Instead, they are all crappy, crappy angels, and a few of them quite horny lusty. The best example of crappyness is Patch’s ex, a useless, useless character. She’s a psychotic B that plans on killing an innocent girl just to be with one of the Devil’s spawn. God is all-knowing and all-mighty yet, somehow, he doesn’t know that one of his angels is fraternizing with a fallen angel and that she plans to commit murder in the name of her love for him. Or maybe Fitzpatrick thought of a world with no God, just angels. Then she should have left alone the whole Adam and Eve fiasco. I didn't mean to be mean or anything, it's just my biased opinion, I hope I didn't offend anyone. You can also view this review on my blog.P.S. I really like the book cover.