I do so love a good retelling, especially when it's about some of my favorite things from my childhood! I've already read and liked Liz Braswell's first Disney reimagining with A WHOLE NEW WORLD. Now that she's taken on one of my most favorite Disney stories, Sleeping Beauty, let's see how this one did. Read below to see if ONCE UPON A DREAM made it to the top of the Addiction Scale! Highlight the blacked out areas to see the spoilers.

Once Upon a Dream (Twisted Tales #2)

MY REVIEW:
Oh Liz Braswell......ONCE UPON A TIME.
What can I say? How about we go with a list?
THE GOOD:

1. The cover! I mean WOW, how perfect :D
2. The absolutely creative way this classic Disney tale was twisted around to become a fresh, wonderful and dark what if tale. SPOILER: It's all a dream!
3. Prince Phillip. Between him, Eric and Adam I'm always torn on whose my fav, but 90% of the time it's Phillip. Just as it was here. I loved him, don't care what others may say, he's adorable and a great balance to Aurora. He's a total dragon slayer but he also kinda has that boy next door feel which I found really appealing.
4. The world building! Just loved it. Wonderfully dark, unique and so easy to believe in

THE MEH:

1. Aurora. Gone is the beloved (passive but dreamer) princess from the classic movie, but that was okay for ONCE UPON A TIME. Given that she was trapped in a dream that manipulated her into a spoiled selfish princess I can forgive the total contradiction to my 2nd fav princess. It made her ending that much more powerful and fulfilling as a reader.
2. Maleficent. I liked her, and the way she played the "friend" who was really betraying her the whole time. For such a badass villain I felt she felt flat/predictable at places where she could have really taken on a life of her own. But overall not a bad portrayal. Def not my fav but...
3. The pacing. It was good for most of the book, but there were definitely parts lagging behind.

THE BAD:

1. ALL THE SHOUTINESS. Yes, I did say I could forgive some of it on Aurora's part because of how she was manipulated. This is where I feel the editor failed. I mean come on! You could have cut 70% of the shouty caps and this book would have been so much better for it.
2. The lack of medieval feeling to the overall book. It didn't feel as authentic as it should have for me.
3. The predictability. I wanted more surprising plot twists outside the ending and Aurora finding herself to become this truly great heroine at the end of the book. You did so well with everything else that it made this aspect a bit  disappointing. 

Overall I liked this one a great deal. Do I love it as much as other Sleeping Beauty retellings...no. Do I like it more than the classic movie...NO.
I will totally give Liz props for ONCE UPON A DREAM being such a creative, unique twist on the classic.
**Steps on soap box***I also want to mention one more thing. Aurora gave of the impression of having to suffer with depression for a large part of this book. It wasn't ever actually acknowledged or mentioned so maybe I'm just reading too much into it. But if you're going to go there, then go there. No half measures. I think if Aurora truly was fighting depression, and that was Liz's intent, she could have had Aurora deal with it in a more acknowledged manor. Depression is a problem many teens suffer with and this could have made quite the statement.
And I'm off my soap box.
I'd totally recommend this book to Disney and YA fans, but with the warning to give Aurora a little bit of wiggle room for how she acts for the first half of the book.
~DynoMoon

We all know how much I'm addicted to certain authors, and C.C. Hunter is one of the big ones! When I got the chance to read this new Novella I was so stoked and I have to say.......well read the review below to see how this one fell on the Addiction Scale.

Almost Midnight (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3.5)

MY REVIEW:
So ALMOST MIDNIGHT by C.C. Hunter is a compilation of 5 novella's all featuring stories about some of our fav characters before they came to Shadow Falls or after the first set of books. 

Turned At Dusk: was an older novella about Della before she because a Vampire and how she became one. Della is my 3rd choice of the main 3 girls (Kylie, Miranda and Della) but I gotta say I found it hard to relate to her with how she was before she became a vamp. I always knew her family was messed up from all we learned in the full size books. There wasn't a lot of world building, but I think that's because C.C. was banking on fans already having the world built in their minds. 
Overall it was good, but I liked the Della that we first met at Shadow Falls more. 
Over all 3 stars for this one.

Saved At Sunrise: This one was another novella that took place in the middle of the original series and featured Della and her first love interest Steve (a shape shifter who I was all about being with her until I met Chase). This was interesting because I was always curious about this mission Della and Steve went on because we never actually got any real details int eh original series. For me, Steve was the stronger character in this story, Della annoyed me at certain parts, but I think that's because I have read all of Della's stories and I know how she'd grown so seeing her as how she was felt like a huge set back. It was a good story and I liked finally knowing what happened on that mission.
Over all this is a 3.5 star for me. 

Unbreakable: This one was the biggest surprise because it was written from a younger POV and it was all abut Chase and his younger years. It was very eye opening and hits you with all the feels! I love Chase but this made me love him even more. The paranormal elements were not really there until the end of the book, and that was a nice change of pace for a series that's all about the paranormal. The other good thing about this is that you don't need to know any of the other Shadow Falls characters, or even the premise of the series to be able to understand this one. 
Over all this was a 4 star for me! LOVED IT!

Spellbinder: Miranda was and still is my second fav girl and I can't say how ridiculously happy I was to get Miranda's story :) However, this is a novella I had read before and have already reviewed so I'll leave you to refer back to that one. Over all a 4.5 star for this one!! One last thing I gotta say: PERRY!!!!!!!! SPELLBINDER review

Fierce: Fredrika.........I was never a big fan of her until the last 2 books in the original Shadow Falls five books. From the very start Fredrik was a total b with an itch (to quote Miranda) and was the stereotypical grumpy female werewolf character. She had major daddy issues but has still turned into a really relatable, strong character that drags you along and makes you feel everything she did! She was more real in this book than she had been in any of the other books. This book was really interesting because Fredrika's love interest was Cary, a werewolf teacher at the Shadow Falls school. A bit of a taboo subject given she was one of his students. For me this walked the line of falling into the pervy world and feeling like that fantasy teenage girls had about a hot teacher in school (I had one in college!) I can't believe I'm saying this, but I really have come to like Fredrika and I love that she finally got her own story that ended happily. I just wish we could have gotten a little more from Cary and the were world. I think there's still room for a lot more growth in this series focusing on the many paranormal cultures C.C. has built in this universe!

Averaging all my rating together ALMOST MIDNIGHT hit the 4 star mark, and deservingly so. I really hope that there will be more to come from this series! I can think of so much that can be use dot create more wonderful stories and expand on a great universe. I totally recommend all novellas, and books in the Shadow Falls series!!
They are perfect for YA lovers and Paranormal fans :)
Thanks to C.C. and her publisher for supplying me with the ARC of this wonderful book!
~DynoMoon

Alright Addicts, get ready for a fan girl review because I've got another from the universe of C.C. Hunter and her Shadow Falls series: UNSPOKEN
I'll try to keep myself in check, but no guarantee, LOL. So read on my book Addicts!

Unspoken (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3)

What an ending!! UNSPOKEN=WOW!
I will fully admit I didn't love Della's books (REBORN, ETERNAL and this one UNSPOKEN) the way I did Kylie's books (first 5 books of Shadow Falls series) yet Della's story still managed to smack me with all the feels!
Della Tsang, Kylie and Miranda are by far one of my favorite YA heroine trios! Always have been! They are so different yet fit together so well with the radically different personalities and chemistry.
Speaking of chemistry: Della and Chase! YES please :D
I love them so much! He's there for Della, had been from the start--despite his singularly stupid decision to keep a huge secret from Della for ages...but that was an ETERNAL plot point that carried over into UNSPOKEN. Chase changed his life for Della and really grew into a great character.
The love triangle that was a thing in the first two books wasn't really a thing in this one. It was Della and Chase all the way! Poor Steve.................
Here's my thing, though. As said above Della is not my fav of the girls so getting into her story as much as I did Kylie's and Miranda's took time. But the fact that I still came to care so damn much about Della and Chase speaks volumes to the incredible talent of C.C. Hunter as an author.
UNSPOKEN was a wonderful book, but not how I want the story of Shadow Falls and it's students to end. Thank GOD C.C. Hunter herself told a friend of mine--who is also a huge fan of C.C.-- that there's more possibly coming--several short stories about other characters!! YEAH!!!!! Happy dance!!!!!!!!

My biggest woe with UNSPOKEN was how so many of the great characters of the Shadow Falls universe--who usually manage to have a good presence in the other books--just felt thrown in for most of the book. I didn't get nearly enough of the kick butt K/D/M charlie angel's type feeling that they normally have.
Plus there was so much of Jenny/Derek/Perry/Miranda/Lucas/Kylie/Holiday/Burnett moments I wanted that I felt deprived. So many other great and relatable characters are in this series I can see how it can be a challenge to do them all justice and not take away from Della's story, so I kinda understand, but not really.
Again--this speaks to Hunter's amazing talent at creating "real" characters. She always finds the right amount of humor, romance, action, twists, drama and all around fantasticalness in each book. I wanted to hug and cry for Della so many times, I cheered for her and was not eh edge of my couch needing to see what happened next.
UNSPOKEN is slightly darker-mostly because of the more upfront interaction with the vampire gangs- but it's good and will please any fan of Shadow Falls with it's ending!
Now all that's left is to get those possible, last few short stories that should be coming down the pike, hopefully :)
Do I recommend this: HELL YES!!!! I recommend every single book and ebook short in the series!!
Ciao
~Dynomoon

It's Tuesday in my week of reviews, Addicts and today I've got a review of a book I picked up from NetGalley. It's called SILVER IN THE BLOOD by Jessica Day George.
Yes, it's historical, I think a first (or maybe second) on my blog, but I promise this is one you'll want to read about. Read on my book Addicts!




SILVER IN THE BLOOD by Jessica Day George had many things all rolled up into one very exciting package: two dynamic heroines, wonderful and yummy romance, action, intrigue, secrets, and a detailed world building that could possibly rival some of the more popular fantasy books in YA with more development and time.
The cover of this book was the first thing that caught my attention. I knew as soon as I saw it, this would be a werewolf book. And then I read the blurb and saw that the setting was 19th-century Romania and I knew right away that there would also be vampireness to go along with the mix. While I'm not normally a fan of historical books this one promised so many great things that I knew I just had to try and get a copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Major thanks to them and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC.
SILVER IN THE BLOOD is told from two points of views. Dacia and Lou, cousins from New York City who find themselves transported to Romania along with their families so that they can learn the family secret. This is where the I am the CLAW the WING an the SMOKE bit comes into play.
The book starts with a letter from Dacia to her cousin Lou talking about an "incident" that happened while she was in London; an incident that spurned her mother and grandmother and aunt to send her to the family home in Romania. Throughout the book there are lots of these little letters all from our heroines, our heroes, their allies, and while they were all very intriguing (some of them lent itself more to the plot than others) I would've been happy if they had cut them all together and found another way to work the information into the storyline.
There were three things that really stood out about this book for me; the first and the greatest was the the bond--the more than sisterly friendship-- between Dacia and Lou. They are cousins, they are family, but it goes beyond that---they are each other's best friends and greatest support. The dynamic was so exciting because they were exact opposite of each other. Lou was quiet and reserved and would do what was asked of her. Dacia was outgoing, spunky and a bit of a rebel. As the story went on, they pushed each other, forced themselves to grow up and finally become more comfortable in their skin. By the end of the book they both had developed into more mature versions of themselves and that's something that's not often accomplished in YA, and especially not in the first book.
But the girls family is more dangerous than they realized. After they find out that Lou is able to turn into smoke and Dacia is able to shift into a wolf, their own families try to keep them prisoner within their own home. Dun Dun Dun...in the spirit of twister historical and paranormal YA books, the girls realize their grandmother, mother and aunt and very naughty schemers trying to gain power! Dacia and Lou know they've got to get out and get away from their family before things get really bad.
 Time for the second thing that made this book so great. Lord Johnny and Theo are our heroes, and the girl's love interests. They don't show up until about half way through, after the girls have learned what they can do because of their family's blood and are trying to high tail it out of the country; and once they do make their entrance we find out that they are both members of a group called the Archangels.
The Archangels are a group that fight against Prince Mihai (the "vampire" and by vampire I mean Vlad the Impeller version, not Bram Stroker) and his evil plans to over throw a king!
Both boys are great in their own way, and are perfectly matched to the cousins! I loved the build up (though I really wanted a little more) between Theo and Lou, especially the misunderstanding that started them off on the wrong foot. And Dacia and Lord Johnny.....the banter and chemistry were amazing from the start and all the way through to the end. I really would have liked MORE romance, but considering I think this is intended to fall at the younger end of the YA spectrum, I can understand why it didn't pack as much punch as other YA books do in the romance department.
The third part that made this so amazing for me was the action and the epicness of it all. Plus, while I suspected there would be werewolves, the plot took twists and turns that I hadn't expected. Always a big plus.
The only thing that made this book so hard for me to get through, at least at the beginning, was the vey slow pacing. I loved the attention to detail and the world building that came from the slower pace. Compared to the last half of the book, the first half was seriously lacking. Maybe that was because the boys appearing made things so much more fun and intriguing.
Not that the whole family mystery, pulse pounding action and fight scenes weren't great---they were-- but I am such a sucker for the tension that romance always brings to a story.
The way SILVER IN THE BLOOD wraps up makes me strongly believe that this is only the first book in a series, just maybe that the publisher wasn't sure if it would be a success and wanted to make it able to be a standalone just in case it doesn't get very popular. A problem I am fairly certain they don't need to worry about. If there is a second book you can bet I''ll be picking it up as soon as possible! Overall I highly recommend this book to paranormal, historical, fantasy, action and YA fans.

Here's the reminder: I am hosting a special giveaway for the week. I've got three amazing books up for grabs so don't be shy about entering! Now is your time to enter to win! I will announce the winner here on the blog on Monday the 27th! Once the winner is announced they will have 7 days to get in contact and claim their prize, or I will choose another winner. So don't forget to check back :)
~Dynomoon



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hey Addicts!!! Long time no review :) It's been a summer and there's still more book greatness to come. Because of my summer hiatus I have decided to do a week of reviews, covering several of the books I've read in the last month or two. All the books reviewed are ones I've greatly enjoyed and think you all will enjoy as well.
I was crazy excited when a friend of mine came back from a big book conference with a bag full of books and ARCs for me! I literally did a crazy happy dance :) I was even more thrilled when I saw that one of those books was an ARC of Colleen Houck's REAWAKENED! I have been itching to bet my greedy book paws on this little beauty.
Now that I have read it, it's time for a review before the book gets released to the general public. Read on Addicts.



I have been dying to get my hands on this book since I heard about it. Major thanks to my friend for snagging me an ARC at the book conference she went to. I've wanted this so bad, not only because I'm a fan of Colleen Houck--her great world building and characters---but because of her writing style and attention to detail. When I finally got to sit down with REAWAKENED I devoured this amazing treat in one night.
The basic story deal: Lily--a very sheltered, slightly spoiled rich girl accidentally awakes an Egyptian mummy. But this dude is no mummy from the Mummy Movie franchise--No No!
This mummy, Amon, is a hot Egyptian prince who, along with his two "brother" princes are to awaken every 1000 years to complete a ritual that keeps Seth (bad Egyptian dude God) from getting a foot hold in the real world and unleashing his own kind of armageddon on us unsuspecting mortals. Of course, like all good fantasy books, $hi+'s gotta go wrong!
My absolute favorite things about this book:

1. The magic--especially the "sandblasting" way of travel
2. Ahmose-- one of Amon's brother princes (I am kinda leading towards him being my fav of the three princes)
3. Anubis-- Egyptian god and totally a character I hope to see more of!
4. Amon-- the hero and as much like Ren (from Colleen's TIGER'S CURSE series) as he is different from Ren. If that makes sense. I like him a lot.
5. The action-- much like TIGERS CURSE this book was filled with temples, tombs, booby traps, epic battle scenes and some scary, bada$$ monsters. I LOVED it. It's what kept me up to finish the book all in one night.
6. The relationship between the three brother princes-- LOVED IT. I wanted a lot more of it though. 

There are plenty of other great/cool things about REAWAKENED that I like: Lily and Amon's romance, the history and the creative way Colleen made the stories and histories her own so that they fit into the amazing world she has built. There's also the world building, the pacing, the myth behind the gods, and the unique way Lily and the Doc work together to help Amon and his brothers save the world. I won't say any more so I won't spoil the ending, but I gotta say, pretty cool.
There were a few things I wasn't 100% down with:

1. The time it took Amon to awaken his brothers.- As said above, I love the dynamic between the three boys Amon-Asten-Ahmose, but Asten and Ahmose get awakened so late in the book that we don't get a lot of chance to see all three of them them all together and at their best. I give full credit to Colleen, despite their small amount of page time, for building Asten and Ahmose so well that I instantly loved them both and just have to have more! I am hoping we get A LOT more of them as the series continues
2. The bad guy (outside the evil god Seth) I knew right away who the bad guy was going to be, so that didn't really shock me. What didn't sit well with me was how how sudden he's BAAM-crazy bad dude without a lot of lead up or good explanation. I think this part needed to be more polished.
3. I wanted more from Amon. I think this is why he's not really my favorite of the heroes. Yes, REAWAKENED is told from Lily's POV but in Tigers Curse it was the same way, but we still got a really good read and feel for what Ren and the other characters were feeling and experiencing. That aspect felt lacking with Amon. If there had been a little more of his feelings Amon would hands down be my favorite. I also think it would have helped made Lily and Amon's relationship a lot stronger.
4. My last, and biggest issue: Lily's absentee parents. Yes, right from the start it's set up that Lily is often left alone by her high powered , obsessive, and controlling parents but when she disappears to Egypt with Amon without any kind of excuse or word to them I'm like huh.....yeah, you can get away with it for a day maybe two, but over a week missing and her controlling parents aren't going bat $hi+ crazy?????? It's not believable. If there had been a few scenes where she had to duck phone calls or emails or texts or her parents trying to contact her or Lily having Amon whammy them so they don't freak out, then I would be good. But right now, not so much.

Considering the absentee parents was my biggest problem, REAWAKENED was still a great read and a nice start to a new series. My thought in a nutshell: GREAT world building and creative imagination. I loved the princes and the gods (Anubis ;P) I enjoyed Lily- though I hope we get to see more life and personality and character growth out of her as the series continues. The action and LACK of a love triangle.
Overall I totally recommend REAWAKENED to all 12+ year old fans of adventure, romance, fantasy and Egyptian myth.
Now I've got to control my itching fingers for book 2 of the series!

You've seen the books pictured above, now is your time to enter to win! I will announce the winner here on the blog on Monday the 27th! Once the winner is announced they will have 7 days to get in contact and claim their prize, or I will choose another winner. So don't forget to check back :)
~Dynomoon

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Long time no review Addicts! I apologize for my absence...life has gotten out of control. I also apologize to Sarah Nicolas for being late to post my review. But late is better than never, so here's my final  thoughts and addiction rating for this new YA series featuring were-dragons!!!!!!