Review: Sparks Rise (The Darkest Minds #2.5) by Alexandra Bracken!

Spoiler Alert: This is book 2.5!  Use your Judgement!

Don’t miss the thrilling novella that connects the last two novels in the New York Times best-selling Darkest Minds trilogy.

Sam didn’t think things could get worse at Thurmond rehabilitation camp. Then the Reds arrive. Everyone assumed the kids with firepower had been killed years ago. Instead they were taken away, brainwashed, and returned as terrifyingly effective guards. To her horror, Sam recognizes one of them: Lucas, the one spark of light in Sam’s dark childhood. Lucas has a deadly secret–he beat the brutal training that turned his fellow Reds into mindless drones. When Sam defends herself against an attack by a vile PSF guard and faces a harrowing punishment, Lucas must risk his everything to save her.

Includes a bonus preview chapter from the final Darkest Minds novel, In the Afterlight.

Description taken from Goodreads

My Review

I am a mess.  I’m a pile of goo.  Alexandra Bracken definitely knows how to write a novella. 

As much as I loved Sparks Rise, I hated it just as much.  It was just so painful to read.  I love how with each book we get some kind of new perspective of this world.  In The Darkest Minds we were introduced to everything but mostly we were on the run.  In In Time we saw it from a skip tracers POV and then in Never Fade from the League.  In Sparks Rise, we were back in Thurmond.  And it was awful.  We get so much more of it than we did in The Darkest Minds.  It’s such a horrific place and I really hope that it, along with all of the other camps, burn to the ground in In the Afterlight.

In this novella we’re with Sam, Ruby’s old friend.  She’s definitely a fighter and very different from Ruby.  Ruby’s a fighter as well but she had to adapt into who she is now because of her circumstances.  Sam was always a little rebel and I love that.  She’s no princess, she’s a knight.  Definitely a great role model.

Lucas was also great.  I’m still a Liam girl but Lucas is pretty awesome.  His need to find his sister and to save Sam is so commendable.

It was really interesting to see a bit more of the Reds, as well.  We haven’t seen much of them except for snippets and bits and pieces here and there.  I know that they’ll probably play an even bigger role in In the Afterlight.

So, I need some kind of conclusion to this novella as well as for In Time in In the Afterlight because both of these novellas left you on a cliffhanger and I am not okay with it staying that way.  I want everything tied in a neat little bow and handed to us on a bright silver platter.  I need a happy ending for this one!  I need it like I need air!  Like I need books!

Characters 5/5

Plot 4.5/5

Feels 5+/5

Writing 5/5

Overall 4.9/5

If you would like to purchase any of these books, please think about using my Book Depository affiliate link.  I'm currently unemployed and truly appreciate anything I can get.

Review: Never Fade (The Darkest Minds #2) by Alexandra Bracken!

Spoiler Alert for The Darkest Minds!

Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children’s League call Ruby “Leader”, but she knows what she really is: a monster.

When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children’s League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America’s children—and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts—has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future—and who now wouldn’t recognize her.

As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam—and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart—she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?

Description taken from Goodreads

My Review

Alexandra Bracken is trying to kill me.  I really think she’s trying to kill me.  This series is quickly becoming one of my all time favorites and Bracken is becoming an auto buy author.  I just can’t deal with this series!  Oh my God!  I laugh, I chuckle, I cry, I sob, I gasp.  I don’t know what to feel!  I feel all the feels and I don’t like it!

So we left off with our hearts broken.  We don’t know if Chubs is alive and Liam is wiped clean of his memories of Ruby.  I was destroyed!  And I really didn’t know how I was going to feel with Liam, Chubs and Zu gone.  They were the ultimate group  and I loved them together.  I knew we would see Liam at some point because Ruby's mission is to find him but I just didn't know when we'd see him and what state we would find him in.   But, we did get some new characters in the form of Vida and Jude.  Jude is that annoying little brother that always follows you around wanting to know what you’re doing but you can’t help but love him.  And Vida is annoying and mean in kinda a bad way but she definitely grows on you.  And I love how she calls Jude “Judith” and I love how he doesn’t mind at all.  Oh Jude, you crack me up you little weirdo. 

These characters definitely added a lot to this story and gave you yet another side to this messed up world.  There’s so many sides and we’re only scratching the surface.

Ruby.  Oh, I love Ruby.  In The Darkest Minds she was a weak little girl and by the end she was just so strong.  In Never Fade, we see her kind of closed off.  She’s this soldier now and is leading Ops and gets shit done.  She’s a fighter.  She’s knows when to turn off her emotions and do what she needs to do to help not just herself but her friends too.  And I feel like she’s so relatable and extremely likable even though she’s not the same Ruby we met in The Darkest Minds.  We are in her head and hear her inner dialogue and know how conflicted she is about everything.  Her emotions are all over the place and she wants to be strong for everyone else because she’s a leader now but at the same time she just wants to break down.  This, right here, is an amazing character and one of my all time favorite heroines at the moment.  I still have to read In the Afterlight, so I don’t know if she’ll do something to piss me off but as of right now, she’s at the top.

Never Fade is a sequel so obviously I can’t get into detail.  But just know that this is an emotional rollercoaster of a book.  And the end will have you crying and pumping your fist in the air screaming “Yes!”

I just can’t get over how much I love this trilogy and how quickly I fell in love with the characters. 

If you have yet to pick up this series, please do it.  It is absolutely excellent.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to go read In the Afterlight.  (By the way, just finished Sparks Rise.  I’m done!)

Characters 4.5/5

Plot 4/5

Feels 5/5

Writing 5/5

Overall 4.6/5

  If you would like to purchase any of these books, please think about using my Book Depository affiliate link.  I'm currently unemployed and truly appreciate anything I can get.

Cover Reveal: Heart's Desire (Healing Harts #1) by T.J Kline!

HEART’S DESIRE by T.J. Kline

The Healing Hart Series:

The Healing Harts series came to me one night as I was just falling asleep. It jerked me awake, making me sit up in bed. It was one of those ideas that came completely formulated, an entire series, like a lightning bolt to the brain, and I haven’t been able to shake loose of it until it was written down. A family, rocked by loss, each member with a desire to help others in their own way.

In the first book, Heart’s Desire, Jessie is faced with running the family dude ranch alone after her parent’s unexpected death. Unbeknownst to her siblings, she and her father were transitioning the ranch to an abused horse rescue facility but she’s floundering to keep it afloat and bankruptcy is looming. Her brother, Justin, decides it’s time to call his college buddy, Nathan Kerrington, for help – the same man who shattered her heart eight years earlier. 

Nathan Kerrington knows he hurt Jessie but he had a good reason for it. Now he just has to prove that to her and regain her trust. But, as old hurts rise to the surface, they must resolve their past before they can attempt to save her future and some hurts aren’t easily forgiven.

Pre-Order it HERE!

 

Choosing the cover for HEART’S DESIRE

The Cover:

When we started looking for covers for Jessie and Nathan’s story, I had a very clear picture in my mind. I knew exactly what my characters look like and the feel I wanted for the series as a whole. We had also decided very early to go with only the main characters on these books. I also knew that while all three books should tie together, I wanted Jet, one of Jessie’s horses, on the cover somewhere. He plays an important part in discovering herself at different points in the story. 

But Jessie is such a strong, independent character, she fought me at every step, whether it was in the first draft or the final cover. We went through several pictures and many would have worked with the mood of the book but there was always something that didn’t suit Jessie’s personality. Again, Jessie was determined to have her own way. 

In the end, she chose her own photo. As soon as I saw it, I knew this was Jessie and there was no need to look further for a cover photo. This cover portrays Jessie’s character better than words – pensive, wistful and ambitious. The fact that Jet was able to be part of this cover was the icing on the cake for me.

EXCERPT FOR HEART’S DESIRE

Excerpt:

"I came to apologize, Jess. I shouldn't have said those things."

She ignored the way her nickname slid easily from his lips or the way it made her heart trip over her ribs and start fluttering like a baby bird learning to take flight. She'd quit buying into romantic notions a long time ago thanks to him. Now, if only she could convince her body to let them go. She set the rake against the wall and walked into the aisle way.

"It's Jessie. Jessie. We are not friends, remember?"

His green eyes flashed, the golden flecks lighting them from within, and she saw frustration in the set of his jaw. "No?"

"No. Let's keep our roles in perspective. You're the financial genius here to do a favor for my brother, and I'm just his idiot little sister who bought your load of crap years ago and can't manage to keep this ranch afloat now."

His long strides ate the distance between them in seconds but she stood her ground, staring up at him, daring him to argue. His lips were tight, set in a grim line and a deep crease lined his perfect brow. She wanted to back away, but years of working with her father wouldn't allow her to show any signs of intimidation. Cowgirl up, she recited the mantra in her head, although not nearly as confidently as she usually did.

"Don't do that," he ordered, staring down into her eyes, his voice quiet but insistent.

She could feel the heat emanating from him as sparks of desires burst in her chest, sending shivers over her skin. She tried to control it, to stop herself from trembling at his nearness but she couldn't stop her breath from catching in her throat. "Don't do what?" Her voice was a hoarse whisper.

"Don't belittle yourself. You are far more than that. You've always been more than that to me." His hands grasped her upper arms and he dipped his head toward her, his eyes never leaving hers. "You're a talented, kind, giving, passionate woman."

It wasn't what Jessie expected. His words were a balm to her chapped and aching heart, exactly what she needed to hear, but she knew she couldn't let him break past her walls. Who knew what damage he could cause her heart when he left again. She'd barely managed to piece together the shards last time. She pressed her hands against his chest, intending to push him away from her, but he gently circled her wrists with his fingers. Their eyes locked and she refused to be the first to look away.

"Nathan." She meant for it to be a warning but it came out sounding more like a plea.

"What, Jess?"

He placed his palms over the back of her hands and twined his fingers between hers. His touch made her weak and she felt a wave of need break over her, threatening to drown her. She'd been so in love with him, and it had left a gaping hole in her, one she’d never managed to fill, not even with her work.

Nathan walked her backward until she felt the stall behind her. With the hard wall of his body pressing against the front of her, pinning their hands between them, there was nowhere for her to escape the explosion of yearning that began in the middle of her chest, spreading outward, heating her and leaving her breathless. Every inhalation filled her with the scent of his expensive cologne, reminding her again how out of place he was. He didn't belong here. But seeing the desire in his eyes, feeling it in every inch of him pressing up against her, made Jessie want to wrap her legs around his waist and let him take her right here in the barn.

She couldn't possibly feel this way about him again. She couldn’t imagine feeling any other way about him. She needed this man. Not just wanted him, needed him, and that scared the crap out of her.

He was going to kiss her, and she was going to melt under his touch. There was no doubt in her mind. If that happened, she was a goner. Because, for her, this wasn't about sex, this was about how Nathan made her feel, how he'd always made her feel - understood and validated and worthy. The only other time Jessie felt that way was when she worked with her horses.

How had this man recognized the weakness in her, buried deeply, and unearthed it so easily? Panic set in. She had to protect herself. She couldn't let Nathan in, couldn't let him get close again. She shoved against his hands, using her body to knock him off balance, backward against the handles of the wheelbarrow and into the bucket.

"You can finish the stalls."

She ran out of the barn, refusing to look back at the man trying to piece together a full sentence from where he landed, inside a wheelbarrow full of fresh horse manure.