Drakon's Tear by N.J. Walters

I'd like to say on here for the record that the cover is deceiving.  Why?  As I was reading, I thought to myself, this isn't one of those trashy romance books.  This novel consists of fantasy, suspense, action, and mythology.  Kinda like Sherrilyn Kenyon's and J.R. Ward's but without a lot of sex scenes. So, it deserves a better cover, but that's just me.

This novel really draws you in at the very beginning. I was hooked and could not put the book down until a little over 2 hours later.  I appreciate the fact there was hardly any steamy scene(sorry, too much of it gets too old for me. Nah, I'm not sorry.  It's just TMI for me) 

If you enjoy 

dragons

drakons

kidnapping

family bond

good vs evil

history

jewels

action

fights

Russia

light romance

then you'll enjoy this fast action novel. I wouldn't mind reading her other books in the series. This can be a stand alone book.

I'll give this book a low 4 stars.

I received this interesting ARC from Entangled Publishing, LLC /Entangled: Amara through Net Galley for my unbiased and honest review. Thank you!

The White Christmas Inn by Colleen Wright

First of all, I'd like to say, I adore this cover!  It reminds me of home in the country!  And may I say, it's perfect for this story?  

This is the story that I actually wanted to be in!  I wanted to be at the Inn right now, admiring all the decorations, smelling all the scents of Christmas, and the cooking!  Right there in the middle of nowhere, basically with lots of snow after the blizzard. The author was speaking my language as soon as I read the first page.  I did not put the Nook down until i was done 3 hours later.  Talk about miracles of all miracles for everyone! (well except for one, but you have to read on to see what I mean!) 

If you want to experience 

the aftermath of a blizzard

an inn in the middle of the country

the cozy country feel inside of an inn

Christmas theme

Food

Lit fireplace

Different families 

Sleigh rides

Children giggling and squealing

Romance

and much much more,

then this book is for you.  

You'll fall in love with each of the characters.  You just simply want to be part of them.  The ending was great!

I wouldn't mind reading more books by Colleen Wright. She has a way of bring bunch of characters together without confusing anyone. She can sew each square of the character's stories together effortlessly and flawlessly.

Go and get this book if you're in the mood for Christmas. It's not just romance. It's about family, friends, faith, hope, and miracles.  It'll do your soul good!  Seriously, this is one of those awesome feel good novel you'd want with cookies and hot chocolate!  You'll regret not reading it!

4 and 1/2 stars from me!

I received this wonderful ARC from Howard Books through Net Galley.  Thank you!

The Noel Stranger by Richard Paul Evans

Apparently, this is a second book in The Noel Collection.  I've never read any book  by Richard Paul Evans.  Imagine my suprise this Christmas novel is written by a gentleman. Thought I'd give it a try. The synopsis read reasonable and interesting.

As I read along, I was having a hard time believing how they connected.  The heroine was only thinking about herself.  I'm also having a hard time how she could just up and leave her restaurant running smoothly without her for several weeks or so. I'm also having a hard time how the divorce came about and how her husband can just show up asking her to show up for his court hearing.  Or just hop on the plane to go to an island for Christmas.  I saw her very insecured, understandably due to the divorce.  She basically questions everything in her new relationship which was almost destroyed. The hero was an idiot for not answering her questions and leaving her in the dark.  He expected her to know him well after learning about each other for a week?  Come one!  Give me a break.  Very unrealistic and contrived.

The story was easy to read.  It'll do for a light reading. Some of you guys may like it and some of you guys may not like it.

I was having difficulting connecting with the characters.  I wanted to, honest! I just couldn't.  The emotions just weren't there.

I'll have to read other books by Richard Paul Evans to understand why he's dubbed as the King of Christmas.  

I love the cover of this book. It's beautiful.

I'll give this book a low 3 stars.  

I received this ARC from Simon & Schuster through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased and honest review.  Thank you!

Draw and Paint Super Cute Animals by Jane Maday

First  of all, this book is the size of a large magazine.  The cover is thick.  The illustrations are simply gorgeous  from the cover to the back of the cover. There are 110 pages.

This is an excellent book to have for a beginner who's just starting out to learn to draw and paint. She goes on to explain the tools needed, type of paints, color charts, shadings, and the techniques at the beginning.

As you turn the pages, she shows step by step on drawing and painting the animals such as puppies, kittens, birds, bears, foxes, and many more.

I've noticed the author emphasizes on that "art is a learning process ."  She gives positive vibes and encourages the readers not to be dicouraged but keep trying and practice drawing .  I like the fact that the author doesn't make claim that you can magically draw like a pro in one sitting.  She truly  comes across as an professional teacher in this book.

This book would serve well to all who desires to learn and it can be used as a tool and guide from to time to all ages.

The illustrations are wonderful and pleasing to the eyes.

I won this book in a raffle from North Light Books through Bookish First.  This review is totally voluntarily submitted by me and as usual as all my reviews are unbiased and honest.

Meridian Chronicles #1 by M.D. Fryson

Wow!

This is what Fantasty is truly is in this book.

If you're into

Witch

Fairy

Fairy Queen

Salem

Another World

Curse

Demons

Mysteries

Hidden truths

Souls

 Fairy book

unlikely friendships

Romance

and much more....

At the beginning, it was kind of confusing.  Remember, this is for YA.  As I moved along, I knew it would get better.  I was in for a ride.  I was NOT disappointed.

This is about a young teen who's discovering about herself and who her parents really are after an incident that happened.  This all came about when one man who wants absolute power wanting to crush her father and destroy the family at all cost in order to cover up his past.  So as her father is being cast to the Hall of Souls. Meridian begins her journey with her friends to save her father, her family, and everyone around her.

There is a love triangle involved in there but I won't get into it.

I cannot wait to see what the next book brings!  I still want to continue on with Meridian's journey!

I'm going to give this a low 4 stars because of the way it started out and I almost put it down.  I'm glad I pushed on because it became interesting.

Also, I want to point out that the cover is gorgeous!  Perfect for this novel!

I received this ARC from BooksGoSocial through Net Galley. Thank you!

The Good, the Bad, and the Duke

normally don't read this type of romance, but I needed a light reading since I've been with a really bad cold for over a week.
It was a cute novel for a Christmas story. It had me chuckle at the main characters. It was a very lighthearted love story. Who ever is a big fan of historical romance will enjoy it.

I received this ARC from St. Martin's Press through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased and honest review. Thank you.

Bloodwitch by Susan Dennard (Preview Exerpt)

Downloaded this exerpt because it's one of my favorite genre.  I'm sold! I want more!  However, this is the 3rd book in the series.  I went on Barnes and Noble to research for Windwitch and Truthwitch. Imagine my delight,they were on sale (Black Friday)! I went ahead and ordered them because I really want to read those before the Bloodwitch comes out on sale.

I'm not saying much about this preview yet until I read the actual book. I want to be able to give a good review on Bloodwitch after I'm done reading it once it becomes available.

I received this sample of ARC from Tor Teen through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased and honest review. Thank you!