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Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

February 26, 2015May 26, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. Having missed her flight, she’s stuck at JFK airport and late to her father”s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.

4.5 Drink Me Potions

What if you missed your flight by 4 minutes?
What if you hadn’t been able to find a seat in the next flight out?
What if your seat didn’t happen to be next to a charming British guy you met earlier in the airport?This is the kind of story that is charming and romantic in the way it set up its premise. Fate and chance brought two strangers together by tiny threads of connection. If any of the above things hadn’t happened, Hadley and Oliver would’ve never met. That is the kind of story I am completely a sucker for. And this time around, Jennifer E. Smith didn’t disappoint me.

The chemistry between Hadley and Oliver was amazingly believable. Sometimes I find it hard to believe in the connection between the people who are supposedly “attracted” to each other. I just can’t feel it. This wasn’t the case here. Yes, the story takes place over the course of 24 hours but it wasn’t completely like they fell in love immediately. There was this cute teasing and banter they had throughout the flight that really softened me up to both of them. They even teased each other about how they “became a couple” when an old lady sitting next to them mistakenly assumed they knew each other prior to arriving at the airport.

“So,” the woman asks, “how did you two meet?”
“Believe it or not,” Oliver says, “it was in an airport…I was being quite gallant, actually, and offered to help with [Hadley’s] suitcase. And then we started talking, and one thing led to another….”
Hadley grins. “And he’s been carrying my suitcase ever since.”

Oliver particularly helped, being the funny and adorable guy that he is. Their conversations or Hadley’s memories of them later in the story were my favourite part.

“Which was your favourite? Of all the places you’ve been?”
Oliver seemed to consider this for a moment before the telltale dimple appeared on his face. “Connecticut. What about you?”
“Alaska, probably. Or Hawaii…I’ve been to all but one [state], actually.”
“So which one have you missed?”
“North Dakota.”
“So if you could go anywhere else in the world, where would it be?”
Hadley thought about this for a moment. “Maybe Australia. Or Paris. How about you?”
Oliver had looked at her as if it were obvious, the faintest hint of a grin at the corners of his mouth. “North Dakota,” he’d said.

See how easy it is to love them together? That being said, this book isn’t all centred around their romance. In fact, a lot of it dealt in Hadley’s anger at her father for leaving her mother so out of the blue for another woman he met while away for a semester in Oxford. Smith did a very good job of making me feel as broken as Hadley did over what her father did, and the new life he was about to finalize for himself. Half way around the world, leaving the life he did have with her back in America.

I liked that by the end, she was able to deal with the mess of things that had been tossed her way. Love is an illogical thing , quoteth both of Hadley’s parents. Even when things end, there may be good out of it all.

All in all, it was very romantic and heartfelt. Both about learning to love your family no matter what may happen or the distance between them, and taking chances before there is no time left for them. I wished the book hadn’t ended so fast, yet at the same time, the way it concluded left an air of magic and uncertainty to it. In fact, the uncertainty of the future made it all the better because it leaves room for us to imagine how things would play out past this 24 hour mark. An absolutely great story, and definitely worth the 4.5 stars!

Overall Recommendation:
The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight is as unique as its name, and definitely lives up to its implications. With two sweet characters that are both troubled with family issues, Hadley and Oliver makes it believable when it comes to sparking a connection so deep that they’d be willing to find each other in the heart of London again after one amazing transatlantic flight together. Filled with witty banter and the heartache of letting go of anger, there is no other book I’d rather recommend in this genre.

Review: Lullaby by Amanda Hocking

February 10, 2015May 26, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Watersong Quartet #2

Don’t miss the next chapter of Watersong, a bold new series that will enchant you, entrance you, and hold you captive under its spell
Now that Gemma Fisher has inherited Penn, Lexi, and Thea’s curse – and all the strange new powers that come along with it – she has no choice but to run away with them. Devastated that she has to leave everyone she loves behind, she’s still determined not to give in to the unspeakable hungers that plague her.
Unfortunately, they’re growing stronger every day, and she’s not sure how much longer she can resist.

Harper won’t give up on finding her sister Gemma, vowing to get her back no matter what the cost. The search draws her closer to too-gorgeous-for-his-own-good Daniel, and tests her fiercely guarded independence like never before. She’s always been the strong one who everyone else depends on…. Can she let herself depend on Daniel?
As Gemma and Harper plunge deeper into a magical world they barely understand, it becomes painfully clear that Gemma’s old life may be lost forever. But can she still hold on to her humanity?

2.5 Drink Me Potions

Lullaby picks up right where Wake left off. No, seriously. The cliffhanger from the previous book? It’s like an hour passed and that’s where this book starts. I’m starting to wonder how the timeline of this series is going to go. Wake was like only a few weeks at most, if not less. Boy, do relationships change fast. Is this series going to last the timeline of a few months before summer ends? At least, that’s the first thing my brain asked upon starting this book. But I digress.

Here is what I thought about this book…

The pacing
I wanted to scream in frustration at this book sometimes. Honestly. If this was a show instead of a book, this book would be considered a “filler episode”. Nothing much happened in Lullaby. Sure, Gemma is figuring out how to be a siren with her new “sisters”, who are rather creepy and very bee-yotchy. Harper, Daniel and Alex are frantically trying to find her. I swear though, this is how the first part of the story goes.

Gemma’s POV: at some location with the sirens, particularly Penn being an ass and taunting her to “feed” on some poor man soon

Switch to Harper & Alex’s POV: makes Facebook page/missing posters/calls the cops/worrying incessantly = pretty much most of their POV for like a good half of the book

Oh, and what’s worse? Daniel doesn’t pop up as much until later into the book because Harper’s avoiding him. I love that girl, but man, I wish their flirtation would take the next step already. She has got to see how much he cares for her and accepts her even when she’s in one of those cold-hot mood swings. Overall, there wasn’t a lot happening. At least, not as exciting with the level of pacing it was written in.

The sirens
My goodness, I wanted to punch Lexi sometimes. She’s so whiny and needy at the same time. It’s like she’s in some power play constantly, wanting to be Penn’s favourite but also wanting to have that kind of power for herself as well.

Penn is her usual bossy yet scary self. She doesn’t like to share her men, both as toys or as food, and she’s so manipulative of her sisters. Of all villains and mean girls out there in other stories, I think Penn wins the award for “Most Hated Character”. I got to give kudos to Hocking for making such a flawed and easily hateable villain.

Thea, I feel, has potential in being more than what her sisters seem like at the surface, which is self-centred, cunning, heartless men-eating monsters. To put it nicely. I feel there would be a lot more to her role in the sirens’ past….just not in this book. My biggest question left from here would be Why the heck would she let Penn boss her around like that when she’s the oldest sister?

Last thoughts
I wouldn’t say to let Lullaby deter you from reading the series. It does push the story along a little bit, and there were very cute romantic moments with Harper/Daniel and even Alex/Gemma. It was just slow and sometimes felt like Hocking didn’t know what to do to fill up this sequel with. I only kept reading at such a fast pace ’cause I desperately wanted to see something exciting happen. I guess I’ll be waiting for Tidal for that to happen.

Overall Recommendation:
Lullaby honestly feels like the middle book syndrome but magnified by 10. There weren’t a lot of things going on in this book. Not much of the mythology aspect progressed, most of the protagonists were just searching for Gemma and not doing anything else exciting, Gemma was preoccupied with her new siren abilities, yada yada yada. At most, this book’s goal was to slowly move the plot forward, but it barely did even that. There wasn’t much excitement to it, which was a disappointment considering Wake most definitely had that going for its intriguing plot. Hopefully this means that the series can only go up from here, and maybe some answers will finally be given. One can only hope.

Review: Wake by Amanda Hocking

February 8, 2015May 26, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Watersong Quartet #1

Fall under the spell of Wake—the first book in an achingly beautiful new series by celebrated author Amanda Hocking—and lose yourself to the Watersong.

Gorgeous. Fearless. Dangerous. They’re the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone’s attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group.

Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets.

3.5 Drink Me Potions

Wake was a very easy read. I personally haven’t read too many books diving into the story of the sirens. Sure, other parts of Greek mythology have been overdone, but the aspects of sirens in Homer’s Odyssey is intriguing.

The mythology itself
I really enjoyed how Hocking incorporated sirens and their Greek history into this story. From the blurb, it’s quite obvious that the sirens were going to make Gemma as one of their own. However, there was quite an amount of suspense in the anticipation of when it would happen, and why they do what they do. Right smack in the prologue, the air of suspense starts building as bodies are dropping in the small seafront town of Capri.

It was nice to have a clear and straightforward description of the mythology so it wasn’t like I had to piece together what had happened to the sirens in the past that made them who they were. Of course, hearing their story really added to the intrigue of what the gang of main characters were going to do to help Gemma out of this situation.

The characters
It sometimes is annoying when there are more than one protagonist’s POV to switch back and forth from. I’m waiting anxiously to see what happens to one person, then I turn the page and it’s….the next chapter with someone else’s POV happening elsewhere.

BUT, this didn’t make me as annoyed in Wake.

First off, this story is written in 3rd person perspective, which is a rather rare thing these days in the YA genre. It made it easier to understand what more than one character was feeling at a time. What got me through the switching of POVs was the fact that Gemma and her sister Harper are both such great characters.

Gemma is impulsive sometimes, but she feels the call of the ocean even before becoming a siren. She works hard to be the best swimmer, and she’s pretty without feeling cocky and boastful of it. Harper, on the other hand, is the older sister and acts bossy sometimes. But she has the heart to love anyone, even a rugged older guy living on a boat.

This brings me to say…

The “romance” aspect
I loved that this series doesn’t focus on just one couple, but on two . I felt that Alex and Gemma’s relationship happened rather fast. Like, I understand that he’s the boy next door and there were simmering feelings going on for like the last while. It just didn’t build up as nicely as I would’ve liked it to, but there were still very touching moments between the two.

Harper’s not the kind of girl who feels there’s time for a relationship in her life. With a mom who acts more like a teenage-obsessed fan of Justin Bieber’s, a father who forgets his lunch I swear all the time, and a younger sister who she feels responsible for, there are a lot of things on her plate. So her deliciously crazy attraction towards Daniel was very enjoyable from the start. He was the opposite of her in so many ways. He was more relaxed, living out of his grandfather’s boat while looking for odd handyman jobs to do. Harper was college-bound and here was this “slob” who kept trying to flirt and appease her after their rather awkward first meeting. This potential relationship kept me very interested in seeing more of it later on.

Concluding remarks
Although I highlighted the things I enjoyed in Wake, it just wasn’t quite 4 stars or even 5 stars material. The pacing was a little slow at times, especially when the sirens kept taunting Gemma and Harper but didn’t do anything just yet . Alex and Gemma’s romantic chemistry was a little off for me in this one. I kind of wished there were more moments that made me say “Ah, I can see why they’re falling so hard for each other”. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the two of them together, but I’m just being nit-picky.

Anyway, it’s definitely worth the read, especially as the first of a series.

Overall Recommendation:
Wake was a different read, in the sense that it focused on a part of Greek mythology that was darker and not necessarily as popular. Sirens were loose in Capri, wrecking havoc and leaving bodies in their wake. And Gemma has caught their eyes. The level of suspense builds as Gemma and her sister Harper finds themselves caught in a curse from over two thousand years ago.

With budding romance in the horizon for both sisters and a mild-pacing of the story, Wake should be given a try and maybe it would get you sucked into the world of the Watersong series.