2013 Belongs to Dante!

Goodreads Blurb

He makes good girls...bad. 

Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper's soul in ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.

I had no freaking idea what I was getting into when I started this. No. Freaking. Idea. Honestly? I was maybe expecting some big cheesy romance with a few paranormal elements thrown in. But it was SO much more. 

There's really only one way to kick off this review: Dante. His name alone should make you swoon! But his swagger and his attitude? It'll charm you and keep you laughing! Who cares if he's a reaper from hell--he's DANTE. He's a naughty influence and it was interesting seeing things from his POV. It changed things up a bit, and gave us a fresher view on a usually typical paranormal romance. His sarcasm and wit is, by far, his most endearing traits. Not counting physically of course...
Charlie was an interesting character. At first, I pretty much felt the way Dante did--she was pathetic, desperate, in need of quite a few makeovers. But there was just something about her that was brought to life in these pages and I adored her character so much after a few chapters! She was just, if she were real, one of those people I'd instantly want to protect. To repeat Dante's thoughts, she was so INNOCENT in a sort of cute way. 

And OMG their romance. Dante just fell EVER so slowly while Charlie was basically in love at first sight. Too bad Dante didn't feel the same way then! But it was adorable seeing how Charlie became more than just a promotion scheme to him, more of a person, more of someone he wanted to protect and love. It. Was. So. Damn. Sweet.

I want a Dante.
Without the drama. 

What I found interesting about this were the...unique rules of Heaven and Hell. A lot of things came into play that aren't usually used in an angel/demon book, but I have to give it to Scott--she handled it beautifully. Or, rather, witfully. Which is totally a word. The paranormal elements were interesting and definitely wasn't overshadowed by the romance like I'd expected! It's a captivating read--and watching how Dante operated were really interesting bits. ;)

There were a TON of plot twists I honestly never saw coming and sometimes I just had to stop reading and collect my thoughts. Dante was an overpowering antihero! Who totally had me swooning at the first page. Back in topic, the plot was well executed and OHMYGOSH I just loved it! 

Pages: 352
Genre: Paranormal/Romance
Series: The Collector #1
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: April 2, 2013
Rating 4.5--->5

Check out the other stops on "2013 Belongs to Dante" 

Victoria Scott
I’m a YA writer with a die-hard affection for dark and humorous books. My workis represented by the fabulous Laurie McLean of Larsen-Pomada literary agency. I have a master’s degree in marketing, and am a member of the Writers’ League of Texas and Teen Shiver.
My first YA book, THE COLLECTOR, will be published by Entangled Teen, April 2013. It is the first book in a trilogy. My second YA series will begin with THE BRIMSTONE BLEED and is being published by Scholastic in spring 2014.

Media
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads
Dante's Website


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: Undeadly by Michele Vail (Review)

Eep! I just adore this book, really! I'm so glad to be a part of this blog tour! Today's stop is a review and I'm more than happy to share my thoughts on Undeadly!

Goodreads Blurb

The day I turned 16, my boyfriend-to-be died. I brought him back to life. Then things got a little weird...
Molly Bartolucci wants to blend in, date hottie Rick and keep her zombie-raising abilities on the down-low. Then the god Anubis chooses her to become a reaper-and she accidentally undoes the work of another reaper, Rath. Within days, she’s shipped off to the Nekyia Academy, an elite school that trains the best necromancers in the world. And her personal reaping tutor? Rath. Who seems to hate her guts.
Rath will be watching closely to be sure she completes her first assignment-reaping Rick, the boy who should have died. The boy she still wants to be with. To make matters worse, students at the academy start turning up catatonic, and accusations fly-against Molly. The only way out of this mess? To go through hell. Literally.

The number one thing I absolutely loved about Undeadly? The world-building! In a parallel world, zombies are a usual sight, SEERs are things almost everyone has, and reapers are almost common! And all because of the battle between the Egyptian gods, Anubis and Set. The way that things were explained actually made sense (Which, trust me, is hard when you add grim reapers with Egyptian mythology) and I admit, it did bombard me with information in the beginning so I had a hard time keeping track of everything, but after a few chapters you start to understand it. Besides that, I had so much fun discovering this world where Egyptian gods were real and hey, it looks like a certain reaper is starting to fall for the champion, Chosen, and child_of Anubis. Huh.

Speaking of, the romance! The romance was…weird to say the least. I mean there was Rick, Molly’s crush from when she was 15, turning 16 and there was Rath. Either way the romance was pretty awkward. I mean, no this isn’t a spoiler by the way, Molly barely knew Rick and she brought him back to life, not finding it weird at all that Rick traveled all the way to her new private school (for reapers) and seems to be so madly in love and obsessive. Because that’s so normal right? As for Rath, I thought it was a bit forced. They didn’t actually get to know each other and yet they’re starting to “like like” each other?

Plot? LOVED. It was fast-paced and everything that happened wasn’t just for the heck of it. There were actually a lot of things that I could predict and while there weren’t many giant plot twists, the few there were…ugh. I think my jaw became unhinged! Shocking and out-of-the-blue? Understatement for sure. I think I reread a few things. You know, just to make sure that I wasn’t hallucinating!

Undeadly was a kick-butt sassy read that was so insanely fun and exciting! It’s definitely one to read especially for Egyptian myth/ Zombie/ Ghost/ Action lovers! Despite the romance, Undeadly was an amazing read that you’ll love! The voice actually, for once in YA, sounded like a teen’s thoughts! Trust me, that’s a pretty hard feat! Full of quips and soul-snatching (read it and find out) Undeadly is one you should definitely get your hands on!



Author Bio

Michele Vail writes young adult paranormal fiction about zombies and reapers.
She likes reading, dogs, cats, board games, ghost-hunting shows, and Halloween. She believes in magic, in the impossible, and in the restorative powers of chocolate.
Michele lives happily-ever-after with her Viking and their family.

Contact

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

Website

a Rafflecopter giveaway