Thursday, September 29, 2011

Review of Jenny Pox (The Paranormals #1) by J.L. Bryan

Jenny has a secret. Her touch spreads a supernatural plague.
She devotes her life to avoiding contact with people, until her senior year of high school, when she meets the one boy she can touch, and she falls in love.
But there's a problem--he's under the spell of his devious girlfriend Ashleigh, who secretly wields the most dangerous power of all.
Now Jenny must learn to use the deadly "Jenny pox" she's fought her entire life to hide, or be destroyed by Ashleigh's ruthless plans. (Copied from
Goodreads)
 
My Review 

Think about the number of times a day that you touch someone. What would you do if you could not touch any living thing without the chance of infecting them? Jenny Pox is a story about a teenage girl, who can never touch anyone, without infecting them with “Jenny Pox”. As the story starts, the consequences of Jenny getting too close to anyone are made clear.

As a teenager with special powers, all Jenny wants is to be normal. She is the outsider who deals with the sneers and glares her classmates give her. She knew she could never touch anyone, so she lets her classmates avoid her for their own safety. This story takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, because as you read this book the characters grow on you. This is what makes Jenny Pox, such a great book, because this book makes you feel. To feel emotions when reading a book requires a writer’s ability to create realistic characters. J.L. Bryan does exactly that in this book. 

As the book progresses, Jenny finds the one person she can touch without fear of killing them with disease, Seth. The problem is the Seth has a girlfriend, but not just any girlfriend, Ashleigh. Ashleigh is not just any girl, but the girl that has made it her personal mission to make Jenny miserable. Ashleigh is not just your typical evil cheerleader, usually featured in young adult novels. This is what I like about Jenny Pox is that J.L. Bryan take elements of typical young adult novels and builds on them to make them his own.

While this starts like a typical young adult book, it does have scenes involving sex, drugs, and other mature content. I would not recommend that anyone under the age of 17 read this book, due to the mature content mentioned above. Jenny Pox is a unique book that is well worth the purchase price, and I cannot wait to start Tommy Nightmare, the second book in the Paranormal series. 

**Not recommended for readers under sixteen due to mature content**

  • Paperback: 310 pages
  • Publisher: CreateSpace
  • Publication Date: July 24, 2010
  • Language: English
 **I won this book from the author, J.L. Bryan, with no obligation for review**
 
You can visit the author's website here
Buy Jenny Pox:

Monday, September 26, 2011

Review of Bite Me by Parker Blue



An edgy book for teens that spans the gap between YA and adult fiction. Life after high school is tough enough without having to go 15 rounds with your inner demon. Val Shapiro is just your ordinary, part-demon, teenaged vampire hunter with a Texas drawl. And a pet hellhound named Fang. Soon enough she finds herself deep in the underbelly of the city, discovering the secrets of the Demon Underground and fighting to save those she loves. Whether they love her back or not.(Copied From Goodreads)

My Review
Val Shapiro is a vampire slayer with a unique gift in the form of Lola. Lola being what Val likes to use to refer to her demon side. Val Shapiro is teenager trying to learn to deal with her inner succubus, making it hard to connect with anyone. The opening of the books jumps right into the action with Val fighting with a vampire. Val uses the hunting and killing of vampires to quench the thirst of the lust demon part of her. This avoids the need to use her powers to seduce men and have Lola feed on the lust energy.

My favorite part of this book is the relationship between Val, and her hellhound Fang. The relationship between the two has a way to lightening the mood, in certain situations. Even though Fang is a dog, he is holds his own, and he almost feels like a human character. Besides who does not want a vampire hunting hellhound at their side.

Val Shapiro as a character that is immediately fascinating, and the author, Parker Blue, creates a character that draws a reader in almost immediately. The setting for the book is also intriguing, because San Antonio is not a common city featured in supernatural, vampire novels. The change made the book even more fun to read. This book held my interest, and I could not put it down. I loved this book, the characters featured, and it ended with me wanted to know more. I cannot wait to start reading the second book in the Demon Underground series by Parker Blue.
  • Paperback: 232 pages
  • Publisher: Bell Bridge Books 
  • Publication Date: September 30, 2008
  • Language: English
**Unabridged Bookshelf received this book from netGalley, in exchange for an honest review**

Buy Bite Me:

Sunday, September 25, 2011

New Book Blog

Welcome to Unabridged Bookshelf, a brand new blog. I am new at this so please bear with me as I try to get a handle on running a book review blog. I hope enjoy this blog as it continues to grow.


Thank You

Chandra