It helps if you read The Darcys and the Bingleys first (besides, it was a great book, after all). Leave the majority of your assumptions of each character at the door. This book takes all the Pride and Prejudice characters and spins it around so they act different than what you thought they would be. Not that there's anything wrong with that, although it may take some time getting used to. Especially in the case of Mary Bennet. Whoever thought she'd be the one to mess things up this time?

The comedy in this book is increased, much more than the first one. I love how Darcy picks on Bingley (he has a knack for it) and all Bingley can do is just sputter about trying to think of a come back (you can actually picture this easily in your head too). There is also some new characters being introduced. They're pretty good, Gregoire Darcy is entertaining and an interesting addition. It took a while to get used to him but he proved to be likable - and humorous. I'm curious as to his background story, but am also curious as to what the future books have in store for him as well.

The plot was well done! it was interesting, funny, and had several story arcs within to keep you interested in the handful of characters mentioned in the book. Each plot also ties up nicely in the end so you're not left with open questions or unfinished business. The only complaint I have, is Mary's situation ends up getting cheesy and corny at the end - but otherwise, the entire premise of the book made up for that small little mishap. The ending did have a little surprise (OMG really??!!! Wickham!!?? gahhh!!!) which I was not expecting. It was great to read though!

Another great Austen spinoff by Marsha Altman, and I'm going to read further. I absolutely love this series so far. Readers who want to see their beloved Pride and Prejudice characters go through ups and downs, but filled with laugh out loud scenes are welcome to try this.

I thought, as a Law and Order SVU fan, this might be something I might like (except in book format). Well, it was all right at first. I liked Alexandra. A very strong willed character, although she had her girlie moments, she wasn't a stone cold woman of ice either. That was good. Her friendship with Mike Chapman was really fun to read. Chapman made the story more interesting with his sense of humor. His jabs towards Alexandra (and vice versa) were fun to read.

The plot was all right. It wasn't really that exciting. The only twist was who Isabella's male companion was, but it wasn't that shocking or revealing. However, I'm glad Alexandra didn't mope about and became dramatic diva over that moment. I do like seeing her all up in a temper though - that was really entertaining to watch.

So, the plot was rather mediocre, and although I did like the characters, it wasn't enough to make me fully enjoy the book. What rather killed it for me was, it was rather dry. So dry, it took me a while to finish a book that only had 336 pages. Oh boy, did it ever drag. On top of that, Alexandra also handles many other cases and it's all mixed in with the main case featuring Isabella. Now although this is realistic, to me it felt like it was added to fill in pages of the book. It wasn't exciting, it didn't particularly interest me, and there were many minor characters added you could not keep track without at least back tracking to figure out which case she's talking about now. It came to the point where I skimmed through most of the last third of the book, read the grand climax (which wasn't that great in the first place) and then I was done.

I was just curious what was so great about these series and I just wanted to see how it was like. I realize this is the first book so of course, perhaps books after this one are better. Yet, I'm not sure if I'm going to get the second book. If it's like this one, I will pass. This might not be for everyone, but those that are into legal thrillers are welcome to try and see for yourselves.

This book caught my attention because of its' cover. I was expecting something thrilling and maybe something with paranormal characteristics in the book.

I was wrong. What I thought was going to be a thrilling read turned about to be not so scary or thrilling at all. The writing style felt like you were reading a screenplay (or something close like it). The plot wasn't too bad but it could have been better, and none of the characters really stood out for me.

One part I did not understand at all was the addition of the New Orleans voodoo thing. I thought to myself, hey this is going to get interesting. Nope. I don't even know WHY it was added into the plot. Was it to deceive the reader into thinking voodoo was involved??? NOTHING was done with it and it turned out just to be a page filler.

When the big mystery was finally revealed, the ending was all right, but not the greatest and by that time I was rather disenchanted with the whole novel and I wanted it to be over and done with. It's rather unfortunate but so much more could have been done with this plot and book but looked as if not much effort was put into it at all.

None of the characters really stood out for me. The romance between Emma and Jake wasn't that great and I couldn't really connect or have attachments to anyone. They were all cardboard like with barely any personality at all - although I'd have to say Jake was the one with the most personality at best.

Aside from the cover, this book could have been made into a movie and would have turned out much better. It's a short book, so it can be read in one sitting (however because the plot was a bit slow to begin with it took me longer than usual). I would say pass this on unless you've no idea what to read next.

I started to like this book a lot, it was hilariously funny and puts a whole new twist to the vampire theme. However there were just some parts of the book that did not sit well with me and the book suddenly became something that I did not expect. Perhaps it was the author's intention. Perhaps not.

At first I thought Doug was comical. He was certainly someone you could either relate to (as being a social outcast in the school class system) or someone you made fun of (oh come on, I'm sure there are times you DID laugh at them for some reason or another don't be so high and mighty thinking you didn't). Then as the book progresses, you realize some of the reasons why Doug isn't well liked.

Turns out, Doug is...a jerk. His comments towards minorities and other groups aren't that funny at all and it may offend some readers. His treatment of Jay is also why he's a jerk. For a best friend, Jay tends to take a lot in, and although he may seem like a loyal sidekick, Doug treats him like dirt and likes to openly make fun of him in front of other friends to make himself look better. As the book progresses, at first, Doug may seem all right, but then as you turn the pages, you see more of his true colors show, and they're not what they seem. He turns out to be not very likable at all.

The plot in itself is pretty good. At first. Then it just flatlines throughout the second half of the story. I'm not sure why there was such a big mystery behind Sejal and her case of 'The Google'. I don't know why the explanation of it took such a long time to be revealed. In fact that rather annoyed me because she kept on mentioning it and I'm asking each time; 'WTF is that?!' when it was revealed I almost just about gave up trying to figure it out. Werewolves, and vampire hunters are then added into the plot, but none of that really makes it stand out or makes the plot move forward. A lot of the time I felt some things were definitely rushed and some characters just disappear. Then the ending has somewhat of a Donnie Darko flavor to it and this is where I wonder if I really liked the book, or I didn't.

It was, all right I suppose. It had a great potential to be an excellent book, but then the plot stops, characters disappear, and you're left with a rather mediocre read. Yes, Doug is a jerk and that may turn some readers off from this book but I was more concerned with the plot itself. There were just too many loose ends to let me fully enjoy the story.

What I really liked about this story is the rich historical detail and effort put into it. The setting is easy to picture, and as the story progresses, you certainly can feel the tension and the civil unrest there was during this particular time. So this aspect of the book was exceptionally well done.

I really liked reading the characters in this book as well. I loved Adriane! she certainly was a very strong character (although, it was also good that she displayed her vulnerabilities as well, to make her more 'real'). However what I liked about her the most is her strong independence and her willingness to make her own proper choices despite her betrothal and her social status. I liked how she made her own decisions and was willing to accept those consequences - even to the point of disappointing her own father.

I also thought the villain in this book was very well done. He's creepy enough while maintaining a facade and fooling others (he fooled me at first). Blake on the other hand is also well done (although he's your typical gentleman you find in these kinds of novels) but the chemistry he has between himself and Adriane is well written and they go well together.

The plot is well written, and the mystery part of the book is all right although it was rather predictable who the culprit is. The pacing is also well done although I thought it did drag its' feet towards the last third of the book. Despite this small shortcoming, the book was still a great read and I absolutely enjoyed it. Most definitely recommended for those who like a nice clean historical romance with a rich setting, or those who are into inspirational fiction.

First of all, bonus points to a very beautiful cover. Really loved it. Second, I really liked this book. The best of it was the setting description of the boarding school and the overall mood throughout the book. It was dark, it was gothic, and it held a lot of secrets ready to be revealed.

Caitlyn overall, was a good character to read. She wasn't over the top whiny or moody like some protagonists I've come across. She's realistic and likable. The chemistry she has between herself and Raphael is well done (and Raphael is VERY crushworthy).

The plot does develop a little slower than some. The descriptions of France and its' buildings is well done so picturing the setting is easy and establishes the story so readers will have a clear picture. I liked how the story carries the reader through different time periods, but also it's like time traveling through dreams. It's interesting, for sure and the transitions aren't confusing, it's pretty much clear and easy to read. The ghost story part of the book was very well done. I wasn't expecting the outcome and it caught me entirely off guard. The treasure hunting aspect (yes, there's a lot to pack into this plot!) was good and interesting, and it wasn't too overdone.

There was one thing that really did bother me, and that was towards the ending. It got a little too convenient and well to be frank, rather cheesy. I thought it should have been done differently or..perhaps that particular event with Thierry just should not have happened. In my opinion, I found that part to be just so predictable and if the rest of the book hadn't been so great, the score based on that ending alone would have been lower.

Great for YA fans who want a little bit of everything (a ghost story, a romance, a treasure hunt, and a bit of historical fiction). It's worth the read. Some might be put off with the slow development of the plot so this might not be for some who prefer something fast paced.

No matter how much of this type of book I've read in the past another one comes along and it instantly becomes a favorite, replacing the previous one. This one take a little more of a realistic turn (sans aliens and zombies) and goes for what would happen if the moon is knocked closer to earth. Major natural disasters occur, and the weather changes drastically.

I admired Miranda's mom. A lot. She was strong and held her family together, preparing everything in advance when things get worse later. It was as if she had everything under control - something extremely difficult to do especially when the majority of the public are probably panicking and running amok. I also liked Matt who also was strong and acted like the backbone of Miranda's family too.

It did take me a while to like Miranda. There were times when she acted like a spoiled self centered selfish brat, but then there were other times where she would sacrifice anything to help her family. You do tend to forget that she's just a sixteen year old girl because of her behavior. She acts like an adult at times, but then reverts to her age the next. It's the same with Johnny too, and he's younger than Miranda. It's in crisis situations like these where you see children literally grow up when they should be having fun at their age.

The story is told in a diary format, which may not be everyone's cup of tea, but Miranda doesn't fill her entries with flowery writing, at times it can get a little whiny and her priorities get a little mixed but her descriptions of what's going on and how the world is during this crisis is cut and clear. It may not be as graphic as some other post apocalyptic books are, but since this is meant for younger readers, the amount of details is just right.

It's a great post apocalyptic book for younger readers, and I think it's also a great 'starter' book for those that just want a taste of these kinds of books. It's not over the top graphic detail, but just enough to know that the world Miranda lives in, is filled with a lot of difficulties and hardship. Yet it outlines the importance of family togetherness to survive through the ordeal. This was a great read, and I do recommend this book for readers of any age.

What I loved most about this novel, was the characters in them. The plot was good, but it's really the characters that made the book twice as enjoyable to read. Libby is a great character with an awful secret - although I thought it was most definitely a secret problem that can be fixed, so I'm not sure why it wasn't encouraged for her to try to solve this issue. Perhaps because she's tried so hard to do so with results, she just gave up - what surprised me was I really thought Michael would do something about it, but he didn't. (This whole thing will make sense once you read the book).

I thought Libby and Michael were such a wonderful couple! from the start they had a little spark and it eventually grew to something more but it was just so nice to read them both. Some of the things Michael says to Libbey throughout the book were so nice I had to sit back and reread them again. They were most definitely very memorable quotes. My favorite scene, had to be when they were stranded in the rain.

The plot was really good and interesting. I was very glad of Mirela's outcome because of her past story. What got me all riled up was Regina. Oh argh. She got me so mad and I can't believe she did what she did. (Which just goes to show you how involved in the plot I was while reading this book). I also liked the perfume parts of the book. That was interesting and didn't think someone like Michael would be into that sort of thing. It's definitely something you don't see in most novels out there.

Definitely recommended for those who want a light romantic read. The romance was brilliant, the plot very nice and interesting to follow, most importantly it had very memorable characters that made the book absolutely fantastic.

I enjoyed this book. It was a good read and the characters were all very well done and likable. Although at first, I disliked Margaret. She wasn't that likable in the beginning and acted more like a spoiled brat who took a lot of things for granted. However, Margaret also provided for the most developed character in the book and it was nice to see her grow and become a much better person. I enjoyed reading her experience as a housemaid (mostly comical, sometimes I felt sorry for her).

The main couples 'to be' in this book suited each other very well. They were paired each other nicely, they sure had the chemistry all figured out but what was nice was when they were finally together. It made the ending of the novel a nice sweet one. The plot on the other hand was well done, I liked the amount of historical detail was made to make the plot much more authentic and realistic. I'm glad Julia Klassen took the time to make this book with as much historical detail as possible it made the reading experience much more fun.

The only thing I didn't like about the book was towards the end, the plot slowed a bit, and there was a mystery added that was interesting, but it just felt like it dragged the rest of the plot as well. However it did have a nice ending as I mentioned earlier and overall the book was good so I'd say this is just a minor issue.

I'd recommend this to historical fiction lovers, the contrast between servant and high society is definitely mentioned and you follow Margaret in seeing the vast differences between the two. It's most definitely worth the read.

The book had all the things I wanted when I felt like reading about the world going down the drain and what happens when stuff hits the fan. So naturally, I picked this one up. It's a short read, as it's less than 200 pages.

I wish I could like it more. Yet I couldn't. Although the situation is realistic and could be very possible, I just couldn't get into this book. It was dry, and the characters weren't that great to begin with. There's also a potential love triangle but the characters just were not likable and there was absolutely no chemistry with any of them that it was almost painful to read.

The plot itself was okay, the subject matter interesting but it just did not have enough to really engage me as a reader. It could be also because the bland characters just didn't do enough to make the plot flow successfully. It does get a little preachy towards the end, with the environment speech - however I have to add that house and how it was made was very interesting and if only houses like that could be made all throughout, perhaps this type of situation could be avoided.

I'd say take this book or leave it. It is a short read, but because of the dry plot and the blandness of characters the reading took a bit longer than I expected. The idea is unique but more should have been done to make it a more engaging book to read.