Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Onyx (Lux #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout ☆☆☆☆

Wow. Just wow. So much happened in this book. Which is weird because the reviews I came across said nothing happened in this book and it was so boring. Did they read the same book? Seriously.

1. I didn't really like the way the first one ended because I thought Daemon was getting out of character with his feelings. I still kind of felt that way in this one too. He seemed to lose too much of his arrogance and snark, at least around her. And it was one of the things I loved about him, and even about them together. Though...reading the scenes from his point-of-view from Obsidian in the back of that book did help to piece together his seeming character change. [It also made me hate him slightly less after that cafeteria fiasco.]

2. So so so much sexual tension. They end up making out every where, no matter how many times she tells him it shouldn't happen because they don't feel anything for each other. None of the make out sessions are quite like the one he walked away from in the first book, but they still created tension. And it's hilarious that she keeps denying their feelings for each other. A large part of her denial is that she's upset with how he treated her in the first book, and hurt by it, so I'm screaming at him to tell her everything that was in his point-of-view from the back of the first book. Tell her what really happened at lunch!! Though he did have some incredible will power in the end.

3. Things get twisted. If their growing sexual tensions and denials of such weren't drama enough, throw in some extra super powers, a new kid in town that's suspicious, and huge connection to Dawson and Bethany's story and you have more drama than one person can deal with. Plus, we learn that there is more to the DOD than can be expected. While I didn't have as many suspicions about Blake as everyone else did, I still screamed at her to walk away when he was becoming too dangerous. She should have listened. It was more than Daemon being jealous and hurt and she knew it. But I had major suspicions about who turned in Dawson and Bethany which proved to be true, but was surprising in that I didn't realize he had already made an appearance in the story. Somehow I thought he was older the first time around.

4. While there are a lot of things unanswered (such as Bethany), and rightfully so to leave more to be discovered in he next novel, there were also things that were painful. I wished so so much that Blake wasn't as horrible as he was. It was beyond what I could handle in the end. I'm still really sad about it all. I was also shocked with and for Daemon with the people he crossed to protect Katy. And most especially, I realized that Katy was incredibly strong and incredibly stupid. She should have learned to trust her instincts, but she let emotional connections prevail every time. And I would have given up in her situation in the end when she kept fighting.

It did lose a star. And it was a very important star to lose with me. While I love the characters and the story, the passage of time was awkward and felt forced. "This happened and then this happened." One of my biggest fears as a writer is that kind of story telling. I've always been a short story writer and writing a novel made me nervous in that I wasn't sure how to fill in gaps in time without going through the motions of this then that then this. It's fine to do that in a rough draft, but it should be fleshed out at final draft. So it lost a star in delivery.

Although ending on a cliffhanger, this was the perfect cliffhanger to end on. It's enough that I'm satisfied where this one ended and also excited to read the next. The first book had a cliffhanger that seemed to end mid-scene so I had to keep reading the books to figure out what was happening. This one ended perfectly, that while I really want to read the next one, I can also stop and go read some other things I need to read first. Still a great series!

Shadows by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Shadows (Lux #0.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout ☆☆☆☆☆

So, apparently I thought Obsidian came first and that this was a prequel novel for it. But looking at the published dates, apparently this one came first. Regardless, I'm glad I read this one second. Some of the things that Daemon said in this one had me rolling with laughter because I knew what was going to happen and how far away from his promises to himself that he was going to go.
 
One thing I have to say is that I'm a little over the insta-love thing in stories overall. Especially when the characters are sixteen. I consider it highly naive. Not just because I was married right out of high school and it didn't last, but also because the kind of love-at-sight that's presented here was highly unrealistic. But I was still sucked in and completely pleased for it.


I really loved meeting Dawson and he was a great guy. There were so many differences between him and Daemon, but their love for each other was completely evident. They had a strong family bond. And I have to say my favorite part of this was the family, even though it centered around Bethany and was mostly from her point-of-view. I loved the arguments Dawson and Daemon were having telepathically, showing just how snarky they could both be. I love that they were both man-whores, but refused to let Dee even think of doing anything, telling her she'll be a virgin for life if they have any say. And most especially, I loved how Dee was too involved in anything. They're constantly stopping her in the middle of a sentence and telling her not to finish that sentence because it's too much information between family members. It made me love all of them that much more. And it made me highlight large portions of this book.

The Arrangement 10 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 10 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆

And it has arrived! I'd been waiting on this one. Sadly, my wait was in vain as this was pretty disappointing. Not disappointing in that I'd give it 3 stars though. In fact, I apparently had given in 5 stars on Goodreads until I started writing this review and then went back and changed it to 4 stars.

1. For an erotica series, nothing really happened in this segment. Sure, there was a lot of sexual tension, but that was it. Tension. She keeps denying what she wants and making excuses while he...is doing his own thing.

2. This is where the segment should have dropped to 3 stars or even maybe less... This series has been built entirely on the sexual tension and the drama. I've already said it was lacking in the first. These segments have always ended with major cliffhangers that leave you dying to read more. The reason is the amount of drama. Just when something starts to tie up, everything goes to hell and Avery is thrown into more shit than she knows what to do with. This has been a given. And plenty of things were on the table for this segment to start that I was looking forward to it. But it all wrapped up way too easily, tied in a pretty bow. Amber just gives in? The videos are just handled? Everything goes beautifully? And Black doesn't even appear...yet. The drama was gone.

3. The characters were already changing way too much in the last one, slipping from their originally set up characters. In this one, it's even more so. Not only is Avery still changing, but Sean seems like a completely different character, and not in the cathartic moment sense of the phrase. He just is someone else entirely. This of course leads to the inevitable cliff hanger ending, which wasn't really a cliffhanger. The book says tune in to see what Sean says next, but it's beyond obvious. I'm not as excited to read the next, but I will because I'm emotionally invested in figuring out where this is going to go.

Although these reasons seem like more than enough to drop it more than one star, I didn't because it did have several really good scenes. And where a lot of things pulled me away from the story, there were still a lot of things I highlighted because I loved. And in the end, when I was complaining to my best friend that nothing happened, she kept reminding me, "There's still tension. You've said that. And that's what you really read it for. Not the erotica and not the drama. You read it for the sexual tension." And I guess she knows me well enough that I had to agree :)

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout ☆☆☆☆☆

Welcome back to my life, Jennifer! I had heard so much about Daemon and his snark, and I was already reading her other works so I finally gave in. Technically, I had given in and grabbed a copy far earlier, but I was putting it off because it was about aliens.

So, of course, I read it because I need an arrogant, snarky jerk. That's always my favorite love interest no matter what I read. And a synopsis of a hot boy next door that's great until he opens his mouth was a great way to lure me in. Add to that everyone talking about it and I couldn't resist.

Yes, I did put it off because of the alien thing. The only other alien series I've read is the Lorien Legacies. I'm not a huge alien fan. And in YA books as a romantic interest I was not anticipating the best. I was sorely mistaken. The most ironic part of this is that Katy is a huge reader and blogger and makes a comment that she really doesn't do alien books because they're not that interesting to her. Oh, the irony. Now if only my hot alien full of arrogance and snark would show up and prove me wrong too.

As I told my best friend when recommending this to her: "Daemon is the epic bad boy. The bad boy that puts all our favorite bad boys to shame. Jace, Will, anyone else you can think of...yeah, his snark is greater than them all."

I also love that Katy's a heavy reader as well as a blogger. It really ties in that side of us bloggers that isn't usually seen. It's even better in how serious she is about blogging. She does every In My Mailbox and Waiting of Wednesday. Things that drew me in to the blogs I was following. I sadly don't have the time for those. I barely keep up with this as is. I do miss my Top-Ten Tuesdays though. One day I'll have more time to put into my blog and can join in on all of those. Anyway, back on topic. It really made Katy a real character for so many of us, if not those that are blogging, but those that follow blog religiously as well. And I can totally relate to her in having books all over the house to read. She's a character that is one of us and so we root for her above all. Even when's she being an idiot and denying the undeniable.

....yep, my own personal Daemon has still not shown up to prove me wrong. Oh well...

The Transfer by Veronica Roth

The Transfer (Divergent #0.1) by Veronica Roth ☆☆☆☆☆

I've been looking forward to reading this since I heard it was coming out. Hell, since it was rumored that it was coming out. Four has always been my favorite, not only in this series, but over all. This series changed the way I look at writing and really inspired me. I was immediately jealous that someone so much younger than me could hit is so big with such a great book. And that jealousy has pushed me to keep going.

I love reading things from Four's point-of-view. Reading the knife scene in Free Four was really amazing. What made this ebook most interesting was the subject matter. We weren't looking at a scene we already saw from a different perspective. Instead we were seeing what Four's life was like growing up, the kind of monster his dad was behind closed doors (behind what we could see in his fear landscape). We also got to see the movements in his head that lead to his decisions for faction, how he was unaware of what he was going to choose up until he chose it. And we got to see what initiation was like for him, how it changed him and how he got his name. Most especially we got to see what initiation was like before it changed to what initiation became when it was Tris's turn.

I am so excited there are three more of these coming! I'm extremely excited that Allegiant is almost here! And most especially excited for the movie coming out for my birthday! So much love for this series :D

Faulkner and Poetry

Faulker and Poetry: Yep, you read that right.

For some reason, I don't usually add the books I read to my list of books read for the year. Maybe it's because I don't always finish the books required for school. This semester I'm really trying to put in more effort, so I'm able to add them to my list. However, I am not going to review them. For one, it's already enough that I'm writing responses for them in class. But mostly, with Faulkner being so classic and the poetry being so independent, I don't have much to say on them for everyone to go by. I did, however, give them star ratings on Goodreads, but that's about it.

The Why:
Full-time grad school is three classes. Because I'm in my thesis year, I only take two regular classes, my thesis making up my third class. This semester, as my last semester of regular classes, I'm taking two studies in form class, a fiction class and a poetry. For fiction I am taking a class studying form in relation to Faulkner. That means we'll be reading many Faulkner novels this semester, so they'll appear on my list. For poetry I am taking a class on investigative poetry. I'm not going into explanation of that. Our professors has required books from small independent publishers to help the poetry community. These books only make up the first half of the semester though as the last half is workshopping our own investigative poetry. I'm doing my project on secrets :)

And back to my regular reading schedule.....
[Where hopefully I won't fall behind on blogging again where I have to alter the date for the post to pop up where it should have if I blogged regularly.......]

Flat-Out Matt by Jessica Park

Flat-Out Matt (Flat-Out Love #1.5) by Jessica Park ☆☆☆☆

This isn't exactly a novel. It's more of a companion piece. This book tells several of the scenes in Matt's point-of-view rather than in Julie's. It gives an interesting character sketch of him. We get a pretty good sense of him before, but seeing his motivations and his guilt really made him so much better in my mind. As did listening to him break rather than watching him break. The poor boy.

Not only does it have scenes told from his point-of-view, but two of the scenes are more graphic in nature. She originally wrote this companion piece for fans and this bit gives those fans more sexual tension, which is always a plus. There was just a slight bit with Julie, but even more with Matt.

And most of all, this book finishes the last. The previous book left the ending very wide open so that we can imagine how it's going to go and feel content in the ending. This book continues from that point and gives more to the ending. We get to see what happens instead of just imagining it. And the bickering between them is forever great, especially when they turn into the parents of a road trip in regards to Celeste. My favorite part is their innuendo bickering over cathedrals in the end, when Celeste isn't as naive as they think. Great innuendo :)

Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park

Flat-Out Love (Flat-Out Love #1) by Jessica Park ☆☆☆☆

I started reading this book as inspiration for my thesis. Since my thesis novel takes place during a road trip, the road trip feel of Finn's travels were what I was looking for to help me. Instead, it was the way a secret was revealed that helped.

I will admit I almost put this book down and refused to read another word. That was because I figured out the ending in the third chapter. While I like discovering things before I'm supposed to (because it makes me feel incredibly clever and I give props to the author for well hidden clues), discovering an ending that soon just didn't feel great. However, I trudged on, and ended up falling in love with it. This is one of my favorite books read so far.

I realized by the end that I didn't know as much as I did. Yes, I totally called the ending, but I realized that I was supposed to. As a reader, the journey was in her discovery of the secret, not our discovery. We had a sense of things that she wasn't seeing, and in he end she had to admit that she felt it, but wouldn't admit it to herself, which is what we saw. That's the part that helps my thesis, because my main character has a secret he doesn't even know, and I realized that it doesn't have to be a surprise for the reader, only a surprise for him. And that's really more help than I expected.

I really loved the characterizations in this book. There were some incredible characters here. The mom that is so unaware that she mistakes a MOM plaque as saying "WOW" instead. The hot, adventurous brother that's away traveling. The geeky brother that is the epitome of geekdom and somehow wins our hearts as readers. And the little sister that is so odd she's unforgettable. A good character always has to have some quirk and loads. And then there's Julie, the main character, and she's wonderful in that she just goes with everything. She doesn't let anything get her down and she's intent on making sure that everyone is as well adjusted as she tries to be. That's admirable.

I highly recommend this book. It's a free check-out on the Kindle Lending Library. But it's also very cheap as an ebook. I bought it immediately after reading it through the Lending Library. I'm looking forward to re-reading it one day.

Christmas Kisses by H.M. Ward

Christmas Kisses by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆

It is extremely rare for me to ever give lower than 4 stars to anything, but that's what this one earns, despite the very lovely cover.

I originally decided to read this because the synopsis sounded a lot like Frigid, that I did a review on awhile back. It was nothing like it. Sure, it had the sexual tension and the alternating point-of-view that shows how each person is completely oblivious to how the other feels, but that's about the only similarities it has.

Ryan just isn't an interesting character to me. He seems too wrapped up in her and that doesn't usually happen. When a guy is wrapped up in a girl to the point that his friends are bugging him about it, then he is either already dating her and she has him whipped or he's in major friend zone and never coming out of it. So for Ryan to be this caught up in her was too much for me. And the ending was a little far-fetched too. It was a nice idea, but too "perfect" in tying everything in a big happy ending bow.

This book also mainly takes place over two days! She shows up from coming home from college swearing she won't run into him and if she does she wants her friend to keep him away. Instead the friend purposefully throws them together. Sexual tension surrounds everything. But things just seem to be answered to easily and happen to easily. Once they're finally together they can't get enough of each other. It literally says they spend a week together with him inside of her. Yes, a week of time is just passed off in a sentence, maybe a paragraph if you include some of the other descriptions. So all the focus is on the first two days. That and the fact that they go at it on her parents couch twice when her parents are sleeping, right after her internal monologue says she doesn't want to wake them up. It was overall too irritating of a read and I wish I wouldn't have even attempted it. It says it's part of a series, but I won't be reading the others.

Secrets 5 by H.M. Ward

Secrets 5 (Secrets series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆

 87 pages. Yep. These 5 parts could definitely have been 1-2 full novels. Still not why it lost a star though. But I am glad it's over.

There were a lot of issues I had with this. At one place I even made a note wondering if he suddenly had three hands because of how something was worded.

Mostly I was screaming (and writing notes) with irritation at the characters. "Who do you think it is?" and "There was no way for you to know. I didn't know. No one knew." I was screaming "I know! I knew!" the whole time. But the wrap up from all the stalker stuff was very very intense, going to places I didn't expect.

I did, however, also expect and call the way things ended. I knew exactly who Emma would end up with. And I knew what was going to happen with Cole in the end and what he was going to change (that's all I'll say about it). I didn't like how Anna left things with graduate school though and thought that what Cole changed was a little contrived, but I still thought the story wrapped well and am now just glad it's all over. I'll miss reading about Cole, but I have other books to go through now.

Secrets 4 by H.M. Ward

Secrets 4 (Secrets series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆

I am not liking the guy on the cover at all. Not only does he not fit my mental image of Cole, he just doesn't present the role of a wealthy businessman. He looks like a guy with a garage band and no real goals. But that's just me. We're also back to another short installment of 75 pages. If I was having to wait between installments for the next to be published, or was paying versus borrowing, I would be beyond upset. But, eh...

This segment was full of emotion, drama, and sexual tension. All a plus.

It's painful to be with Anna's emotions when Cole completely turns on her. She spent so much time with him and he still can't trust that she's not against him, not feeling the same weight of the things that are happening. Their both victims and he just makes it that much worse for her. Add that to the fact her stalker (who I'm still certain of) is getting bolder and really getting to her and I'm waiting for her to just snap. Though I'm still calling stupidity on the whole stalking thing, because with what happened before that, she was just asking for the next step in creepy-dom. She really should be more aware of the people around her.

I'm still loving Jesse and still feeling sorry for him at the same time. And though the date may not have ended well for him, I'm happy with the overall result of everything. As to be expected. The interactions with Cole at the bar great. And him shirtless is always a plus as well. But my favorite scene revolves around Emma in the beginning, when she's trying to knit and instead begins stabbing the yarn, saying "Die, beanie hat, die! I hate you!" That was a great scene. Add that to her "You two whack-jobs are perfect for each other" rant and I'm sold on her. Love her completely. Especially when she can complain about Cole in front of Cole.

While it's hot, steamy, snarky, and fun equally in this segment, it did lose a star. And that star was lost in language. The problem I have with erotica seems to always be the language used. A lot of it irks me and takes me out of the story because I'm mentally trying to correct it. There was also an unreasonable amount of childish begging and overuse of "please" in this that made me want to strangle Anna. But it still won me over.

Secrets 3 by H.M. Ward

Secrets 3 (Secrets series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

Oh, 60 pages. This should have just been added to the other parts. For a series that only has 5 parts as is barely over 350 pages so far, this really could have been published as one big book, or at least two, rather than five. This is exactly the reason that people gave up on buying the Arrangement series. The sections were too short to be charging readers so much so many different times. Again, I'm glad I'm borrowing these, otherwise, I don't think I could justify the investment, no matter how much I love it.

That being said, I'm still very much in love with this series. This one in particular, although short, had me screaming at the characters like I do so love to do.

1. Sottero is a bitch. She wants control over everything, including suing Cole for everything he's worth. So I scream at her character like she can hear me tell her off. Though on the contrast, Jesse is an amazing character and I'm growing to love him even more. Anna is going to break his heart though.

2. Anna is so clueless. I know...know...who is stalking her and who ratted her out to the Dean. It seems so obvious. And I'm not sure if she really doesn't know, is really that clueless about it all, or if she subconsciously just doesn't want to believe it so she won't accept that she knows.

3. There is only one paragraph that I highlighted in this segment. I highlighted because I love the way it is written out for the scene itself, and also because just imagining the way Cole say it is great. For anyone that reads this segment of the series, it's where Anna admits to Cole that the vanilla-kinky analogy she told him previously was actually the other way around and he nearly loses control with the idea. Great moment in Cole history.

Secrets 2 by H.M. Ward

Secrets 2 (Secrets series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

I really wish Ward would give these books actual titles. It would make reviewing them so much easier. Regardless, I do enjoy that this part surpassed the previous part's 97 pages with a total of 200 pages. Still short, but still loving it.

A broken A/C created a perfect situation in this segment of the series. Everything became acutely charged and the tension was incredible. It was going great places in my imagination. And then the repair guy arrives. I was equally upset and glad. While I would have loved to see the scene continue, it's also much better when the tension is dragged out.

Cole alternates fluidly between the boss and mentor to something much more electric that both know shouldn't be there. As much as they try to just work and to focus on the job and internship, that electricity is always hanging in the air between them. When she chooses to model for a sense of the model's role in her own photography, things just take control.

Cole really tries to be a good guy. It's clear he's damaged and there is something else entirely going on, but he does try. I sometimes wondered how she could be so confused by his actions, especially when she knows the consequences. Her character itself is all over the place though so it works. And with Cole's final words in this, I know I have to go directly into the next segment.

Secrets by H.M. Ward

Secrets (Secrets series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

97 short pages. That's it. But I loved it.

I read a lot of YA lit, as evidenced by this blog alone, so being single, I tend to be more attracted to younger guys. This story though, reminded me that older guys are well worth the look too. Anna is in her 20s and Cole is near 40. One thing I hate about this story though is that she keeps telling him he's so old and thinking there couldn't be anything there. I'm less than a year away from 30 and that just becomes so aggravating as I'm reading this.

One really cool thing about reading this is that I learn a lot about photography. It's always been something I've loved, but I never got into it past an amateur level, so I know absolutely nothing about cameras, shutter speeds, and textures. I take pictures with my smart phone and have fun in an editing program to tweak colors and shading, that's it. But it was nice seeing that other angle to it all.

I really loved Cole in this. He's the cocky jerk that I fall for in every story. And it's full of sexual tension, both imagined and real between them. There is no doubt that I wanted him to be real so I could meet him. He has an amazing take on photography and the description of the things he can do with it made me want to watch and not just imagine from a description.

As much as I love May-December relationships, I was putting off reading this one. Something about the description just wasn't drawing me in immediately. But I gave it a shot and blew through it, loving every minute. Going to pick up the next part now.

The Arrangement 9 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 9 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆

As sexy as these covers have been, I've realized that none of them have anything to do with what is in each segment. Not a single one matches any scene. And honestly, the guy doesn't even resemble how Sean is described. Still nice to look at on my Kindle carousel though.

I've also come to the conclusion that if I wasn't borrowing these then I would have given up on them long ago. I've noticed from several Goodreads reviews that most people gave it up early because of the cost. These segments are only 121 pages each and cost as much as a full length ebook. Not worth the cost. Especially when each ends with a major cliffhanger! This one was no exception, but now I actually have to wait for the next one to come out before I can borrow it.

So one thing to notice is that this segment dropped a star compared to the rest. I'll admit that this series doesn't have the best writing, but it sucks me in. And usually it's that alone that attributes to my star count. I can look over writing problems when I can adequately lose myself in the story and the characters. This segment halted me though. I just couldn't get over what was happening in this one.

As much as I loved Mel in the jewelry store, their reason for being their irked me. I'm all for women's equality, but...it just seemed to forced to me. And regarding after that...Avery is effing stupid. I mean, she's always been, but I think she topped herself in levels of stupidity. I still love this story and will continue borrowing the segments as they come out, but my love of it is waning a little with these characters altering their norm too much. I guess I'll have to wait awhile for the next one to come out now. Sucks when you catch up in a series and have to play the waiting game.

The Arrangement 8 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 8 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

Immediately reading this, I found a discontinuity with the scene presented and the one presented in Damaged 2. That is, trying to figure out who said, "Do whatever you want." In Damaged 2 it seemed like Avery said it, but this segment begins with her ranting over Sean saying it. That was immediate confusion for me.

I'm wondering with this series how many times I can say "Oh, Sean." Men are so thick-headed. Aside from that, I don't know that I would have given into to that. I would have held my anger and walked away. Guess everyone is different. And sometimes I forget that it's what the character wants, not what we want. Even if we're the ones writing the character.

I love Gabe even more in this one. He's one BAMF when he needs to be and sticks up for his girl. Never imagined things would go that way though. Girl can't catch a break.

When did Peter get so cocky? I know he had some witty snark with Sidney in the Damaged series, but that boy definitely knows how to get what he wants. A true Ferro. And I'm surprised he'd even find her after Sean tried to buy off Sidney and lying to him. Hmmm...

Damn these cliffhangers! Where did he get the money?!

Glad 9 is already out, but going to dread its inevitable cliffhanger...

The Arrangement 7 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 7 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

Sometimes I think this series reminds me a lot of my past. No, I was never a hooker. It's just some of the things Avery says. She's really naive and I will say that repeatedly because sometimes it pisses me off, but at the same time I can't always blame her.

I get the position Avery was in at the beginning of the segment. I think I once even told an ex that I would stay even if he had killed someone. I regret that now. But for some reason I'm proud of Avery and agree with her. Maybe it's because they're fictional characters so there is no real investment. Maybe it's because I see Sean as a redeemable character, and that just doesn't happen in real life.

This segment was scary and exciting, horrifying and hot. In the middle of the action I had a good idea what was going on before he revealed it. Bastard taking away trust in herself. I don't know I'd agree with him at the end. I'd probably say no and climb in the shower to sit there before he explained it himself. I wouldn't watch.

I effing hate Ms. Black. I couldn't blame her position previously, but now I totally can. I wish Avery would just tell Sean before it gets even worse. I get her wanting to make her own money, but her situation just got worse.

I was waiting until we caught back up with Damaged 2. It was great seeing a different perspective in how the scene started. Hate where it ended, but I get it. After quickly checking the first lines of segment 8, I knew I had to go back and read that entire scene in Damaged 2 first. So glad I did. Onward segment 8...

The Arrangement 6 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 6 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

So many feels with this segment! I cried, smiled, was shocked, and even yelled at characters. That's how I know when the characters have really won me over: When I think yelling at them will do any good. It's like yelling at the girl in a horror movie not to go upstairs.

-  I cried with Avery when she broke down. I totally would have done the same (and I think I have at some point).
-  Sean's staircase trick was awesome!
-  If Marty would stop ignoring the gay jokes maybe they'd all catch on. Even if the obviousness they're clueless. But if being thought of as gay gets you in a lingerie dressing room...
-  Oh, Avery, way to kill a mood. And oh, Sean, way to make it worse.

Onward with this addictive drug! Next...

The Arrangement 5 by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement 5 (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

So before, I was reading them so fast I could only do the 2 at a time reviews because honestly, it's one big book broken down. But I'm reviewing this one now, and writing notes as I read them to make sure I know which is which.

1. What the hell, Sean?!
There is so much push and pull in this segment. He's hot and cold equally. He wants to be "besties," but apparently doesn't know there's a line to not cross. Oh, Sean, I love you and hate you equally.

2. Glad Black only things he's stalking Avery. But I'm also curious of her knowing that much.

3. I really love Gabe. He's one hell of a guy. Avery needs someone to look out for her, especially with her friends flipping out.

4. Henry is so darn cute with his shyness. I don't think I'd be able to resist his accent though.

5. Marty at the hospital, how did she not get that? He tensed at her moan. Seriously?!

After the way this segment ended I'm jumping into the next immediately too! These short books/segments are addictive!

The Arrangement [3-4] by H.M. Ward

The Arrangement [3-4] (Arrangement series) by H.M. Ward ☆☆☆☆☆

You know these books/segments are short when I read both of these in one day.

First and foremost, I hate Ms. Black. That's all I need to say about her. Hate. I get her position, I just don't like her. She has no time for being nice. At the same time, Avery can be so stupid. She didn't have to admit what she did with the money as long as she admitted where the money was, but she didn't do that.

So in these two parts, we're back to Sean not knowing what the hell is going through his head. And Avery going through an emotional whiplash between dealing with him and dealing with her own. She's rattled and rightfully so, but everyone warned her.
 

Sean pushes her away, but when he sees her again he can't help but draw her back. It's like he never realizes what he's missing until she walks off. Which completely explains their interactions in Damaged 2 when he met Peter and Sidney in the restaurant with Avery there. At least there Avery is a little more carefree though. In this segments she's still desperately trying to find that part of herself.

The only problem I have with these sections are problems with point-of-view. This series is in the point-of-view of Avery, yet it says things like "I didn't see the look in his eye." Well then how did she know it was there? She couldn't have. And then it's also set in present tense, so when a chapter ends with, "I didn't know how wrong I was," I get confused and forget it's in present tense suddenly. Not to mention, it's unnecessary, first because it sets up what's going to happen before you can even get there and be surprised, and second because I already suspect without that reminder. As big as New York is they're drawn to each other like freaking magnets. I think Mel was right when she said there are some days she wonders about fate.

And lastly, I'm just going to add that when my mom saw the covers of this series in the carousel of my Kindle she stole it away to ogle them and said she'd read them too if she had the time and a Kindle. Oh, my poor mom.