Blog Tour: Review: Never Land (Never Knights, #2) by Kailin Gow

Never Land (Never Knights, #2) by Kailin Gow

Author: Kailing Gow
Publication Date: September 24, 2012
Publisher: theEDGEbooks.com
Genre: Mature YA, Contemporary, Romance
Book Description from Goodreads: 
Welcome to Never Land, the land of Never and the world of rock, the world of new experiences and sensations, a world where music runs through the veins of the dedicated, and love is taken and given with consequences. 

Never (Neve) Knight, the lead singer and manager of a band filled with the hottest guys in rock finally gets the dream that she wanted: a label signing her band The Never Knights. It is what she always wanted, a band of her own and playing her own kind of music. Getting her band to where it was came at a high price, including giving up the man who makes her heart race and her blood pound, the man who caused her to nearly lose her band. 

As she gets ready to go on her world tour, fate brings her close to Danny Blue again, and she's not sure if she can give him up a second time even if it means losing the band. 






Review:

     At the end of Never Say Never (Never Knights, #1), Never (Neve) thought she'd hit the jackpot. Her band has since shot to stardom; travelling the world, opening for some of the hottest bands on the scene, on the cover of magazines and they're on their way to recording their first album. But not everything is going as fantastic as the tabloids portray. The fragile peace forged between her hot blooded male band mates since Danny Blue's departure is starting to break down as tensions rise all around Neve, threatening everything she's worked hard for. 

     With her own band now, Neve is trying to shake the famous shadow that her parents cast. I love her determination and persistence in this and the conviction in what direction she wants to go in all aspects of her life. But when the troubles start piling on, ranging from the band, to paparazzi and her relationship with Danny Blue, it all completely overwhelms her. She gets broken down pretty badly and there isn't much she could do watching this train wreck unfold. Her confidence is shaken, and even though I wanted her to get up and fight back - I figured her reaction was pretty realistic because I'd probably be in a fetal position in the corner if I went through what she did. But Neve, ever the optimist holds out for that glimmer of hope.

     This time around we're in Danny's element in London. Just when I thought  all of Danny's secrets were revealed in Never Say Never, Gow manages to pile on so many layers of jaw dropping and completely shocking secrets that I didn't think it was possible, but oh is it ever delicious to know these things. It's like celebrity gossip at its finest - something so disastrous that it both repels and intrigues. Although I am a bit disappointed in Danny and Neve's relationship. Neve's trying to make it a bit more serious, but Danny is still carrying all this massive baggage with him (further exacerbated by the current drama in his life) that it gets difficult and they both just seem to make do with just their physical relationship because it's convenient - but really at that age what else do you really want with an attractive musician? 

     Her relationship with her band mates end up getting more complicated and conflicted. There's still a tonne of awkwardness from all the declarations of love last time that never really fully get resolved, and the events near the end; WOW Neve sure knows how to stir up drama. I think Gow may be heading towards a love triangle, and honestly I think it's going to be a pretty epic battle for Neve because the two suitors are just so radically different and they each have something Neve craves. 

     But what completely sealed the deal for me this time around was Gow's  incredible knack for creating some of the most disturbing and creepy villainous characters EVER. I mean they gave me goosebumps, set me on edge and I'm still thinking about how horribly things went for Neve. There were times where I was genuinely afraid that it was going to be it for Neve and that there was no way she was getting out of this situation. 

     Gow is a master at crafting fast paced, upbeat and addictive stories that you'll just fly through. This book ended with so many questions and loose ends that it feels more like a set up for the next book. I just need to know what happens to the band, and their career, and the relationships and DANNY BLUE!!! Sigh, but I have to wait a bit longer for that. 

Overall: 4/5 Hot Cups of Tea!

I loved the cross continent adventure this time, and how Gow completely immerses the reader into the drama filled lives of the rich and famous. Never Land was a quick and satisfying read filled with fun and sexy times!

Review: Never Say Never (Never Knights, #1) by Kailin Gow

Never Say Never (Never Knights, #1) by Kailin Gow

Author: Kailin Gow
Publication Date: August 12, 2012
Publisher: theEDGEbooks.com
Pages: 236
Genre: Mature YA, Contemporary, Romance
Source: ebook provided by the author for review (Thank you!)
Book Description from Goodreads: 
What girl wouldn't want to be surrounded by the sexy guys from the hottest teen rock sensation in the country? 18-year-old Never "Neve" Knight, not only is surrounded by the hottest boys to hit the music charts, but she is the band's lead singer. As the band's lead singer and manager, Never formed and shaped the band to where it is today, a band on the rise and on the brink of being signed by a label. As one of the guys, she knew each of the band members since they were all snot-nose ten-year-olds. While her boys were the cutest guys and they would protect her like knights, she couldn't date any one of them and ruin the chance at being signed with the record label of her dreams. 

That changes when one of the band members suddenly drops out of the band, and in walks Danny Blue, with his dreamy blue eyes, hot body, and British accent. Suddenly, Never's solid world has turned to mush, and her rule for not dating one of her band members is seriously challenged. Can she keep her head straight and get her band signed with a label without losing her heart?

Review:

     I spent a huge portion of my teenage years in the basements of churches, civic centers and .... sneaking into bars - not to drink of course, but to mosh around in a pit of sweaty writhing bodies charged with the electricity of an (usually) awesome indie band that was on their way to making it big. In Never Say Never Gow completely brings me back to that awesome time but from a band's perspective. 

     Neve grew up surrounded by music, so it only seemed natural to start her own band. Starting at a young age with her band mates, they've spent years honing their sound. Now that they're all off to college together they play gigs when they can and attend classes most days - until their dreams nearly come true one night when a scout approaches them with the possibility of a deal with a record label. But it all comes quickly crashing down when a band member makes an untimely exit and it seems like all their hard work was for naught....until the very talented Danny Blue shows up...

     Gow has Neve address the shadier side of being a rock star, like the drugs, alcohol and groupie one night stands. These things can become overpowering and often leads to the downfall of a lot of bands. But I loved that Neve was this perfect balance of fun and serious. She knows when to let loose, but she has this rigid determination to achieve a goal she's dedicated her life to. Neve's never given much thought to pursuing relationships, especially when she's surrounded by her all boy band mates who seem more like brothers than potential love interests. So she's made it her number 1 rule to never date any of her band members...but rules are made to be broken. 

     Kyle, Luc and Geoff all have it hard for Neve. Each vying and competing for her attention and each one approaching it differently. Sometimes it got very awkward and when I got to know these guys I squirmed right along with Neve. They've all been 'friendzoned' and Neve tries to do it as tactfully as possible but it's all bound to come crumbling down. I'm glad that at least one band member - Steve - seemed like he was genuinely not interested in Neve and he provided a great go-between and a voice of reason.

     Oh Danny boy...I have a thing for British accented guitarists. They will always bring me back to James Marsters as Spike from Buffy the Vampire slayer *sigh* (side note: if you haven't seen my Comic Expo videos of his panel you can see them HERE). Danny is someone that Neve can easily relate to. They both love music, he has the mental maturity that Neve needs but he's also got the whole tortured musician going for him too. Danny's back story was just constantly evolving the plot of the main story and it all pulled together perfectly - the boy's got some serious secrets! 

     Neve and Danny's romance starts out cute and innocent and quickly gets HOT. They fight the attraction to each other for the sake of the band and it just builds up the sexual tension until it finally explodes. The sex scenes are steamy but not over the top or particularly graphic. They enhanced the romance and play a pivotal role to Neve's development. 

     Gow's style is casual and upbeat, which makes it a super enjoyable and quick read. The character's each have a distinct voice and there's some hilarious moments of innuendo and wit. The plot of the story is pretty predictable but the way it was presented still made it engaging so that I was interested in seeing it to the end - which by the way was a doozie of an ending!! I was pretty much screaming NOOOOO at the end because I was so invested in the characters by that point - now I have to wait for the next book to see how this is going to play out... 

Overall: 4/5 Hot Cups of Tea!

Gow takes a reader on an exhilarating journey of love, friendship that proves that passion can drive you both on stage and off! 

Review: The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

The Future of Us by Jay Asher, Carolyn Mackler

Authors: Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

Publication Date: November 21, 2011

Publisher: Razorbill (imprint of Penguin Group USA)

Pages: 356

Genre: YA, Romance, Contemporary, Time Travel, Science Fiction

Source: Borrowed from Library

Book Description:

It’s 1996, and Josh and Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They’ve been best friends almost as long - at least, up until last November, when Josh did something that changed everything. Things have been weird between them ever since, but when Josh’s family gets a free AOL CD in the mail, his mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new computer. When they sign on, they’re automatically logged onto their Facebook pages. But Facebook hasn’t been invented yet. And they’re looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.

By refreshing their pages, they learn that making different decisions now will affect the outcome of their lives later. And as they grapple with the ups and downs of what their futures hold, they’re forced to confront what they’re doing right - and wrong - in the present.

Review:

I am thoroughly a 90’s kid and in 1996, my sister had just gotten our first computer, which ran ye olde Windows 95 operating system. It was a heavy brick of a machine, with a teeny tiny screen (compared to today’s bigger than you are tall screens!) and cost a fortune to buy! 

Soon after these started showing up in our mail:

(I actually managed to find one remaining in our junk drawer!)

So when there was a huge buzz about The Future of Us and when I looked up the synopsis of the book, I HAD to read it, if only for nostalgia’s sake.

This book completely brought me back to the 90’s and growing up. Especially with the references to dial up Internet access (we had to get a second phone line because we were glued to the computer so often), discman’s (these were crap, seriously no matter how much they slapped “anti-skip” technology on it, it still skipped, I’m looking at YOU Sony) - you were better off with a walkman (do you younger readers even know what these are anymore??), beepers/pagers and kids still playing *gasp* outside?!

But it was such an interesting mix to suddenly have this retro feel clash with something more modern like Facebook. I giggled at the parts where they were trying to navigate Facebook and in my mind I went “oh I know what that is ahaha”.

The cover features our main characters with a bit of a binary computer twist, which was really fitting for the computer basis of the story.

The Future of Us is written in alternating views from two main characters Josh and Emma as they discover Facebook and all the possible routes that their futures can take. When we’re first introduced to the two characters, something major has happened between these two childhood best friends- seriously you know what happens when a girl and a guy who have been friends forever finally hit puberty and hormones are raging? Yup, you got it.

Emma’s character is your typical teenager, she’s a sports star, dating nothing but good looking guys with the IQ of a rock, trying to figure out her future goals and dealing with parental teenager induced drama. So when she finally figures out what Facebook does, of course her first reaction is to find out who she ends up with, then subsequently who Josh ends up with, and then she starts digging into her friends and family, instead of you know useful stuff like what companies to invest in or preventing worldwide catastrophic disasters? Although, there were some definitely awesome twists with what they learn from Facebook about their friends and family.

Josh is more laid back, he sees his future, and for the most part he’s happy with the results. It’s when Emma starts making decisions based on what she sees that’s causing a butterfly effect through the space time continuum (sorry I’ve watched far too many science fiction shows) that he starts questioning if this whole thing is doing more harm than good.

But Emma…oh Emma. At first I was really intrigued by this whole concept, if I could see the future, there’s things I’d definitely look up and probably change if I could. After seeing Emma’s initial future, I will definitely acquiesce to the decisions that she makes to alter her life course, but it’s the subsequent decisions that irk me. After awhile it just seemed like the story was on repeat, and that NOTHING her new lives gave her was ever good enough for her. This also ends up making her doing crazy irrational things that could implode the universe into a black hole!! Okay, I’m being dramatic, but seriously she starts making really bad decisions and dragging her friends down with her.

After some downward spiralling and then finally hitting rock bottom, there’s this huge epiphany on both of their parts (but I have to say I’m very disappointed in Josh’s decision), and it tries to wrap things up in a morally lessoned neat bow. I just felt there were some continuity issues, especially with the secondary characters like Kellan (they dropped a huge bomb) that never fully got resolved.

This is my first Asher and first Mackler book I’ve ever read, and the writing styles combined kept a good tempo, with easy to follow distinct character voices for Josh and Emma and really dynamic supporting characters. I thoroughly enjoyed the flashback to the 90’s and it was definitely a unique way of "time travelling". 

Rating: 4/5 Hot Cups of Tea!

I loved travelling down the 90's nostalgia lane, and it was an entertaining read even if it didn't end up like I wanted.