Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Edition: Headline eBook
Released: January 2nd 2012
Series: No (standalone)
Pages: n/a

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Imagine if she hadn’t forgotten the book. Or if there hadn’t been traffic on the expressway. Or if she hadn’t fumbled the coins for the toll. What if she’d run just that little bit faster and caught the flight she was supposed to be on. Would it have been something else - the weather over the Atlantic or a fault with the plane?

Hadley isn’t sure if she believes in destiny or fate but, on what is potentially the worst day of each of their lives, it’s the quirks of timing and chance events that mean Hadley meets Oliver...

Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.

When I first came across this book, I barely batted an eyelash. To me it was simply a contemporary. Nothing more, nothing less. Not a very interesting genre I would usually read. But then all the great reviews started turning up around the blogosphere and I just knew I had to check it out for myself. Lo and behold, I loved it!

I was mostly intrigued about the 24 hour time period for some reason and I'm glad to report back that I really did enjoy this aspect of it. I thought that it might seem a bit rushed but I actually enjoyed the pace. Not slow but not fast either. Something well-balanced in between. We still got to know the characters really well and the storyline didn't disappoint.

The romance between Hadley and Oliver was so sweet and cute. Seriously. So cute! It was definitely what they both needed considering all the stress they both had in their lives. It didn't really feel like an insta-love. Instead (and this might sound strange) it just felt right. Like they were destined to be together in some way. They just fit each other that well!

Hadley was a really great main character and even though the story is told through third person, I still felt like she was the real narrator. True, I was a little skeptical about it not being in first person at first but I settled into it really quickly and I couldn't stop turning the pages afterwards! Anyway, back to Hadley. She was quite a strong, stubborn character and I adored her right from the word go. Oliver also. He was the perfect english gentleman. So sweet and so kind! The part of the book where Hadley was with her dad and not Oliver, I couldn't help myself, I missed him terribly!

Overall, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight was a great read and I don't really have any faults. The storyline was good. The characters were good. The writing style was good. Everything was good! Better, even! For some reason, all I've wanted to do since I finished reading this, is get my hands on more contemporary romances! Yup, can you believe it? TSPOLAFS has changed me into a contemporary fanatic!


Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

PS: Any recommendations for contemporary romances? ;)

Showcase Sunday #8

Showcase Sunday is a meme hosted by Vicky over at Books, Biscuits & Tea where we showcase all of our recent book grabs.


The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - This brand new edition cover just came out recently and so I was very delighted when I heard I'd won the book in a giveaway over at Chicklish. I haven't actually read this book yet *I know, I know* but I hope to get on to it really soon. Thank you so much to the publisher for sending out the book and to Luisa for hosting the giveaway. I'm very happy about having this gorgeous edition on my bookshelf!

How to Date an Alien by Magan Vernon - Some of you will probably remember this ebook from last week's Showcase Sunday. The reason it's being included in this week's too is because the author contacted me and asked if I would be interested in reviewing it. Of course I said yes - it looks awesome!

Freak by E.K. Henry - This is also another review book and will be among the first that I have read with the primary topic on vampires. I can't wait. A game show with humans and vampires? A vampire wannabe slayer as the main character? Count me in!


The author also very kindly signed my book and gave me a signed bookmark! How lovely of her! Thank you so much, E.K. Henry! :)

What about you? Leave a link to your book haul below and I'll stop by as soon as I can - promise!

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

Amazing Book Trailer PLUS 200 Followers!

Hey everyone! I've got a few things to share with you today so I'll get straight to it! :D

The wonderful debut author, Lisa M. Stasse brought to my attention the book trailer for her up and coming novel, The Forsaken. I've had this book on my wishlist for a while now and I can honestly say that this book trailer has got me even more excited about reading it! And to think there's only 3 days left until the release! July 10th, please come quick!


Ahhhh! How amazing is that trailer?! I am *literally* jumping up and down right now! :P

Now on to the next part of this post.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I now have a little over 200 followers and I am SO grateful! This blog has come so far and I just can not express how happy I am right now! Booktastic Reviews could not be where it is today without all of your help! I'd also like to thank all the authors, publishers and blogging friends who have taken the time to contact me and contribute to this blog! And, of course, I can't not say thanks to all the readers behind the wonderful comments! I <3 you all! :)

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

PS: Have you checked out the new OBSIDIAN trailer? Let's just say it's... different. ;) GO TEAM LUXING AFTER DAEMON!

Feature and Follow Friday #3

Feature & Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted over at Alison Can Read. Every week there is a featured blog and a fun question to answer, so head on over to join in!

Qu. Jumping Genres: Ever pick up a book from a genre you usually don't like and LOVE it? Tell us about it and why you picked it up in the first place.

The only books I can think of are the Dark Touch Novels by Amy Meredith. When I was offered the chance to review the series I wasn't completely sure they'd be my type of thing because they fell under the supernatural genre and I had never tried that before. But I absolutely LOVED, LOVED, LOVED that entire series and can not recommend them enough! It's all down to that series that I started reading the supernatural genre in the first place!

Shadows (Dark Touch #1) by Amy Meredith

Fifteen-year-old Eve Evergold is cute, sassy and enjoying a busy social life. What she doesn't know yet is that someone close to her is an evil demon that only she has the supernatural power to defeat. She needs to work out who it is - and fast! Because although there's something very attractive about the dark side...dating a demon? Pure hell!

What about you?

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

PS: If you follow thank you SO much! I promise to return the favour! ^.^

Review: Angel Dust

Author: Sarah Mussi
Edition: Hot Key Books Paperback (ARC)
Release: August 2nd 2012
Series: No (but I'm not 100% certain!)
Pages: 390

Would you move heaven and earth for the one you love? ANGEL DUST is a powerful, gritty and utterly modern tragic love story with a twist. When Serafina, the brightest and most beloved of all God's angels, is sent to collect Marcus Montague - the original badman - and take him to Hell, she finds herself powerfully drawn to him and makes a decision that places her in the middle of a war between Heaven and Hell. Can Serafina fall in love without falling from grace? Can Marcus's soul be saved? And just who is the mysterious and ever-so-helpful stranger Harry?

When I was offered the chance to read and review this book, I jumped straight in. It looked really different from anything else on the YA market and my curiosity won out. And let me tell you, this Romeo and Juliet reenactment (Marcus Montague - get it? :D) definetly left me stunned.

The thing that I was probably most excited about when I received this book was the fact that the narrator was an angel. Usually in angel books, the narrator is the more normal/human character and the love interest is the supernatural being so you could say I was pretty excited about the roles being reversed in this book. And overall it was pretty refreshing that way. Except that I got kind-of confused with the description of places in Heaven...

The only slight criticism that I have on Angel Dust, not including the confusing description of Heaven, was the slow beginning. I didn't really enjoy the first 100 pages or so, but after that, I assure you, you are completely caught up in all the excitement and action! Surprisingly enough, the good side of it all actually cancelled out most of what I didn't enjoy!

The main character, Seraphina was a good enough character to get on with. She was brave and very admirable for what she did for love near the second half of the book. My favourite though, would probably have to be Marcus. And to be honest, I'm not entirely sure why! Since he was described as a 'gangsta' on the back of the book, I really didn't think I would like him but yet again, I surprised myself! Underneath the bad boy image he's built around himself, he has his reasons. Now, I don't want to say too much about him because I want you all to meet him for yourselves but I will say he's definetly not what you'd expect! He's actually a really decent gangsta... if ever there was one ofcourse! ;)

So yeah, overall I pretty much enjoyed this new take on the paranormal genre. Especially since it has the whole forbidden love of Romeo and Juliet going for it too! The characters are likeable and there's a unique narrative that I'm sure readers could admire! It's described as perfect for fans of Malorie Blackman, Lauren Kate and Becca Fitzpatrick so if that's you, I'd recommend you try it out for yourself when it hits shops in August! And even if that doesn't include you but you like the look of it, go get it too!


Thanks so much to Hot Key Books for providing me with a review copy! :)

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

Review: The Assassin's Curse

Author: Cassandra Rose Clarke
Edition: Strange Chemistry Paperback (ARC)
Release: October 4th 2012
Series: The Assassin's Curse #1
Pages: 267

Ananna of the Tanarau abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to an allying pirate clan. But that only prompts the scorned clan to send an assassin after her. And when Ananna faces him down one night, armed with magic she doesn’t really know how to use, she accidentally activates a curse binding them together.

To break the curse, Ananna and the assassin must complete three impossible tasks—all while grappling with evil wizards, floating islands, haughty manticores, runaway nobility, strange magic, and the growing romantic tension between them.

For me, this is one of those books where you're just not sure - however hard you try to analyse it - what rating it should have. Sure it was good, but was it that good? I'm not sure. Maybe writing this review will help me decide.

The one thing that disappointed me the most, was probably the synopsis. Now I know that sounds pretty strange, but it's true. This book caught my eye because of the so-called "quest" the characters were going to have to go on to break the curse. And what did I get? Well, not that. Instead the whole book, led up to the fact that they were going to have to complete these three tasks. We got told about it at the end. So the second half of this blurb should really be used for the sequel, The Pirate's Wish. Don't get me wrong, the novel itself was good, but it had me hoping under false pretenses. I think I would still have been drawn to this book even if the synopsis only contained the first paragraph (as above). I mean, a pirate? an assassin? a curse? That's all it takes to interest a person!

Still on the criticism side of things, I honestly need to say that it did take me a while to settle into the story. Especially since it was told in a slight pirate's dialect. Only a few times I had to re-read lines to realise what Ananna meant, it was more the coming to terms with the prospect of having a book in dialect that unsettled me near the start. But once I did, it was fine! I even began to appreciate that by doing this, the author made The Assassin's Curse unique. Sure I've read books where in the speaking part of things there was dialect, but not when the whole of the book was narrated in it.

Another slight thing... The way Ananna accepted the assassin near the beginning was too unrealistic for me. I mean, if an assassin suddenly went all quiet, stopped trying to attack me and said that I needed to trust him, I'd get the heck out of there in case he was lying. I wouldn't just accept it the way Ananna did. Heck, I felt like shaking her!

But when I made myself get over that, I started really enjoying the book. It became more mysterious and adventure-like and I just couldn't put the book down for a second without thinking about what could possibly happen next. I especially liked the parts involving action. I loved reading from a pirate's perspective. She had been brought up in battles on pirate ships so it was so... pirate-y! If you get what I'm saying. She might not have been the most awesome kick-butt heroine but she was certainly admired for her braveness and stubborness. She fitted into the story perfectly. The assassin, Naji I also warmed to because of how underneath his tough exterior, he had his reasons for being how he is; secrets and painful memories.

The writing style, as already mentioned, became much more appealing after a while. I really enjoyed how every now and then there would be some intricate details of the setting thrown in. It was really refreshing and enjoyable. Also, the ending definitely picked up and left me wanting more! Much more!

I'm definitely excited for the sequel, The Pirate's Wish, plus the romance that could ensue! Aside from the fact that I found the faults I did: the misunderstanding in the blurb, the way it took me a little while to settle into the story and how Ananna accepted the assassin too easily for my liking, I still did really enjoy it and would recommend it. So I'm thinking three... four stars... A little blurb makeover would be nice! ;)


Thanks so much to Strange Chemistry for sending me a review copy of this book!

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

EDIT: The final rating is 3.5 stars. I think 4 was a wee bit too gracious of me. ;)

Showcase Sunday #7

Showcase Sunday is a meme hosted by Vicky over at Books, Biscuits & Tea where we showcase all of our recent book grabs.

For Review:

Angel Dust by Sarah Mussi - Thank you so much to Hot Key Books for sending me out an ARC of this book! I've already started reading this and right now I'm not too sure about it... we'll see! Hopefully it'll pick up a bit more soon! :)

Bought:

The Glimpse by Claire Merle - YAY! I have been looking forward to this book for ages and I am so glad I managed to buy a copy! :)

Cinder by Marissa Meyer - Another long-awaited book that I can finally cross off my wishlist! This will be my first fairytale based book and I can't wait to see what I think of it! :D

Freebies on iBooks:

Dagger Heart by Ronnell D. Porter (I actually have the other edition cover but I can't find it!)
The Girl Born of Smoke by Jessica Billings
How to Date an Alien by Magan Vernon
Awakening by Karice Bolton
Thirst by Claire Farrell
Sleepers by Megg Jensen
The Ultimate Sacrifice by Talia Jagar
Starfire Angels by Melanie Nilles
These all look fantastic and I still can't believe that they were all free on iBooks! O.O

What did you get this week? Leave your link below and I'll stop by as soon as I can!

Happy Reading,
Rachel xoxo

PS: I'd just like to send out a little thank you note to all my followers - I can't believe I'm almost at 200, thank you so, so, so much! :D