Something Blue by Kristy Nicolle

Genre: Dystopian Romance
Rating: 5/5+

Valentine is 25, living in the singles district, and getting increasingly lonely. She has taken over 60 readiness exams in preparation for meeting her match mate but she still is not being allowed to get married. She's never met her groom, but she does know that he has a tattoo that matches hers and is busy taking preparation courses and exams in order to be ready to marry her. Bliss Inc. has matched them using their 99% effective formula for love and happiness and only they can decide when Valentine and her groom are ready to be married. Will her groom be everything she expects? Will they be truly happy like the formula guarantees?

Let me start by saying that this book is one of the best I have read in a very long time. Kristy Nicolle has painted a beautiful and world with unique and sophisticated technology. The scenes are described with care and the reader is transported to a fascinating world of holograms, synths, and other advanced technology. For example, brides could virtually try on different hair and makeup options before their wedding. There were millions of options of clothing styles available to married couples at the touch of a button. There were even paving stones that lit up like fireworks when stepped on. Every single chapter just feels beautiful. Everything in the city of Monopolis is clean, pristine, and marvelous. The characters have depth with multi faceted personalities. And most of all, the character growth is phenomenal. Valentine's preconceptions and ideas of her world are constantly growing and changing. She starts out as a naïve girl and grows into a courageous and loving woman.

The author has done an amazing job of weaving together an engaging and exciting story. I rarely choose to pick up romance novels (just not my favorite genre) but this book sounded interesting and I am glad I gave it a chance because it truly blew me away.

SPOILERS AHEAD. I have thoughts on some of the plotline of the book but it might spoil some of the excitement of reading the story:

Obviously, the utopian sounding society of Monopolis, while mesmerizing, sounded too good to be true. I did wonder how society was "really" run. Bliss Inc. had set it up so that those accepted into the "Jigsaw" marriage and family project were the upper class. They had no wants, everything was taken care of and they had basically unlimited everything (except freedom to choose a mate, obviously). I really got caught up with Valentine in the illusion of it all and only about 30% through did I even really stop and think about how incredibly awful it was what Bliss Inc. was doing. If the marriages didn't work out (and the people had NO choice in who they were matched with anyway) then they were sent away, never to be seen again. This company ran everything and those deemed not worthy to be in the Jigsaw project were forced to live sexless lives as laborers.
I did wonder though why no major rebellions had ever happened. Bliss Inc. kept the upper class so spoiled that they never questioned anything? They kept the labor class so undereducated that they didn't know better? They did have a LOT of restrictions but it still seemed odd to me that no one had ever even tried to rebel. Maybe they did and it was just swiftly and mercilessly taken care of?

SPOILERS END

I would recommend this book to almost anyone from teenagers to seniors. As stated, I don't do romance but this book was amazing. The "mushy/wordy" romance scenes were few and the interactions between Valentine and Clark were more realistic than a lot that I have read. I would highly recommend this book! :-)
<3 <3 <3
Great job, Kristy Nicolle! I will definitely be reading more of your work!

Grammar/Editing: Abysmal/Poor/Needs Work/Good/Excellent- This was an ARC so I am assuming that some of the goofs will be fixed in the next round of editing. There were numerous punctuation errors (mostly comma misuse). There were some words that were misused here and there (like peak instead of peek). The main issue that I kept seeing was a different use of the word stood/stand. For example, it would say, "I was stood at my desk" rather than "I was standing at my desk." This appeared throughout the book. Even with the errors, I still absolutely adored this book! (The errors did not detract from the reading experience at all) **NOTE: I am from the United States and the author is from the UK so I realize that some of the things that seem like errors or issues to me may in fact just be cultural grammar differences!

Profanity: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme- The F-bomb was used a few times as well as "shit" and a few other words. Nothing excessive.

Violence: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme- There was really not much violence in this book. There are no guns. Someone suffers a self inflicted Sulfuric acid burn. There are other disturbing things that happen, but none are particularly violent.

Sexuality: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme- Although this book is a romance and has honeymoon scenes, there was very little sex in it. Valentine mentions other couples "basically having sex" in the spa. There is one sex scene but it could be compared to a PG 13 movie (not explicit at all). Everything was very mild - possibly could be considered sensual at most.

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Ruby in the Rough by Emily Shore

Genre: Dystopian
Rating 5/5

Ruby has been living in the ghetto for four years - she has learned to avoid the gangs and sweepers who would jump at the chance to capture her and sell her. Known to her enemies as the "Ghetto Fox," she has evaded capture for years and longs to escape the hellhole she is living in. During the events that transpire in this book, Ruby confronts gang leaders and other ghetto leaders and she is faced with tough decisions about who she can trust.

This book was exciting and interesting! Ruby is a strong character who was easy to root for. She had been through some hard times in her life and I really just wanted her to have peace. I was glad that she had a friend, Ink, who she could trust and depend on.
It was never mentioned exactly which city they were in but it was written in such a way that it could have been almost anywhere in the US if there was a catastrophe or some major social upheaval. I think that is what makes this book compelling - this type of situation and societal structure (gang rule) could happen almost anywhere (even my own town!) if the circumstances were right. The way that people were treated, especially women, was heartbreaking. And I understand that it really IS like this in some parts of the world. Although this is a work of fiction, it opens your eyes to the fact that things like this do happen in real life. Human trafficking is a real thing. I LOVE that the author donates a portion of the proceeds of this book to organizations that fight human trafficking.

I would highly recommend this book - it is quite short (something you could read in one sitting). And I hear that there is another book in the series coming out soon ;-)

Grammar/Editing: Abysmal/Poor/Needs Work/Good/Excellent - The grammar and editing was really very good. There were not a lot of noticeable issues that were distracting. Always nice!

Violence: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme- Since the ghetto is ruled by gangs, there is a lot of implied violence as well as some images that could be disturbing to some people. A decapitated head on a pike is mentioned. The violence is mostly implied though, rather than explicitly described. A few people get shot with guns. And then of course, there is the issue of human trafficking - women being sold for sexual and other purposes. Again, this is mostly just implied rather than described in detail.

Profanity: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - The language in this book is very mild. A few curse words here and there but nothing excessive.

Sexuality: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - Despite the fact that this book is largely about women being sold for sexual purposes, there are no explicit sex scenes. It is heavily implied that women ARE in fact basically prostituted at the hotel and in the gangs. There is a section of the book that talks about a man posing for pictures with a naked passed out woman and other scenes where sexual things are happening. (Hence, the medium rating).

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The Amber Project by JN Chaney

Genre: Dystopian/YA
Rating: 5/5
Terry has just turned 7 and is going to start "school." He has grown up in an underground city and does not know that when he goes to school he will never see his mother and sister again. Once there, he begins to learn more about his city and the world around them. 200 years previously, almost the entire population of the earth was wiped out by a gas called Variant. The survivors built an underground society that is now deteriorating. Going to the surface will become necessary soon. Terry is different than most children in the fact that he has been genetically engineered to be able to breathe the Variant gas. Although he does not know it, he spends his childhood being trained to one day go above ground. He and his classmates are humanity's last hope for survival.

I absolutely loved this book! I love dystopian anyway, but this one was pretty unique. The story is told over many years as Terry grows into a young adult.
I am always fascinated by how dystopian societies are structured and this society is really quite interesting (I would have enjoyed learning more about it). There are three main classes of society, the Motherhood. the Science Branch, and the Military branch. The children are taken to a boarding school at the age of seven years and given a basic education. Then they are placed into a branch based on a large variety of factors. We don't really get a good look at the "normal" process though, since Terry and his classmates are destined for a very specific and unique career.
I really enjoyed the book the most once Terry actually went to the surface. Things picked up quite a lot at that point and I was really eager to find out what happened.
It did take me a while to adjust to the writing style but once I was about halfway, I started being unable to put the book down. The character development was a little slow for me and the pace was a little odd.
The ending was really fantastic - a great resolution and I am definitely quite eager to find out what happens next :-)

Grammar/Editing: Abysmal/Poor/Needs Work/Good/Excellent - Sadly, few books that read these days have good editing. This book was a little above average in that department. It was refreshing because bad grammar and word usage tend to really take away from the story overall.

Violence: None//Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - The kids take weapons to the surface for protection against any of the known and unknown threats they might face. There is some killing that happens when they are on the surface (both animals and people). These scenes might be disturbing to some young readers. In addition, there are some disturbing discussions in the beginning about the genetic engineering process. The mothers experience multiple miscarriages and the experiments are definitely morally and ethically questionable.

Profanity: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - The language in this book is very mild. A few curse words here and there but nothing excessive.

Sexuality: None//Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - No sexuality, no kissing, almost no mention of romantic relationships. The society is fairly strictly structured.

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Rebel's Blade by Frost Kay

Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5/5
Sage, a beautiful intelligent sword maker, is recruited into a rebellion against the Aermian king. Despite extensive training, she is caught one day by none other than the crown prince himself. She is dragged kicking and screaming to the castle dungeon where interrogations ensue. Tehl, the crown prince is trying squash the rebellion and take care of his depressed father when the beautiful rebel waltzes into his life. Sage (calling herself Ruby) and Tehl clash on more than one occasion and her stubbornness and unwillingness to reveal anything about the rebellion make Tehl and his entourage make more and more drastic decisions. As Sage spends more time at the castle, she begins to wonder if she's on the right side...
This book was gripping from the start. I appreciated getting the perspectives of both Sage and Tehl. There were many strong characters in this book and most of them kept me guessing - their actions were surprising at times. Samuel, Tehl's brother was delightful to read about; he was very fun loving but also a master of manipulation and cunning. The king was the embodiment of what depression does to people. It turns them into a shell of themselves and I thought that his character was written well.
I think this book brings up an important issue - we can't necessarily trust propaganda even from those we consider our closest family and friends. Until you are actually in a situation or you actually meet a person, you can't know for sure that what the rumors say is true. It's unwise to make huge, life changing decisions based on something you have limited knowledge about. Everyone in this story had their beliefs challenged and I thought that was so awesome.
The editing was actually pretty good for a self published author. My one and only real complaint is that Sage was too much of the ultimate badass bombshell character. She was kind, strong, compassionate, beautiful, manipulative, feisty, pretty much everything desirable. It was a bit much and a tad unrealistic. (She could take down 5 men at a time, she could manipulate/sweet talk anyone into doing anything, her sword making skills amazed people, all the men at the ball ogled her when she walked in, etc.)
Overall, a great read!
There is a bit of a cliffhanger at the end of the book that will leave you wanting more!

Grammar/Editing: Abysmal/Poor/Needs Work/Good/Excellent - The editing, punctuation, and grammar was very good for the most part. There were the occasional comma errors here and there but nothing too bad. A few instances where the lack of contractions in dialogue made reading a little awkward in some places. Not too bad overall. (Better than most I have read).

Violence: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme - The main violence in this book comes from torture. There is mention of rape but it does not happen. A girl is cut and beaten and almost killed during an interrogation.

Profanity: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme: The language was very mild in this book. NO F-bombs, a few uses of other mild curse words but nothing too bad. Overall, a very clean book. 

Sexuality: None/Mild/Medium/Heavy/Extreme: Almost NO sexuality in this book except for the fact that it's insinuated that some of the characters might have mistresses. At one point, a character talks about violating someone in order to scare her. A character was almost raped so that could also be a little upsetting but overall there is almost nothing sexual.

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