The Student and the Slave (Krillonian Chronicles Book 3), by Annie Douglas Lima

I had the privilege of being a beta reader for all three of the Krillonian Chronicles and this one was a great wrap up to the series. Bensin and Steene have traded places. One a free man now owned by a spoiled teenager, and one a former slave now free. But being free isn't all Bensin thought it would be. He's out of work and feels like a burden to those that helped him. The characters are well rounded, with flaws and temptations that make their circumstances even harder. The choices they have to make are not easy, and whatever they choose, someone is bound to get hurt. And yet, even with the tough subject matter, this is once again a fun adventure, appropriate for a middle grade reader, with a very satisfying ending. I highly recommend.

The Princess Companion: A Retelling of The Princess and the Pea (The Four Kingdoms Book 1) by Melanie Cellier

In this fairy tale remix, The Princess of the Pea is closely tied to Cinderella, as in, Cinderella, now a mom, is obsessed with the idea of her son marrying a "real" princess. So she gets a pea from her fairy godmother and is told to put it under the mattress for visiting princesses as a test.

Pros:
This author is GREAT at world building and developing characters. She sets things up nicely for subsequent books and has interesting, real ideas of things that might have happened to these fairy tale people.

This is a perfectly clean, romantic read (sigh), which I love.

Cons:
This author (or her editor) needs to fall in love with the comma. There were several sentences that made no sense with the comma missing and I had to go back and re-read to understand. And I'm no grammar snob. Also, she loves adverbs, to the point that I started to count them as I read.

The point of view was almost always through the eyes of the princess companion (a.k.a. pea-feeler), but there were short stints from the point of view of the mom, the prince, the villain, etc. It was kinda weird. I would have preferred a back and forth with the princess companion and the prince.

2.99 or free to borrow. A definite recommend.

Pippa of Lauramore, by Shari Tapscott

I enjoyed this tale about a rebellious princess full of adventures, handsome princes and hard choices. This is my preferred Fantasy genre. I had to get used to the present tense (ala Hunger Games), but otherwise really enjoyed it from start to finish. Very clean, very fun, romantic and interesting. Clearly there will be other books written now that the author's created this world, and if I had my say, I'd like to hear more about Lord Rigel, hint hint. 99 cents or free to borrow with Amazon Prime. Recommended.

Proper Attire: A West Indies Proper Romance, by Danielle Thorne

I must say that I loved this book. I saw it mentioned in a tweet and tried a sample and was hooked. Being 99 cents helped too. I did not hesitate to buy it once I'd read the sample and I wasn't disappointed once I'd finished. This was a magical mix of regency and pirates, set in the West Indies. I've read one other book by Danielle Thorne so I knew she'd be great when it comes to island locations and sea life. The action and adventure portions were great, the romance was better (while remaining squeaky clean), and was just overall good fun. A definite recommend.

Chosen, by Barbara Ellen Brink

This is the first book in the Amish Bloodsuckers series and I totally inhaled this book. I haven't done that in a while so it was a pleasant surprise. Jael is a teenage girl who would love to be normal but doesn't have a chance. The reason: She's destined to be a vampire slayer and save her family from the grips of a vampire coven controlling her parents' Amish community. That's a lot for a 15-year-old to take in, but she's up to the challenge. This book is FREE right now so go get it, like right now!

Robin: Lady of Legend by R.M. ArceJaeger

I enjoyed the way the author played with the classic Robin Hood tale. In this version, Robin is actually Robin of Locksley, an 18-year-old girl who finds herself suddenly betrothed to the horrible Sheriff of Nottingham. She runs off disguised as a man, and the rest is history. The book held my attention throughout, but I thought that sometimes Robin got away with making really rash decisions with little consequence. 2.99 for Kindle or Free to borrow. Recommended.

By Heart and Compass, By Danielle Thorne

By Heart and Compass is a sweet romantic adventure. Lacy (sometimes referred to as Goober - a name she detests) is a genealogist with a secret love for pirate history. She discovers a diary that may lead her to a great treasure, if she can work with the distrustful Max Bertrand, a beach bum with a famous family history. Like other reviewers mentioned, it starts out a little slow, but picks up as Lacy jets back and forth between Newton, Georgia and the Caribbean. The book had a great sense of setting and plot, but I did not love the romance so much. I thought Max was dismissive at best, and Lacy invested in him too early. Overall, a fun read, and different than anything I'd read before. $2.99 for the Kindle version. I was given a copy in return for an honest review.

The Call of the Deep, by Tracy Lane

The Call of the Deep is about a college student named Meri who finds out she's a lost mermaid princess. I loved Meri's friendship with her roommate Kelsey and the gradual way she learns about her past. I liked the telepathy aspect as well, since it wouldn't make sense for mermaids/mermen to talk underwater. There were some lulls in the middle before the the book really got rolling, but then it was a fun, exciting read. There is a love triangle of sorts for those of you into that. Thankfully it doesn't drag on for too long. I am all for love triangles as long as there isn't one mopey guy hanging around indefinitely while the girl flits between the two (my hubs informed me most men won't stand for that, and I've never looked at Twilighty love triangles the same way since.) The ending sets the reader up perfectly for a sequel. I would recommend this for age 15+ with some mild college-age drinking and party make-out scenes. 3.99 for Kindle.

I received a free copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

The Fairest Beauty, by Melanie Dickerson

This is a loose retelling of Snow White. I thought it was pretty good (I gave it 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads). It is $5.12 for the Kindle book on Amazon. There is a Christian aspect to it, some action, a wicked stepmother, and plenty of romance. I do have to say that it is one of those books where the characters have some serious problems to be resolved and somehow it all just works out in the end. Just a beef of mine. Recommended, nonetheless.

Self Same, by Melissa Conway

This book was on sale for 99 cents and I LOVED it. The plot has time travel which is very hard to do well. Very thought provoking and hard to put down. Written for a YA audience. Great from start to finish (which is also hard to do). 2.99 for Kindle regularly.

Haven, by A.R. Ivanovich

Haven (War of the Princes), by A. R. Ivanovich was an exciting adventurous read. Its a YA Dystopian which seems to be all the rage lately. In this one, Haven is a community hidden away, and the outside world is a mess. It had a bit of romance with a strong female protagonist. 2.99 for Kindle