@instafreebie Read of the Month

Over several months now I’ve been using Instafreebie to ensure I’m not spending hundreds of pounds in my bid to complete my Goodreads annual reading challenge. Sometimes the reads are totally amazing. At other times not so much. I was getting irritated by the endless run of so so reads lately, these are the ones which fall into 3 star or below category for me. It made me forget the list of great authors I’ve found through the site so far such as: Helena Rookwood, Devyn Jayse, Rita Carla Francesca Monticelli and Lana Hart. Thankfully I started a book which reminded me that perseverance pays off. It was so good I resolved to share it with you which also got me thinking about a monthly feature. Why the hell not I thought. So I'll be re-featuring the above authors too as well as any others which catch my attention in the coming months.

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This month’s offering: Seeker by Amy Reece

Genre: Paranormal

Audience: YA or anyone into the supernatural

Reader Rating: 4 STARS

I loved 2/3 of this book. The writing style is relaxed as the central character, Ally, is in high school and it’s written from her point of view. She’s a quirky redhead. Say no more – I’m in. I love redheads.  But now back to the plot - she has a secret which, as she heads to her 17^th birthday, is beginning to make her life just that little bit more difficult. Only her family and very best friend Cassie are in on it. Her family are very unusual, especially her super trendy grandmother.

This is a book about coping, not only with the stresses and strains of moving into adulthood, but also the issues which rear their vicious talons when you’re perceived by the rest of the world as being different.

The author sets the tone wonderfully with her dedication: To all the girls who seek to be extraordinary. Never stop seeking. And to the boys who are strong enough to love them.

The plot is strong and carries events through in a logical way. Towards the end of the book there was only a tiny blip which occurred after a major plot development involving a character called Veronica. It contained an excessive amount of dialogue and an overlong description of incidental events as well as the endless making-out which occurs when teenagers get their thing on. This section felt too much like a filler. After this section an important character re-entered the story and it took me a while to remember who she was. This is because the section described above unfortunately pulled me out of the story.

I would also have liked a little more interaction between Ally and her mum. There’s tons of interest in the conversations with Ally’s best friend, Jack and grandma but mum features only incidentally.

Having said this, Reece did more than enough to ensure I’ll want to find out more about what happens to Ally next. I’m thinking of my upcoming holiday and stocking up on Kindle reads to ease up on the luggage allowance.

Please remember that indie authors need your support. So write those social media comments and review their books.

Thank you!