Just Breathe Ephemeras

Hello, hello, hello!

Just Breathe was not the last we readers were to hear from Kendall Grey. Kendall Grey also wrote ephemera. The definition of ephemera is "things that exist or are used or enjoyed for only a short time". It's a quite genius thing to call these short stories. There are four of them and I'm going to review them all at once. None of them count towards the challenge because they are under 100 pages. I read these after I read the main series. If you missed the reviews for the three main books in the series here are the links:

Inhale Review
Exhale Review
Just Breathe Review

This story is about Zoe as a child visiting Australia and visiting the whales with her mother. And Finding something unexpected.

 This is the first of the stories and it was such a good story! It actually added information to the stories and it was so cute. It didn't tie up any loose ends but it gave a little more foundation for the books. Out of the four this was my favorite.

This is an elaboration on an event that happens in one of the main books. Although instead of Zoe Morgan's point of view it's from Sinnder's.

This story took one specific scene from the second book and takes it to a deeper level. It takes it from Sinnder's point of view. It is laced with sex and Sinnder's fantasies. It didn't add anything to the series but this one deserved the warnings it came with.

This is from the past of Jetta Briggs. It takes her through a journey of betrayal and towards the Elemental life.

This one gave a little bit of background information about Jack's group. It focused on Jet of Jack's group of Elementals. This was similar to the first story where the little bit of information actually gave something to the original story.

Vexx and Byrn go on an undercover mission to uncover a Fyre Elemental.

There was really no point to this story. It tells you a teensy tiny bit about Jack's group. But other than that this story was pointless. It was similar to the second book in nature. It was a sex-filled story. Although I did feel bad for the main characters, so it did cause some emotion in me.

Keep reading!
Mackenzie

Just Breathe

Hello!

So here is the review the final book Just Breathe by Kendall Grey. If you missed the first two reviews of Inhale and Exhale here are the links:

Inhale Review
Exhale Review

After tragedy rocks the foundation of their relationship, Australian Sentinel Gavin Cassidy and whale biologist Zoe Morgan call it quits. Gavin can’t forgive himself for shattering her trust, and being with the sexy rock star is killing Zoe. Literally. But love—and duty—are powerful motivators, and alliances are forged in the most unlikely places. With the key to salvation locked inside the mind of an unconscious child, Gavin must find another way to snuff out the Fyre Elementals before millions of humans die, or make good on his deal with the devil and lose the one he loves. Again.

I really do love the cover art on all of the books. It really shows the supernatural element.

Just Breathe

And the Mountains Echoed

Child of the Dark: The Diary of Carolina de Jesus

K

Allegiant

L

S

Yay! I have some notes on this book, some not all. It goes straight into this book from the second book. Like the first two books the supernatural story is amazing. I felt so many emotions. In the first 10 pages I cried. There was a huge WOAH moment that made me somewhat confused but was a huge twist. This whole series is based on fate. The characters in this story seemed to under-react. There were some serious situations that were gotten over too soon and just kind of brushed off. Again, there were pieces that didn't make sense. And at the end of the book there were pieces missing and lots of loose ends. Specifically with Jack's group of Elementals. They talk about him going to find someone for some reason but there are never any details or how the group formed. I have so many questions remaining and not cliff-hanger questions, questions that should be answered in the book. I need more detail. I gave this story a 3 out of 5 stars, although I felt so many more emotions in this book than any of the other books. 

Happy reading!

Mackenzie

If I Stay

Hey everybody!

Next up is If I Stay by Gayle Forman. This was another book that lines up with my book club on Goodreads. And I pushed this review forward to today because the movie comes out today. So it's a bonus review for the week.

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen ­year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces- to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heartwrenchingly beautiful, Mia's story will stay with you for a long, long time.

If I Stay

G

U

A

N

A

S

This book was a good book, at some points it gave me goosebumps and I teared up. It was similar to Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. This book gives a teen view on tragedy and it takes a very interesting take on being comatose. Forman wrote this book in great detail and the similes and metaphors gave the story great imagery. Flashbacks are generally confusing and I don't generally like them, but most of the time Forman breaks up the book so it's clear that we're in the past and not the present...most of the time. Forman also broke the story up by paragraph with no chapters and only big breaks between past and present. I liked it this way because it made it easier and quicker to read. Sometimes the book used conflicting tenses though and that got confusing and slowed down the reading until I could figure out what it was supposed to say. At the end of the book there is a huge decision to be made. But there is no huge turning point or no huge factor that really swayed her decision one way or other. There were little things said but none of them were huge and life changing. There wasn't even that much of a climax, it just kind of happened. I gave the book 4 out of 5 stars. After I finished this book, I was left with cliff-hanger ending questions and I wanted to leave it that way, it was perfect to question those things. Then I found out there's a sequel.....

Happy reading!

Mackenzie

Instagram

Hey everyone!

Almost everyone I know is on social media. I've been on social media for a while but recently I've been using Instagram A LOT...like everyday. I've been finding Book photo challenges for every month. I have been trying to post a book related photo everyday on there. So if you would like to hear or see me more often please follow me on Instagram: mackenzieroy7

I also post lots of nerdy pictures on there. I usually use the hashtag #Bookstagram or #BookPhotoChallenge . Please check it out! If I get enough interest maybe I'll do a daily picture post here.

Happy reading!
Mackenzie

P.S. I have three polls going on the right hand side of the page, I would really appreciate your feedback. There's only nine days left to answer, so please, please, please answer! Thank you.

Exhale

Hey!

So a while ago I posted a review for Inhale by Kendall Grey, which means here comes the sequel! Exhale by Kendall Grey is the second book in the Just Breathe trilogy. I started this book right after I finished Inhale but couldn't get into to it quick enough but when I picked it back up I flew through it. If you missed the review of Inhale check out the link below:

Inhale Review

The man of Zoe Morgan’s dreams isn’t only real, he’s interested. In her. But her boss wants her too, and is leveraging his unsolicited advances with the threat of blocking the huge promotion she's after. When he places a spy on her research team, the intense stranger discovers more than he should, and Zoe fears hiding a relationship with Gavin Cassidy from her boss is the least of her worries. The whale she must protect has been marked for death, and Zoe's old enemy Scarlet is eager to deliver the killing blow. To both of them. Australia’s Sentinels must find and lock the door into the Dreaming before Fyre Elementals launch another attack on innocent dreamers. But corruption and distrust abound, and Gavin believes someone on the Sentinel council is in league with the Fyres. As he reluctantly embraces his new role as council leader, Gavin must not only keep Zoe safe from Scarlet's vengeful clutches, but organize a Sentinel defense strong enough to prevent a full-blown Elemental war—with a traitor fighting by his side.

One more letter!

Ender’s Game

L

Exhale

Persepolis (The Complete)

Happiness Project (The)

Angel in a Fur Coat

Narrative of Fredrick Douglass

Two Towers (The)

Self-inflicted Wounds: Heartwarming Tales of Epic Humiliation

I'm so excited I'm almost done with an animal, and it's my favorite too! Straight into the review of the book. I liked this book. The story continues right where the first one left off. Except this book took place more in real life then in the dreaming world. I really love the story behind it, it's a very cool idea. A lot of people touch on the subject of balancing the Elements but I've never seen anyone put roles to balancing the elements. Similarly to the first book it comes with a warning, but again like the first one there isn't a lot of sex or cursing. There is some but it's not like that's what the book is about. There is violence but in most books there are. Some parts were still confusing and a lot of the pieces from the first book weren't cleared up. But fear not there is another book. I gave it a 3 out of 5 stars. (I've been a harsh critic lately with the ratings).

Keep reading!
Mackenzie

P.S. This is another book I lost all of my notes for.

The Giver

Hello everyone!

I finished The Giver by Lois Lowry earlier in the week. I didn't know the movie was coming out so soon! In honor of the movie being released today I decided to also post my review of the book today.

Jonas's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear of pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the community. When Jonas turns 12 he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

Hobbit (The)

E

Divergent

Giver (The)

E

Handmaid’s Tale (The)

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G

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I read this book in 7th grade and I don't think I really appreciated it then. rereading it made me realize what an amazing book it truly is. It's a typical dystopian society with that one rebel...yada yada yada. We've all heard it. But Lowry tells it so well. I can see Veronica Roth took some pages from this book as well as from Suzanna Collins. I did like some aspects of this society but obviously not many because it's dystopian and not good. This society was almost like the Holocaust though. They took away color and race and everything and made people exactly the same. It was very Aryan. In this book Jonas learns about the world and it shows the reader kind of how a baby would learn the world. The descriptions in this book were magnificent. Lowry takes simple things in life and reteaches them to us, as if we are seeing them for the first time. I gave it 5 out of 5 stars. I highly recommend this book...to everyone!

Happy reading!

Mackenzie

The Graveyard Book

Hello, there!

Alright, next on the list is The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. As I was reading this book I took a lot of notes so my review would be juicy but my phone broke and I lost all of the notes I had. So I'm trying to write this from memory.

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead. There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy - an ancient indigo man, a gateway to abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible fleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will be in danger from the man Jack - who has already killed Bod's family

Defending Jacob

Insurgent

N

Graveyard Book (The)

O

S

I really liked this book. It was a good book for children and teens and like I've said before Neil Gaiman has a fantastic imagination. Also, specifically in this book his play on words is genius. I really love the concept of the book and the characters were all really well developed. I like that this book seems to be all separate stories and they don't even mention the main character from chapter 1 until chapters 4 and 7 and then the end. I like the thought of separate stories that are all tied together. The one complaint about this is you never find out much about Silas. I know he's supposed to be a mysterious character but Gaiman mentions his journey a few times and never actually goes into detail about it. I never really understood what Silas was or what his deal was. I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars because it was so well written.

Happy reading!

Mackenzie

Summary

Hey there!

So I just wanted to let you all know that from now on I'll include a summary of the book because sometimes it's hard to understand the context of my review without it. It'll be right below my little blurb at the top and above the book cover. Feel free to bypass the summary if you just want the review. I personally never read summaries before I read a book because I don't want it to give too much away, so usually I walk blindly into a book.

Keep reading!
Mackenzie

Defending Jacob

Hey everyone!

Today's post is about Defending Jacob by William Landay.

Defending Jacob

Insurgent

N

G

O

S

I loved this book! The characters were so well developed as was the plot. You think you know what's going to happen but you really don't. You will NEVER guess the ending although Landay foreshadows it. There was a lot of foreshadowing in this book because it was written almost as a journal recounting the story. This is a legal thriller and man was this thrilling. My mind changed almost every page. This is one book I did not see the ending coming and it's hard to make a book that isn't somewhat predictable. It was a little slow at first but it picked up and it was a quick read. I also love books that are written like journals. I recommend this book to people who want a really good legal thriller that is a somewhat quick read. I gave this a 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads but I think that it deserves a 5 out of 5 now that I've discussed it.

Happy reading!

Mackenzie

Poll

Hey there!

It's Friday! I just wanted to bring to your attention that I have added two polls. I would really like some feedback. Please, please, please answer the poll! I've already had a few answers. If you have any further opinions please feel free to comment or email me: mackenzie.roy@gmail.com . I'm open to suggestions. Also, feel free to suggest books or questions of the week.

Happy reading!
Mackenzie