ARC The Boy Genius Detective Agency by Robert Grey

When happy-go-lucky Phidias Isaac Newman opens a detective agency in the sleepy Highland Falls ward of the Mégapolis he isn't sure what to expect.
The Case of the Vanishing Bones? Sounds like a promising start.
Then, seemingly from nowhere, disaster strikes! Together with his partner, Agent Bubble Gum, the Boy Genius is plunged into the recovery of a mysterious (and deadly) stolen artifact--the Afterthought Resonator.
But then something wonderful happens.
Or does it?
Bubble Gum has always known the Boy Genius is ill mannered, uncouth and never listens to others. (Not that she keeps a list or anything.) But now she learns Phidias is harboring a dark secret.
Of forbidden knowledge that unlocks a terrible power... no one even suspected existed.

I received a copy of this novel from the author in return for an honest review

This is a fun middle grade book. It is well written and the characters are engaging.  This story takes place in the future, the MC lives in a well described district called Highland Falls and underneath it all is an area called The Pell Mell which is described as, "A constantly shi ning sea of shops, stores, hovercarts, street mongers, sky peddlers, vending machines, sunken gardens, ying zoos, passerby's, belongers, commuters, gawkers and much, much more. It was an art show, a freak show, a horror show, a side show. It was the big time, the big top and the main event. It was a carnival, a casino, a bazaar, a food court, another ying zoo!"

The MC, Phidias is a slightly annoying, sarcastic smart aleck boy who works for the Boy Genius Agency full of delightful characters like Lollipop and Bubble Gum, also agents.  All the characters are very vibrant.

They investigate, not really crimes so much...I mean some guys bones vanish, so more like mysterious circumstances. Each chapter has a delightful headline like, "THE WORST GO-FAST CYCLE PILOT IN THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE" and there are villains like The Sinister Brain.  There are also aliens like the Krell Empire, "a space faring race of slime-tentacle aliens who feed on the brains of humans."  Quite creatively written.

This is volume one, so it ends with the obvious intention of there being a volume two. I liked how there was a major story arc, but there was also other little tidbits that didn't pertain to the main plot..  The book was very fast paced, the ending perhaps a bit rushed.  There is a deleted scene at the end, which was interesting and gives you a little more time with the well developed characters.

My favorite part? The meta, there is a second epilogue which discusses the "Purple Prose Princess" who writes fan fiction about Boy Genius , and it adds a bit of a surprise to the characters personality.

This was a clever and fun read, I had a few issues with the formatting, but it didn't matter much. Plus I am not a big Sci Fi fan and this is very much hover boards, advanced tech, Mass Effect for little kids.  So give it a try, or buy it for a funny kid in your life.

ARC Review Bad Romance by M.S.L.R (Sweet Dreams Series)

Skyler Rayne was pretty, smart and sassy. Or so that's what Sullivan Forest tells her when he first sets his eyes on her. When Sky stops doing what is expected of her and starts letting go, it is only a matter of time before it all catches up with her. With a mystery man that her parents want to set her up with and Sullivan who is intrigued by her but has secrets of his own... When the rules of dating don't apply how will Sky define her relationship with Sullivan? Or is at just a bad romance?

I received a copy of the novella in return for an honest review

Bored on a break at work I opened the .pdf copy of this I received and began  reading. It's a novella so I knew that I could probably finish it pretty fast. I was right, this is a quick read, but it's fun.

Let me start out saying this: The sex in this novella is H.O.T

Secondly: I spent the entire time I was reading this humming Lady Gaga's Bad Romance.  Which fit the story pretty well. 

Thirdly and warning: this novel wound up not quite being my cup of tea so to speak. I like erotica and I like romance novels, but this one does have an Alpha Male taking advantage of a kind of damaged female that I don't always care for.  However I did have fun reading it and I recommend you give it a try, especially if you liked 50 Shades of Grey.

Honestly Sullivan (or Li as he is called) isn't MY type of guy, but  I know women all over will totally find this character a hot hunk. 

I did enjoy how the author made a point to mention protection before the actual sex, in a lot of novels they glance right over the protection part because it's fiction. However in this day an age even in fiction if your characters are having casual sex you should write in a condom or birth control pills. Though the first time they have sex they don't use a condom because they are both clean, no mention of pregnancy, if you have unprotected sex with someone for over a month you're gonna have a pregnancy scare. Though that might have added some extra tension to Li and Sky's relationship.

The MC's parents are really awful to her. So it's understandable she would want a relationship where she can lose control without repercussions. I enjoyed getting the back story about Sky, it explains a lot of her character choices.

Li only wants sex and  the MC seems ok with that. Which I like, I don't care for the idea that only men want casual sex or are interested in orgasms. We women like it too! Though, I kind of wish the MC had kept her emotional distance, would have been nice to see Li suffer through realizing he wanted her only to have her turn the tables on him. 

There is a scene that is the reason this got 3 stars instead of 4. They are eating and Li get's super jealous that she went to a bar with girlfriends. Because he thinks other men will try and pick her up. When she tells him she would never be with another man after giving Li her word he says, 

"No. I don't think you would but that wouldn't stop them."  

And  

"You obviously don't know how dangerous it is out there and you and your friends go to a bar, drink and then what? It wouldn't be hard for someone to take advantage of any of you. 

That's a tad too rapey for me, especially since Li and Sky first hook up at a bar. Its a very awkward scene where Li is angry with her and way too Alpha Male jealous for my personal tastes. 

At the end I was proud that the MC took control and made her own decisions. I can only hope in the following parts that Sky is true to herself and does what is good and right for her. The title of this novel says it all,  "Bad Romance" and it is, hopefully Sky gets to be a part of a "Better Romance" later because her character is fun and relate-able.