Lara Adrian - Bound to Darkness

Carys Chase is accustomed to making her own rules and letting her heart lead the way--no matter what anyone else has to say about it. A rare Breed female and a daywalker as well, headstrong, beautiful Carys is one of the most powerful of her kind. She lives passionately and loves without limits, especially when it comes to the lethal cage-fighting Breed warrior called Rune.
Unbeatable in the ring, Rune exists in a brutal world of blood and bone and death. He's made his share of enemies both in and out of the arena, and his secrets run as deep and turbulent as his past. A dangerous loner who has survived by his fists and fangs, Rune has never allowed anyone to get too close to him...until Carys. But when the bodies buried in his past rise up to threaten his present, Rune must choose between betraying Carys's trust or putting her in the crosshairs of a battle neither of them can hope to win on their own.

Comment: This is the 13th installment in the Midnight Breed series by Lara Adrian. I've been losing interest in this series and I can't really explain why. When I first started reading this, every book was pre ordered and anticipated but since the first arc ended, it doesn't feel the same somehow even if so many things follow the same ideas. But the truth is the previous book in the series was read in 2014...

This book gives us Carys Chase, daughter of Sterling and Tavia, probably my favorite couple and book from the first arc.

Carys is both Breed and breedmate and she wants to have an independent life. She is dating, sort of, Rune, a fighter and someone coming from a different background. She knows her parents wouldn't easily accept him but they don't even try to make an effort.

When the Order need help, Carys finds herself understanding a bit more what it means to work for the good of everyone and somehow the chance to present Rune and trying to have a go at a solid relationship with him also seems to become possible.

The problem is that someone from Rune's past will interfere with all the sudden good things in Carys life...

Even after reading the book and having enjoyed for the most part, I still can't really pinpoint exactly what was about it that makes it seem weaker than some of the original ones but that's how I think of it. This second arc, which had everything to work out, just doesn't appeal to me as much. I love the character's interactions, especially when we see the ones already mated or that we know better. But the romances aren't as amazing as I would have imagined and the plot went to a interesting but not always appealing path.

It doesn't mean the stories don't have substance or structure but they don't feel the same. I guess part of it was the quick switch from one plot and then the 2nd arc had characters we saw as children or not even that already grown up and we didn't had the chance to see them develop their personalities in between. They now look like any other character in the series...

Anyway, Carys and Rune at least feel like that to me.

The romance is a strong component of this book. Like some other readers, I found their romance to be without any apparent substance, even more when we had such careless behavior from them in the previous books where they showed up. In this book they communicated more, we learned more about their pasts and dreams and their connection seemed to become stronger. I still don't think this feels they had to be together but at the end I was happier for them than before.

I think some of my issues come from the character's personalities, behavior and attitudes. The positive side of all this in the characters of the 1st arc don't seem to have been done the same way in this 2nd arc. The main characters just feel more....uncaring or unfocused on doing the right thing or being unique. It really bothers me how we have so many bad boys who only reform because they realize they are in love almost at the end of the book. Yes, this is a series' trademark almost but this younger characters also seem to be unconcerned about other things besides fighting or destroying their enemies. It feel like all the years after their parents conquered the right for them to be free or to at least have a better life (if only emotionally) meant nothing.

Ok, maybe I'm being too picky but Carys for instance reminds of this. She lives such an easy life and she only gets interested in things after a while. This feels like spoiled for me. I don't know but honesty I didn't feel much interest in her nor in her personality which seemed vain in the previous books and fast but not to last here because she is the heroine.

Rune has a lot more substance, he acts like any other guy in romances but I appreciated his path a lot more than hers.

The plot has its moments. It gets a bit tiring to keep having them fight enemies all the time but well, this is the whole premise of the books. I wish I could have more domestic scenes with everyone, proving the efforts of the 1st arc weren't just because.

The Atlantean plot line also has its moments although not too obvious yet. But the next book features an Atlantean hero so we should have more information on them and their lives.

This book wasn't the best ever but it worked out fine. I hope I won't take as long to get to the next one, though!

Grade: 6/10

Lara Adrian, Tina Folsom - Cut and Run

Darkly gifted and dangerously skilled, they were once the nation's most powerful asset. Betrayed by

unknown enemies, unable to trust anyone--not even one another--the Phoenix hold the key to unmasking a conspiracy steeped in blood and fire. To survive, they'll have to solve . . . The Phoenix Code.
CUT by Lara Adrian
Community college professor Ethan Jones is living a lie. A precognitive agent known as Zephyr, Ethan is accustomed to subterfuge and deception, but when the Phoenix program is betrayed, he’s forced to cut all ties to the life he's made and everyone in it—including smart, beautiful Tori Connors, the one woman who tempted the cold agent to let down his impenetrable facade.
A chance encounter years later and thousands of miles away thrusts the lovers together again, and this time Tori refuses to let Ethan deceive her. Although he is a dangerous enigma, Tori still desires him, and soon their inconvenient reunion becomes a temptation too strong to resist. With assassins closing in, Ethan and Tori embark on a desperate race for their lives—one that will put their tentative trust to the ultimate test.
RUN by Tina Folsom
Motorcycle mechanic Scott Thompson isn't the laid-back loner he makes everyone believe. Three years ago, he was known as Ace, one of an elite group of agents in a top secret CIA program. However, the preternatural ability that made him invaluable to the government could now be his downfall, when his skill alerts him to a disaster bound to kill dozens of innocents unless he intervenes.
Journalist Phoebe Chadwick needs to persuade her editor to spare her from department cuts that threaten her job. When a mysterious stranger prevents an accident that would have killed her and many others, Phoebe goes after the story. But bad boy Scott is a reluctant hero unwilling to answer her questions, despite the sizzling chemistry that ignites between them. As his enemies hunt him down, Scott must decide if he can trust Phoebe—and how far he’s willing to go to keep her safe at his side. 

Comment: This book was chosen for one of my book clubs. I've read books by Lara Adrian before and the concept of the books was interesting enough so I decided to give it a try.

Cut and Run are two stories where we meet characters that have a mission and a goal but whose identity we only learn one book a time.

This is the first book in a series by Lara Adrian and Tina Folsom featuring a secret CIA department with operatives belonging to a special unit where all members have psychic abilities, like foreseeing what will happen at a given moment, etc.

However, the operatives were living under secret identities and their team was compromised and their leader killed. Now they need to find each other again so they can hunt the responsible for the death of the man they respected and who wants them dead.

The books contain two stories, one by each author. Each story presents a different main character and the person they fall in love with. Apparently the stories follow one another in terms of chronology and characters from one book will show up in the following one. I was curious enough about both of them, especially Lara Adrian's, an author I'm familiar with but from a different genre. I was very curious to see a more contemporary setting and concept from her.

Both stories have interesting elements, I confess, but at the same time there were some flaws I could find and couldn't put aside while reading. The first, common to both is the length vs development. I just found the stories too rushed. I know, each story is more novella size than a full length book so the authors had to move things alone quickly, even more so when we know the main characters are in a run from an enemy but... it seems unlikely certain situations could happen that way, romances in particular.

But I'll mention each story alone.

Cut is the first story where we introduced the main idea and the first couple. Sadly, this was a lovers reunited plot and I dislike those in general. I was not convinced otherwise with this story, though. I understand this is a quick way for readers to accept the couple's relationship but their connection was never something I loved reading about, which made the story not totally successful for me. 

The development was interesting enough but the sort of emotional and family baggage the secret agents have isn't something to be easily dealt within a novella sized story, I think. Ethan seemed interesting and he was everything eh needed to be a good hero but I never connected with him. Tori was slightly better but again, I didn't care much for her. In the end, it was ok to see them together and looking for ways to help Ethan and prevent chaos but I was surprised by how this was written and I wouldn't say it was Adrian's work. I can't say if this is good or bad.

Run is the second story, following the action from the first one and it was my first book by author Tina Folsom. I suppose most novellas belonging to a series sort of feel the same, so this was easy to go through but there wasn't any detail in it that made me eager to keep reading. Maybe this is not the author's best sample...

I liked this story more, simply for the plot alone but of course the romance wasn't very convincing because it happened too fast. If only author would take a chance on the possibilities, the sexual tension even without love declarations, things could look more realistic.

Scott was an interesting character, I liked him better than Ethan and I was curious about him and his life. I think the author convinced me to be interested. Phoebe I also liked more than Tori, I wish we could see more of her and, as a couple, they were more vibrant and captivating to me. But most of my issues with them were the same with the others, not enough time to develop them and their relationship as well as it could.

Overall, both stories had interesting scenes but I think authors (whether they want or publishers or whomever decides that does) take too long with sex instead of really developing the stories or adding more emotional depth to the characters. I like it they are intimate and bond that way but that doesn't make the plot move along and occupies precious pages where we could see better character development.

I honestly don't feel curious enough to keep reading. Thinking about both stories, they have good points but I spent more time wishing this or that was different.

It was still interesting, though, to be able to know another author and have a new light on a known one.

Grade: 6/10

Lara Adrian - Crave the Night

Born and raised to be an emotionless killing machine, Nathan is one of the most lethal Breed vampires in existence. A key member of the Order—an elite group of warriors charged with protecting both

mortals and vampires—Nathan executes each mission with flawless precision and a total lack of mercy. Now he must pursue a powerful, hidden enemy. But Nathan’s hard discipline and training are no match for the fierce pull he feels toward a young woman he has no right to desire—a woman of wealth and high social standing who has long been promised to another Breed male, and who may also prove to be the key to rooting out Nathan’s elusive quarry.
Jordana lives a life of glittering privilege as a member of a prominent Breed family in Boston. Surrounded by fine things and fawning admirers, Jordana wants for nothing—until she crosses paths with a dark, intense warrior from the Order and finds herself swept into an impulsive, sizzling kiss that neither of them will forget. As much as she tries to deny her deep feelings for Nathan, Jordana cannot resist the craving to be near him, to break through his forbidding walls and see the man he truly is. But getting close to Nathan will thrust Jordana into a treacherous new world, forcing her to risk all she has and all she knows about herself and her past. And loving this seductive man could be the most dangerous temptation of all.

Comment: This is the most recent story in the Midnight Breed series by Lara Adrian.

This book is #12 on the series and is the second in this new arc where the protagonists are the children of the heroes and heroines from the first arc.

Nathan is one of the Gen One children rescued in the latter books of first arc. His mother found and rescued him but he always kept himself slightly apart from everyone because of the shame he feels about his past and his childhood. He keeps a tight control over himself and he is a workaholic.

Jordana is one of the high society breedmates who happens to be friends with Caris Chase, one of the Breed children. One night she kisses Nathan and that never left both their minds. But now Jordana is in danger and maybe linked to a wanted criminal, but she still can't think with Nathan around...

This book is a positive one for me. It has some new things happening, obviously closer to the end of the book, that I didn't imagine would be like that. Sure, we have an idea about where the author is going with the series, but it was still surprising how some things start developing and now there are many possibilities to explore. I'm not that interested in the fighting aspect of things, I'd prefer to see things go a more peaceful, if not diplomatic path, but at least things are interesting.

I still think the scenes where the villains talk or where we see what's in their heads absolutely dispensable, but nothing to be done there. Thankfully, it's short timed.

Nathan is one of those mysterious characters, one of those bad boys who think themselves above basic needs. To him, the elementary is sufficient. I get it that his past shaped his mind and his vision of things, of what happens around him, of his purpose. But I'd like to see him accept those things he couldn't change on his own, not because he was falling for someone. The power of love is very pretty, but he could have done it for himself first. Ok, I can't even grasp what his childhood experiences must have been if it ever happened in reality, but the trauma and abuse and shock are all there so we can understand it wouldn't be easy, ever. But Nathan is supposed to be strong and very smart and why couldn't he process what happened and still try to be happier, to live a more positive life with his mother and his friends? I get it that the hero mentality in this book is meant to be distances so the effect of a woman to love is bigger, but really, tortured heroes without self resilience can become repetitive after so many, especially if we find more than one in the same series...

Jordana is meant to be perfect but she is full of doubts about her life, her possibilities, where she's going from here. Things around her seem easy, prepared for her to take them, but she's not ready to give up on that feeling she needs to run before getting stuck. I got all her fears and doubts and applaud her decision to change things. She wasn't the air head I believed her to be in the first book and enjoyed her transformation to a more daring but still simple person.

I liked she had feelings for Nathan but didn't give in right away.

What surprised me was her actual role in the story and what that will mean for the future. I sure hope her new found heritage and relationship won't be dismissed in further books. I think it's very annoying when people live in communities and after a love story they sort of disappear.

The romance was ok. It went through all the necessary steps of a love story between a mysterious, reluctant hero and an almost perfect heroine. 

Lots of secrets uncovered too, throughout the book.

We see some important characters show up and make and play a part in the story line.

We see possible hero material as well...

We see a lot of things, all very plot oriented, but apart from all the news, there's still the feeling most actions come from the same old and I hope that changes in the upcoming books.

Grade: 7/10

Short stories: Lara Adrian / Meljean Brook

 
Determined to solve a string of brutal slayings in London, vampire warrior Mathias Rowan is forced to seek the help of Nova, a fiery tattoo artist who ignites an unexpected, yet undeniable, passion in the grim Order enforcer.
Nova’s shadowy connections and dark talents may be Mathias’s best hope of unmasking a treacherous enemy . . . but falling for a woman with her dangerous past will risk both their hearts and their lives.

  

For a year and a half, Olivia Martin has tried to forget Erik Gulbrandr, the glacial man who’d scorched her mouth with a single kiss. But when Olivia finds herself snowbound with Erik on the winter solstice, she discovers that the man who set her body aflame is cursed by abominable needs — and a desire that might destroy them both...





Comment: These two short stories were part of the final reads of September. I wanted small stories to wrap up my month before starting bigger books, leaving them for October.
Both stories are paranormal and have a HEA, both have a seriously too fast love development, but the similarities end there. Still, I enjoyed reading them, and I think both had what it would take to make them successful as bigger books.

Marked by Midnight is set on the vampire world of the Midnight Breed series by Lara Adrian. The story features a recurrent character, Matthias, and how, due to a mission, he meets Nova, a tattoo artist who might be the last person to have seen a dead someone with strange tattoos. 
The story is really short, only 90 pages, and the author took the time to set up, to create an aura around the characters and in particular, Nova's. Of course, some things are inferred, especially for those who have read other books from the series. The book can be read as a stand alone but it gains a lot from previous knowledge if the reader has done so.
The romance is the loser here, because not only does it happens fast, but it ends up too perfect. Personally I wouldn't have minded this to be more of a set up perhaps, and in the future a full length story. I think the author was clever in the whole environment feel but clearly, the romance was really lacking, so a just barely there grade.
Grade: 5/10

Frozen is a stand alone novella, written by Meljean Brooke, which I got thanks to Hilcia! Thank you again!
The story is written in a contemporary setting and features a pair of co workers who seemed to hit if off but after a kiss, Eric was rude and never treated Olivia well again. Time has passed and Olivia is asked to deliver papers to Eric at his house before Christmas holidays on her way home. However, Olivia isn't happy about it because she knows he will be rude and is even more appalled when he seems sick which makes her feel guilty to leave him. Apparently it's what he wants but when she tries to leave, her jeep is destroyed. That's when she learns about the curse Eric suffers and how she was the one who made it happen.
The story has a great world build and several suspense moments. The romance is slower to develop but it's noticed better because they have met before, so it doesn't have the feel of insta-love. Still, the way they solve things and finally admit their feelings just because of the happenings at the time seemed rather like an excuse and for plot purposes.
The plot itself is well recognized and seen in these types of stories and genre, I liked the steps taken to find a solution and I liked how the characters seemed to slowly got to know each other better and their reasons and pasts. The end wasn't completely perfect and it had the issues about fastness like I mentioned, but overall, it was entertaining and had its romantic moments; also the chemistry was a strong point too.
Grade: 7/10

-> All in all, two interesting novellas, workable tools which would have been well used if the stories were to be full length and captivating characters. I think the best part is to embrace and enjoy the authors' abilities to write well and in a way that is solid and structured and with a certain goal.
Sure, both could have been better, but together they work just fine for their purpose.

Lara Adrian - Edge of Dawn

Twenty years after "First Dawn" - the morning that followed a blood-soaked night where Mankind learned that vampires lived among them - wars and skirmishes continue. Peace between humans and the Breed seems elusive, but the Order and their allies will not rest until it is won. 
For Mira, raised with the Order from the time she was a child and now the formidable captain of her own team of warriors, the fight is personal. War with mankind has cost her a great deal - the life of someone she loved dearly. 
Vowed to avenge his death, Mira blazes into every battle like a Valkyrie - until an unexpected encounter with a rebel leader brings her face-to-face with a startling truth, and a betrayal that will cut through her every defense...straight to the core of the wounded woman whose faith has never been more tested, nor her heart more deeply torn.

Comment: This is the most recent book in the Midnight series by Lara Adrian. Ha, one more book recently published I've gone through...once in a while I do have to keep up with recent stuff otherwise it would pile up and up and up...

This is Mira's story. We've known her since book #5, where she was rescued by couple Renata and Nikolai.

Now, 20 years have gone since the last book, where vampires were announced to the world. Now, there's an alliance between humans and vampires although not very comfortable. The world is divided between accepting and hating the Breeds and there are many fights around. Mira is in charge of a fighting team to keep the order in the streets. She's still feeling the loss of her best friend/lover Kellan in an explosion eight years ago.

A conference for peace is close by but someone doesn't Breeds to feel accepted and any thing could be the trigger to a war, such as the kidnapping of a young human scientist with Breed security by a group of rebels. But the rebel leader isn't random..

I was very glad to know this new arc would still have the characters we got to know and love from the other books. Obviously not in protagonist status but still there. 

What I wasn't very eager to see was the environment of war that would serve the general opinion of  the Breed's existence..in my head I thought it would have been better if they were accepted and the prejudice was only in the minority. Instead, it's the opposite. There's a too polite acceptance of vampires by the world and this will allow for certain behavior and attitude's plots that I feel I might get tired of..let's see what the author does because the book ended was a major discovery and it might change the whole idea the reader might have about this new arc. What a surprise and how exciting if this happens like it's likely to be.

The plot was interesting but to be honest I wasn't that mesmerized by it until the last part of the book where the surprise happens.

I was much more eager to read about the characters, about what they were doing, about how they are now that two decades have passed. It was fun to see some of the babies as grown ups now and with ideas and personalities of their own. It will be interesting to see them now.

The romance was cute, it had many great scenes, but it wasn't as amazing as I imagined it would be. Perhaps because Kellan faked his own death over a reason I understand but don't agree with. Sometimes if we're scared of something and most especially of the reaction our loved ones might have, then we do rushed things, we don't think about the reasons why they are out loved ones and we act on impulse. This was what I think Kellan did, he acted fast after knowing something and didn't stop to talk, to share his fears, to try to find a solution..wouldn't it be wiser? But no, he went on his idea of faking death and for 8 years he has been suffering and the ones who love him did too. I'm glad it all worked out in the end, but it was a plot line I didn't feel was that strong.

Overall, it was another great book by the author..some things didn't match my expectations but I have the feeling the next books might be more powerful, both in romance and in plot line.

Lara Adrian - Darker After Midnight

In the dark of night, a blood war escalates within the hidden world of the Breed. After existing in secret for many long centuries, maintaining a fragile peace with the humans who walk beside them unaware, a single act of retaliation has put the entire vampire nation at risk of discovery. It falls to the Order -- a cadre of Breed warriors pledged to protect their own and humankind alike -- to stop Dragos, the power-mad vampire at the center of the conflict, before his push for domination can explode into catastrophe.
At the center of the Order's quest is Sterling Chase, once a morally rigid enforcer of Breed law, now a warrior fallen from grace, whose biggest battle is the one he wages against his own savage nature. With addiction beckoning him toward eternal darkness, Chase's path to redemption has never seemed more out of reach. But when his eyes meet those of Tavia Fairchild, a beautiful witness who identifies him at the scene of a mission gone terribly wrong, Chase finds himself drawn to the woman -- and convinced she is something much more than she seems.
Pulled into a vortex of intrigue and danger she can neither resist nor understand, Tavia is uncertain whom to trust. And while everything sane and logical warns her against getting close to Chase, she cannot deny that the handsome, deeply haunted male stirs something primal and ravenous within her. But even as she surrenders to her cravings, nothing can prepare her for the shattering truth of who -- and what -- she truly is.
As the Order's enemy mobilizes for the battle of the ages, Dragos and his Minions unleashing a hell on Earth like nothing ever seen before, Chase and Tavia are thrust into the heart of the violence. With time running out and the streets running red with the blood of innocent lives, both Breed and human, together Chase and Tavia must find a way to defeat Dragos once and for all -- or die trying.

Comment: All the fans must have been eagerly awaiting for this book, I'm sure. It's the last story in the present arc, the author has said. The next book features more characters but in a different time, I guess. The main protagonist will be someone who's a child in this arc.
Anyway, this book tell us the story of Sterling Chase, he used to be the perfect enforcer in the breed world, but gave that up to join the Order and started to go down on his actions. Everyone seemed to be worried about him and his behaviour.
The there's Tavia, a young woman who's been alone in life, except for her aunt, and who gets in the middle of the Order fight agaisn their enemy, Dragos. But after meeting Chase and identifying him in a police station, things start changing for her and there's nothing else for her to do but ask for Chase's help.
I liked the book so much, I was worried I might not, because final books are always something that can go wrong and leave a bitter taste in an otherwise perfect series but this book is amazing. Loved it!! The author has done everything to make the reader happy and satisfied. The bad guy dies, all the characters have importance and have a highlight somehow, we get more clues about what's to come and about things we believed were something and after all...there's news about the whole conception of the breed world and new things are shocking but in a good way. I think the author has done a great job in order to start the next arc because she has a lot to deal with.
The romance between the Tavia and Chase is good, I think it has chemestry and sweetness, I loved their interactions and how things ended up for them, very believable.

This was really a great book and there's in me a sense of hopelessness because it's the end of something..I know there's more books to come, but these characters we've followed for years are happy, and are, in a way, done and it always leaves something in us after being with them for so long... I guess it's a rather silly thing to feel, considering it's books we're talking about but...books touch us and it is strange to think of their ending even if not completely.

2 In 1: Going Once

~Well, here I am again. I'm not missing, just very busy because of my job, which takes up a lot of time I could spend here.

Anyway, I have 6 books to speak about and I'm far behind, considering I'll probably won't have much time to post in the following week either. So I'll write two mini comments for 4 of those books, two of them today, the others tomorrow.~

At eighteen, Corinne Bishop was a beautiful, spirited young woman living a life of privilege as the adopted daughter of a wealthy family. Her world changed in an instant when she was stolen away and held prisoner by the malevolent vampire Dragos. After many years of captivity and torment, Corinne is rescued by the Order, a cadre of vampire warriors embroiled in a war against Dragos and his followers. Her innocence taken, Corinne has lost a piece of her heart as well -- the one thing that gave her hope during her imprisonment, and the only thing that matters to her now that she is free.

Assigned to safeguard Corinne on her trip home is a formidable golden-eyed Breed male called Hunter. Once Dragos's most deadly assassin, Hunter now works for the Order, and he's hell-bent on making Dragos pay for his manifold sins. Bonded to Corinne by their mutual desire, Hunter will have to decide how far he'll go to end Dragos's reign of evil -- even if carrying out his mission means shattering Corinne's tender heart.

Comment: Another book in this series, so far, it wasn't my favourite, because I never imagined this heroine for Hunter, the breed that was set free and joined the "good guys". I imagined someone from the outside world, a breedmate that didn't know about breeds, and I confess I thought about dialogues in my head, Of course it wasn't so, which means part of my - not dislike - "unfavouritism" it's because of that. I won't reveal secrets, but there were some things quite important happening, but perhaps it's due to the fact the series is about to end, or at least, this arc. I haven't checked any news from the author about incoming projects. Overall the book could be better, I think. It seems there could be given more ait time to the characters to process their feelings, to accept things, but the author has a storyline limit not to cross and at the same time the book would have to be longer to achieve that. I liked it, but more becauae I'm a fan since the beginning and not for the story specifically.

Just one short season ago, major league center fielder John Roper had it all: the looks--and personal life--of a sports hero and the public's adoration. But this hot property's lucky streak has run out. After a World Series disaster, fans diss him, shock jocks mock him and his dysfunctional family hassles him for money he really can't spare. Now it's up to him, and Hot Zone publicist Amy Stone, to get his life back on track.

Amy finds it's easier said than done. What with the constant intrusions of his nutty family, a crazed fan playing stalker, and Roper's refusal to put his own needs first, she's starting to think that life in the fast lane isn't all it's cracked up to be. But when the two retreat to a secluded lodge, the sexy center fielder throws Amy a curveball--one she never saw coming..

Comment: I read this story just to have some closure on the series. i had read the previous three books years ago and only recently decided to read some dusty TBR titles. The story is predictable, in the same line as the others and the dialogue could be so much better, I don't know I didn't feel much eagerness to see what they would say to easch other. It's a fun read to relax, to read between other things, but definetily not my everday choice.