@mayadaniels11, #Paranormal, #Romance, #YoungAdult, 4 out of 5 (very good)

Who am I: Prequel to the Semiramis series is exactly what it says. It is a short novella giving you an insight into the main character's childhood. It shows you just what Alex goes through and why she is the person she is at the beginning of Semiramis Awakened (book one in the series).

It is exceedingly well-written and packs a punch for all it is so short. You will feel for Alex before you even really know her, which is exactly how it should be. The writing is the usual high standard you would expect from a Maya Daniels book, and although there is no world-building per se, it still gives you enough to give you an inkling into Alex's world. 

I have already read the three books in this series, and am waiting oh so patiently (!!!!) for the fourth book to arrive. Therefore I already know Alex and what she goes through. Did this impact my enjoyment of this story? Absolutely not. You don't have to read it in order to gain maximum enjoyment out of it. Absolutely recommended!

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa

Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!

I'm not going to rate this one because of certain things. One, I know how much time, effort, and self an author puts into a book (at least I hope everyone spends as much time as I do). Second, this is written in present tense which is one of my pet peeves. It just doesn't work for me.

Okay, the story itself has potential. However, I never felt connected to the characters and I felt like this was someone's outline draft for a book. It was all telling, no show. I wanted to like the characters and I wanted to feel something. Even though I finished it, I was left feeling disappointed and like I had wasted my time. 

There was a sex scene I skipped. If I were to rate, I'd give a 3 on my scale with a PG-13 to R movie rating for the one scene. 

1-5 scale and what it means:

1: I couldn’t even finish it / just plain bad

2: I hope I didn’t pay for this / disappointing

3: I didn’t hate it, but it was still missing something / forgettable but inoffensive

3.5: On the line between good and ok / like, not love

4: Solid mind candy / worth reading

4.5: So very close to perfection! / must read

5: I could not put it down and I’m still thinking about it! / a true treasure

Movie Ratings in relation to my review:

Clean--Hallmark movies, some kissing, no nudity, no sex on or off "screen"

PG--Some innuendo but nothing kids don't hear every day, sex is all closed door

PG-13--some language (swear words not related to sex), more talk about sex, heavy petting, removal of clothing on screen, but sex is closed door.

 R--swearing (can be related to sex), feels like the whole story is about the sex and not the relationship or some other plot, on screen sex with details