Beneath The Surface by Miranda Rae Carter

Beneath The Surface

Miranda Rae Carter

2013

978-1-4602-1979-9

Adolescence hasn’t been fun for Liss Lawrence. And after a year in Vancouver, when she’s finally adjusted to her new situation, a freak car accident sends her life spinning out of control and crashing into the world of the malions, a hidden race silently helping humanity from secret enclaves underground. 

Liss’s knowledge of the malions endangers her family when Jaredsons Securities takes an interest in her accident. Few know the men of Jaredsons Securities, an international intelligence company specializing in missing persons cases, are actually the Vykhars, ancient malion enemies whose true purpose is the eradication of the malion race. The Vykhars will stop at nothing to discover if Liss is connected with the malions, and if they do, they will exploit her. 

Perhaps more dangerous still are Liss’s growing feelings for Rion, a strong-willed malion scarred by his encounters with Vykhars and carrying a secret that could destroy their relationship. But Liss has a secret and scars of her own, and Rion’s fiercely protective nature threatens to tear them back open. 

Can this pair of unlikely lovers survive the dangers of the Vykhars? And can their love survive their own misconceptions?

Reviewed by Nichole Smith for Love Romance Books Blog

My Honest Thoughts

I give this book five out of five stars

   I am a huge fan of paranormal romance books and though I am a mother of three I do so enjoy reading books aimed at young adults as well. I found this book entertaining and it is a book that I am going to be letting my daughter read as well. I was a little confused right at first when I began the book, but once I really got into the book any questions I had were all answered.

    Lissa reminds me a lot of a friend of mine so it was easy to identify with her character. When someone has been put through a lot of crap in their short life it is just easy to be closed off from people and it takes A LOT to trust people. I think Carter did an amazing job at making the character so easy to understand, at least from my point of view. As far as Lissa’s sister and her friend, I think everyone knows many teenagers that are that selfish. I would like to think that they grew up a lot but it is highly doubtful as a lot of people that are this way tend to never grow out of acting as though they should be treated better than everyone else and they should always come first.

   Rion is sweet in his own way and the love he has for Lissa is real. I think the fact that he is so loyal to his family as well as to Lissa is something you just do not see much anymore. I loved the action and the romance that was associated with Rion. Though he did seem to get mad easily, I think it is just a guy thing and something I did not dwell on. I will admit there were a few times where I rolled my eyes on his overreacting, but then again Lissa had her share of the same thing.

     All in all I would love to see this book in a series where we can find out more about Rion’s family, especially his brother. I thought this was a good book and it was an enjoyable read. Great job Miranda Rae Carter!

Sun Poisoned by Nikki Rae

Sun Poisoned (229pgs) (release date: June 28, 2013)

Sophie’s life has changed. She’s moved to New York, she’s playing music for new people, and she’s making new friends. Then there’s Myles, and the fact that he is now her boyfriend—and everyone knows it.
She’s not exactly normal, living in a half-human, half-vampire world, but she’s finally, truly happy. However, some parts of Sophie and Myles’ old lives still hide in the dark, waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

Sophie’s having nightmares again, but they aren't about her; Myles is hiding something as well, something Sophie isn’t sure she wants to know.

And one lie will change everything.

No matter how hard she tries to cover up the marks her monsters have left behind, they never truly go away, and Myles’ monsters are no different.
Once again, Sophie’s caught between life and death, but this time, only she can save herself.

Review by Nichole

I was given this book for an honest review.

Sun Poisoned

Nikki Rae

2014

Reviewed by Nichole Smith

My Honest Opinion

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars

   I read the first book, “Sunshine” and I could not wait to get my hands on this book. The second book in this series did not disappoint me one bit. It had action, mystery, and of course young love. By the time I got to the end of the book I was just reeling and dying to read the third in this series!

   One of my favorite things about this book as well as the first one, is the chapter titles and the lines from songs. The author uses bands that I love, but are not as main stream in today’s music stations. I love it because it, at least for me, gives me a little clue as to what is to come or what is going on in that part of the book.

   I love how Sophie and Myles are so in love. I have read as Sophie started out as a girl who never trusted anyone, not even anyone in her family one hundred percent and she is now starting to let that go a little bit at a time giving her trust to Myles. I have really connected with Sophie.

   I was surprised to find out the main bad guy, Michael was still alive. However, the fact that he was and was still watching her and was still after her was exciting. I did have a laugh out loud moment when I read that they thought she had a fang stuck in her leg. I think the reason I thought it was so funny is because it is not something I have ever seen or heard of before but just the thought of a vampire losing a tooth in a victim I found very funny. Of course there are some other funny moments and some sad moments as well.

   This is a book series where you just cannot help but fall in love with the characters. They all remind you of someone you know, friends, family, and sometimes yourself. Bravo! I look forward to reading the next book.

Sunshine by Nikki Rae

Sunshine(330pgs) (release date: January 28, 2013):

18 year old Sophie Jean is pretty good at acting normal. Sure, she’s not exactly happy, but happiness is nothing compared to being like everyone else. She can pretend she’s not allergic to the sun. She can hide what her ex-boyfriend did to her. She can cover up the scars she’s made for herself. Ignore anything. Forget anything. Then Myles enters her life, and he has more than a few secrets of his own. When accident after accident keeps happening to Sophie, she can’t help noticing that he’s everywhere.
That he knows too much. That she’s remembering too much.

It’s one thing covering up her own dark past, but does she really need to worry about people finding out just how much Myles likes her? Or that despite how much she doesn't want to repeat past mistakes, she kind of likes him back? Not to mention the fact that she now has to conceal that Myles drinks blood-that he says he’s about four hundred years old.
She almost forgot about that part.

But Sophie has no plans to ruin the normal life she has created for herself.She can deal with this little glitch, no problem. Even if word has gotten around to the wrong vampire about Sophie and Myles, even if she’s putting the few people she loves at risk. Suddenly, those who were monsters before are just people, and the monsters? They’re real. Now being a normal human being is the least of her problems. Now she has to stay alive.

Review By Nichole

I was given this book for an honest review.

Sunshine

Nikki Rae

Self-published

2013

Reviewed by Nichole Smith for Luv Books Galore

My honest review

I give this book four out of five stars.

   When I first began reading “Sunshine” I was excited because I knew it was a paranormal romance and I love paranormal romance books. However, I began to get bored with the details of the first several chapters, as I am not a detail loving person, I rather get to the meat of the story. I will say this though, as much as I do not like details as the story unfolds I know that all of those details were needed in order for the meat of the story to make any sense at all. I found myself so drawn into the story as it progressed!

   I will admit that there were times that I thought to myself that there were a lot of similarities to “Twilight” but the big difference was the fact that “Sunshine” is better. There is more action and while it takes almost the entire book for the main characters to admit how they feel about one another, it makes it more believable. I mean who wouldn’t want to have a vampire boyfriend, but there are not a whole lot of us that would admit that they LOVE someone after just spending one day with them. I think that the author was wonderfully refreshing by not having them rush into a relationship like that. They began with being best friends and went from there and I think that relationships like that are what work better than any other kind.

   I cannot wait to read the next book in the series! I am dying to find out what happens with this couple because I think I know why Michael claimed he needed to kill Sophie…and why she is allergic to the sun. The only reason I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars is because it was a very slow beginning but it is definitely a must read for anyone that likes paranormal romance!