Jodi McAlister

I've followed Jodi's fiction career since [b:Valentine|32334268|Valentine (Valentine, #1)|Jodi McAlister|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1475458891l/32334268._SY75_.jpg|52970826], which was in a very different genre—YA fantasy, my beloved—but the quality of her writing and the fact that the Marry Me, Juliet series was billed as a rom-com drama had me tear through the first two books in the series and pre-order Not Here to Make Friends the moment I was able to do so.

I was not disappointed. While each of the prior books were also wild rollercoasters, Not Here to Make Friends took off its seat belt, snapped off the security rail, and stood up in its seat screaming all the way. Everything from the characters' voices to the plot's pacing to the way all the little hints the audience had had from the previous books were not only explained but revealed to be much bigger than at first glance made Not Here to Make Friends a real page-turner. At the same time I wanted to savour it, because—to the best of my knowledge—this is the last installment in the MMJ series. (I'm happy to be wrong, Jodi!) So instead of devouring it in one sitting, I stretched it out over two bubble baths, one train ride, and enjoyed the last few pages of it just now with the rain on the roof (Melbourne is doing summer wrong) and one of the cats trying to help me to read by sitting on the book.

Fans of The Bachelor and similar shows will undoubtedly enjoy this show-in-book-form, because I enjoyed it immensely and my reality TV taste is more on the Masterchef and I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! axis. It's a lot easier to deal with the conniving scumbagginess when it's on the page rather than on the screen, and yet the characters are so well-written you could swear they're real people. Fucking Greg! Never have I ever more wanted to slap a fictional character!

Now someone get Jodi that Bachelor consultant role!… (plus d'informations)

Valentine was fantastic. I really liked Pearl and her siblings and Finn and his family. There was romance but the heroine doesn't lose her head over it either well I guess, she kinda does but she steps back and acknowledges that lust is not the same thing as knowing one another, which is refreshing for a ya novel - actually make that ANY novel and that balance is something I really appreciated. The plot was fairly straightforward but the ending managed to surprise me, particularly in terms of the romance and I'm pretty keen to read the sequel. Now if only I had a time machine to take me to February 2018 to purchase a copy.… (plus d'informations)

Second book in Valentine series. Pearl thinks once she and Finn had defeated the evil Unseelies in the previous book then life might go back to normal. No chance- despite rescuing her best friend, Phil has remembered everything that happened and is so freaked out she wants nothing to do with Pearl anymore.
Finn is also being a bit distant and Cardy has no memory whatsoever and only knows that it was his ex-girlfriend Jenni who was one of the "Cannibal Killers" that were thwarted in the previous book.

It seems that only Holly, the ex-girlfriend of Finn and one time fairy zombie/lackey is talking to her. Then Cardy appears possesed and tells her in a zombie voice that the "Riders" are coming and they will use the "Ironheart" ( i.e.Pearl) to kill the Valentine in the week of Christmas.

Once again Pearl and Finn must try to a) keep their hands off each other b) sort out how to beat the Seelie and the Unseelie and now the new enemy the Riders c) work out who in their town is on their side and who is in league with supernatural forces and d keep from fighting every time they meet!

Not as suspenseful as the first one as there is too much lovey-dovey lust leading to sex between Finn and Pearl and not quite enough intrigue and mystery surrounding what is actually happening. I loved the introduction of Tam the mythical cousin/i.e. stolen baby who really belongs to Finn's family and is enslaved to the Valentine's betrothed fairy called Emily who lives in Pearl's house - you can see where he will end up in the next book.

Still I can't wait for the final book in the series.… (plus d'informations)

Reviewed for VPRC. Not bad for a supernatural teen girl book in that, for a change the main protagonist Pearl is NOT the one with the magical powers but everyone thinks she is and is after her!
Set in a sleepy outback town, Pearl is one of the 4 Valentine babies - 4 kids who were all born on the same Valentine's day 17 years ago. And one of these babies is very special - a Seelie (Fairy) child who is destined to take the throne of their parallel world. Only trouble is, the Unseelie (also Fairies) want to kill the "Valentine" but they don't know which one of the 4 it is.
When Marie is murdered after a party where a strange black horse appears and Finn ( another Valentine baby who Pearl detests) throws up all over Pearl in front of her crush Cardy (the final Valentine baby), things start to get quite strange.
Not that they weren't already for Pearl who is being brought up by her 30 something twin half brother and sister Shad ( short for Shadow) and Dicey (short for Paradise) after her mother died.
There are all sorts of twists and turns as you don't know who to trust - who has been possessed by a Fairy and is working for them, who is actually a Fairy and what's the deal with all the killer crows and black cats and the spooky black horse?
Made me want to read the next book apart from pearl going on and on about Finn ( ala Twilight!)… (plus d'informations)