BLOG TOUR: Atone (A Fairytale Trilogy #2) by Jessica Grey ARC REVIEW + GIVEAWAY

Title/Series: Atone | A Fairytale Trilogy #2
Author: Jessica Grey
Publisher: Tall House Books
Published: June 30th 2013
Format: eBook | Pages: 230
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Source: ARC provided for blog tour
★★★★★ (5/5) Stars!!!

Becca Ward knows that magic is real…

Two years ago not only had she and her best friend Alex found a real-life Sleeping Beauty in the middle of Los Angeles, they also discovered that they were powerful in their own right. They’ve managed to keep both their fae powers and their friend Lilia’s identity as a medieval princess a secret and live a normal life. Now their normalcy is threatened by the return of their former adviser at the Gem and Mineral Museum—and Becca’s least favorite person, Nicholas Hunt.

…and she’s about to find out that more than one fairy tale is true.

Nicholas has been obsessed with proving Lilia’s identity and the existence of magic. While working on an archaeology dig he discovered an ancient fae artifact—a mirror that is imbued with a powerful protection spell that twists his obsession, and his body, until he is more beast than man. In order to protect her friends, Becca is forced to help him, and she is surprised to find that in spite of his outward appearance, Nicholas is no longer the beast she remembers. Will she let herself be the beauty that breaks the curse, or will she let her prejudice against him stop her from discovering true love?

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I basically read the books in this series blindly. When the email came in to sign up for the Atone blog tour, I pulled the book up on Goodreads and I pretty much got to where I saw it was "A Fairytale Trilogy" and I didn't even go any further, I just signed up. After receiving my review copy I then realized it was book two so I immediately went to Amazon and downloaded Awake.

See, I always jump at the chance to read a fairytale retelling. The fun, the excitement, the romance, the new spin on the old classics. They can be real hit and miss though, and up to this point all the ones I've read and loved have been mostly set in historical romances, until now. Jessica Grey has, twice now, left me feeling completely enchanted after reading her brilliant spins on both Awake book 1, my first read of a spin on Sleeping Beauty, and now with Atone, a modern day Beauty and the Beast. Not only has she written what are now two of my absolute favorite retellings to date, she has also preformed the near impossible that very few authors have been able to do with me. She took me from greatly disliking (hate is such a strong word..) a character, Nicholas, in Awake, let's face it if you read it you know he was a tool, to falling completely in love with him in Atone. I guess the book lives up to it's name.

Atone also had one of my other favorite ingredients added to it. The enemies to romantic interest twist. When I first realized that Nicholas was going to be Becca's love interest I thought no way. For one I couldn't stand him and I knew Becca wasn't his biggest fan. This is going to be impossible and I'm going to hate it! But I really wanted to give it a chance. It didn't take long before I was sucked into their story and praying for what I thought was the impossible, for Nicholas to grow a heart.

I loved having all my favorite characters back. Well Alex, Lilia and Becca I should say. I did miss Luke being around, he was mentioned quite a bit though. I was happy to see, since this book is set 2 years after the events in Awake, that the three girls were still close and stronger than ever, in both their magic and their relationships with each other. And I love the way they look out for each other and keep the others grounded and sane. Not only can Jessica Grey weave a story that will have you captivated and not want to put it down but she has created some very strong, realistic and likable characters.

If, like me, you love a good fairytale, this series is a must read. Though I feel like Atone could standalone fine on it's own, I still highly recommend reading Awake first. It'll give you a deeper appreciation for this one. Plus it was so much fun! I can't wait to read Lilia's book and figure out so many questions I have. Some of which being things like, duh, what's her fairytale going to be? Which one of the two possible guys that I've met to this point will be in her happily ever after? There's one I'm hoping for but we'll see! I'm also sad to get to it and bring this series to a close. I've enjoyed it so much so far and I don't want it to end! Add this series to your reading list, you won't regret it! They're fun, sweet and tug at the heart strings. What more could you ask for?

About the author:

Jessica Grey is an author, fairytale believer, baseball lover, and recovering Star Wars fangirl. A life-long Californian, she now lives in Montana with her husband and two children where she spends her time writing, perfecting the fine art of toddler-wrangling, and drinking way too much caffeine.

Jessica Grey | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

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