Location: United States
Member Since: Oct. 22, 2011

Alana Rock

Alana Rock's favorite authors on Smashwords

John Corwin
P.A. Lupton
Follow them on Twitter: @pennyannlupton
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Smashwords book reviews by Alana Rock

  • Symphony of Blood, A Hank Mondale Supernatural Case on Dec. 21, 2011

    Hank Mondale, a down-on-his luck private investigator, has dug himself a substantial hole between his alcoholism and gambling addiction. He can't pay his kleptomaniac secretary, is about to get evicted from his office building, not to mention the hired muscle breathing down his neck from his overdue losses on basketball games. A new case seems to practically fall into his lap at just the right time, backed by a secretive wealthy client. Hank is not about to blow his chance to pay off his debts with one job, and agrees to meet with the client to find out more details. Once he realizes it's a very rich real estate mogul and his spoiled, drugged-out daughter with wild claims, he tries to back out. But he instead finds himself on a case that seems to tie-in with several missing persons and two odd homicides.... I have to admit, this is not the type of book I normally read. After reading just the first 10% of the book, I was nearly ready to put it down from there. It's well written, and the characters are detailed... but I didn't find myself liking the main character, Hank. Now, Liking a character is not a requirement for enjoying a book, but it helps. I couldn't identify with his gambling addiction, and I have demons from growing up regarding relatives and alcoholism... and the entire beginning of the book is Hank's personal train wreck of a life. I just plain didn't want to read that part. I did, and I am glad because once it pushed through that and actually seem to pick up the story it was much more interesting. At one point in the story, the point of view changes, and I actually found that part of the story to be the best and most interesting to me. The innocence Adam Pepper writes into essentially a "monstrous" character was wonderful. I think "Symphony" as it is later named was probably my favorite character out of the book. I found myself rooting for the monster. The other characters were all so damaged and ruthless (except Hank- but I already explained my problems with him) I was basically ready for them all to die and the monster's hands so I could be done with the book. It was decent... I likely will not read it again. If someone likes a darker story with gritty, damaged characters and a horror/supernatural element- then I would recommend they try this book out. But it if's already not your cup of tea, this book won't change your mind about that.
  • The Ylem (The Ylem Trilogy, # 1) on Dec. 27, 2011

    Overall Impressions I really, really enjoyed this book, far more than I even expected to! It's a good thing I still have some credit on my gift cards so I can buy the next book! The fact that it is a YA should not scare off any prospective readers. I did not find the characters to be overly whiny or acting too young (a problem I have found in other YA books.) Basic Premise Kalista (great name, by the way!) is not your average teenager. Her mother passed away years earlier in a car crash, so Kalista has "issues" with cars and driving. She also bring new meaning to "electric personality" with the amount of static electricity her body seems to produce. She also, along with her father, just moved from New York to Ruidso, New Mexico... She has already found a few good friends, and an "interested" male admirer, but due to a bad reaction from her former best friend in New York after Kalista declaring her feelings for him, she has pushed away the possibility of relationships with guys. She finally meets the school heart-throb male, and finds she is not immune to his attractiveness. But her resolve to keep guys at arm's length is tested when the guy seems to want to talk to her, and another is urging her to go out... Tristan is very alluring- but in a different world than Kalista, more than she even knows.... Life becomes even more complicated when teenagers are missing, then bodies prove that they were killed. And a chance encounter leads her to an odd, old book that details a new aspect of the world that Kalista never knew. She begins to learn the secrets of that world, but will she allow herself to learn the secrets of herself as well? Thoughts- warning, could contain spoilers I can't say how much I enjoyed it. Sadly, my computer was down when I had finished it or I might have bought and started the second book right then and there! I didn't find many problems that I usually find in a YA novel. I would recommend this to anyone that would enjoy "shifter" books and does not mind YA. It was entertaining, had action, and romance. All around a great book! As with any book, there were a few points that left me wanting... ♦The change in point of view with Kalista and Caleb was disconcerting at first. I had no clue who that guy was, and why I was reading about him. Also- several of his parts were very ADD it seemed... his thought processes just bounced all over and it was difficult to keep up with his part of the story. ♦OK... So Kalista finds out about new things in her same old world, gets proof that they are real... then just ignores the other part of her reading/warning... maybe it's because I'm older- but if some old lady tells me I have "the Ylem" in me, and I find out there are shifters and stuff for real- I would at least ask those shifters when given a chance if they had heard of "the Ylem". It's like she just ignores her "strangeness" and accepts the shifter thing much easier than I expected. ♦I really wish there was more build up of the romantic feelings between Tristan and Kalista. It was better than some books showing a "reason" for them to be attracted and having some genuine interaction without just falling all over each other. But even more build-up would have been nice. I fudged in favor of the book on the stars- (shows 5 stars on review)- but I am really, really picky about 5 stars- so I actually gave it 4½♥'s.
  • Between on Feb. 19, 2012

    4 of 5 stars Read in February, 2012 Overview: Lindsey is torn between two worlds: in one, she is a college student with a boyfriend that loves her and divorced parents. And by accident she is catapulted into the other, a fantastical world of imaginations and a hot Scottish hunk of highlander that speaks French to boot. Aiden ferries souls from their death to heaven. As she spends time with Aiden, her love begins to grow and blossom. Can love transcend the boundaries between life and death? And what if it was until 'life' do you part? What I Thought This is a charming story that quickly sucks you in. I found myself eagerly reading this book, fighting sleep to get just a little more in. The main characters (and even secondary characters like her parents) are well established in the book, and very likeable. Well... her mom may have been a harder sell on the likeable, but in the end she was. I just got so caught up in the story, trips to France during the "Sun King's" reign, remembered trips to Seattle lead to interesting reactions to cars and phones and such on Aiden's part. It ended up being a sweet, heartfelt romantic story that whisks you away with it's pages. The down side, I can find one in just about any book. In Between, it's a very vanilla romance- don't read this expecting a 'bodice ripper', although there most definitely are sexual overtones. Think of the device used in movies where you see the couple kissing and making out, then the camera slides off to a view of the curtains blowing in the wind; Between is that kind of book. There is some 'hot and heavy' time, but there is NO ... smut for lack of a better word. I still really enjoyed it, and would recommend it to others; but I admit, I wanted smut. Really I did... it had all the ingredients for a good 'roll in hey' but we would only get to see them kiss, then head off for the hey. So if you are looking for a vanilla romance story that is life affirming, and paints a loving, kind view of God and the afterlife (for those that would go to heaven, anyway) then I highly recommend trying out this book. If you are looking solely for sex, you may need to find your highlander six elsewhere.
  • Between The Land And The Sea on Feb. 28, 2012

    Read from February 23 to 26, 2012 Delightful, engaging YA Mermaid Story. Marina has traveled the world with her father, but when he is headed to Afghanistan he refuses to allow her to join him like usual. Instead, she must spend her senior year with her aunt and cousin and attend public school for the first time in her life. She leaves behind San Fransisco, and heads to Atpos, and much smaller town by the sea. Is drawn to the water, and quickly sees hauntingly familiar eyes in the water, almost as familiar with her own reflection. Could it have been a scuba diver or a surfer playing tricks? High School is hard enough without having already humiliated herself in front of the hottest surfer at school, let alone worry about mythological creatures.... Overall, I REALLY enjoyed this book. I even stayed up late the final night I was reading just to find out what happened. The ending seemingly buttoned up a little more quickly than I would have liked. Foreshadowing to the sequel was good, almost too good- I was expecting a few "revelations" during the first book that did not come to pass. Sweet and innocent, but does not suffer, in my opinion, from the "love at first sight" syndrome; the story allowed time for the romance to begin and grow at a normal pace. As it is a YA story, don't go into this expecting hot and heavy romantic action; but there is still romance aplenty. This is a book you can give to a teen without worry of inappropriate or too adult themes. I liked the variety of characters. Just because it had surfers and on a beach, they were not all blonde, ripped magazine cover teenagers. The main character was brunette, there was even a 'plumper' redhead friend... there was not an over-use of stereotypical, cookie-cutter characters. I really appreciated the diversity. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that enjoys YA, likes a mermaid story, or even just paranormal/urban fantasy in general. It was a charming book definitely worth reading, and I will most definitely look at getting the sequel see how it continues...
  • Pandora's Key on June 28, 2012

    Read from June 15 to 16, 2012 This book did NOT end up like I expected at all. Not one bit- in a good way. Some of the characters REALLY pissed me off. It is a good sign that the writing draws me in so much, that I start talking back to the book, "Oh, no- Bestie did NOT just say that!" I was honestly ready to throw my Kindle around I was so ticked off. You don't know why to trust, how deep the rabbit hole goes. "Evangeline was feeling like Alice in Wonderland hurtling down the rabbit hole." "I do love you," he whispered, feeling unbearably sad. "But there's not enough love in the world to keep me from killing you if you stand in the way of my survival." Very unique story, I don't think I've read any before that focus on Pandora. Even the few stories I can think of that involve Gods (as in Greek/Roman: Zeus and the like)... usually they focus on the Gods themselves, or the 'demigods'. But it was an interesting take on the story. I'm still trying to decide why the story slightly deviated from the one I grew up with, where Pandora trapped Hope in her box. What a mind-f*&ck! Seriously, like a conspiracy theory nut's wet dream. "If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck... they're part of this thing, too." I will definitely continue the series. Very vanilla, YA, young romance- do not read this book expecting serious hanky-panky action. "Raphe said I was beautiful and I believed him. I am such a pathetic cliche." If you enjoy YA, and PNR/Urban Fantasy with some dark undertones a 'everyone IS out to get me' feel to it- RUN, don't walk and get your own copy!
  • Ever Shade (A Dark Faerie Tale #1) on Nov. 08, 2012

    Thought I was going to 'fall' for one character, and ended up smitten with another. And boy, oh boy, was there eye candy to go around. This is the type of fae story I just love- getting swept up suddenly in fae (events, culture, people- anything and everything fae) involving equal amounts of good and bad. They may be all magical and powerful, but there is a dark edge even in some of the seemingly most innocent offers. I really, really enjoyed it. Younger readers can pick this up without being exposed to overly adult themes. It's like a dark fae story mixed with some old school Tolkien. Almost a Labyrinth feel to it (and I LOVE Labyrinth.) It was witty, and easy to follow, and easy to keep the menagerie of characters separate. "Illarial sure had a way with comforting others; she was like walking Xanax." "I wouldn't trust her as far as I could throw her boney, pointy body." "Nothing about Sylphi made her feel warm and fuzzy. The girl radiated cold like an open window." "It already had been a long day for her. And it's only the butt crack of dawn." I actually keep checking every few days since I finished wondering- if book two out yet? Sadly, it's not, at least the last time I checked. This is a YA book I would offer to my 12 year old son and read alongside him. If you like urban fantasy- but HEAVY on the fantasy, and enjoy YA I would most definitely recommend reading this book!