I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Robin in the Hood is book one of the Robbins Hearts series; a wonderful young adult story of a teenage girl, Robin, being tossed from the lap of luxury into a life of poverty and crime. Robin McArthur is accustomed to her wealthy father's guilt gifts from neglecting their relationship. But when he suffers a heart attack, and his wife runs off with her lover, Robin's world gets turned upside down. Robin decides to run off with her father to Turtle Shores, where she's heard anyone that wants to disappear does. With the aid of the handsome teen Creek, Robin soon learns there's more to life than money, and that her father really did love her.

This was a brilliantly written novel. It's fast paced, had me thoroughly engrossed, and had lots of humor. The characters were all quick witted, funny, and each very unique. Although there were some serious moments with Robin coming to terms with her true identity, there were equally hilarious moments. This was quite a fun, quick read about lost love, family, and most importantly, forgiveness. ( )

The opening chapter of this book will hook you in!

Robin is definitely not used to living the way the people at Turtle Shores do. It becomes quite an adjustment for her, but one that she makes pretty well. She may even like the group that she now lives among. I love that Robin begins to learn that there is more to life than what you can buy, and how expensive it is. She learns to appreciate the small things.

Creek is a good guy. He does some crazy things sometimes, but it’s all to help those he cares about. I also like that he is able to bring Robin out of her shell, and show her how amazing things are even when there is no money to be had.

The romance is a little fast, but it is still believable. The characters are young, and sometimes intense situations bring out your emotions faster than any other time. The ways these two get themselves into trouble is insane. They definitely have luck on their side.

Overall, I loved it. There is even a hint at something magical, and I really hope to find out more in the next books. ( )

Robin is going to rob banks, and she might fall in love. She’s fallen out of favor at her rich school because Daddy’s fixed the books and can’t pay the bills. But now...

From the first scene, told in a convincing first-person teen voice, to the last, Robin in the Hood is delightfully tongue in cheek, randomly crazy, and humorously odd. It tells of a teen coming of age, family trust lost long ago, the dawning of love, and the bombing of bad guys with trebuchets and jello pits. But there’s wisdom and mystery hidden under the crazy action, quick-fire dialog, and rapid romance. Creek, though mystically odd, repeatedly retreats to an appropriate distance. Robin, though over-the-top and wild, slowly learns there’s more to love and rejection than quick assumptions. Prayers, though no one is sure who they’re sent to, are answered. And a nicely modern Robin Hood theme slips pleasingly into the space around a hidden lake.

This isn’t the sanitized Robin Hood where rich people never get hurt. Nor is it the overly-socially-conscious sort that agonizes over other poeple’s pain. Rather it’s a quick sharp romp through modern fantasy, blending fairytale, romance, excitement and fun in well-measured portions—a fast, cool, highly recommended read.

Disclosure: I was given a free ecopy during the author’s blog tour. I’m just sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it. ( )

It's a Catch-22 sometimes. To read the reviews of others before diving into a book or not to read other reviews, that is the question. To know beforehand or to discover on your own...

I stumbled across a call-out to read for review Stone of Thieves by Diane J Reed. A very intriguing summary for this New Adult Fantasy Romance accompanied the call-out. As that is the second book in a series, an offer was made and I requested to read the first book first, then read the second, to review both books. While the second can probably be read as a stand-alone, I guessed that to get the full intended affect, I should read both books. Plus there are hundreds of reviews on GoodReads giving this book 4- and 5-star ratings; surely I couldn't go wrong!

This is a good story -- the characters (the secondary as well as the hero and heroine), the initial premise, the fantasy/mysterious element, the budding romance, they are all developed well. Honestly, I'd love to visit the trailer park to meet all of the characters in this book and learn more of their back stories.

The drawback I have with this book, which affects my opinion and my rating, is that it is not New Adult, it is Young Adult. Both books in this series are categorized as New Adult in the request for reviews and this first installment clearly is not. Why is that worth mentioning? Because the book was not what is was described as -- a loose category of 20-something main characters -- but instead revolved around a 15/16 year old heroine, which is a vital element for the plausibility of the heroine escaping the foster system in the initial premise. The fantasy element and the romance element were fine -- tame because of the obvious targeted young adult audience. You may think that categorizing books is an elusive proposition because plots can include many genre types and I would agree. At the same time, young adult and new adult are clearly two different age groups, mentalities, and suppositions.

If I read a book described as mystery/suspense and it turned out to be horror, I would have the same reaction -- receiving something different than was described.

This leads to the proverbial question... should one read the review of others before reading a new book? Had I read the plentiful spoiler-filled reviews, I would have known to expect mid-teen protagonists and a mid-teen state of mind and I would have had a better overall impression of this book. ( )

I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Robin in the Hood is book one of the Robbins Hearts series; a wonderful young adult story of a teenage girl, Robin, being tossed from the lap of luxury into a life of poverty and crime. Robin McArthur is accustomed to her wealthy father's guilt gifts from neglecting their relationship. But when he suffers a heart attack, and his wife runs off with her lover, Robin's world gets turned upside down. Robin decides to run off with her father to Turtle Shores, where she's heard anyone that wants to disappear does. With the aid of the handsome teen Creek, Robin soon learns there's more to life than money, and that her father really did love her.

This was a brilliantly written novel. It's fast paced, had me thoroughly engrossed, and had lots of humor. The characters were all quick witted, funny, and each very unique. Although there were some serious moments with Robin coming to terms with her true identity, there were equally hilarious moments. This was quite a fun, quick read about lost love, family, and most importantly, forgiveness. ( )