Sidekick Showcase [55] National Homeless Youth Awareness Month

Sidekick Showcase is a monthly bookish meme, hosted here by Jaclyn at JC's Book Haven. There are many secondary characters that are as great as the primaries. In some cases, the sidekicks actually steal the show and you like them better than the heroine or hero. Maybe they didn't have enough page time for how great they were. Anyone can play along! I will post my Sidekicks on the first Saturday of the month, then whichever day during the month that you would like to post yours, you can put your link in on my page. Just do the following:

• Choose a sidekick *or someone other than the hero or heroine* that you would like to put in the spotlight that fits in the week's topic
• Share a picture (if you can) and information about the character
• Give the title and author of a book the character can be found in
• Please don't include too many spoilers when describing why the character is such a great sidekick
• The day of your post, click the 'Sidekicks' link in my header and enter the link for your post. Here, you can also see anyone else that posted during the month to visit their Sidekick Showcase's as well.

Topic ideas for November are Soldier (November 10 is the birthday of the United States Marine Corps), Children (National Homeless Youth Awareness Month) or bearded folk (No Shave November).

My sidekick pick this month is Julie from the world of Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews. We first meet Julie in Magic Burns. She's a tough street kid you could accuse of being broken, but the girl never quits. Despite the total crapfest that is her life, she lights up ever scene because she is just that kind of person. I guess she's like Kate, just not beat down in the same way. I'm not sure what would have happened to Kate if she hadn't met Julie, but my guess is that Kate would have continued on the path of no attachments. She would have run from love or even the chance of love. She would have died somewhere around book 3 and then we wouldn't be biting our nails for book 8! Go Julie!

If I were to cast Julie, I'd choose Shailene Woodley (think her angsty role in The Descendants). 

"By Nick Step (Shailene Woodley) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons"

Pick me ups for your Friday!!

If you need a boost just in case it being Friday isn't enough (crazy talk!), here are a few pick me ups!

Say It, Just Say It by The Mowgli's 

I first heard this song at the end of the movie Blended with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore (fun movie). It's a dance with both arms while bouncing around and smiling kind of song.

Edge of Tomorrow with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt is an awesome ride! The preview and that song make it out be so dark and desperate. But it's funny too! The first time I laughed I replayed the scene because I thought I was possibly just loopy. Nope. Not loopy (people who know me don't even). And the relationship between Cruise and Blunt is a slow build. In his previous sci-fi movie Oblivion, Cruise scored with 2 different chicks even though the world had ended and the human population was close to nil (uh, I still liked it). If you want a fun, action packed movie, with tons of shit that blows up, and a dose of dark humor, jump in!

I'm late to the party, but The Mysteries of Laura is so good! Debra Messing rocks as a working mom in a tough job with a new ex-"man child" husband, two kids, and a badge. Check it out because the writing is fresh along with the snark.

And finally a book because...no because.

This looks like your typical paranormal/urban fantasy/sci-fi romance. Burn for Me by Ilona Andrews is not so much a romance as a kick ass book with a kick ass girl who kicks ass. A bit much? There's humor, family bickering/bantering, a shitty hot guy, magic, a messed up caste system, a hot guy who throws around fire so much he always ends up shirtless (don't blame him, it's his magic's fault), and to top it off, you'll fall into a mystery that only builds as the story moves along.

You all have a great weekend!! Any pick me ups you can share? Cats falling off furniture vids? Those really get me.

If weren't for the gore, I'd swear Ilona Andrews took me on a magical fairy ride! On the Edge Review

5 STARS for On the Edge by Ilona Andrews! I took forever with this one only because I started it on a family trip. This isn't a family trip read. It's a tell your kids to fend for themselves so you can lose yourself in this other world read. I think Jack and Georgie stole the show in this one, but Declan and Rose and their slow burn was magic to watch.

Rose lives her life for her two little brothers, Jack and Georgie. Works herself to the bone just to feed and clothe them. And it's not easy in the in-between world they live in. Declan is a mysterious stranger who tempts Rose into daydreams about a different life. She can't afford daydreams with a new dark magic on the loose threatening to consume everything and everyone she loves.

The world building sucked me in and held on tight. I'm not much of a fantasy reader, but everything from the magic use to the shifters were so creatively rendered, I can't wait to read the next book in the series. The tension between Rose and Declan was awesome. The constant threat of a terrible death made my heart race. The kids stole my heart. The grandma was the perfect grandma. And I loved that even the good guys gave me pause. I was giddy over the underlying romance in the story because I'm a total romance girl, but family love stood out more than anything else.

If you haven't read anything by Ilona Andrews (imagine me blinking at you in complete surprise), get on it. You'll get lost in the characters, drama, even the gore is entrancing.

Double Review Time, Folks!! robgirlbooks' reviews of Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles and Magic Dreams by Ilona Andrews

4-ish STARS! Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles is a hard one to rate. Ashtyn doesn't have an easy life. Her father has completely checked out and she's pretty sure love means running away. There is one thing she truly believes in...football, not watching it, but playing for her high school. Derek is a spoiled arrogant jerk, but he's loyal, introspective, hot, and totally damaged. Love means running away for him too. You can guess their lives crash into each other and not smoothly either. Derek won me over pretty quickly. Ashtyn drove me crazy. She said she's this tough chick, but never once showed me that. She loves football, but we never get the chance to play a game with her. I wanted inside her head. I wanted to smell the grass and dirt, even the locker room. I just wanted her to pull me into her world because it's one I've never known. I had a lot of issues with this book, but I read it in a day. Elkeles also wrote the Perfect Chemistry Series (one of my favorites). I enjoy her writing and look forward to the next installment. I have to say the grandma completely stole the show. She could have her own story and I'd read it for sure.

5 FAT STARS!! Magic Dreams (Kate Daniels 4.5) by Ilona Andrews is so awesome. When I first met Dali I couldn't wait for her to have a novella. She's a rare white tiger. She's nutty. She acts more like a cute insecure petulant teenager than a brilliant shapeshifter. And she has the biggest crush. I love crushes! Shapeshifter Jim, AKA Scary Jim, Asshole Jim, Head of Security Jim is a mystery wrapped in a beautiful man. He makes hard calls and doesn't cry in his beer about it. See where this is going? Well, now Jim's life is at stake and Dali has to save him. Yay! As a total bonus, we get insight into Kate (who I'm pretty sure is still in the dark about what we learn-hehe). Read this novella. If you haven't started the series, come on! 

Thanks for stopping by! In case you  missed it, I just released Shadow Town: Maggie Lane Chronicles #1, my first foray into New Adult Paranormal Romance. You can find Maggie's story on Amazon and Smashwords.