Book Review! Starr Lost by Kim Briggs

Starr Lost (Starr Fall #2) by Kim Briggs
Genre: Young Adult (Action/Adventure/Romance)
Date Published: January 5, 2017
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing

A Starr falls, and a family is found.

On the run from the Organization, Starr and Christian find safety on the Qualla Boundary with their friends, Ben and Coda, but Starr needs answers. She owes her dear dead friends, Sami and Jody, that much. She forms a team of her own to fight the general and his recruits. 

Di, a mutual friend and anti-everything is a no-brainer, plus her Taser will come in handy. Frank, Starr’s BFF, will put his life on the line for her. Ben and Coda, not to be outdone by Starr’s friends, also swear their allegiance. Christian’s the only hold out. He knows what the Organization is capable of. He has the beaten body to prove it, but when Starr wants something, she gets it. 

Now that the team’s together, everything should be perfect. Trouble is Starr loves Christian but so does Di. And Frank, well, he’s never been very good at hiding his love for Starr. Will his four-year long crush on her threaten the safety of the team? 

Life becomes tense on the Qualla Boundary, sparks fly, and the Organization is about to smash in their door.

Starr Lost is the second book in the Starr Fall series by Kim Briggs. We got some answers. Not many, but some. There is still so much I want to know!! 

I'm not liking an aspect of the Organization so far. I was hoping it would have been something entirely different. Anything else actually, but I really, really, REALLY wish it didn't bring the church into it. There has been a lot of that. Whether on TV or in books, fiction and the media seems to make Christians look like horrible people most of the time, and I'm pretty over it. I get it! There's a stereo type for a reason. They drive me nuts too! But, there is a big difference between people who fall under that religious stereotype and true Christians. Books, shows, and the media rarely make that distinction, and it's become a major peeve of mine over the years. I think the book tried to make a distinction, but for me, those pages were highly disparaging, and I felt like I was reading media propaganda with incorrect terminology. So, the church tie-in as a whole disappointed me on many levels. After all the build up, I was hoping for something more unique for the Organization. Hopefully, all is not how it seems though. As you'll also find out in this book, the Organization and those within it are pretty crafty, so maybe things were a set up, and the characters are barking up the wrong tree.

I really liked the prologue in the beginning. It was nice to have a little reminder of what we read in the first book to refresh the story line. I wish more authors would do that.

I still don't trust all of the characters, but they are fun so far. They make a pretty good & entertaining team too. There was a lot of making out between Starr and Christian. Their relationship was a heavy focus of this story. There may even be another romance brewing. You know me. I love a good romance, but I still feel like I need more on the Organization. I'm just that nosy, I guess. I like Starr and Christian quite a bit. They keep me coming back for more. This time around we get Di's point of view along with Starr's. Her perspective was nice to have. She gave us a different look at some things. I love this author's writing style. It pulls me in. The pacing is quick, and it keeps my attention. 

I'm ready to get to the real meat and potatoes of what's going on with the Organization! Bring it Organization! Bring it!

Lost Starr by Kim Briggs was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

Have you read the first book yet?

Kim once smashed into a tree while skiing. The accident led to a concussion, a cracked sternum, temporary notoriety as a sixth grader returned from the dead, and the realization that fictionalized accounts are way more interesting than just slipping on the ice.

An unhealthy obsession with conspiracy theories combined with a love of travel and happily ever afters led Kim to write her YA novel, Starr Fall, where a secret organization decides 17 year old Starr Bishop is not only the model student, but the ideal assassin. While in hiding, Starr meets dark, moody, and dead sexy Christian Evergood. Cue the swoon worthy music. But it’s not all happily ever afters for Kim. Her NA novel, And Then He, explores the dark and scary corners of the human psyche. Following a night of innocent flirting with a handsome stranger, Tiffani finds herself in the midst of a nightmare she can’t escape. And Then He is available now through Amazon and other major book retailers. Starr Fall will debut November 2016 with Inkspell Publishing, followed by Starr Lost in January 2017.

When she’s not doing something writerly, Kim can be found jumping into snow drifts with her three kids, husband, and dog. She’s careful to avoid trees.

To learn more about Kim Briggs and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Google+, and Twitter.

Starr Gone! A Guest Post with the Author, Kim Briggs!

A Starr gone. A team betrayed.

Starr Gone (Starr Fall #3) by Kim Briggs
Genre: Young Adult (Action/Adventure/Romance)
Date Published:  June 2, 2017
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing

A Starr gone. A team betrayed. 

You never know who your true friends are until a gun’s pointed at you. One will take a bullet, and the other will pull the trigger. Starr learned that lesson the hard way. 

The perfect smile. A killer attitude. General Treadwell wanted nothing more than to turn Starr Bishop into the ideal assassin, but she’s far more valuable as Jessica Chamberlain, granddaughter and heir to Chamberlain Chocolates. Luckily, he’s found two enthusiastic replacements. They lack Starr’s intelligence, but no matter, they possess their own weapons of persuasion along with a flair for the dramatic, and that’s never a bad thing. 

Di, along with Christian, Frank, Ben and Coda, are determined to keep Starr safe, but the depths of betrayal crack the very foundation of the team. When Starr becomes a pawn in a game of power, money, and manipulation, Di channels her WWSD (What Would Starr Do) to rally the team. She owes her best friend that much. No... More. 

Instalove: Love it or Leave it?

by Kim Briggs

Groan.

Seriously, did you just groan? You don’t believe in it, do you?

Ever have your crush kick open your jammed locker for you? Remember those crazy ass butterflies in your stomach when your fingers touched? How about that friend request or the notification that So & So started following you? THEN the DM, “Hey!” You felt pretty freaking fantastic, didn’t you?

And what happened when the crush showed up at the party and starting talking to you? You spent the night talking about the mysteries of the universe while everyone else sat around eating chips.

You’ve just experienced instalove my friend. Instalove doesn’t mean forever—I think that’s where the misunderstanding comes in. Instalove means at some moment in the universe your worlds have collided and you become everything to each other. The school walls crumble around you, a tater tot war breaks out in the cafeteria, but as long as you’re together, unicorns leave a sparkly trail of glitter for you to follow.

Instalove is a wish come true on the page. Take Starr and Christian, Instalove at its purest. In the beginning, the Organization wants Starr as an assassin, they killed two of her best friends, then her parents kidnapped her but she managed to get away. Her world is collapsing, but Starr and Christian seem more caught up in a kiss than running from the Organization.

What seems like the perfect relationship always contains a backstory and a behind the scenes story. Instalove will be tested. It always is. Sometimes it works out. Sometimes it doesn’t. Hearts will be broken and stomped on, but there’s beauty in that pain too. A wise Dumbledore said, "Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all, those who live without love,” or Dumbledore to Snape, "After all this time?" "Always," said Snape.

So yes, I write swoonworthy instalove scenes, because otherwise, what’s the point?

Starr and Christian’s instalove will be tested in Starr Gone, Book Three. The unicorns stop leaving glittery trails for them to follow. The question remains whether their relationship is strong enough to resolve it.

Have you read the books yet??

Kim once smashed into a tree while skiing. The accident led to a concussion, a cracked sternum, temporary notoriety as a sixth grader returned from the dead, and the realization that fictionalized accounts are way more interesting than just slipping on the ice.

An unhealthy obsession with conspiracy theories combined with a love of travel and happily ever afters led Kim to write her YA novel, Starr Fall, where a secret organization decides 17 year old Starr Bishop is not only the model student, but the ideal assassin. While in hiding, Starr meets dark, moody, and dead sexy Christian Evergood. Cue the swoon worthy music. But it’s not all happily ever afters for Kim. Her NA novel, And Then He, explores the dark and scary corners of the human psyche. Following a night of innocent flirting with a handsome stranger, Tiffani finds herself in the midst of a nightmare she can’t escape. And Then He is available now through Amazon and other major book retailers. Starr Fall will debut November 2016 with Inkspell Publishing, followed by Starr Lost in January 2017.

When she’s not doing something writerly, Kim can be found jumping into snow drifts with her three kids, husband, and dog. She’s careful to avoid trees.

To learn more about Kim Briggs and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter.

Book Review! Starr Fall by Kim Briggs

STARR FALL (Starr Fall #1) by Kim Briggs
Genre: Young Adult (Action/Adventure/Romance)
Date Published: November 4, 2016
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing

On the run from the Organization, Starr never planned on falling in love. 

Starr Bishop’s the complete package. A perfect smile, brains to match, and a winning attitude. Boys want to date her and girls want to be her. She’s the type of girl you want to hate, if only she wasn’t so damn likable. But don’t worry, she’s not interested in your boyfriend. Boys are one complication she can live without. 

When the Organization decides she’s not only the model student but the ideal assassin, Starr’ll need a lot more than high test scores and extracurricular involvement to get herself out of that commitment. 

Dark, moody, and dead sexy Christian Evergood is the last person she’d expect—or even want— to come to her rescue. From opposite ends of Webster High’s social hierarchy, their lives collide in one electrifying moment. Christian isn’t the Goth loner he pretends to be, he’s a part Cherokee, All-American boy who wants to be a hero, Starr’s hero. Christian makes Starr forget that the Organization is after her, but nothing will stop the Organization from collecting their top recruit. 

By the way, the spot for junior class president just became available. 

Starr Fall is the first book in the Starr Fall series by Kim Briggs. I loved the premise of this book, and it started off with a lot going on. I'm curious to know more about the Organization though. Who the heck are these people? Why do they want Starr as an assassin? What do they do? I need answers to these things! ;-)

Christian and Starr had a lot of Edward and Bella moments in the beginning of the book. Their conversations were very similar. Also, why did Christian go from hot mystery dude to love sick puppy so quickly? I know he gave a reason, but I don't buy it at all. I have to say, I don't trust the dude. I feel like he's in with the Organization somehow. I don't even know how bad the Organization is yet, if it's even bad at all. Starr seems to think so, but what if everything is not as it seems? We are told about things that happened, but did they really? So many questions.

It seems like everyone is hiding something. I don't trust any of them, except Starr of course. I'm rooting for her!

There was a lot of romance, which .. don't get me wrong.. I love the romance, but I wanted to know more about what was actually going on too. I was unsure of how many stars to give this book, because I liked so many things about it, but all these unknowns.... So, I settled on three stars, but it is a good, strong, anxious for more three stars. I may still go back and change it to four stars. (If you're reading this, and the stars are at "four", you know I finally decided.) I just needed more of an idea of what was going on with the Organization. I'm ready for the plot to thicken.

Starr Fall by Kim Briggs was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

I glance up just before plowing into a tall, muscular frame. As our bodies collide, time stops for one brief moment. Strong arms pull me into his black Ramones t-shirt. He shifts his body under mine, drawing me in closer to his chest. His heart races against my cheek; it matches the sprint of my own.

In a tight embrace, we fall as if someone hit slow motion and we drop frame by frame without ever hitting the bottom. Nothing exists in the entire universe except for our plunging bodies pressed against each other. When we finally hit the hard tile floor, he takes most of the impact because I’m cocooned in his arms. Something tightens just below my belly button—a nervous kind of flip-floppy feeling, and I finally understand what Sami and Jody always talk about.

“You,” he murmurs. I gaze into Christian’s black lined eyes with newfound shyness. I never noticed just how blue his eyes are. A blue so deep and pure and clear I’m tempted to swim in them for hours, but the catcalls “Get a room” and rowdy laughter remind me we’re in the middle of the cafeteria with our food deprived classmates, and we’re fresh bait. A burn creeps into my cheeks.

He pushes himself up beside me. Whatever emotion was in his eyes a moment ago vanishes as quickly as it appeared. Two sharp, unforgiving vertical lines form between his eyebrows. Without even a grunt of acknowledgement, he stalks away. I stare after his black t-shirt, wondering what just happened and did he feel it too?

“Starr, are you okay?” someone asks, but I’m lost in my own world. “Starr, are you okay?” A hand grips my shoulder.

If there was any electricity coursing through my veins, it’s gone now.
I shake my head to clear it before turning to Frank. “Yeah..., yeah, I’m fine.”

I think.

Check out my review of the next book in this series!

Kim once smashed into a tree while skiing. The accident led to a concussion, a cracked sternum, temporary notoriety as a sixth grader returned from the dead, and the realization that fictionalized accounts are way more interesting than just slipping on the ice.

An unhealthy obsession with conspiracy theories combined with a love of travel and happily ever afters led Kim to write her YA novel, Starr Fall, where a secret organization decides 17 year old Starr Bishop is not only the model student, but the ideal assassin. While in hiding, Starr meets dark, moody, and dead sexy Christian Evergood. Cue the swoon worthy music. But it’s not all happily ever afters for Kim. Her NA novel, And Then He, explores the dark and scary corners of the human psyche. Following a night of innocent flirting with a handsome stranger, Tiffani finds herself in the midst of a nightmare she can’t escape. And Then He is available now through Amazon and other major book retailers. Starr Fall will debut November 2016 with Inkspell Publishing, followed by Starr Lost in January 2017.

When she’s not doing something writerly, Kim can be found jumping into snow drifts with her three kids, husband, and dog. She’s careful to avoid trees.

To learn more about Kim Briggs and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Google+, and Twitter.