[Blog Tour Review] Bound by Duty by Stormy Smith

ABOUT

Title: Bound by Duty

Author: Stormy Smith

Series: Bound #1

Publisher: Perfect Storm Publishing

Release Date: July 24th 2014

Get it Here: Amazon

GoodReads Page

Source: YA Bound Book Tours

Synopsis:
Amelia grew up in a world of half-truths. She knows she's an Elder but has no idea what that means. Her father reminds her daily that she must maintain control but he refuses to explain why. Even worse, she's betrothed to the prince of the Immortals and she doesn't even know his name.

Finally breaking free to live a few normal years at a community college, the last thing Amelia expects is to find her best friend in a cheeky Southern girl and to fall for a self-assured human who sees her for who she is and not what she'll be.

As she learns more about herself, Amelia realizes the line between love and duty is a thin one. As her power continues to increase exponentially and her questions are slowly answered, Amelia must make the ultimate choice. The question is, will her head or her heart win the battle.

I received an e-ARC as a participant in the blog tour. This fact in no shape or form affects my review. Except for the existence of the review itself. I received no compensation for this review in any way.This is my honest opinion of the work.

This book, I enjoyed immensely. I had been reading a bunch of "meh" books lately and this one really pulled me out of that trend!

I was a bit confused in the beginning because the setting seemed to be really "fantasy" in the beginning, but then it shifted into the modern world and I was like, "What??". And then it mentioned Brighton, which I only know of in England and so I was confused again. I eventually concluded that it was somewhere in the States, and everything was okay again and I could concentrate on the story.

I love the cast of characters in this book! Amelia has been belittled by her father her entire life. He constantly tells her to stay in control of her powers and because of his craziness, she's never had any friends before she moved away to college. She's also betrothed to a prince that she's never met before who also happens to be the son of the crazy Queen Julia, queen of all the people with powers. I totally sympathize with her and her frustration, especially as she learns to control her powers and learns of her destiny. Things just keep happening to her and for someone who's always being told to stay in control, she certainly doesn't have much of it over her own life. She's forced into positions where she must choose between what she wants and what is right. (Which is of course where the title comes into play. ;D) There were many times where I was mentally shouting at Amelia to just go for it and it was frustrating, but her reactions and hesitation were understandable, considering her background.

I love love love Bethany! She's Amelia's best (and only) friend and roommate. She's from Mississippi and she's got sass! She's a lovely character and a great friend to Amelia, especially when she doesn't tell Bethany all the crap she's dealing with. She's understanding and gives great advice. She doesn't get jealous and she pushes Amelia to leave her shell and go out into the world. I want Bethany to be my best friend too!

And can I just say. Aidan. YES! Aidan is so hot and also very very yummy. He's loyal to Amelia and I love that he's understanding of her limits and her boundaries. When she tells him that she wants to slow down, he slows down. He doesn't push her and he doesn't whine about it. He tells her of his intentions to kiss her and he literally says that she runs the show. (Can I have an Aidan please and thanks?) He's also tatted up and also has that "damaged" quota that fills my fictional boyfriend checklist. And I think it needs repeating that he's also hella hot.

That's enough about the characters. The plot! I understand that one of the things in the plot was supposed to be some big reveal, but I just about guessed it from the beginning. Another thing that happened was a tad predictable, I just thought that it wasn't going to happen in this one. Other than the vague things I'm saying about the spoilery bits, the concept of the powers is quite interesting. The different powers of the Mages are attributed to different colours. Amelia, being an Elder, has powers that are purple, while her brother has powers that are green.

While I wouldn't say that it's overly original, it's well written and well crafted. After I got over my confusion, I was sucked into the plot and I pretty much read it in one sitting. I also want an Aidan for myself. I think I'm going to add him to my fictional boyfriend harem. This is a fantastic debut novel from Stormy Smith and I seriously can't wait for the next installment in the story. I literally just finished this book! Look out for this one guys!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I was born in Southeast Iowa, in a tiny town without much to do. I came to love reading honestly, with a Mom that had an entire room devoted to books. We read together until I could read alone, and then we often shared books. We talked stories and favorite characters, even shared tears over the best ones. I made friends who also loved books and we grew up with the likes of V.C. Andrews, L.J. Smith and Anne Rice.

I live in central Iowa now, and went into marketing because I could use my love of words and head for branding. I married a guy who hates fiction and loves video games, but we compromise with great movies (often my book adaptations) and live music. We have two crazy cats that constantly walk across my key board or curl into my lap for naps while I write.

I love chocolate peanut butter and mint chocolate chip ice cream and Sauvignon Blanc wine, though not at the same time. I always have music of some sort on and someday I'll convince my husband to move to the ocean. Someday.

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