Hi there! Today I’m sharing a review for a new YA supernatural romance from Kallie Ross. UNBREAKABLE is the first book in a new series that features all sorts of supernatural entities in a battle for humanity.

Check out the excerpt below and be sure to enter the arrow-themed jewelry giveaway, too!

About UNBREAKABLE (The Cupids Chronicles #1):
Dying for the love of your life…
Evelyn Bowden thought her story was over. Little did she realize, it had just begun.
The heavens made her a Cupid– a supernatural with the rarest ability. One that allows her to pierce both mortals and immortals with arrows possessing everlasting love. But Evelyn soon discovers Cupids fight a battle in a long fought war.

A duty to protect the purest form of love…
As Evelyn embarks on her first mission, helping a Gargoyle find his true love, she is exposed to the blurred battle lines between light and darkness. While an unknown threat proves it’s willing to do anything to get their hands on Evelyn and her arrows, the heavens send Andel Lambros to help protect her. She finds herself at risk of being distracted by her former mentor, Andel, a stunning Cupid with dimples hard to ignore.

Missing her mark could lead to a supernatural war…
Having no idea how powerful she is, Evelyn is forced to put everything on the line as she balances the fate of the world on the tip of her arrow. But will love conquer all once she hits her mark, or will all be lost in the end?

How about a little taste?

“Don’t make this all about you.” Evelyn shoved another spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. “Don’ ge meh wrong, ihithabouoo. Buh—” Swallowing down her bite, Evelyn squinted her eyes shut and placed a hand on her temple. “Brain freeze,” she explained, standing and walking to the kitchen.

Andel’s head tilted to one side as he watched her throw the empty cardboard container away. Roscoe would be showing up for his dating lesson soon, and Evelyn needed to compartmentalize so she didn’t end up taking her frustration out on the Gargoyles.

“I’m sorry, Evelyn. Whatever I’ve done to upset you, please forgive me.”

Her spoon clanged in the sink, “How about I’ll forgive you if you tell me what you did wrong?” Evelyn made her way back to the couch, laying herself across the cushions like she needed therapy.

“I’m fairly sure you are upset I scheduled dinner with Jane and Kendrick during Roscoe’s first date.”

Keeping her composure, Evelyn looked Andel square in the eye and told him, “You’re danish right, I’m upset.”

Her pastry slip was proof enough of her anger, but she’d remained in control of her volume. Andel hadn’t asked Evelyn what she wanted to do during Roscoe and Sydney’s date. And after her surprise visit from Kalan, her nerves were fried. Evelyn wanted to be able to make the call for herself as far as where she’d be tomorrow night. She also wanted to decide for herself if she’d give the fairies her arrows. Maybe she’d keep her run-in with Kalan to herself for now.

“I’ll call Jane now and cancel the dinner.”

“You have her number?” Evelyn sat up and narrowed her eyes. She shook her head, clearing it. Why should Andel having Jane’s number matter? “No. Don’t cancel it. It was hard enough to convince her to come in the first place.”

“Are you sure?”

Knock, knock.

“Yes,” Evelyn grumbled as she went to answer the door. Roscoe’s arrival would at least keep Andel from asking any more questions. She could tell he had picked up that something else was bothering her, but luckily, she had planned Roscoe’s dating lessons for after work.

As Roscoe and Leo entered the apartment, Andel made himself scarce and took a seat in a chair at the edge of the room. Roscoe wore snappy attire, including a bowtie, while Leo had pushed the sleeves of his Henley up to his elbows. The two were complete opposites. Leo had made himself comfortable on the couch, and Roscoe stood at the window waiting for instructions.

“I’m glad you came, Leo. I may need your help tomorrow night.” Evelyn stood next to Roscoe. “You’ll be on awkward-moment patrol.” She patted Roscoe’s shoulder. “Now that I think about it, this will be perfect. You can circle overhead and stay out of sight, but if Roscoe needs help, you can run interference.” Leo’s eyes widened in excitement. “Not literally, but, you have super-hearing, right?”

Leo nodded.

“If you hear or see anything going wrong, you can come get me.”

A grin spread over Leo’s face. “Considering who we’re talking about here,” Leo waved in Roscoe’s direction. “What constitutes wrong?”

“We’ll work on identifying that as we go, so pay attention.” Evelyn faced Roscoe and reached up, tucking a piece of his curly hair behind his ear, but Roscoe flinched.

“Relax.” Evelyn stepped closer. “You’re going to have to get used to being close to Sydney. If she’s like every other girl on the planet, she’ll want you to hold her hand and put your arm around her.”

Evelyn let her arm brush against Roscoe’s. He sucked in air but didn’t budge. He froze. Evelyn couldn’t let Roscoe fail. She had started to like him. She wanted him to find love. She wanted Sydney to find love, too, and if it happened to be with Roscoe, then, bonus. She’d do everything in her power to help them have the chance they deserved.

Roscoe relaxed his fists at his sides. “Okay, I’ll work on that.”

“Good.” Evelyn ran her finger slowly down Roscoe’s arm. “How about we start with the end of the date, then?”

Leo whistled, and in the corner of Evelyn’s vision, she noticed Andel shift in his chair. She wasn’t really going to do anything, but if Roscoe had really loosened up, he wouldn’t curl up into the fetal position when they addressed a good night kiss.

My Review:
This is the first in a YA paranormal/supernatural romance series.

Evelyn is a 20 y/o woman who died saving her true love, Tate. In the afterlife she’s recruited to be a Cupid, responsible for securing true love matches by shooting through two deeply connected partners. Evelyn’s special in that her arrows can affect supernatural beings, not just mortals. Being trained by experienced Cupid Andel helps her learn a lot about Cupidry, and the long history of issues between Beings of the Lux (Light beings) and the Nox (Dark ones).

On her first big mission, she’s supposed to help a gargoyle find his true love, but it’s not quite so easy. In the process, Evelyn’s approached by a Rogue Cupid who can bend arrows and pollute them into lethal weapons. He’s there to warm Evelyn that her skills will be suborned by the Elders, and she should run while she can.

It’s a bit of a muddle really. I kind of expected this big dramatic boiling point build-up regarding Evelyn’s work with her gargoyle target, but it was undercut by Evelyn falling into a depression over her lack of a relationship with Andel… Plus, everyone’s freaking out about her and Andel getting too close, and how it could backfire and turn Evelyn from a Luz into a Nox. If that happens, it could spark a war–Evelyn is told. Thing is, I really never got the full sense of this, mostly because Evelyn is perhaps the most impatient being on Earth or in Heaven, and she continually cut off Andel, and others, when they tried to teach her.

The Rogue Cupids want her, though, and if she doesn’t cement the Cupid-Gargoyle pact the Cupids might be on their own against a new supernatural army. That’s a good part, actually, getting the true love match for a prominent gargoyle, yet it short-circuits with some giant randomness that features a missing King of the Fairies. In hindsight, I should have expected it. We do get some resolution, though mostly incidental. The book ending kicks off a whole new adventure–otherwise known as a cliffhanger–where Evelyn must confront the Rogue Cupids to save Andel.

I never quite connected to this one, mostly because I had trouble getting into it, and then tracking the many points of view and huge turns in the story. It’s really a creative book, with lots of supernatural and mythological connections, but the irregular switches from one character’s thought to another was problematic for me. Also, I felt like I’d jumped into the second book of a series, based on references the characters made. It was only after I finished did I find the prequel novella at the end of the book…which would have been better to read from the start. Plus, I suppose I didn’t get the whole ‘love coach’ aspect of Cupidry; Evelyn interacts with her marks, helping them to build a bond before she strikes with an arrow, which seemed cool but way counter to my own expectations.

It’s a clean read with some nice touchstone moments, but the story isn’t as developed as it needed to be. With all the mystery and adventure, the peril was mostly mild and vague. The ticking clock was also vague, as were the ramifications of failure. The emotional moments were the only parts that made sense, and they were rather decent and easy to imagine. I guess I needed more of those to be satisfied, but still, the adventure was why I’d pick up the book. I’ve not read a book about Cupids, and this world has lots of witches, warlocks, gargoyles and fairies. There was talk of succubi, weres and vamps, though I didn’t see any on the page.

Interested? You can find UNBREAKABLE on Goodreads Amazon Barnes & Noble, and iBooks.

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About the Author:
Writing unique adventures with heart. Kallie Ross has a passion for writing that has become an adventure in itself. She desires to create unique young adult fiction that incorporates legend, conjecture, fantasy, and conviction.

In addition to loving her life as a writer, Kallie adores being a wife, mother, friend, and teacher. She began her creative journey with books, a blog, podcast, and lots of caffeine. Ross never imagined her own adventure would be filled with so many wonderful people or words!

Catch up with Kallie online on her website, Facebook, twitter, Tumblr, and Goodreads.

Thanks for popping in and keep reading my friends!