tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15357452330976125472024-03-12T23:28:55.624-07:00Frazzled Book NommerKristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.comBlogger134125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-91224569963738238202011-02-10T13:16:00.000-08:002011-02-10T13:16:13.662-08:00Interview with Sean BeaudoinAs you guys know, Sean Beaudoin stopped by on Tuesday for a <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2011/02/guest-post-sean-beaudoin.html">guest post</a>, talking about his book <i>You Killed Wesley Payne</i>. However, we had a bit of "technical" difficulties because <i>someone</i> (I promise, it was <i>not</i> me!) slipped him three bottles of Rush soda. So he's back again today - "sober" this time - for an interview!<br />
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</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/you-killed-wesley-payne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/you-killed-wesley-payne.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">You Killed Wesley Payne. Can you be trusted?</span></b><br />
Definitely not. Hide your IP address. Hide your dog. Hide in the closet. My book and I are coming.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Do you drink Rush?</span></b><br />
I had my entire circulatory system drained by a Ukrainian surgeon years ago and replaced all my blood with Rush. I have to get topped off now and again, but it’s great for my overall productivity.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">What would you do if I told you I didn't like Voltaire?</span></b><br />
Tell you that if you buy three (3) copies of You Killed Wesley Payne I will no longer like Voltaire, either. Or slap you on the cheek with a white lace glove and challenge you to a duel with condiments at twelve paces.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><b>What is your favorite Pulp noir? </b></span><br />
I love Dashiell Hammett. One of my favorite writers of all time. Jim Thompson’s The Killer Inside Me is also sort of the Rosetta Stone of Hard Boil.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><b>What is your favorite existential novel?</b></span> <br />
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><b>What clique would you be in at Salt River? Why?</b></span><br />
KokRock City. Because of all the bad bands I’ve been in, and all the good bands I always fantasized about joining.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">If you could go on a lunch date with anyone in your book, who would you choose? What would you do, say, or eat?</span></b><br />
Choose: Cassiopeia Jones, head of Foxxes.<br />
Do: Flirt.<br />
Say: Bad things about Dalton Rev.<br />
Eat: Nothing, so my breath retains its minty freshness.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;"><b>What do you think Wesley would say to Dalton at the end of the novel?</b></span><br />
“You owe me 73, 614. 62 in book royalties. I do not accept checks. The money needs to be in my crypt by noon on Friday, or I will not participate in the sequel.”</div><div><br />
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;"></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;"></div><div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">www.seanbeaudoin.com</a></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/seanbeaudoin" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/#!/<wbr></wbr>seanbeaudoin</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/SeanBeaudoin?ref=ts" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/<wbr></wbr>SeanBeaudoin?ref=ts</a></span><br />
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<hr />I dunno about you guys, but I'm absolutely <i>stoked</i> that there's going to be a sequel! Thank you so much for joining us, Sean!<br />
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If you'd like to read my review of <i>You Killed Wesley Payne</i>, click <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2011/02/review-you-killed-wesley-payne-by-sean.html">here</a>. </div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-43352823873751678882011-02-09T14:16:00.000-08:002011-02-09T14:16:06.777-08:00Review: You Killed Wesley Payne by Sean Beaudoin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/you-killed-wesley-payne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/you-killed-wesley-payne.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">You Killed Wesley Payne</b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Author: Sean Beaudoin</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Series: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Pages: 368</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Genre: Mystery</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Release Date: February 1, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">How Received: Publisher</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Summary:</span><i> He’s come to do a job.<br />
A job that involves a body.<br />
A body wrapped in duct tape found hanging from the goal posts at the end of the football field.</i><br />
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<i>You killed Wesley Payne</i> is a truly original and darkly hilarious update of classic pulp-noir, in which hard-boiled seventeen year-old Dalton Rev transfers to the mean hallways of Salt River High to take on the toughest case of his life. The question isn’t whether he’s going to get paid. He always gets paid. Or whether he’s gonna get the girl. He <s>always</s> sometimes gets the girl. The real question is whether Dalton Rev can outwit crooked cops and killer cliques in time to solve the mystery of “The Body” before it solves him.</blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 19px;">My Thoughts:</span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">You Killed Wesley Payne is among my list for “most unique books ever read”. We follow the storyline in Dalton’s perspective as he enters Salt River High to solve a mystery. Salt Water High is one of the most interesting high schools I’ve ever read about. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Teenagers</i> used to carry guns in the hall ways, and the school system is so corrupt that you need to pay people to get anything—even your own school schedule. I’m not sure about you guys, but I have never encountered any high school like Salt Water in real life. I’d be broke a hundred times over if I went there. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">That being said, the novel was highly entertaining and very humorous. Something was always making fun of something else, and a lot of the ideas in the book are far-fetched. (See above paragraph for crazy high school). There were a couple of times where I laughed out loud (in a good way) from the absurdity of some of the things/ideas in the book.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">In Salt River, there are a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ton</i> of cliques. And when I say a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ton</i>, I mean a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">toooon</i>. I had a bit of troubling remembering which clique was which, and which clique was a sub-clique of a clique. There is a sort of glossary of cliques in the front of the book, but each clique had a description that I can only describe as a wall of text. Normally, I don’t mind reading stuff like that. However, when I’m in the middle of the story, I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just</i> want to focus on the story. My mind tends to wander, so after having read a big description on a clique, I’ll forget why I was looking it up in the first place. The cliques are a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">very</i> important factor into the book, because everyone seems to take their cliques <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">very</i> seriously. Once you’re in a clique, you live and breathe just your clique. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Like cliques, there were also a ton of references in You Killed Wesley Payne. That may not seem like such a bad thing, but there were so many references that the glossary-of-references was about 12 pages long. I could guess what most of the references or slang were because of the context they were used in, but someone else might get confused by that – especially since <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I </i>personally didn’t know there even was a glossary until I finished the book. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">As far as characters go, I think I enjoyed reading about Dalton and Ronnie Newport the most. Dalton was a generally good guy, and I enjoyed reading the way he rationalized about things. He always did his best, even though it seemed like he was doing nothing at all. Ronnie, well... Ronnie was just Ronnie. Out of all the characters, he was the coolest and the least cold-hearted of the bunch. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">And lastly, the mystery... All I’ll say about the mystery is that everyone is not who you think they are. Predictability-wise, I was able to guess who killed Wesley Payne the moment they were introduced, but I think that was just pure luck with a wild guess based on previous mystery novels read. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Cover Musings: </span>It’s alright. I love the outline for Dalton. But as far as attention catching goes, I’m not sure I’d pick it up based on the cover alone. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Memorable Quotes:<o:p></o:p></span></div><blockquote>“Or haven’t you noticed? The only thing that matters is to act like you don’t care. And don’t say a word. Something really bad happens? Pretend it doesn’t exist. Move on. Keep working the rackets. I mean, there’s people <i>shooting</i> off the rooftops, for Bob’s sake, and it’s like, hey, just another day in geography class.” (pg. 64)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Dalton peered over a cardboard box full of disassembled Christmas tree parts. In the back corner, a large, dark shadow flickered, moving slightly. It was hard to tell if the thing was ducking between boxes, or if it was the effect of the bare bulb hanging over the utility sink.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The one that Dalton hadn’t turned on.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Run. Scream.</i></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">There had to be a better option.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Pee pants?</i> (pg. 106)</div></blockquote><blockquote>Mole pulled the Kia next to Dalton’s scooter and revved the engine. “Love you, man.”<br />
“Okay,” Dalton said.<br />
“Okay? <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Okay</i>, guy? What’s that all about? Where’re the warriors expressing their true feelings in a manly but totally expressive way before going into battle?”<br />
“We’re not going into battle.” (pg. 249)</blockquote><blockquote>He wanted to ask what you did when you thought you knew someone, when you let down your defenses and let them see a part of you that you didn’t even know was there, and then it turned out you didn’t know them at all. He wanted to ask what you did when there was no way to scream loud enough or run fast enough or punch something hard enough. When there was just another morning and just another lawn and not a single thing to look forward to. Ever. (pg. 301-302)</blockquote><blockquote>“Mom says the doctor says I have ADD. You know what that stands for?”<br />
“Attention Deficit Disorder?”<br />
“No. It means Absolute Dictatorship, Dude. It means I was born to be in charge.” (pg. 309)</blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments: </span>Overall, You Killed Wesley Payne was a highly humorous novel that’s loaded with mystery around every corner. Not everyone is who you think they are, and alliances between cliques can go from friendly to assaultive in the matter of minutes. It isn’t the best book out there, but I did enjoy reading it a lot. There were a ton of references and cliques that were hard to grasp during the first 100-or-so pages, but there’s a glossary provided for both in the front and back of the books. If Dalton’s stories were made into a sequel, I’d definitely pick another one up!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Rating: 4/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-8px;">**I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span><o:p></o:p></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-3777051335316179342011-02-08T01:16:00.000-08:002011-02-08T01:16:18.345-08:00Guest Post: Sean Beaudoin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Hey all! Author Sean Beaudoin has agreed to do a guest post for Frazzled Book Nommer to talk a little bit about his book, You Killed Wesley Payne, a pulp-noir novel that came out on Feb. 1, 2011 by Little, Brown. Without further ado, here's Sean:<br />
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<div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/sean-beaudoin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/images/uploads/sean-beaudoin.jpg" width="138" /></a><span style="font-family: Palatino; font-size: 12pt;"><i>Bzzzt.</i> Wait, what? Are we out of Rush cola? No? There’s still another case?<i>Bzzzt.</i> Good. Okay. Guest post? Did you ask me a question? You Killed Wesley Who<i>?</i> I think I need to go outside. I need to run for a bit. Hang on. <i>Bzzzt.</i> I’m going jogging. Clothes? Who needs clothes? Okay, okay, where’s my sweats? Did you just finish my can of Rush? It’s empty. I did? Oh, right. Am I back from jogging yet? Oh. Sneakers. There they are. Let me just lace them up. Crap. My finger’s caught. Ouch. No, it’s knotted. Isn’t knotted a funny word? <i>Bzzzt.</i> Have you ever really looked at your hand? What guest post? I’m going running. Leave me alone. So what if I’m already sweating? Where’s the door again? I totally have the urge to rearrange my room. <i>Bzzzt.</i> Help me move the bed over here. No here. No, over here. Were those scrapes on the floor there before? Dad is going to be pissed. So what if he lives in an entirely different state? I can’t feel my pulse. Do I have a pulse? Do I need one? Does that mean I’m dead? I need to finish this assignment. I can’t find my turtle. My pet turtle. He was right here, in my front pocket a minute ago. <i>Bzzzt.</i> Green, what do you think? With a green shell and green feet. What, have you ever seen a <i>pink</i> turtle? Wait. Hold on. I just saw a pink turtle. <i>Bzzzt.</i> What do you mean, we’re running out of words? I have more words than I know what to do with. You want some? Guest post? I don’t even know what that<i>is</i>. I don’t want to be a guest. I don’t want to be a post. I want to just lay here on the carpet. The floor is nice and cool. The universe is really just one big machine. Or, I mean one big appliance. The universe is a blender. Quick, write that down. The universe is a 3-speed blender permanently set on mince. What do you mean you can’t find a pen? <i>Bzzzt.</i></span></div><br />
<div style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Palatino; font-size: 12pt;">Hey, is there any Rush left? God, I love soda.</span></div><br />
<div class="im" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #500050; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.seanbeaudoin.com/" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">www.seanbeaudoin.com</a></span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/seanbeaudoin" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/#!/<wbr></wbr>seanbeaudoin</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/SeanBeaudoin?ref=ts" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/<wbr></wbr>SeanBeaudoin?ref=ts</a></span></div></div><br />
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... Or maybe... not? I think Sean has had a little too much Rush (which is a key "ingredient" to You Killed Wesley Payne) to drink! I promise you - I am <i>not</i> the one who gave him three bottles of Rush to drink before writing his guest post. We'll try again in a few days and see if he's sobered up a bit. In the meantime, be on the look-out for my review of You Killed Wesley Payne, as well as an interview with Sean!<br />
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Thank you Sean for er.... talking about your book!Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-74830305801375600012011-01-30T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-30T00:27:00.095-08:00In My Mailbox (12)In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/">The Story Siren</a> with inspiration from Alea of <a href="http://aleapopculture.blogspot.com/">Pop Culture Junkie</a>.<br />
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The idea of IMM is to encourage blogger interaction and expose books to our readers' attention. You aren't limited to books that you've received via mail; you can also include books you've bought or checked out at the library.<br />
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I'm sure most of you know that I've been semi-MIA the past week/two weeks. I've been busy with... (get ready for it; it's gonna shock you!) social life. I know, I know. What social life? I had no idea I had one of those things, either. I'm sure it'll dump me once school starts again, so you'll have me back full force until mid-terms. :)<br />
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Also, my sister-in-law went into labor yesterday (or last night... I forget; it's Saturday morning at 4:30AM as I type this up), so I've been busy with all the baby-stuff - baby proofing, buying clothes/cribs/whatever we didn't get from the baby shower, etc. I BARELY just got home from the hospital because my brother figured I may as well come back when she is actually in the process to give birth. When I left, they had just given her an epidural and she's barely 4cm, so the nurse told us that we'd <i>probably</i> have an late morning/early afternoon birth (on Saturday). So, why am I not sleeping, since I just spent almost 12 hours in the hospital, you ask? Oh, cause I didn't want to leave my blog so empty for so long. xD Plus I've never missed IMM three weeks in a row.<br />
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This week's IMM covers last week and this week. Both were SUPER AWESOME weeks. The first week, I received a package from HarperCollins and Candlewick that I had <i>no idea</i> was coming, because the publishers never replied to my requests. I never knew pubs send books even if they don't reply -- I just thought I was ignored/denied, so I got over it. So you can imagine my shock when my bundle came! I think I prefer it better not knowing what/when I'm getting a book! :) It makes receiving it a <i>lot</i> better!<br />
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ANYWAY. Enough rambling. Here's my IMM. <3<br />
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<b>For Review</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01395.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01395.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9264106-what-comes-after">What Comes After</a> by Steve Watkins (Candlewick Press)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8428195-entwined">Entwined</a> by Heather Dixon (Greenwillow)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6768407-rival">Rival</a> by Sara Bennet Wealer (HarperTeen)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8739253-jenna-jonah-s-fauxmance">Jenna and Jonah's Fauxmance</a> by Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin (Bloomsbury)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8579199-mad-love">Mad Love</a> by Suzanne Selfors (Bloomsbury)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7575762-fallen-grace">Fallen Grace</a> by Mary Hooper (Bloomsbury)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01396.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01396.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7992858-you-killed-wesley-payne">You Killed Wesley Payne</a> by Sean Beaudoin (Little Brown)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7789362-immortalis-carpe-noctem">Immortalis Carpe Noctem</a> by Katie Salidas<br />
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<b>From Giveaways</b>:<br />
I won a box of books from Danielle @ <a href="http://romancebookjunkies.blogspot.com/">Romance Book Junkies</a>. Thank you again, Danielle!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01393.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01393.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26050.Angels_Fall">Angels Fall</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/114184.Blue_Smoke">Blue Smoke</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/369778.Remember_When">Remember When</a> by Nora Roberts and J. D. Robb<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/114133.High_Noon">High Noon</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/114128.Hidden_Riches">Hidden Riches</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6852121-worth-the-risk">Worth the Risk</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/114197.Reunion">Reunion</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59818.The_MacKade_Brothers">The MacKade Brothers: Rafe and Jared</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
D<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/268593.Dead_of_Night">ead of Night</a> by Nora Roberts and J. D. Robb<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6013511-black-hills">Black Hills</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59826.The_Gift">The Gift</a> by Nora Roberts<br />
<br />
I also won a box of books from Silver @ <a href="http://www.silverjames.com/">Penumbra</a>.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01394.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01394.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5307833-a-desperate-journey">A Desperate Journey</a> by Debra Parmley<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5376595-secret-obsessions">Secret Obsessions</a> by Leigh Wyndfield<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5376591-the-heat-chronicles-volume-1">The Heat Chronicles</a> by Leigh Wyndfield<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6233811-leap-of-faith">Leap of Faith</a> by Arianna Hart<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2071921.No_One_Left_To_Tell">No One Left To Tell</a> by Jordan Dane<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5122815-evil-without-a-face">Evil Without a Face</a> by Jordan Dane<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2299887.Talk_of_the_Town">Talk of the Town</a> by Karen Hawkins<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3289263.Lucky_Charm">Lucky Charm</a> by Carly Phillips<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5022095-lucky-streak">Lucky Streak</a> by Carly Phillips<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/476495.Catch_A_Mate">Catch a Mate</a> by Gena Showalter<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/413057.Out_of_Sight">Out of Sight </a>by Cherry Adair<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8105611-faerie-fate">Faerie Fate</a> by Silver James<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5899350-christmas-delivery-a-holiday-mystery-at-jenkins-cove">Christmas Delivery</a> by Patricia Rosemoor<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2539508.Dark_Deceiver">Dark Deceiver</a> by Pamela Palmer<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01397.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01397.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8580680-minding-ben">Minding Ben</a> by Victoria Brown (Pub sweepstakes)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8619814-the-emerald-atlas">The Emerald Atlas</a> by John Stephens (Randombuzzers)<br />
<br />
<b>From my awesometastic, amazing, coolio, hip, bombshell of a friend, Rob, whom I love very, very much</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01398.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/In%20My%20Mailbox/DSC01398.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7831742-the-lost-saint">The Lost Saint</a> by Bree Despain (I KNOW, I can't believe he sent me it, either!)<br />
<br />
I got my Candlewick/HarperTeen bundle and a box of books one week, and the next was the Bloomsbury bundle and the other box of books. So both were very exciting weeks. ♥<br />
<br />
What did you all get in your mailbox this week? ♥Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-81803818818819997272011-01-27T01:30:00.000-08:002011-01-27T01:30:02.132-08:00Review: Leonardo the Florentine by Catherine McGrew Jaime<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51myqns3rxL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51myqns3rxL.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Leonardo the Florentine</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Author: Catherine McGrew Jaime</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Publisher: Self-published</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Series: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Pages: 158</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Genre: Historical fiction</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Release Date: October 18, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">How Received: Author </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Summary</span>: </span>Who are the Medici brothers? And who is trying to assassinate them? Why was the Pitti Palace never completed? And what part did Leonardo play in all of this? Leonardo da Vinci is remembered as an artist and inventory. But who was he before anyone knew his name? This family-friendly novel explores the history and the legends of his early years in Florence. It also weaves a mystery of politics and power.</blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">My Thoughts</span>:</span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">This story felt more like a biography in the way that it was written. The voice felt distant, as if we were <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just</i> reading about Leonardo. There were hardly any feelings involved and I just didn’t connect with the characters on any level. Compared to other historical fiction I’ve read, this just felt like a slightly altered biography. The history, naturally, was my favorite part of the novel. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Reading about Leonardo, however, was absolutely riveting. Not that he did much that exciting, but to see his (historically correct) upbringing was fascinating to me. I enjoy reading stories about where people have come from – especially ones where a person goes from rags to riches (well, so to speak). The story goes from when Leonardo is first apprenticed to when he heads to Milan. There wasn’t much that drove the story forward, to be honest, so that also reinforced my feeling of how this felt more like a biography. Some events were created, but most of it was historically correct. But nevertheless, I loved the descriptions of Florence and the history behind the Medici family.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The one thing that bothered me about this novel, however, was the passage of time. There was almost a reiteration of “Leonardo learned a lot during those months; he was enthralled with learning and absorbed anything he could be taught like a sponge. He was kept busy with a lot of projects. Months later...”. That’s a huge paraphrase, but a variation of passing the time like this was used at least 4 or 5 times. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">One thing I thought was cool, however, was the incorporation of actual drawings and sketches Leonardo made inside the book. The chapters would open up with a sketch of Leonardo’s landscape drawing around Florence, and there was a map of Florence at the time Leonardo lived there. And lastly, there was also a timeline for Leonardo’s early life located at the back of the book that was awesome to reference. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>It’s not very eye-catching as a cover. But as a drawing? Amazing. I’ve seen this prospective study drawing for the Adoration of the Magi before (in a humanities class) and loved it. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Memorable Quotes</span>:</span></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">As he swam among the others, his thoughts took him back to his favorite swimming place in Vinci – the pond behind Grandpa’s house. There he had been able to take in the lovely country surroundings when he was done. He had spent much time during those summer months studying the plants and the animals that flourished among his grandfather’s fields and vineyards.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Here in Florence, he had something new, something better. He had friends. (pg. 42)</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>All in all, this story was more like a retelling of history (with some variations) than anything else. The most interesting part about the novel was that it was historically correct. However, there wasn’t much that drove the story forward, which made it seem like a retelling of someone’s life, and the middle got a bit slow. Would I recommend this book? Yes, especially if you love history. I can't wait to see where Catherine takes the story in her future novels. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">If this were required reading for an English or History class, I’d totally love it. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc9966;">Rating</span>: 3/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**This book was provided for review by the author in exchange of an honest review.</span></div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-63666066571846992052011-01-21T13:10:00.000-08:002011-01-21T13:12:26.191-08:00Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday Jan 21-24<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4710921228_bf32d46f6d_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4710921228_bf32d46f6d_o.png" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Follow Friday is a weekly meme posted on Friday's that is hosted by Parajunkee @ <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/">Parajunkee's View</a>. To join, all you have to do is follow the host and the week's featured blogger. Then put your name on the linky, grab the button, and follow, follow, follow as many people as you can! If someone comments and says they're following you, be a dear and follow back -- it's all about spreading the love during Follow Friday! :)<br />
<br />
This week's question is:<br />
<blockquote><h3 style="color: #f1c232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-weight: normal;"><h3 style="color: #f1c232; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal;"><h3 style="color: #f1c232; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;">Who do you cheer for?</h3></span></h3></span></h3></blockquote><br />
I'm a So. Cal kind of girl. Lakers all the way! ♥ Only basketball games I bother watching. And I love the Angels, as well. My dad was an Angels fan before he died, so we went to a LOT of home games at the Anaheim Stadium. :PKristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-87498434867379836972011-01-17T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-17T00:27:00.279-08:00Review: Secondhand Charm by Julie Berry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ThpIQGApL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ThpIQGApL.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Secondhand Charm</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Author</span>: Julie Berry</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Publisher</span>: <a href="http://www.bloomsburykids.com/">Bloomsbury USA</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Series</span>: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Pages</span>: 352</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Genre</span>: Fantasy</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">Release Date</span>: October 12, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;">How Received</span>: Publisher</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc6666;">Summary</span>: </span>Deep in the forest, in a secluded village, a young girl has become known for her unique powers as a healer. Even gypsy charms—mere trinkets when worn by others—seem enchanted when Evie ties them around her neck. The love charm may be especially potent, since Aidan, the handsome stonemason’s apprentice, has been unusually attentive lately. But Evie wants more than a quiet village and the boy next door. She longs to travel to the city, to study at University.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">When His Majesty the king pays an unexpected visit for the town’s annual feast day, Evie gets her chance. He awards her a scholarship, and suddenly—accompanied by both Aidan and her best friend, Prissy—Evie is on her way. But this story is no simple fairy tale. Her journey takes unexpected twists, from the high seas to the royal palace. And Evie will discover not just intrigue, adventure, and romance, but a most incredible legacy... a magic within herself she is only beginning to understand.</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Secondhand Charm is a cute story that appealed to my love of fantasy and fairy tales. Not only was this novel cute, but it was wildly creative. I found myself unable to guess where Julie was taking us with their tale, so I had opened myself up to expect anything. The magical elements in the book were so intriguing – I found myself wondering more about the magical side of the book than of Evie’s story. For a standalone, Secondhand Charm presented its world very simply, and when you’re working in the fantasy genre, it’s always best to remain simple when presenting an entirely new world to someone. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Evie, the main character, was every bit as charming as her story. While she was a bit clueless at times and didn’t think with her head, she was a very driven and passionate character. I loved that she was so goal-oriented that she knew what she wanted from the very beginning, and even as she grew unsure of her future, she remained steadfast on wanting to help and heal people. This was also a bit frustrating, as well, because as soon as the magical element came into play, another huge door opened for Evie and she rarely thought about deviating from “the plan”. I would have jumped on the new opportunities. To add to my frustration, Evie didn’t even ask or ponder about her newfound life-mate. It was days before she even thought about inquiring about Clair. I would have been asking questions nonstop at the very moment I could have. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Clair, Evie’s leviathan (I won’t expand on that, so that’ll give you incentive to read it and see what that’s all about!), was my favorite character. He reminded me of a puppy sometimes. The way he was so happy to have found Evie was adorably sweet, and all he did was want to make her happy. I wanted to know more about him and his brethren – he grew on me that much! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The romance in the book was very sweet and cute, much like the rest of the story. In fact, the romance sort of took a back-seat to the plot, but it still reminded us it was there every few chapters or so. Evie had bought a gypsy love charm that attracted men to her, but her real interest was with Aidan, her neighbor in Maundley. Like any good romance, it had its ups and downs. Evie was never sure about Aidan’s feelings, and Aidan was never sure about Evie’s feelings. The pair had to overcome obstacle over obstacle, it seemed. But nevertheless, it was very cute watching the Evie’s relationship develop right before our eyes. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Secondhand Charm’s predictability was a bit all over the place. For the first 3/4<sup>th</sup>’s of the book, everything about the plot was so fantastical that it was hard to be sure what to expect, so I took all the “plot twists” in stride. Highwaymen, a shipwreck, a sea serpent? Sure, why not. But then the end pulls up and plot twist after shocking plot twist was thrown at us. Everything we assumed to be true before was suddenly up in the air to guess at. I loved that while this book is a fantasy tale and I was in a mindset to pretty much accept everything that was thrown at me, Julie still was able to shock me. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The only thing that bothered me about Secondhand Charm was the spaced out scenes of the villains. At the beginning we get glimpses of a potential evil plot arousing. But then too much happens between the first glimpses of the evil plot to its actual execution. By the time that the betrayal and bad guys came out to do their thing, I almost forgot all about them. I understand why it might have been written that way – to lull us, as readers, into a false sense of security, just as Evie was – but it almost seemed like the bad guys’ story was tacked on there at the end. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc6666;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>My very first thought was that it was a cute cover. But then I looked closer and got a bit critical. If you look closely at the cover, the snack-like trinket looks so out of place on the string. It looks like a photo that was pasted onto an entirely fairy-tale like cover – in fact, the snake isn’t even resting on the string, it looks like it’s hovering in mid-air. And the string looks fake next to the snake. But the colors, especially on the blues on the jacket flaps and the binding, were absolutely gorgeous. The pastel like feel from them was lovely. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">For shame, scaring me like that in the woods!</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Aren’t you going to say something?” I said. “Or are you waiting for other young ladies to pass by so you can terrify them too?”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Not a bad idea,” he said. “I could easily make a sport of this. But seeing as you’re unprotected, I may as well walk you home. I can always come back and lurk more later.” (pg. 13-14)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">He sighed and shook his head. “With my luck, if I parade you around as my wife I’ll meet a beautiful girl somewhere, one that I would have liked to court. But she’ll never have me, no matter how many times I go back and explain, because she’ll be convinced I’m a bigamist.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I averted my face to hide my bafflement. Was he teasing me?</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I’ll take you, Wife,” he said, “as far as Chalcedon, but then I’m seeking an annulment.” (pg. 73)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">So soft, so sweet, so surprising, as if all the stars in the night sky were bursting out from inside me. How could I have known?</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Aidan. And <i>me</i>.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">What are you <i>doing</i>, Evelyn Pomeroy? said a small, bookish schoolgirl voice in my head.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Dying</i>, I told it. <i>Go away</i>. (pg. 103)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>Did this creature wish to hurt me? It had seemed pleased to find me. Was that only because I was its favorite meal? (pg. 107)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>I have waited so long for you</i>, the leviathan whispered, <i>yet you don’t know me at all</i>.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Without looking back, it slithered into the waves and disappeared under the water. (pg. 119)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>There’s no one more important than you, Mistress. Especially no </i>man. <i>I told you. They’re just food.</i></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">What kind of bloodthirsty brute was I stuck with? (pg. 145)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I had endured an agonizing hour of having my hair set in place by Dorothy, who took our her frustrations with life upon my scalp. (pg. 179)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Knowledge is your initiation,” she cried. “Knowledge of what you can do, and showing the courage and faith to do it. Throw yourself into the water.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“But I can’t swim!”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Yes, you can.” (pg. 208)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The bench, the ground, the castle gardens fell away from under me as his warm lips drew mine in and held me. Nothing, not even riding the ocean waves, felt this thrilling, or this free.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Clair awoke in my purse. <i>Fish?</i> he said. <i>Nice fish?</i> (pg. 341)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Before we entered, though, he paused to finger the charms around my neck. “Your love charm is gone,” he said. “You never needed it, you know.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I thought of King Leopold, and Alfonso and Rudolpho, and the lads back in Maundley. “You can’t deny that it worked.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Not on me.” (pg. 342)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc6666;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Secondhand Charm is a cute, light fantasy novel that was able to absorb me into the world and intrigue me with the magic. The concept of serpentina’s was so interesting – I almost wished there was a side novel dedicated to them solely. Evie was as charming as the novel was, and I found myself thoroughly enjoying reading her perspective. I always seem to mention this in my reviews of fantasy, but I’m a stickler for world building. While Julie’s world in Secondhand Charm isn’t as defined as other fantasy novels, it’s presented simply in a way that is easy to understand and remember.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Rating</span>: 4/5</span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc6666;">**</span>This book was provided for review by the publisher, Bloomsbury, in exchange of an honest review. </span></div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-69615672452052034352011-01-15T23:42:00.000-08:002011-01-15T23:42:38.870-08:00In My Mailbox (11)In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/">The Story Siren</a> with inspiration from Alea of <a href="http://aleapopculture.blogspot.com/">Pop Culture Junkie</a>.<br />
<br />
The idea of IMM is to encourage blogger interaction and expose books to our readers' attention. You aren't limited to books that you've received via mail; you can also include books you've bought or checked out at the library.<br />
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<hr />I'm sure most of you (or, err, maybe some of you?) have noticed I haven't been around as much as usual. My best friend came on a spur-of-the-moment visit to California. She lives in Texas and it sucks having a bff live so far away, so I spent most of the last week and a half hanging out with her. She's leaving tomorrow so I'll be back to posting/blogging regularly until school starts. :) Sooo without further ado, this is my haul since the 2nd.<br />
<br />
<b>For Review:</b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01391.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01391.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9908321-dorris-bridge">Dorris Bridge</a> by Clive Riddle<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8910804-the-talisman-of-elam">Talisman of Elam</a> by Jim Mastro<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8928051-the-dragon-of-cripple-creek">The Dragon of Cripple Creek</a> by Troy Howell<br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>From Giveaways:</b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01392.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01392.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6487308-fallen">Fallen</a> by Lauren Kate<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7740152-torment">Torment</a> by Lauren Kate<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6363834-a-highlander-christmas">A Highlander Christmas</a> by Dawn Halliday, Cindy Miles, Sophie Renwick [from <a href="http://thebookishsnob.blogspot.com/">The Bookish Snob</a>]<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7896141-book-of-love">Knight of Angels: Book of Love</a> by Abra Ebner [from <a href="http://www.katiesbookblog.com/">Katie's Book Blog</a>]<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8016634-book-of-revenge">Knight of Angels: Book of Revenge</a> by Abra Ebner [from <a href="http://www.katiesbookblog.com/">Katie's Book Blog</a>]<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9673006-the-tranquillity-initiative">The Tranquillity Initiative</a> by Joan Meijer + super cute green caterpillar bookmark [from <a href="http://lisaisabookworm.blogspot.com/">Lisa is a Bookworm</a>]<br />
<br />
So what did you all get in your mailbox this week? :)Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-32288325619738218332011-01-13T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-13T00:27:00.179-08:00Review: Across the Universe by Beth Revis<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1285634821l/8235178.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1285634821l/8235178.jpg" width="209" /></a></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Across the Universe</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Author</span>: Beth Revis</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Publisher</span>: <a href="http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pages/publishers/yr/razorbill.html">Razorbill</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Series</span>: ??</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Pages</span>: 398</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Genre</span>: Science Fiction</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Release Date</span>: January 11, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">How Received</span>: Publisher</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Summary</span>: </span><b>A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.</b></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone—one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship—tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn’t do something soon, her parents will be next.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed’s hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there’s only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The science part of the book was absolutely fascinating and riveting. I’ve watched a ton of movies and read tons of books dealing with space travel, so I decided that I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">had</i> to read this book. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Across the Universe is a slow book. By slow, I mean pacing-wise. The first 250 pages or so are pretty much leading up to the conclusion (which is about 50 pages or so). There was no intensity or action from start to finish. It was just slow, which isn’t a totally bad thing – the pacing left a lot of room open for development and for the reader to get to know <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Godspeed</i>. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">As far as predictability goes, I had guessed everything from the moment we were presented with the facts. From the murderer to the big reveal, I already knew what was going to happen. I’m actually pretty pleased with myself that I guessed correctly. But at the same time, while I had guessed what was going to happen, Beth would sort of lean the story a different way and I kept second-guessing myself. So even though I knew what happened, I was still a bit unsure and that’s why I wasn’t so disappointed by the easy predictability. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The narrative switches from Amy’s point-of-view to Elder’s point-of-view. I have never been so upset with this point-of-view style until this book. All the scenes that would have involved feelings or more insight to a situation were in the other person’s perspective. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Amy was not really a pleasure to read about. Her character seemed stagnant throughout the entire book – she doesn’t grow, she doesn’t change, she’s just Amy. She came off as really dependent and whiny. I realize that it’s a scary thing to wake up completely alone after however many centuries, but it’s something that already happened and that she can’t change. Instead of having attitude and being petulant, she could have worked to at least assimilate into her new situation. Elder was a bit more fascinating to read about than Amy because he’s learning that he basically lived an entire lie. He at least strives to better himself, for the good of his ship and his people. He realizes how tyrannical Eldest and decides that’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> how he wants to rule. And while Elder remained somewhat stagnant as well, his perspective was more interesting. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">For being a proclaimed love story, I came into this book expecting a sweet romance or at least development of feelings. However, I didn’t feel <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> chemistry between Elder and Amy. Besides the fact that Elder was obsessing over Amy’s difference, I just didn’t see it. There was more romance involving Amy and the boyfriend she left behind on Earth, Jason. In the middle of the book, there was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one</i> scene where the two kiss. But I couldn’t see why Amy would kiss Elder – she hadn’t had any prior feelings for him.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I’m not entirely sure if this is a standalone or a series – I’ve heard differing sources say one thing or the other – but if it were a standalone, then I’d have to say the ending disappointed me. I had expected the ending to feel more conclusive, but I was just left feeling empty. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>It’s really, really pretty. I absolutely adore astronomy, so I was more interested in the stars than on the models.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">My eyes slid to the exit, past all the cyro equipment on the other side of the room. Beyond that door were my aunt and uncle, who I loved, who I could be happy living with. And beyond them was Jason. And Rebecca and Heather and Robyn and all my friends. And the mountains, the flowers, the sky. Beyond that door was Earth. And life.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But my eyes drifted to the little doors on the wall. Beyond those doors were my momma and daddy. (pg. 8)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“The builders of the ship knew this; that’s why they named her <i>Godspeed</i>.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I mouth the name with him, tasting it like metal on my tongue.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“It’s an old Sol-Earth expression for good luck.” Eldest snorts. “They shot our ancestors into the sky, wished them all good luck, and forgot about us. They can’t help us. We lost com with Sol-Earth during the Plague, and have never been able to regain communication. We can’t go back. All the people on Sol-Earth could give us was Godspeed.” (pg. 29)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I have been frozen in ice for centuries. And yet, I never have felt more alone than I do right now, at this moment when I realize that I am alive and aware and awake, and they [her parents] are not. (pg. 90)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">She starts crying. Not soft, sad tears, but the angry sort, like she hates the whole world, at at least the ship that’s now her world. So, I do what any reasonable person would do when faced with a crying girl.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I get the frex out of there. (pg. 91)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I don’t realize I’m crying until the tears splash on the coffin. “Daddy, I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t get up, Daddy. They were too strong. If it wasn’t for Harley—” My voice cracks. “Daddy, you said you’d protect me! You said you’d always be there for me! I need you <i>now</i>, Daddy, I need you!”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I pound my fists against the cold hard glass surrounding the ice. My hands crack and bleed, smearing crimson across the glass. (pg. 234)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">And even though there are so many stars and they look so close together, I know they are light years apart. The glitter in the sky looks as if I could scoop it all up in my hands and let the stars swirl and touch one another, but they are so distant, so very far apart, that they cannot feel the warmth of each other, even though they are made of burning.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>This is the secret of the stars</i>, I tell myself. <i>In the end, we are alone. No matter how close you seem, no one else can touch you.</i> (pg. 390)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #a64d79;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Across the Universe was a good, decent read. It satisfied my love for the science fiction genre. If this were a series, I could easily see myself becoming to like it more than I did. As it is, though, it was a bit too predictable and had stagnant characters with a flat romance. It’s saving point is the intrigue it inspired in me. I love science and I love astronomy, and I found myself wanting to unlock more and more of Godspeeds secrets. I would definitely recommend this book, especially to young adult lovers, but it wasn’t OMGamazing.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #351c75;">Rating</span>: 4/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">*</span>This review was submitted in the <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/2010/11/2011-debut-author-challenge.html">2011 Debut Author Challenge</a>!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">**</span>This book was provided for review by the publisher, <a href="http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pages/publishers/yr/razorbill.html">Razorbill</a>, in exchange of an honest review. </span></div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-14704377845808541932011-01-12T15:29:00.000-08:002011-01-12T15:29:30.418-08:00Waiting on Wednesday (9): Chime<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNDYPyS56ND2W-Fxh8numeB1NAg6XYIBDiDkXXxJw-MOv-QMWkI9ZzaTjJZhntcpi-rHKUpaMvs47ORCIgRYdlddDbIZ2M6RI3lc0IhtJ7aJZIIiPQr9m6Zz3euV57emNvqXfYrnkfdIk/s200/New+WoW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNDYPyS56ND2W-Fxh8numeB1NAg6XYIBDiDkXXxJw-MOv-QMWkI9ZzaTjJZhntcpi-rHKUpaMvs47ORCIgRYdlddDbIZ2M6RI3lc0IhtJ7aJZIIiPQr9m6Zz3euV57emNvqXfYrnkfdIk/s200/New+WoW.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ <a href="http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/">Breaking the Spine</a>, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
This week I'm waiting on:<br />
<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Z1U0AdcDL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Z1U0AdcDL.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8299165-chime"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #6fa8dc;">Chime</span></a> by Franny Billingsley</span><br />
<i>Releases March 17, 2011</i><br />
<br />
<blockquote><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Before Briony's stepmother died, she made sure Briony blamed herself for all the family's hardships. Now Briony has worn her guilt for so long it's become a second skin. She often escapes to the swamp, where she tells stories to the Old Ones, the spirits who haunt the marshes. But only witches can see the Old Ones, and in her village, witches are sentenced to death. Briony lives in fear her secret will be found out, even as she believes she deserves the worst kind of punishment. </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Then Eldric comes along with his golden lion eyes and mane of tawny hair. He's as natural as the sun, and treats her as if she's extraordinary. And everything starts to change. As many secrets as Briony has been holding, there are secrets even she doesn't know. </div></blockquote><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Why I'm waiting on Chime:</b></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">Uhh, hello, cover love! Not only that, but doesn't that blurb sound interesting? Very mysterious and intriguing. What are these secrets?! Looks like it's gonna be good. Have I mentioned that cover is gorgeous?</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">What are YOU waiting on this Wednesday? :)</div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-65037118199405905562011-01-10T15:15:00.000-08:002011-01-10T15:15:27.040-08:00Review: Entice by Carrie Jones<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1291764757l/8069535.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1291764757l/8069535.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Entice</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Author: Carrie Jones</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Publisher: <a href="http://www.bloomsburykids.com/">Bloomsbury USA</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Series: Need #3</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Pages: 264</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Genre: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Release Date: December 14, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">How Received: Publisher </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Summary</span>: </span>Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together forever. But that’s not quite how things have worked out.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">For starters, well, Nick is dead.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Supposedly, he’s been taken to a mythic place for warriors known as Valhalla, so Zara and her friends might be able to get him back. But it’s taking time, and meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But how to get to Valhalla?</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">And even if Zara and her friends discover the way, there’s that other small problem: Zara’s been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn’t just turned... she’s Astley’s queen.</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I was almost tempted to quit the series after how disappointed I was with the second book, Captivate. But I am <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">so</i> glad I decided to stick with it. Entice’s saving point was its plot. Zara is trying to save Nick, but at the same time also has to transition from turning into a pixie. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">One thing Entice did that <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-need-by-carrie-jones.html">Need</a> and <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-captivate-by-carrie-jones.html">Captivate</a> did not was keep me hooked. In Need and Captivate, I had to put the book down several times to fume or just go do something else. I only did that once for Entice, at the end when Zara reunites with Nick. Is it a coincidence that the only time I disliked Entice was when Nick was around? I think not. Anyway, back to the being hooked thing... I was surprised to be really absorbed into the story. I kept wondering what was going to happen, and turned the pages fervently, and the next thing I knew I was done!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Zara, as with the rest of the books, pissed me off again. I go into reading these books knowing I’ll be pissed off whenever Zara or Devyn are talking. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">However</i>, I was able to stomach Zara this time, which I couldn’t in Need or Captivate. She made some sound decisions and she didn’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">completely</i> piss me off. That made me wonder... perhaps she is changing right before my eyes. Maturing. I mean, I naturally can’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">see</i> it because she still does a lot of stupid things, but the number of stupid things she’s done has dwindled a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lot</i>. One thing, though, was that I hated her one-track mind with saving Nick. I understood that it was important to her, but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">at what cost</i>?! I had to agree with her mother, when she said, “No boy is worth this,” in regards to all of the people that died trying to get <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one person</i> back. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Astley was a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">huge reason</b> that I loved this book so much. He went from being an extra to being a forerunner as one of the leading secondary characters. He’s so charming and sweet. The best thing about Astley? He is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> one dimensional. He has depths to him – he can put up a strong, sweet, caring front, but inside he’s also very sorrowful. He has a history of sadness and knows what it feels like to lose someone. But he doesn’t let it get him down. While he can easily break down, there’s another part of him that will just as easily rush to protect everything he believes in.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Not only does Astley bring life to the book, but he also delivers the standard love-triangle in paranormal romance. Zara is tied – bound – to Astley, because she is his Queen. Yet she loves Nick. But she also has conflicting feelings about Astley. I hate love triangles – I despise them – but this was one that I could handle. This is a triangle that both frustrates and excites me. It frustrates me because Zara is so set on Nick, yet it excites me because Astley <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">has a chance</i>. Nick and Zara can’t be together, not completely, anymore because Zara is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">queen</i>, and she <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">needs</i> a king.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Lastly, I think it’s safe to say I’m Team Astley. I have been since Captivate, and will probably remain so for the remainder of the series. Screw Nick. :P I said it before, and I’ll say it again: Astley is probably the reason why I wasn’t so annoyed with this book/why I loved it so much. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>Soooo... I think we’ve already established that all of the covers for the Need series are absolutely gorgeous and breathtaking and can grab attention while on the shelf from a mile away. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>He swoops me into his arms before I finish my sentence. He dances formally, gracefully, not like a high school guy at all, but I guess that’s the pixie king in him. He’s more like a professional dancer on one of those dance competition reality shows. His posture is straight and his movements are fluid. He is nothing like Nick, who dances like a big goofy dog, really. Dancing with Astley is easy. It feels like I’ve been doing it forever. (pg. 14)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>We stand there a moment, staring down each other as the rest of the people in the cafeteria swirl and swoon and fall in love. We are at a stalemate. His eyes soften. He lets me go, dropping his arms away, and I feel suddenly, terribly alone. I almost kind of want to dance with him again, which is so wrong, I know. (pg. 15)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>We are all silent. We drive through the darkness on crazy roads, bumping from potholes and frost heaves. Roads are meant to be smooth paths, straight lanes to destinations, but they aren’t like that at all, are they? Life isn’t like that either. (pg. 28)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>He continues talking. “Do you know how hard it is to be king? To always have to try to be good, to be perfect? Do you have any idea how hard it is to help you go after your stupid idiot of a were, all the while thinking you should just be satisfied with me, because that is how it is supposed to—” (pg. 52)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>“I will find your wolf. I want you to want me because you want me, not because of grief, not because he is not here. I want you to love me for me. I want you to kiss me first and not because you need me to help you, but because you need to kiss <i>me</i>.” He lifts he eyebrows just a little bit and his lips open. I drop my head, reach for him, but he steps back and whisks away, dodging behind cars before I have a chance to say that I don’t want to lose him too. (pg. 201)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I have arranged a meeting of our pixies so that—”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“In the graveyard again?” I interrupt.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“No. I think that was a bit—”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Emo? Melodramatic?” I suggest.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Tilting his head, he smirks at me and makes eye contact. “As a species we have a weakness for drama. Thank you for reminding me,” he teases. (pg. 201)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Out of all the books so far in this series, I have loved <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Entice</i> the most. It was infinitely better than the previous two novels. I think its saving grace was the newest addition to our cast of characters, Astley. Astley took a major role in this book and that really made listening to Zara and her human friends a lot better. He added more depth to the novel than any of the other characters. And while I disliked the plot to save Nick (I seriously think he should be killed off and done with, but that’s just me being bitter), I appreciated it because it spoke volumes for Astley’s character. How many guys do you know that will go to such lengths to save the “other guy” in a love triangle? I have so much Astley love that it hurts. :P</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Rating</span>: 4/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange of an honest review! </span><o:p></o:p></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Want to see what I thought about the first two books in the Need series? Check out my reviews of <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-need-by-carrie-jones.html">Need</a> and <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-captivate-by-carrie-jones.html">Captivate</a>.</div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccc66;">Extras</span>:</div><a href="http://www.carriejonesbooks.com/">Carrie's Website</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/#!/carriejonesbook">Carrie's Twitter</a><br />
Entice's Book Trailer: I'm seriously digging on the song in the background. What IS it?<br />
<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WVkbQhs-nWk?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WVkbQhs-nWk?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-18483277620396669172011-01-08T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-08T00:27:00.917-08:00Review: Solid by Shelley Workinger<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51L3Orl6bHL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51L3Orl6bHL.jpg" width="228" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Solid</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Author</span>: Shelley Workinger</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Publisher</span>: Self-pubbed</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Series</span>: Solid #1</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Pages</span>: 222</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Genre</span>: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Release Date</span>: July 9, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">How Received</span>: Author</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Summary</span>: </span>Eighteen years ago, a rogue Army doctor secretly experimented with a chromosomal drug on unknowing pregnant women. When he was killed not long after the children were born, any knowledge and evidence seemed to die with him – except the living, breathing, human products of his work.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Almost two decades later, the newly self-proclaimed “open-book” military unearths the truth about the experiment, bringing Clio Kaid and the other affected teens to a state-of-the-art, isolated campus where they soon discover that C9x did indeed alter their chromosomes – its mutations presenting as super-human abilities. The military kids, who come from across the nation and all walks of life, come into their own as light-than-air “athletes”; “indies” as solid as stone walls; teens who can make themselves invisible and others who can blind with their brilliance.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">While exploring her own special ability, forging new friendships and embarking on first love, Clio also stumbles onto information indicating that the military may not have been entirely forthcoming with them and that all may not be as it seems...</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The premise for this novel was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">very</i> interesting. Teenagers with superhuman abilities? Sounds pretty awesome. While there wasn’t too much development with that premise – the book is essentially about finding out what the adults weren’t telling them – I’d truly love to explore the quirks to these abilities the teenagers have. We know so far that Clio and Miranda have disappearing abilities, Bliss can shine like a blinding light, Garrett has high athletic talent, and Jack is... well, we don’t know what Jack can do. But I’d really like to see these areas be explored more in the next novel. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">There was a connection that was lacking with the characters. The main character, Clio, had a somewhat indistinct voice – we hardly ever heard her opinions or feelings in things. Since Solid was presented in first person, I would have expected more connection between the reader and main character, but it truly just felt like Clio retelling a story she was observing. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The dynamics between the characters didn’t seem all too realistic. There was no real depth to the relationship Clio and Jack had. I didn’t even see what Clio <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liked</i> about Jack, other than he was good looking, he could juggle, and he made a constellation out of lights for her in his room. I expected more development and quite frankly, there didn’t feel like there was any. Clio and Bliss were best friends within a week, but there were hardly any scenes of them talking together. Miranda especially befuddled me. She’s a very blunt and outspoken character, but I don’t see why she would suddenly make friends with Clio’s group. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I think this novel could have been a lot longer. It’s only around 200 pages, and the events that transpire only occur in a week (or two). Maybe it’s just me with my trust issues, but I don’t make friends, with hardly any mishaps, or best friends that easily. This book has a lot of great potential – it was absolutely fascinating reading about the chromosomal experiments (science degree, hello =)). If there were more development (with the abilities, characters, and relationships), this would have been even better than it was. It was, however, a good start to the series, and I’m eagerly anticipating what will happen in Settled! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>If I wasn’t pursuing a science degree, I probably would have thought the cover was bacteria or that the book was about a virus. But that’s chromosome 9 (I believe, if I recount one of Shelley’s interviews correctly). It doesn’t stand out, but it isn’t bad, either.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>The one thing in the room surely not mine was the black plastic monstrosity on the side of my roll-top desk. I had to do a double-take to confirm that yes, indeed, it was a retro dial-up phone, tethered down by a curly cord. (pg. 42)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I’m just missing you sweetheart. It’s hard to let go, like waiting out your first sleepover all over again.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Yeah, the one where you dug some night-vision goggles out of Dad’s old gear and paid the guy next door to watch the house I was staying at? I wouldn’t call that letting go.” It was pretty funny in retrospect, although it hadn’t been to the mortified eleven-year-old-me. (pg. 44)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>Speaking of Miranda, the girl was quick to prove she could get us out of a bad situation like nobody’s business. “This party is phat, Colonel C – we’ve gotta get in there ASAP or we’ll miss something.” She flashed him her pageant-sweet smile as she pulled Bliss and I away with her. She really was starting to grow on me – in a fungal kind of way, but not poisonous at least. (pg. 87)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>His kiss was powerful, confident with feelings and want, but without the intent to capture my mouth, to claim it. All I felt was the pull of him – a call to my heart to come out and join him at a mutual center. (pg. 123)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>“Failure is not an option,” Garrett admonished her in his most ominous tone. “Come on!” He addressed the table when he didn’t get the desired reaction. “<i>Apollo 13</i>?” Guys, you gotta work with me here. I swear it’s like I’m all alone half the time...” (pg. 159)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Solid was a very quick, fun read. The premise was interesting and was able to draw me in to want more. However, it was short. That was probably its downfall. I feel a lot of things could have been described and expanded more – explanations, character development, relationships, etc. There was tons of potential, though. The end left off on a somewhat happy/hopeful note, so I’m intrigued by where Shelley plans to go on with Settled!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Rating</span>: 3/5</span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. </span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-27471672261065595072011-01-07T09:17:00.000-08:002011-01-07T09:17:13.131-08:00Book Blogger Hop & Follow Friday Jan. 7-10<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i595.photobucket.com/albums/tt34/crazybookblog/cfbmemebutton-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i595.photobucket.com/albums/tt34/crazybookblog/cfbmemebutton-2.png" /></a></div><br />
The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer @ <a href="http://www.crazy-for-books.com/">Crazy-for-Books</a>. It's a chance for book bloggers to interact, make new friends, and most importantly, share their love of books!<br />
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This week's question is:<br />
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<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 19px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14pt;">What book influenced or changed your life? How did it influence/change you?</span></b></span></b></span></span></blockquote><br />
I have a list. I <i>want</i> to say <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24280.Les_Mis_rables">Les Misérables</a> by Victor Hugo, or <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-twenty-boy-summer-by-sarah.html">Twenty Boy Summer</a> by Sarah Ockler, or <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2011/01/review-entangled-by-cat-clarke.html">Entangled</a> by Cat Clarke, but then I'd be talking to you guys for the length of an essay, and I'm sure you don't want that.<br />
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So I'm going to go with a few I've read recently: <i><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/439288.Speak">Speak</a> by Laurie Halse Anderson</i> and<i> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68783.Girl_Interrupted">Girl, Interrupted</a> by Susanna Kaysen</i>. Sense a theme? Haha. I'm sure you all know this already, but I'm depressed. Not so severely now, of course, but when I was younger it was really, really bad. I read these two books in high school, and they spoke volumes to my teenager self (they still do). I don't want to get <i>too</i> personal on how these books changed my life, but they gave me hope for the future. They made me realize I needed to not keep things bottled up inside. They made me realize that I wasn't the only person hurting (you know teenagers, self-absorbed). I ended up living a life similar to Susanna's in Girl, Interrupted, and having read it before I was in that situation made me feel more... you know, not crazy.<br />
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Follow Friday is a weekly meme posted on Friday's that is hosted by Parajunkee @ <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/">Parajunkee's View</a>. To join, all you have to do is follow the host and the week's featured blogger. Then put your name on the linky, grab the button, and follow, follow, follow as many people as you can! If someone comments and says they're following you, be a dear and follow back -- it's all about spreading the love during Follow Friday! :)<br />
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This week's question is:<br />
<blockquote><h3 style="color: #f1c232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-weight: normal;"><h3 style="color: #f1c232; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;">What book(s) have you discovered lately from someone's book blog?</h3></span></h3></blockquote><br />
Well, since Waiting on Wednesday was just two days ago... a lot. :P Like <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9548294-mercy">Mercy</a> by Rebecca Lim and <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8766150-evenfall">Evenfall</a> by Liz Michalski and <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9433912-burn-bright">Burn Bright</a> by Marianna de Pierres. And then there's the Dark Elite series by Chloe Neill. I could go on, seriously. :P Y'all have great taste in books!Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-68254245908832175362011-01-06T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-06T00:27:00.484-08:00Review: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HX3-IBqlL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HX3-IBqlL.jpg" width="211" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Unearthly</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Author</span>: Cynthia Hand</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Publisher</span>: HarperTeen</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Series</span>: Unearthly #1</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Pages</span>: 435</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Genre</span>: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">Release Date</span>: January 4, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #8e7cc3;">How Received</span>: <a href="http://www.netgalley.com/">Netgalley</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Summary</span>: </span>In the beginning, there’s a boy standing in the trees...<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Clara Gardner has recently learned that she’s part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a <i>purpose</i>, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn’t easy.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there’s another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara’s less angelic side.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she’d have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Unearthly is my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">first</i> angel novel, and I have to say that I picked a really good angel novel to come into. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Most of the book involves Clara’s day to day life, and her questions of the angel blood that resides within her. I loved that Unearthly blended in the normal with the paranormal so seamlessly. It added much more realism to the story overall. I, for one, was able to enjoy the scenes in school and in the cafeteria. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Clara was such an amazing character. She has one of the few first person perspectives that doesn’t make me want to rip my hair out. Not only is she logical and sound in most of her decisions, but she’s loyal to her friends and family, and she learns how to form her own opinions on things. She’s a believable teenager – she makes mistakes a couple of times, but she learns through them, and she has her own insecurities and doubts. She stood up to her fears, miniscule and big things alike, and constantly rose up to meet the taunts Tucker threw at her. Her character development was so exponential, and I found myself really enjoying reading about her. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The romance... Oh boy, the romance. The only other romance that had me feeling so sweet, giggly, and excited was Violet and Jay’s romance form The Body Finder. Coming from me, that is such huge praise. Clara and Tucker start off indifferent to each other. They mostly stay out of each others’ way. But then Tucker starts being “mean” to her, laying on the sarcasm very hard – typical grade school, poking-you-in-the-back boyish fashion. But Tucker himself wasn’t mean. He’s charming, witty, sarcastic, kind, loyal, and very gentlemanly. It was so easy to spot Tucker’s attraction to her, even though Clara couldn’t. Their romance developed over the course of the summer. It was sweet, it was languid, and it was amazing. I found <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">myself</i> falling in love with Tucker. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The writing in Unearthly was superb. I’m not even sure how to describe it as. It was easy to follow, very fluid, and had a conversational tone to it. It had a plethora of description, but that didn’t take away from the pacing of the plot. I’d turn a couple of pages and realize how much just actually transpired. The pacing was great – hardly anything lulled, and it kept my attention and before I knew it, I was finished! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">That ending at the end seriously made me want more... <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">now</i>. It isn’t that cliffhangery, but there are a lot of questions posed and a blank slate in front of Clara now, so I’m curious to see where the next book goes with that! I’m eager to see what Clara does now, and to learn more about the angels Cynthia’s concocted for us. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>G-o-r-g-e-o-u-s. ‘Nuff said.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I also recorded my experiments, like the time I cut my forearm with a knife just to see if I would bleed (which I did, <span style="line-height: normal;">a lot</span>) and carefully noted how long it took to heal (about twenty four hours, from when I made the cut to when the little pink line completely disappeared), the time I spoke Swahili to a man in the San Francisco airport (imagine the surprise for both of us), or how I could do twenty-five <i><span style="line-height: normal;">grand</span><span style="line-height: normal;"> jetés</span></i> back and foth across the floor of the ballet studio without getting winded. (pg. 16)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I stare at her in dismay. Mom has tried to teach me to fly exactly two times, and both were complete disasters. In fact, I’ve essentially given up on the idea of flight altogether and accepted that I’m going to be an angel-blood who stays earthbound, a flightless bird, like an ostrich maybe, or, in this weather, a penguin. (pg. 25)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I hope there aren’t any, oh I don’t know, <i>forest fires</i> before he gets back. But there can’t be, can there? The fire can’t take place unless he’s there, right? Is it possible to miss my purpose because my subject won’t cooperate? (pg. 158)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">He shakes his head. “Your eyebrows. They’re, like, dark gold.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“You’re staring at my eyebrows now?”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I’m looking at you. Why are you always trying to hide how pretty you are?” (pg. 182)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>“What do you see in a guy like Christian Prescott?” he asked me that night when he dropped me off from prom. And what he was really saying then, what would have come through loud and clear if I hadn’t been so blind was, <i>Why don’t you see me?</i> (pg. 183)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I sit up. Maybe I should have figured this out a long time ago. I shouldn’t have needed to read his heart in order to see it. But when I felt all that love rising up in him, I didn’t know I <i>was </i>inside his head. I didn’t notice that the feelings weren’t mine. And why is that?</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Easy.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It’s all me, the human part, the angel part. I love [him]. (pg. 200)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Not red,” I say with a shrug.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I always felt like there was something off about your hair.”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“So you thought you’d torture me by calling me Carrots?”</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I still thought I’d never seen anyone as beautiful as you.” He drops his head and rubs the back of his neck, embarrassed. He’s blushing. (pg. 205)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I love how he sometimes gets embarrassed by all the mushy stuff between us and then his voice gets all gruff and he tickles me or kisses me to shut us both up. Boy, do we ever kiss. We make out like champions. (pg. 206)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>What can I say? <i>Sorry, I know it seemed like I was crazy about you before, but that was before. I have a boyfriend now? You snooze you lose?</i> (pg. 214)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>I had a hard time reviewing Unearthly because truly, how can I even begin to convey how amazing this book is? I don’t think I can; I don’t think I did. For a while, the “my thoughts” section only had “OMG THIS BOOK WAS SO AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”. No joke. But I figured none of you would appreciate such a short review, so I tried to get my act together. :P The characters in this book were great – I’d love having Clara, Angela, or Wendy as my friends – and the romance totally made me swoon. Almost as much as Violet and Jay’s romance in The Body Finder (again, that is HIGH praise, coming from me). It was addicting and just oh so good! I’m kind of upset that we have to wait so long for the second book. =(</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #674ea7;">Rating</span>: 5/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">*This review was submitted in the <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/2010/11/2011-debut-author-challenge.html">2011 Debut Author Challenge</a>!</span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received a digital copy of Unearthly from the publisher via <a href="http://www.netgalley.com/">Netgalley</a>. Thank you HarperTeen and <a href="http://www.netgalley.com/">Netgalley</a>!</span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-15604649834294179172011-01-04T23:38:00.000-08:002011-01-04T23:38:43.515-08:00Waiting on Wednesday (8): Desires of the Dead<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNDYPyS56ND2W-Fxh8numeB1NAg6XYIBDiDkXXxJw-MOv-QMWkI9ZzaTjJZhntcpi-rHKUpaMvs47ORCIgRYdlddDbIZ2M6RI3lc0IhtJ7aJZIIiPQr9m6Zz3euV57emNvqXfYrnkfdIk/s200/New+WoW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNDYPyS56ND2W-Fxh8numeB1NAg6XYIBDiDkXXxJw-MOv-QMWkI9ZzaTjJZhntcpi-rHKUpaMvs47ORCIgRYdlddDbIZ2M6RI3lc0IhtJ7aJZIIiPQr9m6Zz3euV57emNvqXfYrnkfdIk/s200/New+WoW.JPG" /></a></div><br />
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Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill @ <a href="http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/">Breaking the Spine</a>, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.<br />
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This week I'm waiting on:<br />
<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1288223505l/7827221.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1288223505l/7827221.jpg" width="211" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7827221-desires-of-the-dead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc0066;">Desires of the Dead</span></a> by Kimberly Derting</span><br />
<i>Releases February 15, 2011</i><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found.<br />
<br />
When Violet Ambrose's morbid ability to sense the echoes of those who've been murdered leads her to the body of a young boy, she draws the attention of the FBI. She is reluctantly pulled into an investigation that will endanger more than just her secret... but her relationship and possibly her life as well.</blockquote><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>Why I'm waiting on Desires of the Dead:</b></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">Okay really, do I need to explain? :P Anyone who knows me knows that one of my favorite reads of 2010 was <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-body-finder-by-kimberly-derting.html">The Body Finder</a>. I gush about The Body Finder like a lunatic. I stalk Kimberly Derting like a creeper. Do I need to explain even more? xD Well, okay... There was so much promise in Violet and Jay's relationship. While I thought The Body Finder would have been a great standalone, I have to admit that I'm dying to see what Kimberly whips up for them next. Kimberly is such a lovely writer and can keep you guessing. And wtf is it Feb. 15 yet? But no, really, I have some high (not too high, but high!) expectations of DotD. :) </div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;">What are YOU waiting on this Wednesday? :)</div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-25782099582083796692011-01-04T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-04T00:27:00.523-08:00Review: Choker by Elizabeth Woods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51JOYRNSkvL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51JOYRNSkvL.jpg" width="210" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Choker</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Author</span>: Elizabeth Woods</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Publisher</span>: Simon and Schuster </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Series</span>: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Pages</span>: 240</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Genre</span>: Thriller</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Release Date</span>: January 4, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">How Received</span>: <a href="http://www.galleygrab.com/">GalleyGrab</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Summary</span>: </span>Sixteen-year-old Cara Lange has been a loner ever since she moved away from her best and only friend, Zoe, years ago. She eats lunch with the other girls from the track team, but they're not really her friends. Mostly she spends her time watching Ethan Gray from a distance, wishing he would finally notice her, and avoiding the popular girls who call her "Choker" after a humiliating incident in the cafeteria.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Then one day Cara comes home to find Zoe waiting for her. Zoe's on the run from problems at home, and Cara agrees to help her hide. With her best friend back, Cara's life changes overnight. Zoe gives her a new look and new confidence, and the next thing she knows, she's getting invited to parties and flirting with Ethan. Best of all, she has her BFF there to confide in.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But just as quickly as Cara's life came together, it starts to unravel. A girl goes missing in her town, and everyone is a suspect--including Ethan. Worse still, Zoe starts behaving strangely, and Cara begins to wonder what exactly her friend does all day when she's at school. You're supposed to trust your best friend no matter what, but what if she turns into a total stranger? </div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">If I could describe Choker in two words, they would be: twisted and disturbing. That pink cover really threw me for a loop – I hadn’t anticipated how twisted this book would be. (I mean, really, poisoning a poor <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dog</i>?! And that isn’t even the end of it!)<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>Or how much of a psychological aspect would be involved in the book. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Cara, the main character, is a very quiet girl. She doesn’t speak up for herself and she’s mostly left on her own most of the time. She has to endure very harsh bullying from several people in highschool. It was disheartening to watch her go through with that. While I’m a quiet girl and could identify with her through that aspect, I also knew how to stand up for myself (more or less). It was a bit aggravating to see Cara going through all the crap she went through; I wanted to shake her, or at least stand up for her. No one stood up for her. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Zoe, Cara’s best friend, was just plain creepy. Even from the beginning. I mean, if my best friend that I haven’t seen for years showed up in my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">dark</i> bed room (the house was locked), I would have freaked the hell out and probably kick her to the curb. You can tell right from the get-go that something isn’t quite right with Zoe. Half of the things she says or does are just plain twisted, creepy, and any other adjectives there are for creepy. She’s definitely the strong one in the friendship, and the strength she brought Cara was one of Zoe’s redeeming aspects. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The title, Choker, plays into the book in so many ways. Cara ends up choking on a piece of carrot and has to get CPR. She nearly dies in front of a lot of people, and what do they do? Start calling her “Choker” and mock her by pretend-choking. They claim she choked just to get some attention. It was really sad, actually. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The plot to Choker is pretty predictable. I ended up guessing a lot of what happened early on, but that surprisingly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">didn’t</i> take away from the book. I still wanted to know what happened in between the gaps. The mystery and suspense for this book was really killer (no pun intended). It was built up overtime: we’d get a few scenes away from all of the suspense, and then a few suspenseful chapters, and vice versa. There were a couple of times when this slow build up drove me crazy – I wanted to know what the heck was going on! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I am a wuss. Truly. Anything even remotely scary terrifies me. Choker ended up terrifying me, because I was reading it at 2AM and there were unexplained noises going on in my house. Just thinking about what happened in Choker gives me goosebumps. A couple of the scenes were so suspenseful that I had to do double-checks that no one was behind me or in the room. And my god, that ending! That ending really blew me away. I gasped, my jaw dropped, a couple of flies flew in, my eyes bulged – yknow, the whole shabang. It was crazy. I could see it coming (though I didn’t think the entirety of it), but it still blew me away because it was unexpected. Does that make sense? It’s something easy to predict, but it caught me off guard. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>The fact that such a dark and disturbing book has a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pink</i> cover is... (for lack of a better word) disturbing. I mean, I like it and all. It’s pretty. I love the font, the rose (thorned), and the POV of staring up to the top of the trees. But seeing this cover for this book is just... really disturbing. Misleading, as well. But I love how you could probably break this cover down and actually attempt to interpret it (as my old english teachers probably would). Like the contrast of the light, pale colors (goodness, purity), and the darker color of the title (evil, darkness). But since I'm a lazy sod (I have Brodie to thank for that term :P), I'll just leave it at it was pretty, if only disturbing. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Her lungs were sending distress signals through her body. She could feel her chest tightening. Her eyes bulging, she waved her hands. <i>Choking, I’m choking</i>, she tried to telegraph. She tried to retch, but she felt the carrot lodge even more firmly in her throat. The noise around her swirled in a colorful chaos.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>I’m dying, and no one’s going to notice</i>. (pg. 12)</div></blockquote><blockquote>“Oh my God,” she said to the ceiling tiles. An entire conversation with Ethan Gray—and he saw her in her sports bra—<i>and</i> he gave her <i>two </i>compliments. Cara rose from the mat and made her way toward the showers on unsteady legs. Next Prince William was going to call from England and ask her to marry him. (pg. 73)</blockquote><blockquote>"I just feel out of place. It’s actually kind of like what you were talking about before, how you felt in middle school. Except it’s still happening to me. Like I think people are watching me, but I don’t know how to act or what to say. It just seems easier to stay out of the way.” (pg. 110)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Cara forced a little laugh. “Listen, Zoe. Did you have anything to do... with... Alexis going missing?” Just then, she felt a searing pain on her neck. She screamed and jerked away violently, knocking over her chair. She clapped a hand on the back of her neck as if to protect it. Zoe stood there, holding the burning flatiron.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I’m sorry,” she said, but she didn’t look that sorry. “I must have had it up too high.” (pg. 186)</div></blockquote><blockquote><i>I did something bad, Cara. But it’s not anything worse than what he did to me</i>. (pg. 210)</blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Choker was so messed up and twisted, but it was also such a great book. Reading about Cara and her every day troubles and her progressing relationship with Ethan was very realistic. Then watching as the glory she had just gained disintegrate was so disheartening. The ending was... Holy crap, the ending was... it left me speechless. I sort of saw it coming, but I hadn’t anticipated the depth of my prediction. Very twistastic. There were two, and I only guessed one. And despite the fact that there were murders and that animals were harmed in the reading of this book, I would definitely recommend it!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Rating</span>: 4/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">*This review was submitted in the <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/2010/11/2011-debut-author-challenge.html">2011 Debut Author Challenge</a>! <o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received a digital copy of Choker from the publisher, Simon and Schuster, through <a href="http://www.galleygrab.com/">GalleyGrab</a>. </span></div></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-37967500919336088802011-01-03T00:27:00.000-08:002011-01-03T00:27:00.341-08:00Review: Cloaked by Alex Flinn<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1277828877l/7075298.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1277828877l/7075298.jpg" width="204" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Cloaked</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Author</span>: Alex Flinn</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Publisher</span>: HarperCollins</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Series</span>: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Pages</span>: 256</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Genre</span>: Fantasy</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">Release Date</span>: February 8, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #e06666;">How Received</span>: <a href="http://starbooktours.blogspot.com/">Star Book Tours</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Summary</span>: </span>Johnny’s not your average hero. But a little magic changes everything.</div><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">There isn’t a fairy godmother or any of that. It all starts with a curse. And a frognapping. And one hot-looking princess. And before Johnny knows it, he is on a mission in the Everglades, with only a flock of swans and a talkative fox named Todd to help guide him against the forces of an evil witch.</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">My Thoughts</span>:</span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Cloaked’s premise is unique and laced with several different fairytales. There were some fairytales I recognized from my copy of Grimm’s, but there were also some that were new to me. I was interested at the beginning to see how Flinn would play out this modern fairytale. Then my interest dwindled because of Johnny. While I was reading this book, I felt like I was just coasting along. There was no addicting factor to it. I wasn’t that interested in finding out what happens, because I could pretty much <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">guess</i> at what happens (and in the end, I was right). The predictability was over-the-top. It doesn’t keep you guessing, and nothing is really a surprise. There was nothing to push me into finishing this book besides the fact that I had a deadline to read it for the ARC tour. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I tried really hard to get absorbed into this book – into the fairytale – but it just didn’t happen. I just wasn’t interested. The villain was so <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">stupid</i>. Not stupid in a bad way, but stupid in a this-is-so-not-believable way. Going as far to kidnap and turn a prince into a frog just so the princess will marry her son? I’m sorry, but that’s such a stupid reason to turn a prince into a frog . I’m all for the fantastical and magical element, but there needs to be a valid driving force for a villain to be... well... villainous. I seriously kept rolling my eyes whenever the villains would come back. I think my only favorite “sub-story” in the entire book was the sub-plot that was derived from “The Six Swans” (probably because it was my favorite fairytale as a kid). </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Lastly, the main character, Johnny, downright pissed me off and made me want to bash myself in the head whenever he spoke or thought something. Since it was in 1<sup>st</sup> person, that happened a lot. He made me sympathize with him at first: he’s poor, works hard for his money, and has to support his mom. While that’s great and all, it also made me draw up the conclusion that he would be humble. He was sooo opposite of humble. He kept looking down on people, even ones that helped him. He didn’t even consider the princess when she told him the truth, just deeming her as crazy (but hot). The way he adamantly refuses to believe her at first was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">so</i> annoying – a bit of resistance would have been believable, but he totally didn’t even give her the benefit of the doubt. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Also, Johnny makes some dumb decisions. And it wasn’t like it was in the making-dumb-decisions-at-first-but-progressing-as-the-story-goes-along-and-learning-from-them way. I don’t feel he grew as a character at all. The “love” he felt for Meg felt so forced and un-fairytale-like. He didn’t even give her a second glance for 95% of the book, but all of a sudden when another guy is in the picture, he’s suddenly in complete love with her. Um, okay I could believe that if he had prior feelings to her, but it just felt forced. Like he was treating Meg as a possession and only wanted her when he couldn't have her. I could not stand Johnny as a main character and it was hard to stomach reading in his perspective. He totally rubbed me the wrong way. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>This isn’t the cover I had, but I liked it more than the cover I had. The flowers have this ethereal glow to them that is so pretty. But my like for it pretty much ends there. I see no relevance it has to the story (unless the flowers are supposed to mean something?) and probably wouldn’t pick it up if I was casually browsing in a bookstore. =x</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Memorable Quotes</span>:</span></div><blockquote>Staring into Victoriana’s eyes, she doesn’t seem to be the girl from the newspapers and the tabloids, the party girl who cares only about clothes and drinking. Instead, her eyes are sort of sad, like she feels trapped in her life, just as I am in mine. (pg. 12)</blockquote><blockquote>“I mean, no, we haven’t heard of this particular frog. But it’s possible we might find out about him. There’s a great deal of connectivity between transformed beings. I’m told there’s even an e-group, though my siblings and I haven’t been able to participate due to an unfortunate combination of lack of fingers and the fact that the desk clerk is online all night.” He gives the sleeping clerk a reproachful look. (pg. 72)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I pull the fabric back, close my eyes, and make what I hope is my last wish. “I wish I was outside, behind this building, not in the street, not underwater, hidden so I can’t be seen.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">An instant later, I’m in a garbage Dumpster. The cloak has a sick sense of humor, but no one will see me. (pg. 99-100)</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>I suppose this book was okay, but it wasn’t horrible, either. The fantasy/fairytale-like element of the book was poorly done and it had no addicting factors whatsoever. I found myself at a loss while trying to write this review. It’s easy to talk about things I hate, or things I like. Cloaked had something I hated (Johnny), but barely anything I liked. So, for the first time since I started blogging, I was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">stumped</i> when trying to write a review. Probably why it’s my shortest review yet. I also usually measure a book by its amount of memorable quotes, but Cloaked takes the cake for having the fewest least memorable quotes for a book I’ve read. I was disappointed by Cloaked a lot because a lot of people loved Flinn’s earlier work and swore up and down by her. I just didn’t see it in this book. Definitely a miss for me, but I’ll still try out her other books. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Rating</span>: 2/5</span></div><br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received this ARC from <a href="http://starbooktours.blogspot.com/">Star Book Tours</a>. Thank you Katelyn!</span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-38562575138382862862011-01-02T05:27:00.000-08:002011-01-02T16:05:50.585-08:00Review: Entangled by Cat Clarke<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1281113415l/8579933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1281113415l/8579933.jpg" width="207" /></a></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Entangled</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Author</span>: Cat Clarke</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Publisher</span>: Quercus</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Series</span>: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Pages</span>: 374</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Genre</span>: Fiction</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">Release Date</span>: January 6, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ea9999;">How Received</span>: <a href="http://starbooktours.blogspot.com/">Star Book Tours</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Summary</span>: </span>The same questions whirl round and round in my head:<br />
What does he want from me?<br />
How could I have let this happen?<br />
AM I GOING TO DIE?<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">17-year-old Grace wakes up in a white room, with a table, pens and paper – and no clue how she got there.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">As Grace pours her tangled life onto the page, she is forced to remember everything she’s tried to forget. There’s falling hopelessly in love with the gorgeous Nat, and the unraveling of her relationship with her best friend Sal. But there’s something missing. As hard as she’s trying to remember, is there something she just can’t see?</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Grace must face the most important question of all. Why is she here?</div></div></div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Entangled is one of those books that truly make you think, drawing you out of your shell to become engaged and interpret things in your own way. It’s intense, harrowing, and very, very dark. During the entire book, there were a lot of things missing and we’re forced to stumble along with Grace as she figures out how she got where she was, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">why</i>.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Honestly, the connection I made with Grace transcends me being a mere reader and Grace being a fictional depiction of a teenager. I felt like the Grace I was reading about was an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">exact</i> replica of me, minus all the wild sex she was having with “randoms”. I know I say that a lot, but I’m serious with this one: Grace and I both lost our dads (hers is more extreme, admittedly), we both used to cut, we had almost identical thoughts – the list goes on. I became more engrossed into the story because I could <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">empathize</i> with Grace. She is such a complex character that I’m sure I could spend my entire review just talking about her. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Grace had so many dimensions to her, yet she never once went out of character. While she got great grades and puts on a happy front for everyone, she went into this increasingly self-destructive spiral that made me feel helpless once it began. She is so realistically believable that it almost hurt. Grace is one of those teenagers: the ones that look perfectly normal, possibly happy, even, and no one could know that there is so much more going on with her. Hardly anyone, without reading her story, will ever look at this girl in public and want to get to know the lonely soul that I know resides within her. It’s those teenagers that get overlooked the most, the ones that think their lives are worth nothing, and the ones who feel compelled to end it all. However, despite the grimness of Grace’s character, she’s also very witty and it made great comic relief for all of the other depressing times.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The only problem I had with Grace was how oblivious she was. Perhaps it was just me, being raised as a skeptic and seeing the worst in people, but I had guessed what would happen from the very <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">moment</i> that there was the smallest sign. I counted other moments that would clue her—and us—in towards the end (***I’m sure all the people reading our tour copy will get sick of reading all my “uh-oh!’s” I wrote down), but Grace never saw what was in front of her. Sure, it’s realistic because it’s difficult to see bad things in people you know, love, and trust, but Grace was a little too oblivious. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The story itself was... freaking depressing, actually. The title of the book is so appropriate, because I could feel Grace’s life tangling up. I kept getting these overwhelmed feelings – the ones where everything has basically gone to shit and you can’t possibly see <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any</i> way out of it without cutting the problems completely (no pun intended). I knew, somewhere at the ¼ point of the book, that the book was going to be depressing as hell. I knew that I’d probably cry and get swept up into an emotional whirlwind. And I did. When everything culminated together and things were revealed, I cried. I had seen it coming, but I still wished, dreaded, hoped that it wouldn’t be what I had thought. It was. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">But the [actual] ending was the opposite: it was hopeful. I was seriously cheering Grace (and Devon, I might add!) on once Ethan ceased to exist. That meant there was a sliver of hope that Grace <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">would be okay</i> and that she <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">would</i> recover from all of the crap that piled onto her plate. And although I wish we had more to the ending (it was one of those, “I’ll let the readers imagination take a whack at it” type of endings), it was peaceful. It made me happy. It made me cry (I’ve been in the exact situation Grace was in, once upon a time), but there was hope. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>So, so, sooo gorgeous. Tons of cover lust. This cover is what made me sign up for the tour. I’m SO glad I did, so I have a lot to thank this cover for! <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>I’m not sure how I feel about the yes-you-really-were-minutes-away-from-topping-yourself thing now. But I’m not ready to examine feelings too closely. Not yet. It’s like I have a bandage wrapped round me. I sort of know why it’s there, but if I unravel it and actually <i>see</i> the festering wound underneath, all yellow and oozy, I may just lose my mind. (pg. 10)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>It was a pretty normal night. No more depressed than any other day. That’s the thing: I was never happy, not really. Kind of just existed from day to day, on a weird plateau of feeling nothingness. That’s not to say I didn’t feel happy at times – of course I did. But they were fleeting moments, gone before I could even begin to appreciate them. (pg. 31-32)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">To me, the scars are obvious. They stand out like they’re screaming, ‘Look at her! Look at what this freak does to herself!’</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It’s more like a whisper though, to anyone who’s listening. (pg. 33)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">‘I’m not sure. It’s hard. It hurts... to think about things.’</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Ethan stared at me for a few seconds. ‘Maybe hurt isn’t always a bad thing.’ (pg. 84)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>It felt like what Sal had said was now tattooed on my brain... some freak who cuts herself in a pathetic attempt to get sympathy from people. Each of those words cut deeper than a blade ever could. (pg. 103)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote>Why am I the way I am? What a weird question. Why is anyone the way they are? Nature or nurture? A bit of both? Maybe for some people it’s neither. Maybe they were supposed to turn out a certain way, but then something terrible happened. And maybe nothing was ever the same again. Maybe. (pg. 28)</blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It’s when I’m alone that the doubt sets in. It’s been that way for years. As long as there are people around, I can pretend that everything’s OK. But I need that audience to pretend <i>for</i>, otherwise it doesn’t work. Alone, I’m not that easy to fool.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It’s not that I mind being alone, not really. I can distract myself with silly fantasies and daydreams for hours, but in the end it always comes back to me. That’s what I’m left with: just me. And that’s what scares me more than anything. Me. The thoughts I try to purge by cutting. The memories that seem to get louder and brighter the harder I try to forget. The whys and what ifs. (pg. 214-215)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Questions. Lots of questions, all fighting for my attention. I hid from them under the duvet, but they seeped in somehow. Drip-drip-dripping poison into my head.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Drip. How could they do this to me? <i>That’s what people do. Hurt</i>. (pg. 352)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>And I try and I try and...</i></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Nothing.<o:p></o:p></i></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>But I’ll try again. Tomorrow, and the next day, and the next.<o:p></o:p></i></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>I won’t give up.<o:p></o:p></i></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>I won’t ever give up. </i>(pg. 372)</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><div style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>There are those books that you absolutely love and recommend to your friends. Then there are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">those books</i> that you absolutely love and recommend to your friends because they changed your life or affected you in some profound way. The ones that leave their imprint on your heart and stay on your mind weeks, months, years after you’ve read them. Entangled was one of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">those books</i>, for me. It was definitely NOT a lighthearted read – it was depressing and made me cry, but I was so engrossed into the story that I stayed up until 3-freaking-AM reading it. And the book goes beyond that, because it delivers a great message: despite all of the entanglements and troubles you have in life, there is always hope that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">it will get better</i>. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I kind of wish I could keep the copy from the tour – reading Entangled with all of the prior tour participants’ comments was fun and truly felt interactive. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Rating</span>: 5/5</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">**I received this ARC from <a href="http://starbooktours.blogspot.com/">Star Book Tours</a>. Thank you Katelyn!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;">***Quercus Publishing donated this ARC to Star Book Tours in what they're calling <b>Artwork My ARC Tour</b>. It's where the participants in the tour can write things down on the ARC copy, or highlight their favorite passages, doodle and draw images, put post it notes, and whatever else on the ARC copy. This is what I'm talking about when I mention things like reading other participants' comments, or writing "uh-oh's" at different places, etc. </span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-85015222291739382532011-01-02T00:01:00.000-08:002011-01-02T00:01:00.070-08:00In My Mailbox (10)In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/">The Story Siren</a> with inspiration from Alea of <a href="http://aleapopculture.blogspot.com/">Pop Culture Junkie</a>.<br />
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The idea of IMM is to encourage blogger interaction and expose books to our readers' attention. You aren't limited to books that you've received via mail; you can also include books you've bought or checked out at the library.<br />
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<hr />Yay, first IMM of the New Year. ♥<br />
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<b>For Review:</b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01389.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01389.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7241984-legacies">Legacies</a> by Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7060657-blind-hope">Blind Hope: An Unwanted Dog & the Woman She Rescued</a> by Kim Meeder and Laurie Sacher<br />
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<b>From Giveaways</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01388.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01388.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6186357-the-maze-runner">The Maze Runner</a> by James Dashner<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7631105-the-scorch-trials">The Scorch Trials</a> by James Dashner<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7903851-vixen">Vixen</a> by Jillian Larkin<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6882274-the-mockingbirds">The Mockingbirds</a> by Daisy Whitney (Stacey @ <a href="http://pageturnersblog.com/">PageTurnersBlog</a>)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7883678-empty">Empty</a> by Suzanne Weyn (<a href="http://derapsreads.blogspot.com/">DeRaps Reads</a>)<br />
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<b>Gifted</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01390.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01390.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1134023.Faerie_Wars">Faerie Wars</a> by Herbie Brennan (from Jen at <a href="http://jenbigheart.blogspot.com/">I Read Banned Books</a> - thank you Jen!!)<br />
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<b>From ARC Tours</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01375-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v452/Hidden_lies/DSC01375-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7862667-demonglass">Demonglass</a> by Rachel Hawkins (Different Area Codes Book Tours)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8579933-entangled">Entangled</a> by Cat Clarke (Star Book Tours)<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7075298-cloaked">Cloaked</a> by Alex Flinn (Star Book Tours)<br />
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What did you all get in your mailboxes this week? :)Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-564395083555085382010-12-31T03:27:00.000-08:002011-01-01T18:39:19.803-08:002010 Wrap-Up & Happy New Years!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://kuntzconsulting.ca/images/uploads/docs/HappyNewYear2011.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://kuntzconsulting.ca/images/uploads/docs/HappyNewYear2011.gif" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">Happy New Years, guys! </div><br />
I hope you're all going to have a safe, wonderful New Years Eve tonight! I'm going to be celebrating in San Diego with my cousins! I normally celebrate in Las Vegas for New Years Eve (honestly, one of the best places I can recommend going to on NYE) but our plans fell through for that so only our parents are going. I've never celebrated in San Diego, so I'm kind of nervous/excited. I like the whole big-group-celebration for NYE (though I suppose that would suck for a zombie breakout...) and San Diego sounds like it's going to be the opposite of that, more mellow and close-knit.<br />
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I'm rambling. (When don't I?) I'm seriously ready to say goodbye to 2010. It admittedly wasn't one of my best years, but it wasn't one of my worst, either. I went through a break up, I started losing weight, I got into books and blogging, I GOT AN <b>A</b> IN CHEMISTRY, I had a 4.0 for both Spring and Fall '10 semesters, I broke out of my socially awkward shell, and I made a ton of great friends. While I'm not one known to stick with New Years resolutions, I made one this year (after 3 ish years of <i>not </i>making one) and I'm ready to apply the chances that happened in 2010 and make them even <i>better</i> in 2011.<br />
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Random tidbit of the day: my favorite New Years song to listen to is <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSgHGFuPNus">The New Year by Death Cab for Cutie</a>. ♥<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.kickette.com/images/uploads/newyears2009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.kickette.com/images/uploads/newyears2009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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My personal [boring] life aside, I figured I'd make some lists of my favorite reads this year and re-cap on a few challenges I took up and post a general wrap-up. My lists have no particular order. Its only order is "chaotic mess", which is fitting since I <b>am</b> a frazzled book nommer. ;) [Lame joke, lawl].<br />
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<b>Total Books Read in 2010</b>: 59<br />
You can see all of the books I've read in 2010 <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/p/previous-reads.html">here</a>.<br />
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Technically, my total accounts for all books read since August 2010, since that's when I began recording the books I've read. I tried my hardest to end with an even 60 but I got too busy with the holidays. 58 books in four/five months isn't bad at all, considering that I had a super hectic class [chemistry] I was currently enrolled in!<br />
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<a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1292482391l/6654313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1292482391l/6654313.jpg" width="128" /></a><b>First Review in 2010</b>: <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/08/review-linger-by-maggie-stiefvater.html">Linger</a> by Maggie Stiefvater<br />
<b>Last Review in 2010</b>: <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-demonglass-by-rachel-hawkins.html">Demonglass</a> by Rachel Hawkins<br />
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Please don't read my first review - it's slightly embarrassing. I was new to blogging and reviewing and had no idea what the heck I was doing. It's so amazing to see what a long way I've come from my first review of the year to the last. And I definitely ended my reviewing year with a bang: Demonglass was <i>a-mazing</i>!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b>My Top Ten Favorite Reads in 2010</b>: </div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">I tried to place these into an order, but I kept rearranging the list, and then rearranging it after I rearranged it. So it's in no particular order - I <i>loved</i> them all.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267358528l/5231173.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267358528l/5231173.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>Entangled by Cat Clarke (look for the review in 2011!)<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-twenty-boy-summer-by-sarah.html">Twenty Boy Summer</a> by Sarah Ockler</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-body-finder-by-kimberly-derting.html">The Body Finder</a> by Kimberly Derting</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-vampire-academy-by-richelle-mead.html">Vampire Academy</a> by Richelle Mead</div><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-dash-lilys-book-of-dares-by.html">Dash & Lily's Book of Dares</a> by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan<br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-duff-designated-ugly-fat-friend.html">The Duff</a> by Kody Keplinger<br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-iron-queen-by-julie-kagawa.html">The Iron Queen</a> by Julie Kagawa<br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-matched-by-ally-condie.html">Matched</a> by Ally Condie<br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-paranormalcy-by-kiersten-white.html">Paranormalcy</a> by Kiersten White<br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-demonglass-by-rachel-hawkins.html">Demonglass</a> by Rachel Hawkins<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Honorable Mentions</b>:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-dark-divine-by-bree-despain.html">The Dark Divine</a> by Bree Despain</div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-do-tampons-take-your-virginity.html">Do Tampons Take Your Virginity?</a> by Marie Simas</div><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-no-greater-sacrifice-by-john-c.html">No Greater Sacrifice</a> by John C. Stipa</div><br />
<b>Favorite Review I've written in 2010</b>:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-anxious-hearts-by-tucker-shaw.html">Anxious Hearts</a> by Tucker Shaw</div>I'm really, really proud of this review. I think the cover made my review one of my favorites. But I liked the way I reviewed it, the color scheme I used for it, and... I dunno, maybe it was just the overall book that made me feel so good, happy, and golden for this review.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2542/4118498220_13cc7be3ce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2542/4118498220_13cc7be3ce.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kSPkNK54L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kSPkNK54L.jpg" width="133" /></a><b>Favorite Cover of 2010</b>: <br />
<a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-brightly-woven-by-alexandra.html">Brightly Woven</a> by Alexandra Bracken<br />
<br />
There are so many contenders for favorite cover, it was hard to choose. I was going to give it to Nightshade or Paranormalcy, but Brightly Woven takes the cake for me. The model and the profile pose are great, the color scheme is <i>awesome,</i> the font is simple and eye catching, and the brushes they used for the corners are so pretty. Everything about this cover screams stunning. :)<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1281113415l/8579933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1281113415l/8579933.jpg" width="129" /></a></div><b>Favorite ARC Tour to have participated in for 2010</b>:<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8579933-entangled">Entangled</a> by Cat Clarke<br />
<br />
The tour was designed by Katelyn at <a href="http://starbooktours.blogspot.com/">Star Book Tours</a> and Quercus publishing. It was called an <b>Artwork My ARC Tour</b>. The participants were allowed to write notes in the columns, highlight favorite passages, put post it notes inside, doodle, etc. It was really fun seeing what other reviewers before me wrote, and it felt really interactive.<br />
<br />
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<hr /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14pt;">Challenge Wrap-Ups</span></div>I participated in two challenges this year. One was a September Spectacular Reading Challenge and the other was the 2010 Debut Author Challenge hosted by Kristi of <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/">The Story Siren</a>. I already did the SSRC wrap-up post, so I'll put my DAC wrap-ups here.<br />
<br />
<b>Debut Novels Read in 2010</b>:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1290641500l/7719245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1290641500l/7719245.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>1. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/09/review-claire-de-lune-by-christine.html">Claire de Lune</a> by Christine Johnson<br />
2. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-hex-hall-by-rachel-hawkins.html">Hex Hall</a> by Rachel Hawkins<br />
3. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-brightly-woven-by-alexandra.html">Brightly Woven</a> by Alexandra Bracken<br />
4. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-you-by-charles-benoit.html">You</a> by Charles Benoit<br />
5. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-firelight-by-sophie-jordan.html">Firelight</a> by Sophie Jordan<br />
6. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-body-finder-by-kimberly-derting.html">The Body Finder</a> by Kimberly Derting<br />
7. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-tyger-tyger-by-kersten-hamilton.html">Tyger Tyger</a> by Kersten Hamilton<br />
8. <a href="http://bookishnovelties.blogspot.com/2010/11/guest-review-nightshade-by-andrea.html">Nightshade</a> by Andrea Cremer<br />
9. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/11/review-duff-designated-ugly-fat-friend.html">The DUFF</a> by Kody Keplinger<br />
10. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-matched-by-ally-condie.html">Matched</a> by Ally Condie<br />
11. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-paranormalcy-by-kiersten-white.html">Paranormalcy</a> by Kiersten White<br />
12. <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/12/review-candidates-by-inara-scott.html">The Candidates</a> by Inara Scott<br />
<br />
Total: 12 - <i>challenge completed</i>!<br />
I was ambitious and listed 50 books, but that was unrealistic (and I knew it) because I started the challenge in September. I at least made the challenge minimum - 12 books - and am aspiring for at <i>least</i> 30 for 2011! :)<br />
<br />
<hr /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>Most Eagerly Anticipated Books of 2011</b>:</div><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289012459l/6918909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289012459l/6918909.jpg" width="140" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6918909-illusions">Illusions</a> by Aprilynne Pike<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8164044-blackveil">Blackveil</a> by Kristen Britain<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7827221-desires-of-the-dead">Desires of the Dead</a> by Kimberly Derting<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8525590-wither">Wither</a> by Lauren DeStefano<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8235178-across-the-universe">Across the Universe</a> by Beth Revis<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6963749-clarity">Clarity</a> by Kim Harrington<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7263429-wolfsbane">Wolfsbane</a> by Andrea Cremer<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9583173-between-the-sea-and-sky">Between the Sea and Sky</a> by Jaclyn Dolamore<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7656222-lost-voices">Lost Voices</a> by Sarah Porter<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8705784-born-at-midnight">Born at Midnight</a> by C.C. Hunter<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8715032-blood-magic">Blood Magic</a> by Tessa Gratton<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8337087-possession">Possession</a> by Elana Johnson<br />
<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HX3-IBqlL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HX3-IBqlL.jpg" width="131" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7488244-unearthly">Unearthly</a> by Cynthia Hand<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7656231-a-need-so-beautiful">A Need So Beautiful</a> by Suzanne Young<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8581936-supernaturally">Supernaturally</a> by Kiersten White<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7933598-awakened">Awakened</a> by PC Cast & Kristin Cast<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8100422-timeless">Timeless</a> by Alexandra Monir<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7948945-falling-under">Falling Under</a> by Gwen Hayes<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8709527-bloodlines">Bloodlines</a> by Richelle Mead<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9462812-die-for-me">Die For Me</a> by Amy Plum<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9462795-starcrossed">Starcrossed</a> by Josephine Angelini<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8428195-entwined">Entwined</a> by Heather Dixon<br />
... and like, a gazabijillion others!<br />
<br />
<hr /><br />
Whew, that was a long post. 2010 was a great reading year for me. I came across some great books I probably never would have read. I'm glad I took a chance with all of the books I did read. 2011 looks like it's going to be a <i>great</i> year for books - debuts and oldies alike! :)<br />
<br />
Blog-wise, I'm pretty happy with how I've progressed in the last four/five months. I think October was the best month for me - social network and reviewing wise - because I had a ton of free time, and I actually knew what I was doing. I'm looking forward to 2011 to step up my blogging game and have an even better year than 2010! :)<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Happy New Years again, guys! Be safe! I'll see you next year ♥</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/logem006/architecture/fireworks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="120" src="http://blog.lib.umn.edu/logem006/architecture/fireworks.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Bring on 2011!!! </div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-15250502779419578452010-12-30T22:20:00.000-08:002010-12-30T22:20:43.577-08:00Follow Friday Dec. 31<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4710921228_bf32d46f6d_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4710921228_bf32d46f6d_o.png" /></a></div><br />
Follow Friday is a weekly meme posted on Friday's that is hosted by Parajunkee @ <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/">Parajunkee's View</a>. To join, all you have to do is follow the host and the week's featured blogger. Then put your name on the linky, grab the button, and follow, follow, follow as many people as you can! If someone comments and says they're following you, be a dear and follow back -- it's all about spreading the love during Follow Friday! :)<br />
<br />
This week's question is:<br />
<blockquote><h3 style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; position: relative;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #bd8ad0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; text-transform: uppercase;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; text-transform: none;"><b style="color: #bd8ad0; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; text-transform: uppercase;">WHAT ARE YOUR NEW YEARS BOOK BLOGGING RESOLUTIONS?</b></span></span></span></h3></blockquote>I actually have a lot of them, but I'm going to [try to] keep my list simple.<br />
<br />
<ol><li>Comment more on blogs I stalk. I usually only comment the people who comment me, or when I REALLY have something I need to say. But mostly I just read and lurk. I get lazy with all the clicking and typing that is involved in commenting. xD I stalk some <i>really</i> awesome people and I don't let them know how much I love their blogs enough!</li>
<li>Read and review in a more timely manner. I used to read a book and pop out a review within hours of finishing the book. But now it takes me a couple of days. While that's not a bad thing (it lets me settle my emotions a bit), I tend to get lazier when I sit on reviews for more than a day.</li>
<li>Stop being lazy. Jeebus, I'm only in my 5th month and I think I can take the award for laziest blogger ever. xD </li>
<li>Socially network... better. :P I suck at Twitter and having conversations via twitter. :/ I suck at advertising. So I'm gonna try and step it up!</li>
<li>More interviews. I love the interviews I've done, but I would like to get some more up. </li>
<li>Limit review requests. I have such a huge TBR and I hate not reviewing in a timely manner. :/ </li>
<li>Ties in with six - Learn to pace myself better (reading pile/blog-wise) during hectic weeks, like midterms and finals. That way when I have to take my "blogging exiles", I'll still have things up on the blog. </li>
</ol><br />
<br />
Okay yeah I said I'd keep it short. << Guess I failed, haha.Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-21439718283183247052010-12-30T00:27:00.000-08:002010-12-30T00:27:00.746-08:00Review: Demonglass by Rachel HawkinsThis is my very last review of 2010 - I decided to end up my year (review-wise) with a bang. And Demonglass definitely delivers a <i>bang</i>. I have a wrap-up post set for the 31st, but for those of you who are going out of town or whatnot, thank you so much for the past four/five months. It's been such a pleasure befriending you guys. I definitely can't wait to kick-start 2011 with you all! :)<br />
<hr /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1287677907l/7862667.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1287677907l/7862667.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Demonglass</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Author</span>: Rachel Hawkins</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Publisher</span>: Hyperion</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Series</span>: Hex Hall #2 </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Pages</span>: 368</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Genre</span>: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">Release Date</span>: February 15, 2011</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999;">How Received</span>: <a href="http://aten-ra.blogspot.com/">Different Area Codes Book Tours</a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Summary</span>: </span>Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and faeries). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Oh, my, god! That ending! I thought I was upset about Hex Hall’s ending (because I NEEDED to know what happened), but that is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nothing</i> compared to Demonglass’ ending. I’m pretty much rendered speechless when I think about it and will stare at Rachel with big puppy dog eyes until the third book releases. I loved Hex Hall, but Demonglass was even <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">better</i>. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Demonglass transitions so well from its predecessor – I was impressed. I have to admit that I do <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> remember all of the little details of Hex Hall – I read it last Oct – and I was really thankful to Rachel for providing us with a sort of recap of what happened. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The plot finally got a lot scarier. Not by much, sure, but it’s hard <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> to be scared about losing your soul and dead things that slither and being on a “most wanted list” (figuratively). Unstable demons and the Eye are thrown into the mix, which definitely spiced things up a lot. There are tons of plot twists. There were a couple I didn’t even see coming, but most of it was predictable. The action totally kicked up a notch... and then <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">another</i> notch. Where Hex Hall was shrouded in mystery, Demonglass was enveloped with a fast moving plot with tons of action. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Sophie, as always, was snarky and absolutely hilarious. I had so much fun reading about her this time around because she continuously matured from the Sophie at Hex Hall. She’s always so wild and out of line, so seeing her having patience and willpower was very cool. Throwing Sophie’s dad into the mix was so awesome – I loved seeing the two interact with each other and while Sophie despised her father, I absolutely adored him. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Cal... Oh, my, god can I just say that I totally called it in the first book (and in my review)?! I had predicted what would happen with Cal while I was reading Hex Hall, and to see my prediction come true in Demonglass made me... well, excited, actually! I love Cal – I absolutely <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adore</i> the strong and silent types. And he seemed to care a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lot</i> about Sophie and always went out of his way to help her. I’m so Team Cal, it’s kind of sad (in the I-don’t-think-Sophie-will-end-up-with-Cal kind of way). Archer... Oh, Archer. There are so many things I want to say about Archer, but it’ll spoil something. So I’ll just leave it as: *wistful sigh*. Because although I DO love Cal, Archer seems to fit Sophie more... snugly. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Lastly, back to that ending! I want to know what happened to Jenna, and Sophie’s father! I really didn’t think they would actually go through with what they did to him. And why do I get the distinct feeling that Cal will not be seen again? He didn’t say, “See ya, Sophie,”, he said “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Goodbye</i>, Sophie”. And Sophie’s mother being at Aislinn Brannick? Let me tell you this: the ending leaves more questions than it does answers, and I really want the third book already to see what happens! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>Okay while I do love the cover, I need to go on a mini-rant, like I did with Hex Hall. WHY IS THAT CAT ON THE COVER?! It’s driving me nuts! Is it symbolic or does it allude to something? Will there be some big revelation in the future book about it? I mean, Sophie is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">allergic</i> to cats and she doesn’t even own one. Heck, a cat isn’t even talked about in the books. Am I looking too much into the placement of the cat on the cover? Is it really just there to draw in consumers who associate black cats with witches and magic and is therefore a marketing tactic utilized to get this book into some poor, unsuspecting teenager’s hands?!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
I apologize for how excessive my quotes are - Sophie is just too funny for her own good! :P</div><blockquote>Cal had been waiting for us at the pond. When he’d seen me, he’d given me a barely perceptible nod, which was the Cal version of waving his hands over his head and yelling, “Hey, Sophie!” (pg. 1)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Cal stepped forward, hopefully to come to my rescue.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I could toss her off the pier, Ms. Vanderlyden.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Or not. (pg. 3)</div></blockquote><blockquote>A sudden, horrifying thought came to me: holy hell weasel, were these kids my half-<i>siblings</i>? Had Dad dragged me all the way to England to play out some twisted version of the Brady Bunch? (pg. 39)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"I’ve heard so much about you, both from your father and from Anastasia.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Mrs. Casnoff?” Oh, God, if that’s where this woman had gotten her Sophie Mercer gossip, I was surprised she’d greeted me with a handshake instead of an exorcism. (pg. 40)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">They were all wearing black uniforms, and had nearly identical smiles plastered on their faces.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“What are those people doing?” Jenna whispered to me.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I don’t know,” I replied through a frozen grin, “but I’m afraid a musical number might be involved.” (pg. 43)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I held up my hand and did what I thought was the Girl Scout salute. Or it could have been that <i>Star Trek</i> thing. “I solemnly swear to tell Mrs. Casnoff that Elodie’s ghost looked at me. And if I do not tell her, I swear to buy Jenna a pony. A <i>vampire</i> pony.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Jenna tried not to crack a smile, but no one can resist a vampire pony. (pg. 54-55)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“And of course, your dad was always talking about you, so between him and Jenna, I feel like I already know you.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Man, first Cal, then Lara and the other Council members, now Vix. Did Dad have a blog about me or something? “My Daughter Sophie and Why You Should All Follow Her and/or Marry Her.” (pg. 171)</div></blockquote><blockquote>But all that time staring at the wall gave me lots of time to think, mostly about Archer. I’d seen the look on his face right after the explosion had gone off. He’d been scared. Shocked, even, and not in the “whoops, my assassination didn’t go off as planned” way. (pg. 240)</blockquote><blockquote>This may sound weird, but the first thing I thought as I watched that ten-foot-tall bronze lady plummet toward my face was, “Well, at least that can’t kill me.” (pg. 298)</blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>Demonglass was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">better</i> than Hex Hall. I can’t say that for many second books in a series, but I can definitely say that for this one. I was so absorbed into the story—my goodness, it was addicting! The action was kicked up a couple of notches and it was definitely a bit scarier than Hex Hall. It made me laugh, it made me hopeful, it was filled with surprises and tons of suspense, and it made me angry at the ending. I seriously want book 3 right now! :( *stares at Rachel with puppy dog eyes*</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #b45f06;">Rating</span>: 5/5</span></div><br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">Want to see what I thought of Hex Hall (Book One)? Find out <a href="http://frazzledbooknommer.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-hex-hall-by-rachel-hawkins.html">HERE</a>.<br />
<span style="font-size: 8pt;">**I received this ARC from <a href="http://aten-ra.blogspot.com/">Different Area Codes Book Tours</a></span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-31587572537923361502010-12-29T00:27:00.000-08:002010-12-29T02:58:23.427-08:00Review: The Candidates by Inara Scott<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1273094630l/7245329.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1273094630l/7245329.jpg" width="209" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">The Candidates</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Author</span>: Inara Scott</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Publisher</span>: Hyperion</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Series</span>: Delcroix Academy #1</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Pages</span>: 293</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Genre</span>: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">Release Date</span>: August 24, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ffcc00;">How Received</span>: Won</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">Summary</span>: </span>Dancia Lewis is far from popular. And that’s not just because of her average grades or her less-than-glamorous wardrobe. In fact, Dancia’s mediocrity is a welcome cover for her secret: whenever she sees a person threatening someone she cares about, things just... <i>happen</i>. Cars skid. Structures collapse. Usually someone gets hurt. So Dancia does everything possible to avoid getting close to anyone, believing this way she can suppress her powers and keep them hidden.<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But when recruiters from the prestigious Delcroix Academy show up in her living room to offer her a full scholarship, Dacnia’s days of living under the radar may be over. Only, Delcroix is a school for diplomats’ kids and child geniuses—not B students with uncontrollable telekinetic tendencies. So why are the treating Dancia like she’s special? Even the hottest guy on campus seems to be going out of his way to make Dancia feel welcome.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">And then there’s her mysterious new friend Jack, who can’t stay out of trouble. He suspects something dangerous is going on at the Academy and wants Dancia to help him figure out what. But Dancia isn’t convinced. She hopes that maybe the recruiters know more about her “gift” than they’re letting on. Maybe they can help her understand how to use it... But not even Dancia could have imagined what awaits her behind the gates of Delcroix Academy.</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">My Thoughts</span>:</span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The Candidates starts off very slowly, despite the fact that it starts at the beginning of all the “action”. The very first chapter involves Dancia’s recruitment into Delcroix Academy, but it spreads off into five more chapters and sort of dragged on. That’s sort of how the entire novel played out, actually. There was no real action, besides the end, and the book mostly involved Dancia dealing with the way Cam makes her feel. In fact, the summary says that Delcroix involves humans with supernatural abilities but... it isn’t really like that, at all. The supernatural side doesn’t even get a chance to come out and play until the end. We didn’t even read about the classes – I think there were like, two genuine classroom scenes. It was all just about Dancia stressing over romance. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">For the first half of the book, we’re left in total suspense. We have no idea what’s going on, and besides Jack’s suspicions, Inara gives us no bones – we’re just left guessing. Nothing’s explained. But then, at the end, we receive this onslaught of information all at once and it becomes overwhelming. I suppose that’s what irked me, too: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">why</i> would all of this information be revealed to Dancia? Even if she was going to join them, I’d expect more resistance on the groups’ part. Or more secrecy. But nope, once “the cat was out of the bag”, everything just spilled out all at once. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I started out being indifferent to Dancia. She’s just average – average grades, looks, thoughts, etc. She blends into the background, and it worked so well that she didn’t stand out for me, either. She self-isolates her from her peers from fear of hurting someone and has no thoughts of her own. While that was great and all, her self-isolation made her making friends hardly believable. So yeah, I was indifferent to Dancia at first.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">then</i> she pissed me off. I can appreciate Dancia swooning over an older guy (even though it was sort of gag-worthy since I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">did not</i> like Cam whatsoever) and even ditching her friends for that reason. I mean, a lot of teenage girls do it, right? A 14 year old won’t suddenly become immune to an older guy giving her attention. But when she starts ignoring, and even avoiding, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">one </i>true friend that she’s made at Delcroix, the one who has helped her since the beginning and makes her feel like she belongs and truly understands the way she feels about everything, just because of said older guy, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">then </i>I get pissed off. Sure, she’s a teenager and I shouldn’t be so critical, but she treated Jack like absolute <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">crap</i>. He was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">always</i> there for her and remained loyal to her, even if she kept treating him unjustly. When Jack needed Dancia, she would always back away; when Dancia needed Jack, he was always there for her. What crap. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Actually, I take that back. Dancia treats <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">all</i> of her friends like absolute crap. Jack just gets the most crap from her because Cam tells her to stay away from Jack. I mean, she bags on her two “best friends” whenever they do something she doesn’t like. She hates “Perfect Girl” Allie for no reason. I get that teenagers can be very judgmental, but hating people who try to help you and people who have absolutely no reason for you to hate them? Ugh. Jack had it right when he finally got mad at Dancia’s stupidity: she’s definitely “deaf, dumb, and blind.” </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Cam rubbed me the wrong way. Seriously. While Dancia thought he was swoon-worthy and a great guy, I just thought he was slimy. I didn’t like him, nor did I trust him. Dancia has proved time and time again that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">she is freaking stupid</i>, and for her to wholeheartedly trust Cam after he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lied</i> to her over and over just exemplifies Dancia’s stupidity. I don’t even think he truly likes her. He can say whatever he wants and smooth talk her over, or whatever, but I doubt I will ever trust Cam. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Jack was this novel’s saving point. He was such an interesting character that had so much depth in him. Not only has he been in a gang and has been homeless, but he was abandoned by his own parents. And he’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">still</i> going. I would have given up by that point. But Jack is strong, if only sad and lonely. He’s so sweet and caring, and he knows how to turn up the charm with Grandma! He’s also troubled with inner demons, has fears of being followed, and has suspicions galore. But he’s still a great friend, always there for Dancia whenever she needs him no matter how shitty she’s treated him. (Can you tell I’m “Team Jack”?)</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>Pretty. :) Very eye catching in a bookstore. xP <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">At that moment, all I could think of were those cartoons where Goofy gets stuck in front of a snowball rolling down a hill, and the snowball hits him, and he’s smushed into the side of it, and you can see him spread-eagled on the snowball as it keeps rolling down the hill.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Because that’s exactly what I felt like. (pg. 17)</div></blockquote><blockquote>Life was changing. I wasn’t sure where it was taking me, but I had a feeling things would never be the same. (pg. 89)</blockquote><blockquote>I blinked and tried to focus on what he had just said. My heart slowed abruptly. Apparently he hadn’t pulled me aside to ask me to be his one true love. (pg. 96)</blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Did you move up here with your mother?” Grandma asked.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I threw her a black look. Didn’t she know it was rude to bring up such personal issues in the Walmart checkout line? (pg. 151)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Jack was powerful, even I could see that. He could be dangerous. There might even have been a little evil in him.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">But isn’t that true of all of us? (pg. 292)</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>I liked this book, but there were also a lot of things I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">didn’t</i> like about this book (the main character being one of them). It was very slow-paced and dealt with Dancia’s feelings over Cam more than anything else, and didn’t really deal with “magical abilities” like the jacket said it would. Cam, the main love interest, rubbed me the wrong way – I totally thought he was slimy from the very moment he was introduced. Jack was the novel’s saving point and was one of the only characters that had more than one dimension to him. I do want to see where the story progresses, naturally, but the book wasn’t as addicting as I thought it would be.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #c11b17;">Rating</span>: 3.5/5</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 8pt;">**This review was submitted in the <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/2009/11/2010-debut-author-challenge-information.html">2010 Debut Author Challenge</a>!</span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-46772907788989293892010-12-28T00:01:00.000-08:002010-12-28T11:18:25.661-08:00Review: Paranormalcy by Kiersten White<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cindypon.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/paranormalcy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://cindypon.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/paranormalcy1.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Paranormalcy</span><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Author</span>: Kiersten White</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Publisher</span>: HarperTeen</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Series</span>: Paranormalcy #1</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Pages</span>: 335</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Genre</span>: Paranormal</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Release Date</span>: August 31, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">How Received</span>: Won</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Summary</span>: </span>Weird as it is working for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, Evie’s always thought of herself as normal. Sure, her best friend is a mermaid, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she’s falling for a shape-shifter, and she’s the only person who can see through paranormals’ glamours, but still. Normal.<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Only now paranormals are dying, and Evie’s dreams are filled with haunting voices and mysterious prophecies. She soon realizes that there may be a link between her abilities and the sudden rash of deaths. Not only that, but she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">So much for normal.</div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">My. Bleeping. Goodness. Those three words were pretty much all I could think of while I was reading. It was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that </i>good. I had been apprehensive about listening to all of the hype around Paranormalcy, and I’m <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mad</i> that I waited until now to read it. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Paranormalcy has such a unique take on paranormals. There are paranormal beings that follow the general “guidelines” that we all know – vampires that drink blood, werewolves that become wolves during the full moon – but Kiersten makes them her own. Each paranormal has the ability to glamour themselves to humans, and each species had little distinctions that made them unique to “normal” paranormal mythology. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Evie was honestly one of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the</i> most enjoyable characters I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. She reminded me a bit of Sophie from Hex Hall and Rose from Vampire Academy mashed together. She’s witty, she’s snarky, she has attitude, and she carries around a badass pink taser. But she’s also extremely sheltered, innocent, lonely, and has insecurities. There are so many dimensions to Evie’s personality that I think I could keep writing a few more paragraphs just about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">her.</i> She’s so dynamic and extremely vibrant. In a huge, “underground” paranormal world, Evie is definitely <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> normal and yearns to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">be</i> normal. Evie was such a teenager: it was almost endearing to listen to her caring more about her favorite TV show and wearing pink clothing than tagging paranormals. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I freaking loved Lend. It was hard to not love Lend. He reminded me of your typical paranormal-next-door. At the beginning, he carries a lot of intrigue because we don’t know who this person is. We don’t know his powers or what he does. But as the story progresses, little bits and pieces of Lend come peeking through his “mask” as Evie and him become closer together. And that was probably the best part about Paranormalcy: Evie and Lend get to know each other before they even come close to being in a relationship. Whenever Lend got nervous around Evie, I would squeal like a little girl. It was so cute. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The pacing was great. I ended up finishing this book in a little under 5 hours (with distractions) – I was that hooked! The plot was so unique. Humans that try to control paranormals by “tagging” them? A girl who can see through the paranormals’ glamour? Mass-murders from a seemingly unknown source? Combine that altogether, along with kick ass characters, and you have a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">great</i> story, which is exactly what Paranormalcy was. Paranormalcy only touches the edges of the world Kiersten has developed – there is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">lot</i> more to the world and I really wanted to find out more about it. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Just trust me when I say this: Paranormalcy is bleeping awesome! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>Uhm. Gorgeous. I love that the cover is an example of what Evie wears to the prom. I didn’t realize it until the end, but still.. very pretty. <3 </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"></div><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“If you fail to report within the next twelve hours, you will be terminated. If you attack any humans, you will be terminated. If you attempt to remove the tracking device, you will be terminated. We look forward to working with you.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I always thought that last line was a nice touch. (pg. 4)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“You’re IPCA?” one of the vamps asked. The others were shifting nervously in place.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Yes. I’m going to have to ask you to line up for tagging.” I waited for them to start laughing. (pg. 52)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“You aren’t going to kill us?” the speaker asked, giving me a suspicious look.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Why does everyone keep asking me that?” Seriously, did I look like some sort of psycho assassin? Maybe it was the pink sneakers. Or the heart earrings? (pg. 52)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“You’ll come back, right?”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Sure. You’re the coolest person here.” He started to smile, so I shook my head, putting on a mock-serious face. “Don’t be flattered—most of your competition is undead.” (pg. 92)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I sighed heavily. “Gosh, now I don’t even feel like watching another episode of <i>Easton Heights</i>.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Lend put his arm around me and patted my shoulder. “At least there’s one good thing to come of all this, then.” (pg 126)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“We’ll talk about it later, okay? I’ve got a date to get ready for.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“It’s gonna take you three hours to get ready?”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“I don’t know. My date’s pretty freaking hot—I’d better look good.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">He laughed, letting go of me and climbing off the bed. “Yeah, mine too. Maybe I should change?” He shimmered, switching to blond hair and blue eyes. “What do you think? Does this face make me look fat?” (pg. 267)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">We sat down and Lend put his arm around me. Every single jaw at the table dropped.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Man,” John said, shaking his head. “All this time I was pretty sure you were gay.”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I batted my eyes innocently. “I’m sorry, John. Are you disappointed?” Everyone laughed, and John grinned.</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Maybe a little,” he answered, scooting into Lend’s free side to cuddle up. (pg. 271-272)</div></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">“Lend!” I burst through his door. He looked up, surprised. Still in basketball shorts and a plain T-shirt, he was lying on his stomach on the bed, sketching. I stopped and frowned. “Aren’t you going to get ready?”</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">He laughed. “Remove clothes, put on tux. Should take all of two minutes. You look hot though.” (pg. 299)</div></blockquote><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>I haven’t been so pleased with a novel in a while, which is why Paranormalcy was such a great read. I was so engaged in the book that I whizzed through it within a few hours. Evie was a strong, sassy female lead, while Lend was more mellow and laid-back. Their personalities contrasted well with each other, and their developing romance was such a pleasure to experience. The plot was unique (and coming from a huge paranormal genre for books, that’s saying a lot!) and interesting and... Just. Gah. This book was so addicting. I highly, highly recommend it!</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #ff99ff;">Rating</span>: 5/5</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 8pt;">**This review was submitted in the <a href="http://www.thestorysiren.com/2009/11/2010-debut-author-challenge-information.html">2010 Debut Author Challenge</a>!</span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1535745233097612547.post-17992668058684717732010-12-27T20:30:00.000-08:002010-12-27T20:30:10.993-08:00Review: Muscle Bound by David Marlow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1286225259l/9456722.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1286225259l/9456722.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Muscle Bound</span></b><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Author: David Marlow</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Publisher: iUniverse</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Series: N/A</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Pages: 350</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Genre: Fiction</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Release Date: January 30, 2008</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">How Received: Publisher</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle"><blockquote><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Summary</span>: </span>Unlike so many of his gay buddies, Chase Hyde had no plans to settle down. A self-acknowledged “roamosexual,” his foremost objection was that having a partner would take him off the market. So even if love was never in the air, lust was always just around the corner.<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Chase expected to continue his carefree lifestyle until, through a correspondence in cyberspace, he met Hunter Row, an up-and-coming Madison Avenue advertising executive and fellow bodybuilder who, unlike Chase, pined for a monogamous, long-term relationship.</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Driven by their shared passion for muscle, the two men form a powerful connection and jump into an intense, long-distance love affair. Neither Chase nor Hunter can imagine the twists of fate that await in Muscle Bound, a passionate tale set against the turbulent and perpetual pursuit of sexual conquest.</div></div></blockquote></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">My Thoughts</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">I think I should start off by mentioning that this book has <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a lot of erotica</i>. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A lot</i>. In between the back story would be wedged numerous sexual encounters between Chase and his “love” interests. Normally, I wouldn’t mind a few scenes here and there, but the thing with the sex scenes in this book was that they were <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">blunt</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">vulgar</i>. None of that “fading to darkness” stuff or toned down stuff (like "manhood", etc) – it takes you for the entire ride, very matter-of-factly. I had no idea you could say... certain words in so many different ways. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">This book also deals with homosexuality. Chase, our MC, is a homosexual body builder and he enjoys hooking up with a lot of other muscular men. However, while the book has homosexuality in it, it doesn’t really <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">deal</i> with the emotions and uncertainty of homosexuality. The only time it did so was when one of Chase’s interests was questioning his sexuality – but Chase never dealt with it. He was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">certain</i> of who he was and how he got there. Rather, the book focuses on the gay relationships revolving around the world of body building. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">All of the characters were... interesting, to say the least. I couldn’t connect with most of them (most of them were obsessed with steroids and body building) on a basic level, but if you looked past their body building obsession, there are real emotions underneath. I enjoyed reading about Chase’s sexcapades and the diverse range of guys he chose to be involved with. Half of the time, the book almost felt like a drama or soap opera. (ex. Chase being involved, and loving, a married man who swore he was straight but loved Chase, also). There were so many issues and drama that could be applied to my own relationships, so I was able to connect with Chase through that outlet. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">The book is divided into four different sections, named The Roamosexual Agenda, True Jock, Pumping Irony, and Muscle Bound. Each respective section deals with Chase in different areas of his life. The first is when he meets Hunter and starts a relationship with him. The second is with his sex partner turned close friend/brother, Kutchie. The third, and arguably largest section in the book, was with Christian, a married man who was Chase’s boyfriend. And the last is Chase and Hunter again. The way the book was cut up into sections was... I’ll leave it with the word “confusing”. Basically, the first book and the last book are about Chase’s relationship with Hunter. The second and third books are Chase’s backstory, giving an example of what or who shaped Chase to be the person he was today. While back stories are great, the third book was a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">huge</i> chunk of the entire book. By the time we got back to Hunter and Chase in the fourth book, I had stopped being giddy about their romance and rather just felt sad about what happened between Chase and Christian. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">But despite all that, the writing was superb. I loved the way David wrote. His prose wasn’t the best I’ve read, by far, but you could tell he had a handle on the English language and he used a lot of huge vocabulary that made my inner geek really happy. I wasn’t too crazy about the alternating POVs in the same chapter. Or, heck, I would have been fine with it if it had just been two central characters, but almost every supporting character had a few sentences for their own perspective. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Going beyond the erotica, homosexuality, and confusion, Muscle Bound is a book about love, really. Well, okay, not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just</i> about love, but rather about how many different events can shape you to be who you are. Chase’s love life was a predominant aspect in the entire book, making him hopeful, crushed, and even bitter. Deep down, he didn’t know <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">how</i> to love because he was always so guarded and refused to submit to the idea of love. But taking chances, opening yourself up to hurt, is what life is all about. At least, that’s what I got out of it before the fourth book. Once the fourth book rolled around, that message pretty much went out the window. To be honest, I’m a little pissed at the ending and how Chase handled Hunter and Christian. The ending is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">definitely</i> not happy and ended quite abruptly. </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Cover Musings</span>: </span>I don’t really like it at all. There are a lot of other muscle building images that could have been used – perhaps a body builder at Venice Beach, or at least in LA? <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Memorable Quotes</span>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">Okay, so, I normally do memorable quotes. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">However</i>, when I went back through my notes for all the memorable quotes I wrote, they were all... er... Rated R. Or wouldn’t make sense out of context (like “the 51<sup>st</sup> state”). So I decided to omit quotes for this review. Sorry guys! </div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Overall Thoughts/Final Comments</span>: </span>I surprisingly had a lot of fun reading this book. It almost felt like a drama, with all of the troubles Chase had to suffer with his relationships. The writing was awesome, and I loved David’s use of vocabulary! I kind of wish we had a more conclusive ending, because I absolutely hated the ending. I kind of wanted Chase to have a happily ever after, not a sad ending. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">Rating</span>: 3/5<o:p></o:p></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;">**This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. (Thank you, Jason!)</span></div>Kristina Barnes♥http://www.blogger.com/profile/08979145078007906681noreply@blogger.com3