The Craftiness of a Poetic Mind

6th Tetrahedral Number

2012-01-01T00:53:00.000-05:00

The new year began exactly 20 minutes ago. Hello 2012! We actually stayed up until midnight... that never happens. Of course, we didn't actually watch anything that rang in the new year, instead my husband was watching an online show he likes and I was reading my last book of the year... and happily... I completed it.
My 56th and last book of the year was Crossed by Ally Condie. This is the second book in the Matched series. I loved Matched and could not wait for the second book to come out. Crossed was good but not as good as Matched. I love Condie's ideas and the way she writes them out, she is an excellent story teller. I find it very interesting and almost prophetic how she has created a future world that almost brings us back to how it was in the beginning... people have fallen so far into a tech based world that they no longer know how to write, and those that have decided to rebel and move out of the society have taught themselves how to write, draw and paint... on cave walls. I can't help to wonder if that is where our society is headed. Don't get me wrong... I love technology, I spend tons of time on my computer, my i-pod is a necessity and my nook is my new favorite toy... but there is nothing like holding a real printed book in your hands and there are times that I just feel like writing so badly that I grab a pen and journal and write down whatever I am thinking or lists just so I can feel the pen in my hand and the way it glides across the paper. Words are magical and being able to bring them to life on a piece of paper is even better. It just isn't the same when I type them out on a keyboard. It feels less personal. A handwritten letter holds love and thought, a typed letter is very cold and too professional (which is great if you are writing a letter to a business or congressman).
I'm very excited to start my books for 2012 and have decided to start off with a list of books in alphabetical order, I have already picked out a lot of the books I will be reading. I will also continue with my debut author each month and the remaining books will be free choice. I may not go all the way through the alphabet right away... I may take a break every now and then for a debut author or for a free choice book I just can't wait to read... so if it seems, at times, that I just don't know my ABC's... do not fear... I know them.

1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10=?

2011-12-27T00:37:00.000-05:00

The book I finished reading tonight brings my number for 2011 up to 55 which beats out last year. Of course there is still 5 days left before the end of the year so I should be able to bring my number up to 56. Fallen by Lauren Kate seemed slow moving at first but I believe that was a result of loving the last book so much. I couldn't stop thinking about it at first. I was very close to giving up on Fallen but I held in there figuring my theory was correct... and it was. Once I managed to get my mind past Shattered Souls I was able to really get into Fallen. Once that happened, I didn't want to stop reading and even now I wish I were still reading it. Another story about fallen angels and again so much different from the others I have read this year. It seems that authors have a greater variation in theories regarding fallen angels then they do with most other paranormal creatures.

Rubik's

2011-12-27T00:21:00.000-05:00

The next book brought me to a tie with last year's book count... number 54. Shattered Souls by Mary Lindsay was my debut author for December and was another book I could not put down and could not stop thinking about. Any story that contains past lives and destined love always captivates me and the paranormal aspects of this story made it even more interesting. I believe in past lives and I believe I have lived many. The idea that two souls continually meet up over centuries and centuries of lives and always fall in love... ahh so romantic. This book better come with a sequel or I will be very sad.

Iodine

2011-12-27T00:16:00.000-05:00

Book number 53 was an actual print book that has been sitting on my shelves for at least 2 years. I have too many books and so not enough time to read them all... so as tempted as I am to keep downloading new books on my Nook and read them... I really have to start making a dent in my book shelves. hush, hush by Becca Fitzpatrick was a very very good book. I love novels about fallen angels... they are probably the most mysterious creatures in the paranormal genre. I cannot wait to continue reading this series.
As you can see I made it past 52 books this year.

Untouchable Number

2011-12-27T00:11:00.000-05:00

I have fallen way behind on blogging my books. I now have 4 books to write about and have begun reading a 5th, that shouldn't take me too long to read. The first book I have to blog about is my 52nd book and I read it in under 24 hours. Revealers by Amanda Marrone was impossible to put down. I enjoyed every second of it. She brought all new theories to the idea of witch novels. I only wish she was planning a series based on the book. Knowing there would be no more was very upsetting.

14th Lucky Number

2011-12-06T07:37:00.000-05:00

Finished reading another book in the Morganville series, Kiss of Death. This is probably one of my favorite Morganville books, since the group is able to leave Morganville, it opens up a bunch of new possibilities for the story and the author took full advantage. Who knew these people would get themselves into so much trouble after leaving vampire central and entering the "real world". But boy did they. I can't wait to see what happens next because there is so much Rachel Caine can do with this.

1 Sacred Talent

2011-12-06T07:31:00.000-05:00

Book number 50 was my debut author for November, Shatter Me by Tamereh Mafi. Everything about this book was original and very interesting. She took two of my favorite YA genres and put them together: dystopian and supernatural, what more could a girl ask for? Loved the characters, loved the story line, loved the ending. Now I just can't wait for the second one to come out.

7x7

2011-11-27T19:20:00.000-05:00

Just finished off the Wake trilogy a few days ago. I enjoyed the series very much but I felt the last book Gone was a bit bland and weak. I'm happy that she kind of left Janie's story open by saying that she had made her choice "for now" but the rest of the story could have been stronger... like the first two books.

Abundant

2011-11-22T09:38:00.000-05:00

Book number 48 was Fade, the second book in the Wake trilogy by Lisa McMann. I read Wake a while back and kept pushing the next two books aside because I kept thinking it wasn't that great and didn't need to be continued just yet. Turns out I had it confused with another series. Now that I fully remember the first book and have completed the second I realize that it is an awesome series. Very different from what I usually read and very emotional (or maybe that's just me... everything makes me cry lately). Can't wait to finish up the trilogy but also very sad that there are only 3 books.

"It's me, Sugar"

2011-11-22T09:33:00.000-05:00

Once again I am falling behind... not only with reading but with blogging about it. I finished book #47 last week and just completed book #48 today. Oops... well my 47th book was Crave by Melissa Darnell. Not much to say, it wasn't a life changing book but it is definitely going to be a great series and I am hooked. Cannot wait to see what happens next.

Ultimate Annus Confusionus

2011-11-01T12:54:00.000-04:00

Book number 46 was another book from the Morganville Vampires series. I took a break from them for a little while so I could catch up on other books and also so I would still have something to look forward to from one of my favorite authors. Rachel Caine has continued to keep the series fresh and exciting even after 7 books. And now there are a total of 12 Morganville books available... I hope she has continued to keep them at the same level. It is very easy for books in a very long series to start going down hill and I think it really shows how good of a writer an author is if they can continue a series for a long time and never lose the interest of the readers. I'm still hooked and can't wait to read book 8.

3rd Kaprekar Number

2011-11-01T12:49:00.000-04:00

I have been really bad with my book blogging lately. I completed my 45th book probably about 2 weeks ago but it was such a forgettable book that I keep forgetting to review it. Witch Eyes by Scott Tracey wasn't exactly a bad book but it just couldn't hold my attention for long periods of time. It was very easy to put down and didn't have me craving for more. I love the fact that the author allowed his teen hero to be homosexual... there are not enough young adult authors out there who go there, and there needs to be more of them. I feel like if he had just been a little more out there with his plots and had a little more action, he could have had a very good book.

.44 Magnun

2011-10-06T12:32:00.000-04:00

My 44th book was very unplanned. I took my husband to the Museum of the Moving Image for his birthday and while we were there we had to stop in the gift store. I really wanted to get something good as a memory but all the books were too expensive and I could always find them cheaper else where so I kept looking... then I found the most hysterical book and by some miracle it wasn't marked up 100%... in fact it was at the normal retail price. So I had to get it. It is written by the author of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. The title of the book is How to Survive a Horror Movie and it is the funniest thing I have read in a long time. I started to read it the second we got in the car to drive back home and was halfway through by the time we pulled up at our house.
The forward by Wes Craven is the perfect opening and every chapter after it leaves you wanting more. It's cliched, and expected but that's what makes it hilarious. If you are looking for a light, quick read that will keep you in stitches this is the book for you, even if you are not a horror movie fan.

12th Lucky Number

2011-09-21T07:19:00.000-04:00

I just completed the Skinned trilogy by Robin Wasserman. All three books were good but the third, Wired, was the best, which is very unusual. Typically, in my experience, a series will start out strong but will often fade a bit the further into it you get. I enjoyed both Skinned and Crashed very much but they were a bit bland and boring. There didn't seem to be too much going on in them but Wired was action packed and interesting all the way through. There were several large twists to the story that I never saw coming and a couple of other small twists that I had seen coming but that fit the story real well and helped to tie in some loose ends. I never imagined it ending the way it did and I applaud the author for giving it an ending that is both happy and not at the same time. Definitely a series worth picking up and finishing.

Shi Ni

2011-09-08T13:13:00.000-04:00

My debut author for August (yes I know I'm a bit late), is Julia Mayer and her book Eyes in the Mirror. I am very pleased with my recent book choices, they have all been so different from what I typically end up reading.
This book was a mixture of two of my favorite genres in YA: teen problems and fantasy. Both genres were present but Eyes in the Mirror was more of a teen problems novel than fantasy fiction. The fantasy part of the book showed up in the form of an alternate reality, through the looking glass sort of idea, add in teen pregnancy, losing a parent at a young age and self mutilation and, believe it or not, what you end up with is a very interesting story.

Jupiter Symphony

2011-09-03T09:27:00.000-04:00

Another day, another book. Now that I have completed The Secret Circle series I am even more excited to see the TV show. I was able to guess a couple of things in the books but there are quite a few things that I feel LJ Smith left unfinished. I'm hoping the rumors that she will be continuing to write more books for the series are true because I want to see if my unanswered theories are correct. I do believe that the TV show will go in the direction I thought the books would go and I can't wait to see. But mostly I just can't wait to learn more about these characters and follow them through their adventures again.

Got Milk?

2011-09-01T17:45:00.000-04:00

Book number forty is done. LJ Smith is still one of my favorite authors. Her writing isn't spectacular or extremely unusual but her story lines are very interesting and I enjoy reading her books. She's good at appealing to the teenager that is still inside me. The friendships and other relationships (whether good or bad) are all well developed and easily relate-able, doesn't matter that they are witches, vampires, other paranormals or just human. I'm excited to finish up the third book in the series and of course I cannot wait to see what they have done with the TV series (I may have said that in my last post). I really hope the rumor of her writing more sequels is true.

Duodecillion

2011-08-29T10:20:00.000-04:00

Another book down. The Secret Circle series wasn't on my "to be read list" for this year, though I have had the books for a while now, they weren't top priority. Then the CW decided to turn them into a tv series so they had to move up on my list. I just completed the first book in the series, The Initiation. I enjoy LJ Smith's writing very much. Her books are interesting but are also kind of laid back, they are rather quick reads and are very difficult to put down. She always manages to create a great relationship behind all of the supernatural goings on. Can't wait to finish up the books and then see what the TV producers do with the series.

Magic Hexagon

2011-08-29T10:12:00.000-04:00

I finished two books recently, both of which i forgot to blog about. I just finished the blog for one and now I am on to the next. The Maze Runner by James Dashner was a wonderfully original and disturbing dystopian. I enjoy young adult books, especially these days... authors of ya fiction are not afraid to be more out there. They don't pussyfoot around the weird and scary things, they boldly go places that YA authors have always been too afraid to go to. The world is realizing that kids are no longer as naive as they used to be. Though I enjoy their creativity and their ability to throw away the "rules" and take literature to new extremes, sometimes I am taken aback by where they are willing to take their fabricated worlds. James Dashner's writing reminds me very much of The Hunger Games. Both stories have extra shock factor by making a large amount of the characters so young. These two authors have thrown children into situations you could never imagine going through as an adult, things that are cruel and very unusual. Luckily... I enjoy disturbing books. I read so much that I often am unable to be shocked by anything, I love when an author is able to surprise me and throw me off course. I am very excited to continue the James Dashner series.

Four Corners of the World

2011-08-25T10:26:00.000-04:00

There is only one author who can take a zombie apocalypse and turn it into a beautiful expression of what humans fear and desire most in the world. Carrie Ryan is exquisite, she has created a trilogy of some of the most unbelievable literature. The characters are all full of life and are so real even though they are living in a very unreal world. Each of the three books had it's own lesson or meaning...the first, The Forest of Hands and Teeth, symbolized wanting more, not being happy with what we have and always thinking there is something better out there. Every person goes through this at some point in their life. The second book, The Dead Tossed Waves, was the realization that the choices we made were not the right ones, regretting what we gave up because what we thought we wanted, did not turn out to be all that we dreamed it would. And finally the last book, The Dark and Hollow Places, is the proof that once we figure out what we want, we should go for it and fight for it until the end. It is the realization that survival is no longer enough, we need love and family in order to make our existence worth anything.

The Devil's Roulette

2011-07-30T23:21:00.000-04:00

I have been reading dystopian after dystopian lately. They all have slight similarities and many, many disturbing ideas in them. Though none of them have enough similarities to be able to actually compare to each other, apples and oranges. Delirium by Lauren Oliver is my most recent read and dystopian. Of all the books I have been reading this one seems closest to our world today and yet is the most unsettling. Try imagining a world where love, happiness, feeling emotions of any kind is considered to be a disease, a deformity, something needing medical attention. And it has even been given a name... Amor Deliria Nervosa. These faults have become so feared by this society that when you turn 18 you actually have to go through the procedure, which is basically a lobotomy... they remove the ability for you to ever feel any great emotion... no chance of falling in love, of enjoying hobbies, of feeling depressed or sad, life becomes an emotionless zombie-walk. And of course the people have become so brain-washed that they believe in the procedure and feel that life is better afterward. Until you have been "Cured" you live separately from the opposite sex, except for family and the occasional cured adult you happen to pass during daily life. Before you are "Cured" you will go through an evaluation that will determine your possible future, whether you are destined for college or to be married right away, what jobs you could potentially have, four matches of the opposite sex that you have to rate in order from 1 to 4 according to who you wish to end up with and finally you will be told the amount of kids you are allowed to have, if any. Life is determined for you in a way that makes you think you get at least small amount of a say. Of course, all the history, rules and safety for the city is all in a handbook and is fondly known as the Book of Shh. And of course there is a world outside of civilization known as the Wilds... this is where the invalids live... an invalid is anyone who managed to get away without being cured.
I love that the author has added quotes and paragraphs from the Book of Shh. It makes it come to life more and is quite sickening at times...
This is a Nursery Rhyme that is in the Book of Shh:

Mama mama help me get home
I'm out in the woods, I am out on my own
I found me a werewolf, a nasty old mutt
It showed me it's teeth and went straight for my guy

Mama, mama help me get home
I'm out in the woods, I am out on my own
I was stopped by a vampire, a rotting old wreck
It showed me it's teeth, and went straight for my neck

Mama, mama, put me to bed
I won't make it home, I'm already half dead
I met an ivalid, and fell for his art
He showed me his smile, and went straight for my heart.

Here are a few quotes from the Book of Shh that really got to me:

"Human being, in their natural state, are unpredictable, erratic, and unhappy. It is only once their animal instincts are controlled that they can be responsible, dependable, and content"

"There has been significant debate in the scientific community about whether desire is a symptom of a system infected with amor deliria nervosa, or a precondition of the disease itself. It is unanimously agreed however, that love and desire enjoy a symbiotic relationship, meaning that one cannot exist without the other. Desire is enemy to contentment; desire is illness, a feverish brain. Who can be considered healthy who wants? The very word want suggests a lack, an impoverishment, and that is what desire is: an impoverishment of the brain, a flaw, a mistake. Fortunately, that can now be corrected."

"Humans, unregulated, are cruel and capricious; violent and selfish; miserable and quarrelsome. It is only after their instincts and basic emotions have been controlled that they can be happy, generous and good."

"Of all the systems of the body- neurological, cognitive, special, sensory- the cardiological system is the most sensitive and easily disturbed. The role of society must be to shelter these systems from infection and decay, or else the future of the human race is at stake. Like a summer fruit that is protected from insect invasion, bruising, and rot by the whole mechanism of modern farming; so must we protect the heart."

Samuel Beckett's Breath

2011-07-15T15:35:00.000-04:00

I finished my 35th book yesterday, it was my debut author for July, Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz. I wish I had it in me to write something today but I'm beyond depressed over something I have to do later so it's just not happening. But I will say that I did enjoy this book very much. I wish it was the type of thing that could turn into a series but the author tied everything in so well, I just can't see how she could create something else with it. Slightly reminiscent of the story line in Blue Bloods (minus the vamps).

Don't Drag Your Butt Over This Document

2011-07-09T14:25:00.000-04:00

My debut author for June was a little late, but worth the wait. Hereafter was a beautiful love story between a dead girl and a live boy. Of course there were a lot of paranormal factors involved and was not completely about their relationship. I can't wait for the next book in this series to come out. Hopefully I will have more energy and time after reading the second one so I will be able to give it a review that it deserves.

10th Lucky Number

2011-06-28T08:03:00.000-04:00

I finally finished reading the second book in Michael Grant's Gone series. The series is interesting, very different and all in all a good story but for some reason these books take me forever to read. As much as I want to see what happens next, I find them very easy to put down. Sometimes I find that the author has gone one step too far, he takes them to a place that isn't believable even in a fantasy world. I will definitely finish the series but I need a break from them for now.

Frozen Water

2011-06-08T16:58:00.000-04:00

Book 32 was yet another dystopian. The idea for this book was much different than any other book I have read. It has a very "Lord of the Flies" feel to it. A bunch of kids stuck in a world with no adults (actually no one over the age of 14) and needing to run their community. One half of the kids are trying desperately just to survive and do it as dignified as possible and the other half wants domination, they never want the adults to come back and they want to rule the others with an iron fist (or cement). The twist of the story comes in the form of supernatural powers and of course the reason why the adults are all gone. Now as each of the children reach their 15th birthday they need to use all the strength they have to resist the possibility of blinking out. Like they don't have enough to worry about already. Oh wait... there are also all of the evolving animals: talking coyotes, flying snakes, and seagulls with talons. And who can forget... The Darkness... no one has really figured out just what the Darkness is yet but it can't be good. If they weren't being held in by a large dome-like barrier that electrocutes anyone who touches it perhaps they would be able to escape this new world, The FAYZ.
It seems as though the author has thrown together a large amount of crazy factors into a very large book, seems as though it could get tedious and a bit silly but it doesn't. Michael Grant put it all together very well and it flows nicely. The plots are interesting, the characters are very well developed and it becomes difficult to put the book down once you get going.

3rd Mersenne Prime

2011-05-28T21:42:00.001-04:00

Feed is certainly not your typical dystopic novel. It's hysterical, serious, alarming, sad... altogether a satirical masterpiece. MT Anderson has put together a scary theory of what our world is coming to and he has you laughing the whole way through. When you begin the book, the language is shallow and unintelligent and almost forces you to quit reading but it quickly becomes obvious that Anderson is trying to prove a very real point. The world is becoming dumb. We all live in our little media driven, electronically created bubbles that have allowed us to forget what learning is. Our minds don't need to retain information since computers hold all the knowledge of the world. Reading and writing are practically myths and an extensive vocabulary is a thing of the past. Every other word used is "Like" or "dude", even coming from the mouth of an adult. Anderson makes a great show of how easily we can become tied up in slang by using random, everyday words with definitions we are not accustomed to. The internet and technology are literally eating away at us, leaving us motionless and faceless consumers. It all comes down to what we buy and how much we spend. Things that once belonged to the people are now trademarked by large corporations (i.e. School™, Clouds™).

Lunar Month

2011-05-24T09:52:00.001-04:00

I could not have chosen a better time to read this book... or a worse. It's a great time because of the cliche I was able to use for book number 30. On the other hand... seeing as last weekend was supposed to be the beginning of the end of the world and we've had nothing but monsoon-like weather for over a week... it was a very bad time to read this book.
I have been reading a lot of very scary, disturbing dystopians lately. But none has been as scary as this one. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer is the most realistic book I have read recently. Maybe the idea of a meteor being able to knock the moon off it's axis is ridiculous but... maybe it isn't... who knows what could happen in this world. And of course the tsunami's, storms, volcano's and other natural disasters that occurred are not very far from all the crazy stuff that has been going on in the world today. When I started the book, it seemed very young and immature, then by the end of the second chapter I was hysterically crying. For a while it was a bit boring and slow moving but there is only so much you can write with this kind of a story, and even while it was slow, it was still completely devastating and far too easy to place yourself into the plot. As I reached Winter, I realized that the author started the book out sounding so young on purpose, she wanted to show how much Miranda was forced to grow due to the circumstances.
Despite the fact that it was slow moving, it was a very exceptional book. I'm not sure my emotions can handle reading the next book in the series right now, so I think I will try another for now and come back to it later.

Alice Marvels is hosting an amazing book giveaway...http://www.alicemarvels.com/spring-giveaway

Floccinaucinihilipilification

2011-05-17T09:30:00.001-04:00

I'm still trying to process my 29th book. I know I loved this book and I know it will go down as one of my all time favorites, but I cannot put my thoughts together to describe it. I should have known from the beginning that would love because every time I would see something about it, I would pass it by. It didn't appeal to me at first, second, third.... glance. I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover but I always do, and I am almost always right. I can just about always tell if I will enjoy a book by looking at it's cover. But there are times when I have been wrong... I passed Twilight up for a year before giving in and buying it and then it sat on my shelf, unread, for a few more months. It still hadn't become the crazy obsession around the world, when I first read it, but it did become an obsession for me. I'm sure there have been others as well, but none stick out in my mind. Divergent didn't seem like something I wanted to read. I hadn't even read the description on the book before deciding to push it aside. Then one day I was going through my list of debut authors to read this year (I do one for each month) and decided my May book didn't sound exciting enough so I started looking at others and I realized that Divergent was definitely the book I wanted to read in May.

It was more than I thought it would be, and written by a 22 year old, unbelievable! It reminded me of a mix of The Giver, The Hunger Games, Matched, and Harry Potter (except instead of houses in a school, people are sorted into factions). The whole point of the story is that people are forced to choose one faction, one way of life, one basic personality characteristic... when in reality, all 5 factions are inside each person. Everyone is Divergent but have had it drilled into them everyday since birth that you can only be one. I have fully fallen in love with both Tris and Tobias. Wishing I could be like Tris and wishing I could be with Tobias. Every character had it's own personality, no one blended into the scenery, not even the characters who wanted to.
Through every chapter my stomach was in my throat, not only during the action packed scenes but also every time Tris and Tobias got close to each other. It was very hard to put this book down.

Reading over what I just wrote I realize it does the book no justice. I still can't seem to process my thoughts on this book. There is no word on when the next book will be coming out, not even a title to it yet. But it has been optioned for a movie, I hope they make it well.

Domino Effect

2011-05-13T14:23:00.000-04:00

I was a bit disappointed by Token of Darkness by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. It didn't live up to her typical standard of writing. One thing I always loved about her YA books, is that her writing was never young, everything she has published has been so beautifully written and easily enjoyed by adults and young adults both. This book just felt very immature. The idea was interesting but also too complex, it was hard to really put any sense to what happened. Good fiction is when the unbelievable becomes believable.
This is not only my 28th book of the year but also from my Whats in A Name challenge, filling the spot of A Book With Some Type of Evil in the title.

Three Cubed

2011-05-10T09:47:00.001-04:00

Another dystopian, another potential future to contemplate. It's always been said that one day the world will be run by computers and robots. Robin Wasserman's series brings that theory to a fictional reality. Yes, I realize the term 'fictional reality' is nothing but an oxymoron but so are the main characters in Crashed, living machines. Could something like this be in store for us one day. Actual immortality, downloaded again and again into different bodies, unable to ever actually "die", but forever being made up of nothing more than wires, mechanics and synflesh. Could we ever really be content to not feel, to only process? No longer any need for food, heat, plumbing, electricity is only necessary to recharge your "body". I must admit the idea of being able to fall asleep with just the push of a button is very tempting, especially on nights when I lay awake listening to my husband and dog snore while I stare at the ceiling. But the idea of no longer being able to really feel the soft fur on my dogs back or the passion of a long kiss from the man I love, those are things I don't believe I could live without.
This series is very well written and interesting but it is a bit slow moving and because of that the books are taking me a little longer to read than I would like. I think I'll read something else before I move onto the final book in the trilogy.

TB Conspiracy

2011-05-04T11:41:00.000-04:00

I find it interesting that this book came out around the same time that Bin Laden was finally killed and that I happened to be reading it on the day I found out. Memento Nora is about the world after 9/11. It should not have taken me this long to read a book with only 184 pages but I have been real busy.
After the attack on the WTC, more and more attacks kept occurring, creating an America where things are much more controlled and monitored by the government. The biggest change in the country is the addition of TFC, Therapeutic Forgetting Clinics, where people are urged to visit after any kind of disturbing or traumatizing event so they can take a little white pill and forget the bad memories and go back to being "glossy". Gives a whole new meaning to the "morning-after pill". Though it isn't mandatory to forget, it is greatly recommended especially since there are bombs going off all over the place. Of course there is a bit of a twist, something that is being hidden, the real reason the government wants you to forget, but isn't there always?
I have to admit.. I'm a sucker for a happy ending, but in some stories a happy ending would only ruin the point that the author is trying to convey. The ending in Memento Nora is necessary for the story to have the effect it is intended to have. The only thing I was unhappy with while reading this book is that the author made it so short... I feel like there is so much more she could have done with it.
Angie Smibert is another of my debut authors of 2011.
This book only confirmed my current fear... that this is only the beginning. Most people seem to feel as though the death of Osama is the end of a terrible thing, when in truth, it is just the beginning of a string of more terrible things to come. There are a lot of terrorists out there that are going to want justice for their leader's death and they aren't going to take it lightly. Now is the time to fear.

Silver Jubilee

2011-04-29T23:30:00.000-04:00

Switching from a book like The Dead Tossed Waves to a book like Born at Midnight is not an easy transition. Carrie Ryan writes so eloquently, the language flows and everything she writes just sounds beautiful. CC Hunter wrote a book that is much more of a teen YA novel. Don't get me wrong, I loved Born at Midnight, it was just difficult to move from one to the other so quickly. At first I was worried that Born at Midnight was going to be a teenie bopper book but it didn't take long to realize that it wasn't. It reminded me of the Percy Jackson series a bit, but came into it's own very quickly and turned out to be pretty original. One thing CC Hunter is very good at is leaving off on a note that drives you crazy... I cannot believe where she ended this book.... and now I have to wait until October to see what happened... Argh!
This book was my March debut author... had a little trouble ordering the book which is why I read it so late.
Just went on to my nook to see if I could pre-order the next book and instead I found a short novella the author wrote about one of the characters... and it was free. I love my nook!!

4 factorial

2011-04-25T13:20:00.000-04:00

When I saw that the second book in Carrie Ryan's trilogy was about Mary's daughter as opposed to a continuation of her own story... I was worried I wouldn't enjoy it. I was very wrong to worry... The Dead Tossed Waves was even better than The Forest of Hands and Teeth. Though the main story is about Gabry, you do eventually learn about what happened to Mary and her friends after the first book ended. Mary is still as selfish, in this book, as she was in the first one. Everything she does is for herself or to make herself feel better. Gabry believes she is as selfish as her mother but I don't believe that. She may have made some bad decisions but not all of them were to benefit herself. She really did try to help her friends and correct her mistakes. Once again we see a love triangle among the lead characters, but Carrie Ryan was able to make it a completely different triangle... often authors make the books in their series far too similar and it becomes redundant. Nothing about this story was anything like the first one or anything else I have ever read. It was fresh, new and captured me fully in the first chapter.

23 is a happy number

2011-04-20T14:26:00.000-04:00

Imagine being in a car accident, feeling all the pain that disaster can bring, feeling as if you have died and then waking up to find out that you are now inside a machine. The machine looks and sounds nothing at all like you used to. There is nothing left of your old self except some downloaded memories and history. Your body is gone, your voice is gone, your ability to eat, drink, use the bathroom, breath and feel... all gone. Your family did this to you because they couldn't bear to say goodbye to you and now none of them are happy with the decision they made. They start to realize that you, the machine, is not actually you. Maybe if it hadn't been an emergency and the bio-techs were able to create a machine that looked and sounded just like the old you, maybe then, people would accept "you" as you. Maybe they would want you around, your boyfriend wouldn't have broken your heart, your sister would still love you, your dad wouldn't cry and pray and your life would be the same. But it's not... your life is not what it used to be. Your friends are not your friends anymore. And you finally realize that there is no way you can continue to be around without accidentally hurting everyone you love. ... So... what now?
Guess I have to read CRASHED to find out.
SKINNED is a book I will never forget, and I hope the rest of the series is just as good.

Catch 22

2011-04-12T07:49:00.000-04:00

Besides being book #22 Boys That Bite is also one of my "Whats in a Name?" books, it is serving as my "book with a life stage in the title". When I finish a good book I tend to feel slightly depressed because it is over. In this case, I'm happy the book is over but trying to write this review is depressing me.
I have been wanting to read this series for a while... we all know I love vampires. I honestly can't find a good way to ease into my opinion of this book and there is only one word I can even think of using to describe it... LAME, LAME, LAME (I know that seemed like 3 words but it's all the same word, so we're good). The part of this book I enjoyed was in the end when Magnus and Sunny were in England. Then the very end became ridiculous again.
When I first started reading the House of Night books I was disappointed and didn't think I was going to continue the series, it started out somewhat like this book. I felt it was immature and very teenie bopper. I read the first two books of that series and then threw in the towel for about a year when I decided to try again and the books got better and better and I started to love the series. I don't think it will go like that with this series, I can't see them becoming any better.

Lucky Number 21

2011-04-09T01:14:00.000-04:00

Starting the final book of the Dark Guardians series, I was a bit thrown by how the story was playing out. Each book in the series is in the POV of a different female character, since we had already heard from each of the lead female characters the author decided to introduce someone new. I was worried I wouldn't enjoy it because she wasn't someone I was already invested in. Then it seemed as though the author had taken small aspects of two other series to create the plot line and I wasn't sure how I felt about that since the other three books had all been very original. Hawthorne had, until the 4th book, created her own shifter world. And the last thing that made me hesitant with the book was the plot related to Daniel. There were several different ways I could see her going with it and I was afraid it was going to end up being very silly. Once it became obvious to me that Hawthorne hadn't done something ridiculous with Daniels character, I realized just how much I was enjoying the book. The other parts that seemed unoriginal had begun to grow into their own ideas and I had grown to love the new female lead. By the end of the book, not only was I overwhelmed with emotion but I was devastated to see it all end.
The first book Moonlight was excellent but could have been just a single novel since it did not end in any kind of cliffhanger, but I could have read an entire series based just on Kayla and Lucas and been just as satisfied. The second book Full Moon, although it was very good, it felt as though it was a rewrite of the first book with different names put in. But it also ended in a cliff hanger that made me really want to see what would happen next. The third book, Dark of the Moon was awesome. There was such a different feel and idea than the other books. And finally, the last book, Shadow of the Moon, though it seemed disappointing at first, it became something wonderful. All in all... I loved this series!!

Hindsight is 20/20

2011-04-07T09:06:00.000-04:00

It's been a few books since the cliche actually described the book. This cliche thing turned out to be harder than I thought it would be.

I just finished the third book in the Dark Guardians series, Dark of the Moon. Being about werewolves/shifters, I was instantly drawn to these books when I saw them. I kept putting off reading them because I didn't really think they would be as good as they turned out to be. I read each of the first two in less than 24 hours and this one I read in less than 21 hours. They are a bit shorter than books I typically read which makes them a quick read but they are also written so well that I can never put them down. Rachel Hawthorne really understands what girls like to read about. No matter how much you love the fantasy/sci fi factors... its the relationships that help to keep us interested once we are drawn in. And the relationships that she has created are intense and everything a girl dreams about having herself. Can't wait to read the conclusion to the series.

19 eighty four

2011-04-06T14:15:00.000-04:00

Dystopian novels have been around since the 1930's. Nineteen eighty-four is not the first one ever written but is definitely one of the most well know and remembered. Coining terms such as "big brother". Matched by Ally Condie is a book that I believe will, one day, be as well remembered and feared as Nineteen eighty-four. We all know now, that a future such as the one written by George Orwell has not occurred... yet, but there is always another future awaiting us and always new possibilities for that future.
Through history, many different types of civilizations and governments have existed, some have controlled their people and some have allowed their people to be "free". It may seem that we have grown as a species and have become more autonomous but it may not last, it probably won't last. One day our world may be just like the one Condie created in Matched. I for one hope I am not around when that happens. I never want to live in a world where the ability to create has been abolished, where you don't get to choose where you live and what you do for a living, meals are sent to your house, friends are not allowed inside your dwelling and you can't even run in public... but most of all, I never want to live in a world where you can't even choose who you spend the rest of your life with.
During the first half of the book I was wishing there was a little more emotion and intensity but once Cassia's love interest started to build, I realized that Condie had saved the passion for just that. She was able to make even the smallest signs of affection feel like the most lascivious scene ever written. Every time the couple held hands or looked at each other, I would get chills. I can't wait to see where that passion leads them and if their love will be strong enough to take down the Society.

18 to life

2011-04-03T15:21:00.000-04:00

I was a bit disappointed in this book. I think after being disappointed in the first book in this series that I was hoping it would get better. Having expectations was not a good idea when starting this book. Valiant by Holly Black is the second book in the Modern Tale of Faerie trilogy. To me it was just a book about a bunch of homeless drug addict teens. The fantasy aspects of the book were lost. I also felt as though it wasn't a continuation of the first book... besides mentioning a couple of the faeries from the first book and then a quick glimpse of them in the end, it seemed like it could be a novel separate from the trilogy. From reading the back of the third book, it looks as though it is about the characters from the first book... which is just too silly if you ask me.
This was the last book I needed for my 2nd in a series challenge.

Seventeen Ain't So Sweet

2011-03-25T23:42:00.000-04:00

Seventeen ain't so sweet if you are living in the year 2025. When a person turns 17, it is by law that they must get the bar code tattoo on their wrist. What is presented to the people of America as just a means of identification, currency and basic medical history, the bar code tattoo is actually so much more and for most it is the end of their life. The first book was the build up of the world Suzanne Weyn was trying to bring across. The second book was the culmination of all the information given in the first one. Quite a bit of the second book was predictable but still interesting. Until it all of a sudden takes a very weird turn, one that I felt was reaching just a little too far. The ending was severely disappointing. It was too easy, everything the characters had been through and the fact that the word rebellion was in the title just made the finish line fall short. It was like listening to a very long, drawn out joke that has great potential and then hearing the punch line that turns out to be really silly. It made me wonder... what was the point? What a waste of time it turned out to be. The saddest part is that I really thought I was going to love this book.

Sweet Sixteen

2011-03-22T09:06:00.000-04:00

Dystopian novels have always been a favorite of mine. There's nothing like a frightening future to make you realize that your life isn't as bad as you thought... or to scare you shit-less when you think of whats to come. When I decided to read Bar Code Tattoo, I think I was expecting something a bit more intense, something perhaps written like The Hunger Games. However, what I did get was a book that is a little more tame, not quite as suspenseful and slightly slower moving but the reality is that a book like Bar Code Tattoo is far more frightening than The Hunger Games because there is a better chance of it becoming our true future. It's hard to imagine that The Hunger Games could ever actually occur. When you think about both books it seems that our world may be leading toward a world like the one Suzanne Weyn created. Weyn didn't change our world all that much to get to her world, in fact she allowed something from her own life to initiate the idea.

15 Minutes of Fame

2011-03-18T13:41:00.000-04:00

These books are not exactly something spectacular but I am very into them. So far they have both been quick, easy reads. The characters are well developed and interesting. One thing that bugged me while reading the second book was that it didn't seem the author was always very original with her descriptions, each time she would describe a feeling or emotion she would use the exact same words she used in the first book. I'm very happy that she left the second book off on a bit of a cliff hanger because the first book could have been a single novel without a sequel. Also switching the narrator of the story in the second book kept throwing me off a bit, I kept thinking it was Kayla speaking when it was really Lindsey.

Once Upon a Fortnight

2011-03-16T14:04:00.000-04:00

I haven't read a book that is solely about werewolves in a long time. If it starts out about werewolves... vampires always come into play at some point. Or the book is about vampires and werewolves come into play eventually. Or there is, of course, the book about all things supernatural. I bought this series a while ago but hadn't gotten a chance to read them. Now that I have completed the first one... I really just want to continue on with the next one. And if I weren't ahead on my reading challenge I probably would ignore the desire to continue the series for now... but I am ahead and I can't wait to see what happens next.
There isn't much to discuss about this book, it's a pretty straight forward "supernatural being meets other supernatural being who doesn't know what she is and they fall in love" kind of thing... but its more than love, its fate. Being a woman, fate is always a desirable part of any book, even if there is nothing sci fi about it. I just happen to prefer when there is something sci fi about it.

This book is number 14 of 52 and number 3 of my first in a series challenge. Which means I have completed that part of my challenges.

Baker's Dozen

2011-03-14T13:34:00.000-04:00

It is getting harder and harder to find cliche's using the number of books I am up to. I may not be able to continue with that idea too much longer.

My 13th book is also the 2nd book in my "First in a Series" challenge. White Cat by Holly Black is the first book in the Curse Workers series. I was relieved to read something so different for a change. Don't get me wrong, I love my typical vampire, werewolf, faerie, and fairy tales retold books but it's rare to find one that isn't some how similar to another one. This book had a fresh idea completely unrelated to the usual paranormal/supernatural theories (at least one that I haven't heard before). The only problem was the plot line was very predictable. There was never any suspense because you could pretty much see where it was going right away.

12 Steps to Recovery

2011-03-04T22:08:00.001-05:00

Unfortunately there aren't 12 easy steps to recovery when you are talking about being a mermaid stuck as a human. Midnight Pearls was about just that. I love fairy tales retold and Midnight Pearls did not disappoint. Debbie Viguie managed to tell the story of The Little Mermaid in a somewhat new way, without losing the romance and basic idea behind the original. In the case of Adrianna/Pearl, she did not choose to walk among the humans but was kidnapped by the Sea Witch and forced to become human as an attempt to hurt her family. She grows up as a "normal" peasant girl after a fisherman finds her and he and his wife adopt her as their own. She is an ethereal beauty unlike any other human, which of course in a world like ours, makes her an outcast.
I know the ending was meant to be a happy one but I, being the pessimist that I am, felt it was a very selfish decision on Pearl's part. I was hoping she would really end up loving James and stay with him.
This was another book from my "Whats in a name challenge" filling the spot for a book with a jewel in the title.

The 11th Hour

2011-03-02T00:20:00.000-05:00

Wake by Lisa McMann reads very much like a police report. The writing is very concise and to the point. Not a lot of flashiness, which actually made it a very quick and easy read. Despite the ease at which this book flows, it is not lacking in imagination and creativity. I enjoyed it very much and it was a big relief after the last book I read, which took me over a week to finish. It took me less than 24 hours to complete Wake.
Though Lisa McMann doesn't go crazy with long, drawn out descriptions... she did manage to create characters that are well developed and who you can feel connected to. Throughout the story, I experienced Janie's pain, I experienced the love she felt for Cabel and the love he felt for her and I wanted desperately to see them end up together. I have had this book on my shelf for a while now, just haven't gotten around to it. For some reason I thought it was on my list for my reading challenges but I was incorrect and have once again read a free choice book. I'm going to be done with the free choice books before I know it if I am not careful.

The Road to Hell is Paved with Good InTENtions

2011-02-28T23:18:00.000-05:00

Through out this book I kept thinking to myself..."I want to like it, I really want to like it". And it's really not so much that I disliked the book but that it was very slow and at times a bit boring. It was the kind of story I would have loved as a movie... I enjoy movies that are philosophical, slow moving and very meaningful. The idea of So Shelly was brilliant but the execution could have been a bit better. It wasn't until the last few chapters that I found it difficult to put the book down.
This story is being told by a teenager, John Keats and it is his manuscript of his life as it correlated with the lives of two other teens, Shelly and Gordon. If you haven't figured it out yet... this is a re-telling of the lives of John Keats, Percy Shelley, and Lord Byron but in a modern setting. Again, as I said, brilliant idea. I have always loved poetry so I already knew quite a bit about these three famous writers but this book really brought out the dysfuntionality (I know that's not a word... but I really think it should be) of these characters. And no matter what Keats says... it really did make sense.

You really just have to read it... and to convince you further, this is what is on the back of the book:

"I can guarantee you this:

unless you learn

to wrap you brain

around the fact

that you

are eventually

going to die,

you'll never

wrap your arms

around

the less

certain

fact that

you are

currently living."

Nine day wonder

2011-02-17T00:01:00.000-05:00

There were times while I was reading Carpe Corpus, the 6th book in the Morganville Vampires Series by Rachel Caine, that I thought it was going to be a disappointment, nothing but a nine day wonder. I felt some of the beginning was just parts of one of the previous novels in the series. But once again Caine managed to keep me interested and aching for more.
There was one very upsetting let down in the book, though. I waited for six books to finally see Claire and Shane "get physical" and it felt like a total rip off. She left out all of the good stuff... I mean come on now, throw a girl a bone (no pun intended). It was awful waiting for it to happen, almost as if I was Claire, myself. I mean, I understood the whole "she was sixteen and underage" thing, but hello... she's seventeen now, no more children in the room... make it a good scene. Don't get me wrong, I loved all the naivety and longing you feel as a young adult and being able to relive it when I'm reading but... well... hopefully she will open up in that department later in the series.

Wound up tighter than an eight day clock...

2011-02-12T00:03:00.000-05:00

... That's exactly how you feel once you get to the end of this stunning novel. Cynthia Hand is my debut author for January. (I know I am a bit late with it but I wasn't able to get the book until after January.) And even though this is Hand's first published book... she is anything but amateur. She created a world of teenagers that are without angst but filled with maturity and personality. You not only love these characters, they become your friends. You find yourself grinning at their consistencies and saying "that's just like ______ to do that." As if you know each of them personally. At times you forget there is anything supernatural about the book and at others you can't imagine there being anything "normal" about it. Hand's use of angel mythology is brilliant. And her writing is breathtaking. The love that she creates is so intense you will find yourself welled up with tears, flooded by lust and torn up inside completely during each romantic scene. Hand managed to convey a very spiritual feeling without bombarding you with religion. She kept it neutral, any person, no matter their beliefs, could read and enjoy this book. The emotions I felt during Unearthly reminded me very much of reading A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb. These are the types of books that change my mind in small ways. Broadening my thinking. Making me feel things I have not felt in a long time.

I was able to guess a few of the plot lines as I went along but not because she was predictable but because that was how I wanted the story to go. There are a few other ideas I have for the next books and I am going to be very impatient while waiting for them. Although I am happy to hear that this will be a trilogy, I am also disappointed because the idea of waiting for more is unbearable. It would almost be easier for it to just be over now.

Seven Year Itch

2011-02-07T14:38:00.000-05:00

I started reading this book, Deadly Little Secret, hoping for a really excellent story, but ended up with a cheap knock off. Instantly the book strongly resembled both Twilight and The Vampire Diaries. A couple of chapters in and I was ready to put it down and call it quits but instead it became a game. As I continued to read I stopped to write down every similarity in the book.
Chapter one was almost identical to Chapter 3 of Twilight... come on now, almost hit by a car in the school parking lot and saved by a mysterious guy who came out of no where.
The next chapter was a diary entry written by a guy about the girl he is pining for and how he wishes he could just get closer to her (Vamp Diaries).
In chapter four they introduce the main girl, Camelia's, best friend who has a short black pixie hair cut (much like Alice). Camelia than sees the new mysterious guy, Ben, in the cafeteria where he deliberately ignores her. (Twilight) And, in chapter four they also introduce, Matt, Camelia's longtime friend turned boyfriend turned ex-boyfriend... who is now jealous of the new guy (Vamp. Diaries).
A few more chapters in, Camelia is in Chem Lab and Ben comes in and guess who his lab partner ends up being. At this point there is a lot of awkwardness between the two at their table and at one point he bolts out of the room when the bell rings, just to get away from her. Their second day in lab Camelia mentions how, all of a sudden, Ben's skin looks darker than it did the day before (Edward's eyes after he has "eaten").
Ben is not actually a vampire in this series, but he is able to see the past, the future and feel people's emotions and such by touching them (not much different from both Edward's and Alice's gifts in Twilight).
A bit later in the book it finally starts to become it's own story and has the potential to be a pretty interesting book. I could have actually enjoyed it if the author hadn't ruined it so badly from the very beginning.
As the book finally became something worth finishing... the author decided to make the last chapter a little too much like New Moon. Ben leaves Camelia because it would be best for her in the long run.
I almost forgot the most pathetic thing... she throws in a very intense scene where Camelia is trying to teach Ben how to use a pottery wheel... Seriously? Did the author really think she could pull off a scene like in Ghost? She was sadly mistaken.
Now the big question of the day is.... Do I continue with the rest of the series? Should I attempt to see if the author ever figures out her own writing or at the very least, read the rest of the series to see how much more she can mess it up? Or should I just throw in the towel on this series and just leave it as a failed attempt that is not worth continuing with?

This book was not only number 7 out of 52 but also fulfilled a book in the "What's in a Name" challenge. I used this as my book with a size in the title. Unfortunately, this Deadly Little Secret would have been better left untold.

Ages ago, I read Laurie Faria Stolarz's book Blue is for Nightmares. I loved that book and couldn't wait to read the rest of the series. I went out and bought the other books as soon as possible. I attempted to read the second in the series White is for Magic, and was very disappointed. It was almost exactly like the first book just with very slight differences. Makes me wonder if she is able to write anything original... maybe Blue is for Nightmares was her one hit wonder.

Six of one, half dozen of another

2011-02-02T23:25:00.000-05:00

It was difficult getting into this book after reading something as eloquently written as The Forest of Hands and Teeth. Eventually I was able to enjoy the story line and continue reading. The story is very reminiscent of Supernatural.
The author's use of cliches throughout the book was exorbitant, not to mention trite. There is nothing original about a cliche. A weak author uses cliches, a great author composes statements that become cliches. I realize that the author was trying to create a certain personality for the main character but every time she spouted out a new cliche it just caused me to dislike her. Although the author risked the loss of imagination by reciting so many over used sayings, she made up for it wholly with her novel concepts and interesting usage of very old and traditional folk lore & legends. It was slow starting but once Strange Angels got moving, I really got into it and couldn't put it down.

Fifth Wheel

2011-01-26T22:01:00.000-05:00

I finished reading my fifth book yesterday just as my plane was landing on my way home from Kansas. Since I started it a day before my departure, I wasn't able to read it as quickly as I would have liked. This is also the first book I am reading towards my dystopian challenge. When I began reading all I could think about was the movie The Village. In fact, I wasn't sure I was going to be able to finish it because the similarities were really bothering me. A little bit into the book it really did come into it's own. The ideas became original and I started to see that it probably would not end as the movie had.
The Forest of Hands and Teeth was the kind of book where my attention was held by the story lines and not the characters. None of the characters were extraordinary, especially Mary, I kept forgetting her name. At times I felt she was selfish and in ways that weren't worth it. She had two men, great men, that would do anything for her and she couldn't even bring herself to notice that. I'm not saying it is bad to keep reaching for more but sometimes you need to see the things you already have and be grateful for them. I find it funny that Travis had told her he was sorry for being selfish by loving her so much since I saw her as the selfish one.Though at the end she found exactly what she had been longing for, I can't help but worry about how unhappy she will be in the next book seeing as she lost everyone who mattered a long the way. The loss of Travis is very unsettling since he was my favorite character and the one I hoped to hear more about.

I Am Number Four... no wait, that was the last book.

2011-01-19T22:15:00.000-05:00

I just completed book number 4 of my 2011 reading challenge. This one was considered one of my free choices as it doesn't fall into any of the categories of my challenge. Lord of Misrule by Rachel Caine is the 5th book in the Morganville Vampires series. This series has not lost it's appeal to me yet and I don't think it will. The author has kept up her standard of writing and continues to shock and excite me. I'm still in love with Shane's character, still invested in all of the characters lives as well.
For whatever reason, I know this sounds odd, but I have always had a tough time reading mass market books. I don't know if it's because there are so many words crammed onto very little pages or something else, but since as long as I can remember I have had trouble reading them. I always prefer to buy hardcovers or regular paperback books. I have found recently that I can push myself to read them but mostly only if I am already in love with a series or really really want to read the book in question. This series is hard to find in regular paperback now and seeing as the next omnibus isn't out until March, I picked up the mass markets so I could continue reading them. It did take me a little while to get moving into the book but once I really fell into the world of Morganville, I was fine.
Funny thing about these books is that I actually have scary vampire dreams while reading them. I have never had frightening dreams about vampires no matter what books I am reading at the time. Whenever a bloodsucker is in my dreams at night, I always wake up with a smile on my face. (Yes I know I am a bizarre person). For some reason these books bring me to a mindset where vampires are dangerous. Hmm Go figure. I should probably read a book that is on one of my challenge lists next. Even though I would love to make sure my Shane is ok. Harumph!

Third Time's a Charm

2011-01-12T21:53:00.000-05:00

In this case, third book's a charm. I actually learned of the book I Am Number Four on a facebook ad. It popped up in my side bar saying something a long the lines of... fans of the Hunger Games will love... or If you enjoyed the Hunger Games and wish there were more... I don't know what I actually expected the book to be about. Besides reading the back of the book, I didn't really research its contents too much. I just picked it up at the book store one day and bought it. I'm a sucker for ads. I never realized it was about aliens. I enjoyed reading something a little bit different for a change. I haven't read an alien novel in a while. The writing was a bit like the Hunger Games but the story was nothing like it at all. The author kept me enthralled throughout and I had a hard time putting it down. I love the detail put into it, he really paints a picture of what Lorien looked like and really brought each character to life. They all had their own personality and stuck out strongly among each other, no one blended in or was lost. Even the bad guys were unique, described like nothing I have read before. Every so often I had the feeling like I had read this book before but I realized it was a bit similar to Stephenie Meyer's The Host. But not enough to make me feel as though the author didn't have his own ideas.
Beside being the third book in my 52 books challenge it also covers the first book in my "whats in a name challenge". I need to read book with a number in the name. Now I have.

Two for the money...

2011-01-09T21:09:00.000-05:00

Book number two for 2011 is done. Besides being book number 2 of 52, it is also the first book in my Seconds Challenge. Watching the Roses is the second book in the Egerton Hall series. The first book is titled The Tower Room and I read it back in 2008. Each of the books in this trilogy is a fairytale retold revolving around 3 best friends living in the 1960's who met at their boarding school in England. The first book is a retelling of Rapunzel and stars the one friend, Megan. This second book is Sleeping Beauty and is about Alice.
About halfway through the book, you find out that it is about rape. Alice has many Aunts and on the day of her birth each Aunt gives her the gift of a wish each holds for her life and future. The outcast Aunt puts a curse on her that says she will die by her 18th birthday. In an attempt to squelch this curse, one of other aunts wishes for her to have a long life. Because of the curse, Alice and her family decide to have a large party for her 18th birthday as opposed to waiting for her 21st both in an attempt to show they are strong against the curse and to be sure she gets to celebrate just in case. At the party Alice is raped by someone from her past. After this she goes into a semi-catatonic state. When people are around she lays in bed unmoving, eyes closed and silent. When no one is nearby she eats just enough to sustain her, takes quick trips to the bathroom, writes in a book and looks out the window at her dad's roses. She refuses to look in the mirror, knowing that she must not look like her. The book is basically her writing in a notebook about the events that led up to the party and the incident at the party. Every so often she writes about a different type of rose, its name, what it looks like and where it is in their yard. (I enjoy weird little facts like these so I loved each time she would describe a rose).
This book is only 174 pages and could be read in one sitting. I didn't have the time to do this and I have to say that it made it difficult to read. It is the type of book that you need to read almost straight through to get the full feeling behind it. Reading in small bits whenever you have time makes it seem inconsequential. Once I had the time to sit and really fall into it I was able to see the significance of it and really feel the pain and suffering that Alice and her family were going through.

The One, The Only...

2011-01-05T23:29:00.000-05:00

My first book of the year was a "non-scheduled" book, basically because I began it before I decided to do all the mini challenges this year. It was a Blue Bloods novel, book #4, The Van Alen Legacy. This book was difficult to follow because it was so long ago since I read the first three books in the series that I forgot most of what happened. I kept having to look up the details online when I would get confused. Once I caught myself up on all the previous plots, I was able to keep up pretty well with the storyline. But every so often things became so detailed and extensive that it was confusing. I felt like the author was pushing too hard to make it interesting. I was enjoying it more during the simpler explanations. Another thing I noticed was many influences from other novels... and at times the "influences" were exact ideas that I had read in other books. It seemed like she was trying to piece together other popular YA Sci-fi books in order to make her book like-able. The funny thing was that she had some pretty original ideas in the beginning of the series and was actually creating a pretty interesting world. I will continue with the series at some point because I am interested in seeing what happens to everyone but I am going to read a couple of my scheduled books before I read any more unscheduled ones.
One thing I will say is that this book in the series finally made me like Mimi. She became more real and less of a bitch. The author really allowed the reader to get to know Mimi on deeper level in this book. We go to see a softer side of her and in the end you really do feel bad for the way things ended for her.
In 31 minutes it will be my birthday so i should probably go get some beauty rest and hope that it helps to keep me from looking as old as I feel.

2011, another new year, many new books

2011-01-03T07:54:00.007-05:00

Starting off another year. Don't know how it's possible that a whole year has passed since I started this blog. This year I am going to continue doing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge (52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge). But I have decided to spice it up a bit by participating in several other challenges that will all blend into the 52 in 52. Here are the other challenges I am going to do this year:

The Debut Author Challenge. I will read 12 books by debut authors. Should be fun. I probably read that many debut authors a year anyway.This is where you can find the challenge: The Story Siren.

The Dystopian Challenge, I will read 15 Dystopian novels. There are different levels to this challenge, I will be doing the Contagion (15 books). This challenge can be found Here
These are the books I have chosen: along with some alternatives if needed

Matched by Ally Condie
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Skinned by Robin Wasserman
Crashed by Robin Wasserman
Wired by Robin Wasserman
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Bar Code Tattoo by Suzanne Weyn
Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer
This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Feed by MT Anderson
The Bar Code Rebellion by Suzanne Weyn
Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
Gone by Michael Grant
Hunger by Michael Grant

These are my alternatives:

Never Let me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
Unwind by Neal Schusterman
The Sky Inside by Clare B Dunkle
The Shadow Children Sequence by Margaret Peterson Haddix
The Secret Under My Skin by Janet Elizabeth McNaughton

1st in a series Challenge: I have chosen the lowest level on this challenge so I will leave myself room for none scheduled books: Series Novice, 3 books that are the first in a series. Here is the link to this challenge.
Here are the books I have Chosen for this as well as a few alternatives:

White Cat (Curse Workers) by Holly Black
Moonlight (Dark Guardian) by Rachel Hawthorne
Strange Angels (Strange Angels) by Lili St. Crow

Alternatives

Bloodlust (Vampire Beach) by Alex Duval
Cycler by Lauren McLaughlin
A Taint in the Blood (Shadowspawn) by SM Sterling

Seconds Challenge: With this challenge I must choose books that are the second in a series or second book I have read by that author. I have again chosen the lowest level because I don't want to fill up all my spaces I will be doing Just a spoonful, 3 books. The link is here.
The books I will read plus alternatives

Valiant (Modern Tale of Faerie book 2) by Holly Black
Full Moon (Dark Guardian) by Rachel Hawthorne
Watching the Roses (Egerton Hall book 2) by Adele Geras

Alternatives

Blue Moon (Immortals book 2) by Alyson Noel
Rise of the Evening Star (Fablehaven Book 2) by Brandon Mull
Seeing Redd (Looking Glass Wars Book 2) by Frank Beddor

What's in a Name Challenge: This challenge has 6 different categories and you must read one book in each category. Here is the Link The Categories are :

A book with a number in the title: I Am Number Four, Less Than Zero, 33 Snowfish
A book with jewelry or a gem in the title: Midnight Pearls,
A book with a size in the title: Deadly Little Secret
A book with travel or movement in the title: The Journey (Ga'Hoole),
A book with evil in the title: Token of Darkness,
A book with a life stage in the title Ghostgirl, Nice Girls Don't have Fangs, Boys that Bite

All of the small challenges I have chosen to do add up to 39 books which leaves me a total of 13 books that I can choose at random. Last year when I did the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge I was not structured at all... I just chose my books as I would finish them. It should be interesting doing this by a list. Looking forward to a Stimulating year.

I know I know... always a vampire novel (#54)

2010-12-29T22:14:00.000-05:00

I finished yet another book before the year is up. This one was very special because it was not only a Christmas gift from my husband but it was also personalized. The book is titled Vampire Kisses and my husband and I were the stars of the book. Also in the book was my close friend, Michele and my cat, Peanut Butter. Because the company who makes the book only asked for one pets name, my husband used our dogs name when asked for a restaurant name... McFly's.
Though it was a lot of fun reading a book that I was in, it was a bit corny. I found it hard to picture my husband as the main character because he didn't have nearly the same personality. The Michael in the book was way too old fashioned to be my husband and also... way to suave. The main character... me... was easily believable because, not only did she look like me but she was a book worm who spent most of her time at the library reading and studying. Michele is nothing like the character that was portrayed in the book, except that she was a really good friend. I felt like they were always trying to show off the fact that it was personalized by constantly saying what each character looked like every time they mentioned them. Regretfully there were no real good love scenes or "vampire" scenes. I did enjoy reading it because I had really wanted it mostly for the novelty of it. (Though the picture above is a paperback.. my husband got me the hardcover)

Another day, another vampire novel (#53)

2010-12-27T23:09:00.000-05:00

The Morganville Vampires series just gets more and more intriguing as it goes on. I finished the fourth book, Feast of Fools and I really want to continue on to the fifth but the next omnibus doesn't come out until March... so now I have to decide whether I will wait or if I will just buy the next few books separately. Decisions, decisions. But I know that it will be way too hard to wait so the decision should be easy enough... I'll end up buying the next books now.
Seeing as the year is not up yet, I have managed to read one extra book so far and will probably be able to finish at least one more before January first. My goal from now on is to read 52+ books every year. 52 will be my minimum and with any luck I will be able to complete more than that.
Right now I am reading a personalized vampire novel my husband had made for me for Christmas. In the book I am a human and my husband's character is the very pale skinned, mystery man that I am drawn to. One of my cats is in the book as well as my best friend. My husband also used my dogs name when asked for the name of a restaurant. Its quite humerus reading about myself in a fictional setting.

Book 52 of 52

2010-12-21T12:30:00.000-05:00

I completed the challenge... and may even be able to squeeze a couple more books in. I am very proud of myself right now. I had so much going on this year with work, school, interning and life. But even with all of that happening I managed to complete the challenge. I will definitely do this every year now, trying to get more books in each year. If I am able to do this... I may actually make a dent in the books I own. Sometimes I wish I could just quit work, quit school and just sit home and read 24 hours a day. Especially since it seems there will always be more books that I want to read than actual time to read them in.
I have now read the first three books in the Morganville Vampires series. I am very invested in these books now. They are a bit short compared to what I usually read but Caine doesn't allow that to get in the way of creating exciting, emotion filled books. She manages to write thoroughly without making the readers feel like there is just too much going on in a small amount of time. That seems to be the issue a lot of the time when authors write shorter novels. In an attempt to add all the details they have thought of, the book becomes a mess of confusion and craziness that ends up making the book seem silly.
I find that as I am reading these books, anytime the plot thickens or a conclusion is coming, I can actually hear intense music in my head, like in a tv show or movie, telling you that what is happening is not good and cannot end well. I can't wait to continue the series and start up the fourth book. And since I have the omnibus, I can do that very easily.

Book 51 of 52

2010-12-16T06:56:00.000-05:00

I can't believe there is only one book left to my challenge and that it is already the end of the year. As a kid you always think the summer goes by way too fast... well, once you are an adult... the whole year goes way too fast.
I just finished reading the second book in the Morganville Vampires series, Dead Girls Dance by Rachel Caine. I really love how she writes, she draws me in to every aspect and makes me want to stay inside the book and never return to reality. This can be very difficult when you are writing about such as scary world as she is. The vampires in these books are not the ones you take to school dances or lay in an open field with in the middle of the day. They are out for blood and only blood. They rule the whole town and if you don't have Protection, you better watch your back and stay in doors when it gets dark.
I hope as the series goes on that Caine delves deeper into the history of the town because I would love to know why it is only Morganville that has vampires. How did it end up being this particular town that became infested with them? Why haven't they attempted to infiltrate other areas?
All of my reviews lately have had a ton of spoilers in them because I just can't wait to discuss them with someone but no one I know has read them... so I think I will stop here so I don't go over board with the spoilers.
As you can see I like to buy the omnibi of series when available. It lessens the amount of books I buy so instead of having 10 billion books, I only have 5 billion books. Great plan, huh?

Book 50 of 52

2010-12-12T10:40:00.000-05:00

The end of any book series can be a very bittersweet thing. Its always exciting when a new book comes out but when it is the last one it can be devastating. The end of a series I love is the end of a world that I have lived in, loved in and hid in when my life wasn't as exciting. I hate having to say goodbye to friends and that is what the characters become to me.
I have been following Vampire Academy since the very beginning. I fell in love with Dimitri instantly, was very intrigued with Christian and had a large attraction to Adrian. (I'm always a sucker for the boys). There were always a lot of ups and downs when it came to the girls... I liked Rose a lot but felt she could be immature at times, Lissa bugged me from time to time because I felt she was selfish. But I realized that she wasn't being selfish she had just been very sheltered and didn't know how to act any other way. Eventually she was able to break free and learn how to take care of herself, as well as her friends and now her people. I respected her a lot by the end of the series.
Although Richelle Mead is still the only author that is able to fully shock me (with all other books I am always able to guess the plot), I felt that the last book's shock factor was built up real well and then when the reveal occurred... it fell short. Tasha being the Queen's murderer was shocking and I never saw it coming but I felt the moment when everyone found out was missing something. You always want to be satisfied at the end of a book and at the end of a series but sometimes it is nice to have some things to wonder about. The things left unfinished in the book were a bit upsetting for me. I wish Richelle had given Adrian something, leaving him so completely devastated and with no one to turn to actually makes me worry about what will happen to him. Like I said... I get invested in the characters, as if they are my friends. As much as I loved Dimitri, I had also fallen for Adrian. You realize that he isn't as soulless as you may think at first, he just has something major affecting him and he doesn't know how to handle it. He's the type of male character that you want to take care of. I hate knowing that there wasn't anyone there to care for him in the end.

Book 49 of 52

2010-12-09T06:48:00.001-05:00

There were several times that I began reading this book but never managed to read it completely. Unfortunately, every time I picked it up, another book I was waiting for would be released and I would end up putting it back down. I never got much further into it than the first chapter. And of course I started to read this on Monday and on Tuesday a book I have been waiting for came out. But this time I had gotten much farther into it and I couldn't bear to push it aside so I finished it before I started the new book.
In a world that has seen a very large number of young adult vampire novels in the past 10 years, somehow Rachel Caine actually managed to do something very different. I don't feel influences from any other vampire novels, movies or shows. She has her own mind and was able to create a whole new vampire world.
The Morganville Vampires is a unique series with very like-able, distinct characters. None of the characters gets lost in the story, or seems to hide behind the others. Each one has it's own personality and it's own story and you end up wanting to know more about each of them. It's very nice to find myself afraid of vampires again. I have been seduced by the idea of vampires ever since I was young but a big part of the seduction is the fear and forbidding feeling you get from loving them. This series brings you back to that fear. The Morganville vampires are not falling in love with humans and they are certainly not sparkling. (Don't get me wrong, I love Twilight, but its refreshing to read a "scary" book again).
One thing Caine has managed to do is bring me back to being 16. In fact, her writing reminds me greatly of many events I have lived. When the romantic scenes come up I feel the crazy fluttery-ness I felt when I was young and just experiencing these things for the first time. She brings you back to that first kiss with someone you really really liked and maybe even loved. She reminds you of a time when you were naive and thought that nothing else in life would matter but this one moment... the things that don't matter much anymore but that seemed perfect at that time. (the funny thing is... I started to write this last night, and in bed over night I had a high school dream).
I really can't wait to continue with the next book in the series. I want to follow these people through to the end and stand by them every time they need to battle the bad guys, I want to go back to Common Grounds with Eve and have some hot chocolate, I want to go to class with Claire, stay up late with Michael and flirt with Shane. Caine really knows how to bring fictional characters to life so that you fully invest yourself in their day to day lives.

Book 48 of 52

2010-12-05T12:43:00.000-05:00

I'm very happy that LJ Smith and the creators of the Vampire Diaries show decided to write books from the point of view of Stefan. In the original books, I loved Stefan. He was so mysterious and sexy and then Damon was all that x's10. In the show I am fully in love with Damon and Stefan is ok but he bugs me a bit. In the new book... Stefan's Diaries: Origins... Stefan bugs the crap out of me. Hes such a coward and so willing to do whatever he is told. He is angry when he finds out that Katherine was able to compel him but for 17 years, that is exactly what his father had done, and he didn't even have any vampiric powers. I have always been seduced by the idea of living during the 1800's. In a time where men were gentlemen and women were ladies, dating was "being called on", and anything sexy was kept to the imagination unless you were married. But on the other hand... I would never go along with an arranged marriage. Love is what makes life matter. So for him to just go along with whatever his father wanted him to do, really makes me angry.
I loved the fact that this book makes you like Katherine through most of it. Even at the end when you find out that she had killed Rosalyn and deceived Stefan a bit, you still don't feel the overwhelming hatred that the original books and the show make you feel for her. This book really showed her human side and made you wonder who she was before she died, it made you think about the life she had once lived. I hope LJ Smith decides to write something from Katherine's point of view, starting before she was turned.

Book 47 of 52

2010-12-01T00:12:00.000-05:00

Finally finished up book 10 of the Sookie Stackhouse series. I think one of the things that took me so long was getting into the idea of who Eric's maker was. The only thing I liked better in the show than in the books is this point. Seeing Eric and his maker in the TV show gave Eric a lot more depth and emotion, it brought out his human side. I can't wait to see what else happens in the series and in the mean time I will read the short stories about Sookie.

Book 46 of 52

2010-11-12T20:41:00.001-05:00

Another book down. And still a book a head of the game. Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris, book 9 of the Sookie Stackhouse series. I loved it. Still LOVE Eric, not so fond of Bill. Cannot wait to see what happens next

Book 45 of 52

2010-11-10T07:20:00.000-05:00

Another Sookie Stackhouse novel down and two more to go (until the 11th one comes out). I am already half way into the 9th book but still didn't get to blog about From Dead to Worse. I find it very hard to constantly review books in a series because to me they all add up to one story and most of what I say for the first couple of books, holds true through out the series. Unless the writing style changes drastically or the author decides to collaborate with another author on one of the books. In this case Charlaine Harris has stayed very true to her writing style and has kept the books just as entertaining as when she started to write the series. I enjoy these books very much and read each one in only a couple of days (if I had time I would be reading a book a day).

Book 44 of 52 and reflections on the year

2010-11-04T10:40:00.000-04:00

I cannot believe this year is almost over. So much has happened, a lot has changed and so many great things have been brought into my life. I am now married to the love of my life, I have a new niece and nephew, I am getting closer to finishing school and because of that I had the opportunity to work at an amazing place, I am finally getting some of my health issues taken care of (even though the side effects have sucked). I managed to keep up with my reading and I believe I am still on track with the 52 books in 52 weeks, and somehow managed to begin learning about 5 new craft mediums.
Among all the great things that have happened there have also been some losses. I've had to say goodbye to an amazing woman who I never really got to know as well as I would have liked, I lost a cat I have known most of my life and a dog who I loved dearly. I also lost the first kitten I have fostered in a long time. I've taken a few risks and played it safe on many occasions. My knowledge, book collection and neurosis have all grown.. the good and bad in those are debatable. It has been one hell of a year and its not quite over yet.

My nephew Riley Phoenix

My husband with our niece, Holly Nola

RIP Wally Man

Lori, Carl and Carol (Carol, you will be missed greatly)

RIP Bubba


RIP Pixel, I only had six days to love you

I just finished reading All Together Dead, the 7th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I am still really enjoying the series but I felt like a lot of this book was all filler material. There were a lot of major events that took place but the rest probably wouldn't have been missed if it had been left out.

Book 43 of 52

2010-10-29T15:18:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite authors is Ellen Hopkins... she may not write science fiction or fantasy but I have always loved her writing and story lines. She writes all of her stories in verse which makes it easy to read a very long book in only a couple of days. Fallout, her latest book, was amazing.

Book 42 of 52

2010-10-08T11:54:00.000-04:00

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare took me forever and a day to read. The Mortal Instruments is a wonderful series and I am enjoying it a lot but it is very slow moving at times. With my busy schedule I just don't have the time to really sit down and fall into a book and it is even harder to do when the book is so slow. The characters are awesome and the world they live in is beautiful. I look forward to continuing with the series but I'm hoping for a little more action in the coming books.

Book 41 of 52

2010-09-03T15:41:00.000-04:00

The final installment of the Hunger Games, Mockingjay, was just as amazing as the first two in the trilogy. I was worried when I began reading it because I couldn't help but wonder if Collins would still have the same amount of shock factor that she put into the first two books. But I was not disappointed. There were just as many moments for me when I dropped my jaw, got goosebumps/chills, or became completely immobile for a minute while trying to take it all in. Collins has created a world so unbelievable that you can barely wrap your mind around it and yet it feels like something that could maybe happen one day. Like Plutarch says in Mockingjay... "But collective thinking is usually short-lived. We're fickle, stupid beings with poor memories and a great gift for self-destruction."
It seems it may only be a matter of time before the human race takes things a step too far.
I have a million more things I need to say but since I just completed the book like 10 minutes ago... I still have some reflecting to do.

Book 40 of 52

2010-09-03T15:32:00.000-04:00

I have been slacking really badly on my book reviews. I finished book 40 over a week ago and have finished another book in the meantime as well.

I am enjoying the Mortal Instruments series, it is a bit slow moving at times but is a great story. I wish I had written this before finishing the 41st book because I can't think about anything else right now. Maybe I will come back in a day or so to finish up this review.

Book 39 of 52

2010-08-27T11:22:00.002-04:00

Its been about a week or so since I finished City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare but I have been way too busy to sit down and write this. I enjoyed this book but it was a bit slow moving. There was not a lot of action and way too little suspense. The world Clare created is very detailed and extremely interesting. The characters are all very distinct and well developed and easy to love. I felt a lot of Harry Potter influence while reading.

Book 38 of 52

2010-08-06T11:35:00.001-04:00

Blue Noon is the last book in an excellent trilogy. I enjoyed this series very much, right up until the very end, I mean....What is the point of saving the world if you can't be with the one you love?

Scott Westerfeld writes young adult fiction that is geared toward females and one thing about his writing that I admire is the fact that he knows what it takes to captivate a teen girl when she reading... the love interest. As a young girl no matter what genre you prefer to read, it all comes down to the relationship that is presented. And it doesn't change as you get older... I'm 25 and I still look for romance in my books. The problem with some male authors is that they just don't realize how important it is for us to have that element. I have always been pleased with the relationships that Scott creates. As women, it is all too easy to fall in love with the male lead in any story, the fact that he is fictional makes him even more appealing, and Scott seems to understand that.

But I never expected that Westerfeld would end on such a depressing note with this series. When you love seeing a couple together in a book, you never imagine that the author won't allow them to be together (unless of course you are reading Shakespeare.) Though the plots and overall idea of the Midnighters was very interesting, I had banked a lot on Jonathan and Jessica's relationship, as well as Rex and Melissa's. These two pairs were completely different from each other but made each of the characters "existence" so much easier to bear. For every amazing aspect of their world there were at least two more bad elements to deal with.

Besides all the "lovey dovey" (as Michael would put it) stuff another major facet of these books was the powers that each of the Midnighter's wielded. Dess is a polymath and even though her explanations of the extreme mathematical processes made my head spin, she also got me started on some weird behaviors... like counting long words to see how many letters are in them as well as calculating certain numbers I come across to see if they are darkling-friendly. I can't help but laugh at myself when I catch myself doing these things.
Jonathan's power was definitely the most appealing to me. Technically it isn't flying but a lack of gravity that makes it so he can jump very high and stay in the air longer than you would expect. The funny thing is, when i dream of flying, it is exactly how Scott describes Jonathan's ability in the books.
Even in the last book I still didn't feel as though Jessica's ability was emphasized enough. She was supposed to be such an integral part of the book, needed by the other Midnighters, fully despised by the darklings and yet she seemed to just blur into the background. The only thing that made her stand out was her relationship with Jonathan.
I adored Rex's character but his power was nothing too exciting for me. Melissa for me was the opposite, her ability is what made her special not so much her personality. And of course the way they needed each other just made them both more interesting. Being together since they were so young gave them a very strong connection.

Book 37 of 52

2010-07-30T12:26:00.000-04:00

The Midnighters trilogy by Scott Westerfeld is excellent so far. I wish it was a longer series and didn't end after only three books. The second book, Touching Darkness, is my favorite thus far which brings me to the irony of the review I am about to write... the review I wrote about the first book focused all on the positive and most of what I have to write for this review will focus on the negative. But if you read my review of The Secret Hour, you probably realized that what I spoke about most was the theory of the world Scott had created and not of the book itself. Now I will be writing about some points I feel the author could have improved on.

I loved this book, it was much more fast paced than the first book, it had more action and the main plot of the story stood out much more but I felt like the moments of suspense and aventure could have been built up much better. When the story would reach a point that seemed important, it felt as though it passed right by and was not given the emphasis it deserved. Some of those moments even confused me a bit because he actually did build up to it and then the revelation fell short and didn't seem as important as it was made out to be.
Another thing that bothered me was that the main character, Jessica, didn't feel as distinguished as many of the others. Through out both books she just seems like a random person you would meet on the streets. Her special ability isn't given the weight that the other midnighter's abilities seem to have. She is supposed to be the heroine of the book with the power that has the potential to keep them all safe, and yet the times when Jessica is the most interesting is when she is "flying" with Jonathan. Each character of the book is well developed and compelling in their own ways but our heroine seems to have less flare than even some of the secondary characters. She is forgettable. Even as she "saves the day" the entire scene feels too quick and bland.

I know this review makes it seem like I was not very intrigued by this book, but that's not true. I am really enjoying this trilogy very much. The story itself doesn't fall short, there are just a few areas where the writing could have been improved. And I hate saying that because I really do love Scott Westerfeld's work.

Book 36 of 52

2010-07-28T11:54:00.001-04:00

I haven't exactly stopped purchasing new books but I have decided that, no matter what new books I get, I need to try and read the ones that I have had for a long time and still haven't read. The books that have built up unread are not forgotten because I am not interested in them, but because it is very easy to get excited about something new thats right in front of you. When I think back to when I bought the forgotten books, I realize I had been just excited about those as well. And now they deserve the chance to be remembered. So I am now reading all the books that got left behind.

I decided to start by continuing with one of my favorite authors, Scott Westerfeld. After reading his Uglies series back in October of '07, I went out and bought a bunch of his other novels and series. I have already read Peeps, The Last Days and So Yesterday, but his Midnighters series had been pushed aside as other books became available. A few days ago I finished the first book in the trilogy, titled The Secret Hour.

Westerfeld has an amazing mind. He is able to come up with original and unusual worlds that pull you in and actually cause you to dream about living there. Could you imagine having an entire hour every night, where the whole world is still and silent except for you and maybe a significant other. An entire hour where the ability to fly is not just a hopeless wish, and rain stops in midair until you touch it. Every person in the world is in a catatonic state but left unharmed while you get to live your secret second life.

To me, that idea would be a dream come true. A quiet, romantic world for just myself and the one I love. Wow! But of course, this all sounds too good to be true, and it is. What kind of story would it be if there wasn't something there to ruin the fun. Something evil, a bad guy, a villain... that's where the darklings come in. They turn the dream of flying into a nightmare, they cut each passionate kiss short, every embrace is interrupted... but that's life, it is never easy and never fully undisturbed. All fiction needs some sort of reality to pull everything into perspective. Scott Westerfeld is a master at fabricating elaborate unreal worlds that make you envious of his characters but he knows that all good things must have a counterpart, something to excite and scare the reader into second guessing their ideal existence and bring them back down to earth.

Book 35 of 52

2010-07-16T22:23:00.002-04:00

I can't say enough just how much I enjoyed this series. The writing and plots keep you on the edge of your seat. It had a real horror film feel to it... many times I jumped while reading if someone suddenly spoke to me. I like books that scare me. I never once was able ...to guess how the book would end. I will definitely read Sara Shepard's other books.

Book 34 of 52

2010-07-10T23:01:00.000-04:00

Just another excellent book in this series. Books have become very predictable for me. I can always figure out what is going to happen before it happens and who did what before it is revealed. But Pretty Little Liars has kept me on my toes since the first book. I can barely keep up let alone guess what is going on. Every time I am certain I have figured out who killed Ali and who A is, something occurs that proves everything I think is true couldn't possibly be. Only one book to go, I wonder if that is definitely the last one or if she plan to write more.

Book 33 of 52

2010-07-06T19:07:00.000-04:00

This one took me a little longer than the others have, solely because I had a bunch of other things going on last week and didn't have much time to read. The series is still excellent and Shepard still knows how to surprise her readers. Can't wait to read Heartless. Its too hot to write any kind of real review.

Book 32 of 52

2010-06-29T21:50:00.001-04:00

Another Pretty Little Liars novel down, 3 more to go. I'm still really enjoying them. After how the last one ended I was worried as to how she would continue the story and was afraid she would start all new plots that had nothing to do with the first four books, but my fears have been put to rest. She managed to keep the story fresh and exciting and was able to keep the same basic plot without it feeling like she was pushing for it to work. I hope they continue to be this good. I will admit that I am not very happy that Ezra is gone now, I hope he comes back into it at some point.
It gets a bit weird at times reading the series and watching the TV show at the same time. I have managed to not get confused between the two but I think that is because they are very different. I enjoy the show because it brings the characters to life (especially Ezra) but there are certain changes that have been made that I feel will ruin the story a bit.

Book 31 of 52

2010-06-27T20:14:00.001-04:00

Sara Shepard is amazing at confusing her readers. She gets you to believe one thing and then proves that it could never have been. I had gone back and forth on who I believed was -A but my original theory ended up panning out. Though Shepard did make me second guess myself many times, I found I was correct in the end. But this isn't really the end, still four more books to go (and of course she could always write more). I don't know that I believe Ian to be Ali's killer, though. And the way Shepard writes, makes me think that I am correct to doubt him. Can't wait to find out.

Book 30 of 52

2010-06-25T07:39:00.001-04:00

Perfect by Sara Shepherd
You know a book is good when you don't even realize you are on the last page until you've finished it. That's what happened to me last night when I completed this book. I read the last line and stopped, leafed through the last couple pages containing the p...review to the next book and asked (out loud I may add) "its over? how? where is the rest of it?" While I read I often look to see how many pages I have left. But with Perfect, I was unable to stop reading long enough to check.
I had guessed who Ali's killer was a book or two ago but I have a strange feeling that there may be twist there also. I still can't put my finger on who A is, though and it's driving me crazy. As for Hanna, I had just started to like her. Her problems still seem completely petty and high school-like compared to the other girls' issues but she is started to become a real person to me. She has been so spoiled and stuck up until this book and that for me is a complete turn off.

Book 29 of 52

2010-06-23T12:00:00.000-04:00

I finished the first Percy Jackson book, The Lightning thief, earlier today and I've been having a very hard time writing a review. I enjoyed it and was able to read the whole thing but I also found it very easy to put it down and walk away. I enjoy the absurd but I felt that every so often, something major in the book was too absurd even for me. It was also very predictable, I knew everything that was going to happen, way before it happened. It's a good book to pass the time but I'm not going to run out right now and tell all my friends to read it. I still haven't decided if I will continue with the other books or not. I'm interested to see how the movie came out though.

The Vampire's Assistant

2010-06-23T11:59:00.000-04:00

When I finished reading the first three books in the Darren Shan series I watched the Vampire's Assistant right afterward. As a separate entity, the movie was pretty awesome. It was a good vampire story with a goofy side and it was pretty entertaining. But when you look at the movie as an adaptation of the books... it falls very short. The director didn't just make some changes for entertainment purposes, he changed almost everything. The kids were much older in the movie than how they were construed in the book. I love John C Reilly but he was not what I had expected for Mr. Crepsley. A big part of the book is how Crepsley is a lonely vampire but in the movie he is dating Madame Truska. The circus is described as being much smaller but in the movie it is huge with many more performers. Murlough and Mr. Tiny aren't in cahoots, at least not so far. Also, the way Darren Shan characterized Murlough really put a strong picture of him in your head. I saw a Wiley, odd, slightly crazy man who was very clever but in a psycho kind of way. I even had a voice for him... anyone who likes Buffy the Vampire Slayer will know who I mean... In season 7, episode 3 titled Same Place, Same Time there is a "monster" called a gnarl (he immobilizes his victims and then slowly pulls pieces of their skin off and eats them)... the voice of that monster is how I envisioned Murlough to sound.

Book 28 of 52

2010-06-18T22:42:00.000-04:00

I am really enjoying this series. I was afraid it would be a bit Immature but it isn't. I have said before that Shan's writing is very reminiscent of RL Stine's writing but I am wondering now if that is because I have been gravitating towards books written by women and haven't read anything by a man in quite some time. I find it fascinating how easily you can tell if an author is male or female (especially when reading vampire novels). Take for instance, in the Cirque Du Freak books, it is not until book three that any kind of love interest is introduced. But if you have read any of the many female written vampire books that I have recently encountered, you will see that the love story is the main plot and is thrown at you instantly. I'm glad I am taking the time to read this series because it has brought me back to the reasons I first fell in love with vampires, werewolves, zombies and all other horror type books and movies. Don't get me wrong, I have come to really adore the modern vampire tales and theories but sometimes I get so caught up in them that I forget what good old fashioned horror is like. Even True Blood and the Sookie Stackhouse books, though they show the gritty, blood hungry, goriness of "life" as a vampire, they spend an awful lot of time on the romantic relationships of the characters. And I am definitely not saying that I dislike the relationship focus, on the contrary I love that part but it makes it very easy to forget the thrill of a good, nothing but horror, book.

Book 27 of 52

2010-06-17T13:37:00.000-04:00

The more I read this series the more it reminds me of R.L. Stine. That to me is a good thing. I have always loved R.L. Stine's writing. Shan is able to write a story that is considered horror without being too extreme for a young adult audience but that is still intriguing for older readers. The plots are not what you expect for a typical vampire book, which I feel is positive. The author has many different theories about how vampires are made and how they "live", none of which I have heard any other author use. He has a very fresh yet somewhat old school outlook on vampirism. I am excited to continue with the series and also to see the movie.

Book 26 of 52

2010-06-15T03:36:00.000-04:00

I hate to admit it but these books are actually pretty good. I managed to read the first book before the first episode had aired and of course that one episode covered all of the first book so I knew I had to read the next one quickly. But I had a couple of other books started first so I needed to wait, I only started this book Sunday and I had very little time to read it until Monday morning. But I managed to finish it before the show is on tonight. Luckily this series is very easy to read. I find myself getting very enthralled in these books. I'm not that fond of Hannah and I find it hard to put up with her parts of the story but I enjoy reading about the other 3 girls, especially Aria. I have so many theories as to who -A is but I still don't feel i know for sure. I guess I won't know for a while. I don't have book 3 yet so I will have to make a trip to the book store.

I thought I was going to continue to read the Sookie Stackhouse series now but I am afraid I will get myself confused since True Blood is back on the air. Even after only one episode, I can see just how different this season will be from the books (Just like the first 2 seasons).

Book 25 of 52

2010-06-12T22:04:00.000-04:00

Its funny how obvious it is when a man writes a vampire novel as opposed to when most women write one. There were no sparkling, brooding teenager vampires and no love story to speak of... yet. Though this book seemed to be a little younger than I normally... read, I feel like the next ones will become a little more intriguing. The first part of the book where the freak show was described, reminded me of a Goosebumps novel (horror type novel for younger kids), but once they explained how a vampire is turned it started to feel more like a Fear Street novel (horror novel for older teens with more gore and fear to it). I loved Fear Street as a child and that's why I feel this series may get better.
Shan has great new ideas about vampires and I think those factors will make this series more interesting.
All in all this book was an easy read that kept me involved through out and I am looking forward to seeing how the characters grow and what becomes of Darren and Steve's friendship.

Book 24 of 52

2010-06-12T19:37:00.000-04:00

I was worried that Stephenie Meyer wouldn't be able to portray what a "normal" vampire is like. I was afraid that it would end up sounding cheesy. But she did a very good job without going too far over the top. I tend to feel bad for the "villains" at times as it is and I love being able to hear the story from their point of view and being able to see their human side. My only issue is that with short stories and novellas... I always want more.

Book 23 of 52

2010-06-07T10:46:00.000-04:00

Another day, another book. At least that is how it feels lately. I have been knocking them out very quickly.
The Sookie Stackhouse series has changed a lot, mostly in how it is written. The first couple of books had come up short and I was worried the whole series would be the same. I just completed book 6 Definitely Dead. The characters are well developed and extremely interesting and the plots keep you engaged through out the books. Though Sookie is an adult, she reminds me of myself in high school, or any other teenage girl for that matter. I could just picture her school books { I ♥ ~~Bill~~ ~~Eric~~ ~~Alcide~~ ~~Sam~~ Quinn. }
I do give her credit for not fully giving into each of these men, if they are all as good looking as they have been described... well... self restraint cannot be easy. I am very excited to see where these books go, what Sookie gets herself into next and which man she ends up with.

Book 22 of 52

2010-06-02T15:55:00.000-04:00

Only 30 books left to go!

I just completed Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris
I have continued reading the Sookie Stackhouse series because I am really starting to enjoy these books and I just can't bring myself to start anything else until I finish all ten books. Sometimes I feel as though Harris has so many ideas that she wouldn't be able to get them all out before this series ends so she shoves ten story lines into one book. But just when I start to realize how much she has going on and think that it may be too much, she begins tying up all the loose ends and you notice how nicely everything comes together. I have found it very easy to figure out who the villains are and what is to come but I have this issue with most fiction, I think because I read so much that it just becomes very predictable
I just re-read this and I realized this doesn't seem like a good review of this book. But I really did like this book.

Book 21 of 52

2010-05-29T10:33:00.000-04:00

I DID IT!!! I am officially back on track. I just finished the 21st book of my challenge.
The Vampire Kisses series has been a bit disappointing from day one. It is much younger and immature than I normally like to read. I do enjoy young adult fiction but just because it is young adult does not mean it has to be callow and juvenile, especially today. Teenagers are in a whole new class these days and they can handle a lot more than they could in the past. Another thing that bothered me in this series was the stereotypes they used, I like old school thinking when it comes to vampires but the whole goth idea is a bit annoying.

After reading the first four books in this series I was almost ready to give up on it but then book 5 was awesome. I really enjoyed it. And then... book 6 went right back down to the level the first 4 were at and book 7 Love Bites was no exception. It felt very pointless to me. As I got closer to the end I kept thinking "is this going to come to something?" And the end just confirmed my worries that the book was pretty pointless. I have a word for books like this... I call them filler. I use the same word for TV shows also. Every so often it just feels as though an author or TV writer just needs some content to fill in an empty space. That's what this book was. Since these books are short and are easy to read... I will definitely continue reading the series as new books come out, mostly out of curiosity.

Book 20 of 52

2010-05-28T10:37:00.001-04:00

I finished another Sookie Stackhouse novel, book #4 Dead to the World. This was definitely my favorite book. I feel like Harris has finally begun to fill in the spaces that seemed to be lacking in the first three books. One thing really disappointed me... I waited a long time for Sookie and Eric to... "wink, wink" ... and when they finally did... well it just wasn't what I expected. It would have been much better if it had happened while Eric was in his right mind. Sookie may as well have been with someone else entirely. Eric's appeal is mainly that he is the "bad ass", since he was a completely different character in this book, it was difficult to enjoy the intimate moments between him and Sookie.
After I finished this book last night, I, in turn, started another book. I decided to read the 7th book in the Vampire Kisses series. Though this isn't my favorite series ever, I have read the other books and they are short and easy to read. Now all I have to do is finish it before tomorrow is over and I will be completely caught up with my reading challenge.

Book 19 of 52

2010-05-25T21:38:00.000-04:00

As you can see I am finally catching up to the point I should be at for my challenge. I am only one book behind now and I should be able to remedy that before the week is up.
Anyway... I just read Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard. I heard about these books a couple years ago and despite my age I am still a teenage girl at heart, so I have been wanting to read them. I finally read the first book because the show is coming out next week. I was afraid this series would be too young and immature but it turns out that it really isn't. It is definitely geared towards a more mature "young adult" reader. It took me less than 24 hours to read this book. Not only because it was an easy read but because I really enjoyed the plot lines and how each character had their own story to follow. I definitely recommend this book to all young adult girls and not so young adult women.

Book 18 of 52

2010-05-24T17:51:00.000-04:00

Since I hadn't started reading these books before I started watching True Blood, I figured I would catch up before season 3 starts. I had felt as though the first two books were lacking something and I worried that it was only because I had watched the show first. Well... book 3 was also lacking something. It was good, but it was also a bit boring at times. So far this one is my favorite... I'm hoping the books continue to get better as I go along. I have to say that I absolutely love the fact that Elvis is a vampire and that he calls himself Bubba. Whenever he speaks in the book, I can't help but read his lines in a very "Elvis-Like" voice. I will admit that Harris writes very good "intimate" scenes. I only wish there were more ; P

Book 17 of 52

2010-05-22T19:19:00.000-04:00

Book 5 of Vampire Academy came out this past week. For me, when one of my favorite authors has a new book coming out, it's like a holiday. The holiday ended this morning as I finished reading Spirit Bound. I thought I would be able to wait until December for the next (and I believe last) installment to come out but Mead has a way of ending a book in a way that leaves you both excited and infuriated. She is also the queen of plot twists. I have become very good at guessing what will happen in a story but Mead surprises me every time. There was a point in each of the VA books where I either threw it on the floor in surprised anger or just stopped and stared with my mouth gaping in shock at what happened. I absolutely love books like that.

Book 16 of 52

2010-05-17T16:31:00.001-04:00

I had finally gotten into this series and was enjoying the plot and characters and then all of a sudden there was Burned. Not only am I not a fan of the whole Stevie Rae/Raven Mocker thing but the fact that the whole book revolved around the Otherworld and Zoey being stuck there got old very quickly. Which is why it took me so long to read. Hopefully Awakened will be better now that it is back to the norm.
Tomorrow, Book 5 of Vampire Academy comes out, Spirit Bound. I am so excited. I have been waiting for this for a while.

Book 15 out of 52

2010-05-07T12:58:00.000-04:00

Finished up book 6 from the House of Night, Tempted. It is definitely my favorite book in the series so far. I feel as though the authors finally figured out how to write a cliff hanger. And the end of the book has a great cliff hanger. I cannot wait to see what happens. And lucky for me, the 7th book just came out. I'm so glad I hadn't continued reading this series sooner since i now don't have to wait to start the next book. I honestly do like most of the characters in the book (now anyway... I couldn't stand a few of them in the beginning). I hate to say though that I am not that upset to see Heath die... not that he wasn't a good guy but I always picture Zoey ending up with Erik or Stark. Heath is human and for me, the appeal of books like this are the vampires. I see plenty of human men everyday... I'm even married to one. Reading is exciting for me because I get to slip into bizarre and impossible worlds that could never exist in real life.
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Other than reading a lot , this week has been mostly stressful and a but painful and I cannot wait for it to be over... unfortunately I will be working all weekend. At least I have plenty of books to keep me sane.

Book 14 of 52

2010-05-04T08:39:00.002-04:00

I have finished another book in the House of Night series, Hunted. The series has continued to get better and I cannot wait to see what happens. I have found that it is much easier to write a review for a book that you absolutely loved or completely disliked then it is to write one for a book or series of books that are simply ok, or that you are indifferent to. Although I am now enjoying this series, it has been neither mind nor life altering. When I disliked the series and found it difficult to continue reading, I was able to review it well. Now I find myself at a loss. I only have two books remaining in this series (that are currently available), should I continue on now or should I pick something else to read at this time. Hmm... not sure.

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On an exciting note, this past Friday, my husband and I went into Atlantic City and saw Paramore preform live at the Trump Taj Mahal. It was by far the most amazing concert I have ever been to. I cannot wait to go see them again. August 6th at Jones Beach. Here are a few pics I took at the concert.

Book 13 of 52

2010-04-29T08:16:00.000-04:00

I finished the 4th book from the House of Night series, Untamed, a couple of days ago. These books keep getting better. And the immaturity of them has lessened. I'm now working on the 5th book in the series. My mind isn't at its peak yet today so this is going to be a short post. Sorry