Book Review: Slide

TITLE: Slide
AUTHOR: Jill Hathaway
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Paranormal, mystery
PREMISE: A girl with the power to see the eyes of others tries to track down a killer who is offing cheerleaders.
MY REVIEW: Sigh, I had such high hopes for this one. I was hoping for something along the lines of Clarity/Mythos Academy. While they are similar I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as those and as much as I wanted. Look, these are mostly my beefs. Honestly it's a decent enough book. The mystery is kind of solid, the author is good at building suspense, and there were interesting twists.
Unfortunately I didn't like any of the main characters. I got where they were coming from, but I still didn't like them. I also was annoyed at all the stereotyping, particularly of the cheerleader/popular kid crowd. Then there were usual tropes like the ever annoying love triangle, the best friend who naturally is in love with the MC (she magically doesn't notice) and don't get me started on flip-flopping on the bullying angle. I mean somehow the mean girl is totally responsible but MC's sister who didn't exactly stop mean girl is somehow totally not? Even after MC even acknowledged how horrible her sister treated said friend? Sorry, but no, being sorry for a girl's death doesn't change the fact that you treated her like crap when she was alive. Yes, I understand she's a teenager and teenagers can be jerks, but still. Plus, the MC's gift is never explained and I found that annoying.
While I liked the mystery and the general ideas going on in this book, I just had a hard time getting into it because I kept wanting to reach into the book and shake everyone. I recomend this for people with a higher tolerance of jerky/hypocritical characters then me.
WHO SHOULD READ: Mystery fans, paranormal fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five shrugs

Book Review: Working Stiff

TITLE: Working Stiff
Book 1 in the Revivalist series
AUTHOR: Rachel Caine
PUBLISHED: 2011
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Urban fantasy, zombies
PREMISE: A woman gets a job at a funeral home and soon finds herself neck deep in espionage...and kind of dead.
MY REVIEW: This book is pretty much like all Caine's book. Interesting idea, not very plausible idea, but interesting idea. Suspense, non-stop action, and creative world-building and all the usual token characters you find in the adult urban fantasy genre.
It's not bad. It's just not brillaint either. This series requires a LOT of suspension of disbelief, particularly when it comes to how the MC is "alive" and how no one seems to realize she's a walking zombie. There is the usual fun snarky relationship that is the staple of Caine's books and so if you like her other series, there's a very good chance you'll like this one two.
Honestly it's just okay for me. May or may not be picking up the next one. It'll depend on my mood and if I find nothing else that week. Good thing about Caine's books: they always read fast.
WHO SHOULD READ: Rachel Caine fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five funeral homes

June Book Picks

This is hopefully (if all goes to plan) going to be a monthly feature here from now on. At the end of each month I'm going to do a list of all the books in June that interest me. If all goes according to plan, I will eventually review said books on this blog (though it may be or month or so before that happens). So, here are my June Releases Book picks:

June 2012 Anticipated Releases:

YA Books:
Grim by Anna Waggener. Release Date: June 1rst.-Because it's got greek myths and family drama and sounds like it's made of win.
Grisha Trilogy Book 1: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. Release Date: June 5th.-Has been getting rave reviews and sounds all kinds of awesome.
Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne. Release Date: June 5th.-Ah you all know I can't pass up a good disaster book.
Hereafter Book 2: Arise by Tara Hudson. Release Date: June 5th.-Hereafter was one of those I was meh about last year. However the way it ended sort of makes it so you have to at least check it out of the library to see what happens next.
Riese: Kingdom Falling by Ryan Copple and Greg Cox. Release Date: June 12th.-I confess, I have seen some of the SyFy webisodes this is based on. Plus, you all know I'm a sucker for steampunk.
Hourglass Book 2: Timepiece by Myra McEntire. Release Date: June 12th.-I confess, I am not as crazy about Hourglass as everyone else. But I did find it good enough that I'm checking out the sequel.
Bloodlines Book 2: The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead. Release Date: June 12th.-VA book. Nuff said.
For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund. Release Date: June 12th.-Persuasion set in space? Yes, please.
Tokyo Heist by Diana Renn. Release Date: June 14th.-Museum heist with mystery in Tokyo? I want this book like NOW.
The Legacy of the Tril book 1: Soulbound by Heather Brewer. Release Date: June 19th.-By the author of Vladimir Tod and the heroine looks kick-ass so I'm intrigued.
Burn Mark by Laura Powell. Release Date: June 19th-Pretty much had me at modern day witches.
The Intrigues of Haruhi Suzimiya by Nagaru Tanigawa. Release Date: June 19th.-This is a Japanese light novels series which the anime The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya is based on. The series is just hilarious and always puts me in a good mood.
Secret Letters by Leah Scheier. Release Date: June 26th.-Historical mystery with references to Sherlock Holmes? Sign me up!
The American Fairy Trilogy Book 1: Dust Girl by Sarah Zettel (featured on this weeks Waiting on Wednesday). Release Date: June 26th.

Adult Books:
Celestial Blues Book 1: Taken by Vicki Petterson. Release Date: June 12th.-Looks rather corny but man, do I want to read it.
The St. Croix Chronicles series: Tarnished by Karina Cooper. Release Date: June 26th.-Steampunk series that sounds like it could be cool.
The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Stephan Baxter. Release Date: June 26th.-Because it's Terry Pratchett. Need I say more?

Waiting on Wednesday (9)

TITLE: Dust Girl
Book 1 in The American Fairy Trilogy
AUTHOR: Sarah Zettel
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy, faeries
SUMMARY FROM PUBLISHER: Callie LeRoux lives in Slow Run, Kansas, helping her mother run their small hotel and trying not to think about the father she's never met. Lately all of her energy is spent battling the constant storms plaguing the Dust Bowl and their effects on her health. Callie is left alone, when her mother goes missing in a dust storm. Her only hope comes from a mysterious man offering a few clues about her destiny and the path she must take to find her parents in "the golden hills of the west" (California). Along the way she meets Jack a young hobo boy who is happy to keep her company—there are dangerous, desperate people at every turn. And there's also an otherworldly threat to Callie. Warring fae factions, attached to the creative communities of American society, are very aware of the role this half-mortal, half-fae teenage girl plays in their fate.

RELEASE DATE: June 26th

WHY I'M EAGER: Because it looks like everything I love rolled into one. Historical fiction/fantasy blend (love that genre), fae, creative people, plus threat of war. Just looks like it's made of win. Plus, the publisher promises fans of Gemma Doyle will adore this. I don't know how true that will be but I did love Gemma Doyle to bits so I'm definitely looking forward to this one.

 

Top Ten Tuesday (10)

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish.

Top Ten Books I Hope They're Still Reading in Thirty Years

1) The Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling-HP has brought joy to me and many and I hope it continues to do so in the years to come. I know many people who have already started introducing it to their kids or their younger siblings/relatives so I have no doubt that HP is here to stay.

2) His Dark Materials Trilogy by Phillup Pullman-Unlike nearly everyone, I think HDM is about more then being anti-religious. It's about Lyra's journey, it's about how power can corrupt any group of people (not just the church), it's about sticking together, growing up, self-sacrifice, and much more. Yes, a bit of anti-church feelings are in it, but it is really a small amount of what the trilogy is about. Of course this is a personal bias because I tend to get eye-twitchy whenever the religious set tries to tell people what is acceptable to read and what is not.

3) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak-Every so often there's a writer who actually does do inventive ways of writing and storytelling that are brilliant without being gimmicky. The Book Thief is one of the best examples to me of how to be creative narratively without being annoying about it and tell a beautiful story in the process. Other "modern-writing" authors please take notes.

4) The Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin-This is how you do character work in fantasy, people. If I had my way this series would be required reading for anyone wanting to go into fantasy writing to see how to do proper world-building, good story-telling, and how to have good complex female characters in such a male dominated world.

5) Tortall/Circle of Magic series by Tamora Pierce-These books not only introduced me to feminism during my tweens but pretty much got me into fantasy books period. The series are still going strong all these years later and I still await the books eagerly each year. God, do I want that Tris in magic school book something fierce. I just want every girl to get a chance to read these.

6) American Gods by Neil Gaiman-Because it's just GOOD okay? Plus it talks about a multitude of subjects that are great for discussion.

7) Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson-Because sadly, rape will probably still be an issue in thirty years and we'll probably still have people playing the victem-blaming game and making it hard for girls to come forward and speak out against their rapists.

8) The Millaneum Trilogy by Stieg Larsson-Because Lisbeth is a fascinating character and people really should know about all the corruption that goes on in the system and the brutal things that happen against women. Much as I hate to say it, I imagine we'll still face sexism thirty years from now.

9) The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins-Because while it's not a overly complicated book trilogy, HG does do great things like bringing up issues of tyranny, classism, the effects of war on the young, how power can corrupt even those with good intentions, etc. etc.

10) The Discworld series by Terry Pratchett (particularly the Tiffany Aching books)-Becauase these books are great examples of what the parody genre has to offer and I just love how metaish it is about going into all the tropes in fantasy. Plus, it's just hilarious.

Stacking The Shelves (4)

This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews showcasing books we've gotten this past week.

Library Haul:
Women of the Otherworld Book 6: Broken by Kelley Armstrong-Part of my goal to wrap up this series this year. You may notice I skipped 5. That's because I have no interest in that particular character. I will read it after finishing the characters I do care about for completion's sake but for speed's sake, I'm skipping it.
Darkness Rising Trilogy Book 2: The Calling by Kelley Armstrong-Yes, it's a Armstrong double whammy this time. Have I mentioned I adore her books, lately?
Ophelia and Abby Mystery series Book 1: Witch Way to Murder by Shirley Damsgaard-cozy paranormal mystery. Witches solving murder mysteries. What can I say? I'm weak to stuff like this.
Katana series Book 1 by Cole Gibsen-2012 debut that looks like it could be cool even if I wonder why a book about Japanese Samaurai spirits has a white girl as the main character. ;side-eyes author;
Midnight Dragonfly series Book 1: Shattered Dreams by Ellie James-Paranormal romance debut from 2011. Looked interesting from the summary.
Pretty Crooked by Elisa Ludwig-2012 contemporary debut. Looks cute, apparently about a modern day girl Robin Hood who steals from the privilidged spoiled kids in her school and gives to the poor students. Who wouldn't want to read that?
Arcadia Awakens Trilogy Book 1: Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer (yes, another Meyer in the YA section, is Meyer the new Smith?)-2012 YA debut. Hey, mafia families combined with magic? Again, I'm weak to stuff like this even though I don't expect much from it because the summary makes it sound really corny.
A Temptation of Angels by Michelle Zink-I know, I know, I said I was ditching the angels. But it's ZINK! I have to at least give this one a shot.

Saturday Recs (4)

Since I did vampires last week, it seems only fitting that I do a rec list for Twihards. Now I'll be honest, I personally hate Twilight with a power of a thousand burning suns and that hatred will likely never fade. However, even I cannot deny Twilight has brought new readers to YA and I can't really bitch about that too much. In my experience in bookstores I've encountered two types of Twilight readers: There's the reader who just wants to read more books like Twilight and then there's the reader who kind of feels there's more out there and is looking to branch out to other stuff. So that's how I'm dividing this list up. Once again, should mention my feelings on books are being left out of the equation therefore you may see books I gave one stars too because even though I didn't like said book, there's a good chance a Twilight lover would. Also note, I rec all books for all ages so these lists always include a mixture of YA, Adult, and Middle-Grade.

If You Like Twilight, Try These:
For the readers who want more books like Twilight:
Halo Trilogy by Alexandra Adornetto
Books of Raziel series by Sabrina Benulis
River of Time series by Lisa Tawn Bergren
House of Night series by P. C. and Kristin Cast
Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs
Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
Nightshade series by Andrea Cremer
Tempest series by Julie Cross
Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs
13 to Life series by Shannon Delaney
The Dark Divine series by Bree Despain
Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side and sequel by Beth Fantasky
Hush Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick
Beastly by Alex Flinn
Night Huntress series by Jeanine Frost
Evernight series by Claudia Gray
Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris
Switched Trilogy by Amanda Hocking
Hereafter by Tara Hudson
Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
Claire de Lune series by Christine Johnson
Need series by Carrie Jones
Firelight series by Sophie Jordan
Fallen series by Lauren Kate
Haven by Kristi Cook
Mercy by Rebecca Lim
Infinite Days by Rebbeca Maizel
Evermore series by Alyson Noel
Wings series by Aprillynne Pike
Revenants series by Amy Plum
Vampire Kisses series by Ellen Schreiber
Embrace by Jessica Shirvington
Lords of the Underworld series by Gena Showalter
Spellbound series by Cara Lynn Schultz
The Vampire Diaries/Secret Circle etc. by L. J. Smith
Anything by Nicolas Sparks
Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

For the readers who want to branch out into heavier/different stuff:
Starcrossed series by Josephine Angelini
The Darkest Powers/Darkness Gathering Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong
Everneath series by Brodi Ashton
All books by Jane Austen (particularly Pride and Prejudice if only to see how WRONG Meyer was to say that Bella and Edward are better then Elizabeth and Darcy)
Bite Me and sequels by Parker Blue
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (why yes, I am purposely reccing all books Meyer has dissed in her interviews)
Insatiable series and pretty much anything else by Meg Cabot
Morganville Vampires series (and her adult series books) by Rachel Caine
Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger
Graceling and sequels by Kristin Cashore
Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
Matched Trilogy by Ally Condie
Nevermore Trilogy by Kelly Creagh
Chemical Garden Trilogy by Lauren DeStefano
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Entwined by Heather Dixon
Magic Under Glass and others by Jaclyn Dolamore
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
If I Stay/Where She Went by Gayle Forman
The Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia and Margeret Stohl
Princess of the Midnight Ball and sequels by Jessica Day George
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Dearly Departed by Lia Habel
The Goose Girl and sequels by Shannon Hale
Unearthly series by Cynthia Hand
Clarity series by Kim Harrington
Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins
Cahill Witch Chronicles by Jessica Spotswood
The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (and others but I figure this one will appeal to Twihards the most)
The Ghost and the Goth series by Stacey Kade
The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa
The Agency series by Y. S. Lee
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Jane by April Lindner (I'd read after Jane Eyre though for comparison's sake)
Theatre Illuminate Trilogy by Lisa Mantchev
Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr
Hourglass by Myra McEntire
Beauty/Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead (also rec to Twihards in general)
Cinder by Mariisa Meyer
Fever series by Karen Marie Moning
Anne of Green Gables series by L. M. Montegomary (Gilbert was the bomb, he was my first literary crush; I don't know what Meyer is talking about when she claims he's "such a Jacob". Jacob wishes he was as awesome as Gilbert.)
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Delirium series by Lauren Oliver
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (also rec to above Twihards)
Tortall series by Tamora Pierce (if only to see what good fleshed out relationships are)
Dark Mirror series by Mary Jo Putney
Across the Universe Trilogy by Beth Revis
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Divergent series by Veronica Roth
Shade series by Jeri Smith-Ready
Poison Study series by Maria Snyder
Wolves of Mercy Falls/Books of Faeries etc. by Maggie Stiefvater
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent
Angel Trilogy by Lee Weatherly
The Alchemy of Forever by Avery Williams
The Prophecy of the Sisters Trilogy by Michelle Zink

Book Review: Forgiven

TITLE: Forgiven
Book 3 in the Demon Trappers series
AUTHOR: Jana Oliver
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy, Romance
PREMISE: Riley continues her struggles in the demon trapping world.
MY REVIEW: Okay, here's the thing. I do like this series. I find the world unique, it's fast-paced, quick dialogue, the main romance is fun and complicated, and there is a interesting on-going plot. I'm just...losing patience with it?
Really, this book is more of the same old same old we've seen in the past two books. Honestly about the only things of significance that I even recall is Riley finally admitting her feelings (but of course she and her guy can't get together due to what is such a ridiculous obstacle I don't know where to begin) and Simon getting his ass reamed by a angel which admittedly was very nice to see but still. I just sort of snore read through this book. I think the author needs to wrap it up.
But if you're still really into this series then you'll be happy to know that hey, feelings are admitted! There's a kiss! And then there's the stupid road-block, but hey it means more books so I guess, yay? Like I said, the author should wrap this up, soon. I'm ready for her to move on to more meatier books.
WHO SHOULD READ: Fans of the first two books, urban fantasy fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five ex's being annoying

Book Review: Mind Games

TITLE: Mind Games
Book 1 in the Disillusionists Trilogy
AUTHOR: Carolyn Crane
PUBLISHED: 2010
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
PREMISE: A woman discovers she has unusual gifts and joins an agency that tracks down criminals.
MY REVIEW: This review will be short because I honestly don't have much to say beyond okay world-building. It's just same old, same old. I've read several books in the urban fantasy genre similar to it and for me there's not much that stands out about it.
I will say one thing that majorly bugged me though: the main character claims she's a hypochondriac. We're told again and again, she's a hypochondriac. Yet, beyond worrying about a strange feeling in her brain (which I'm pretty sure is part of her gift) she displays no other symptoms that a hypochondriac does. She's not diligent about hand washing, she enjoys sex immensely (even offers to have sex in a car during a traffic jam. Yes, really), she doesn't worry about getting diseases of any sort and is quite calm about the whole thing even when she does feel that whatever in her brain. So...yeah, she's not a hypochondriac. If you're going to have a character with a problem like this look up behavioral patterns and have your character act accordingly. Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory? He's a hypochondriac. This woman is a poser.
Honestly I just sort of shrug and roll my eyes at this book. It's okay but it's nothing special and I sort of found the romantic relationships/sex parts ridiculous instead of hot (see character offering to have sex in a car, who DOES that?). There's nothing really memerable about this, it's just one more urban fantasy book in a long line of look-alike urban fantasy books.
WHO SHOULD READ: Urban fantasy fans
MY RATING: Three out of Five people who aren't actually hypochondriacs

Book Review: The Demon's Surrender

TITLE: The Demon's Surrender
Book 3 in the Demon's Lexicon Trilogy
AUTHOR: Sarah Rees Brennan
PUBLISHED: 2011
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban fantasy
PREMISE: Mae and Sin vie for control over the Market while the Magicians plot a war...
MY REVIEW: It will forever puzzle me why this series isn't more popular then Mortal Instruments. It has the same sort of feel to it but this is SO MUCH better. I could go on and on about how much Mae, Sin, Alan, Nick, and Jamie all trump Clary and co. Mortal Instruments is fun, don't get me wrong but in terms of quality...it's not the best (especially lately). But this...oh I love Brennan's writing.
Now yes, there is a wee bit of predictibility to this and there are some common tropes. But i t's still better then most things out there. Characters are interesting and complicated and not horrendously one-dimensional. There's diversity in the characters (without making them walking stereotypes. Gosh do I love Jamie), there's creativity, there's a twist or two. All in all it's a satisfying ending to a fun trilogy.
So congrats Brennan you have a fan in me. I can't wait to read her next book, coming out in October or Team Human which she co-wrote with Justine Larbelestier which comes out in July (or June?)
WHO SHOULD READ: Mortal Instrument fans, Those that have read books 1 and 2.
MY RATING: Four out of Five crossbows

Waiting on Wednesday

TITLE: The Friday Society
Book 1 in a series?
AUTHOR: Adrienne Kress
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Steampunk, mystery
SUMMARY FROM PUBLISHER: An action-packed tale of gowns, guys, guns--and the heroines who use them all

Set in Edwardian London, The Friday Society follows the stories of three very intelligent and talented young women, all of whom are assistants to powerful men: Cora, lab assistant; Michiko, Japanese fight assistant; and Nellie, magician's assistant. The three young women's lives become inexorably intertwined after a chance meeting at a ball that ends with the discovery of a murdered mystery man.

It's up to these three, in their own charming but bold way, to solve the murder--and the crimes they believe may be connected to it--without calling too much attention to themselves.

RELEASE DATE: December 6th

WHY I'M EAGER: Um...look at that cover. Read the summary. Any questions? This book sounds like it has everything I love: mystery, steampunk setting, sassy girls who get things done and what promises to be a humorous romp a la Parasol Protectorate. I've read one of Kress's middle-grade books before and liked it quite a bit so I am really looking forward to her making a splash in YA.

Top Ten Tuesday (9)

This is a weekly meme hosted by the girls at The Broke and the Bookish .

My Top Ten Websites That Aren't About Books

1) Tumblr-Oh wait, you don't know what tumblr is? It's a highly addictive micro-blogging site and is great for fandom things of all kinds.
My Tumblr for anyone interested: http://afangirlsview.tumblr.com/

2) Twitter-If you don't know what Twitter is by now I wash my hands of you.

3) Deviant Art-A great place to load your amateur/professional art and link up with other artists.

4) Polyvore-A fun site that lets you create outfits using real cloths from hundreds of stores. Great time waster and fun for inspiration. They let you do interior sets too, btw.

5) Jezebel-A feminist news site with big feminist leanings. Granted sometimes I think they go way over the top and read too much into stuff (particularly when it comes to the entertainment part) but for the most part, this is a great site for the feminist/liberal side of things. You may learn a thing or two about things like racism/politics/abelism/social injustice etc. etc. This site helped me realize why exactly I had so many problems with The Help (not reviewed on this blog because I couldn't finish it) and while it's not really about books it has sort of helped me see some issues in YA that need to be addressed. Such as the fact that in 2011 only 10 percent of the YA covers featured a minority character. Or identify some of the unhealthy relationships that are popular in YA (Patch/Nora anyone?).

6) io9-A geek website with all news nerdy/geeky. Great way to keep up to date on comics, tv shows, movies, etc. Just don't read the commentary because often it's littered with judgemental geek snobs who like to take the fun out of everything and act cool by hating on the popular things like Hunger Games. In other words, they're geek hipsters. Ironic considering the site has had posts that make fun of hipsters.

7) Get Glue-A fun site where if you check in to certain tv shows you can get online stickers which after a certain amount of stickers you can send in and get real copies.

8) Game Spot-Good site for all gaming news, game reviews, hints/cheats etc.

9) Pandora-Music radio site that creates a radio station for you based on a artist or a song/genre etc. Great for long reading hours.

10) IMDB-Internet Movie Database-Great source for finding info on movies/tv. You can even keep track of all those movies you've seen which if you're a movie junkie like me, is quite a bit of movies.

Book Review: Croak

TITLE: Croak
Book 1 in the Croak series
AUTHOR: Gina Damico
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Paranormal, mystery
PREMISE: Lex gets into trouble one too many times and her parents send her to Uncle Mort's who decides to train her in the art of soul collecting.
MY REVIEW: I really enjoyed this book. I had no expectations of it whatsoever and wasn't sure how it was going to turn out but I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, sometimes Lex can be irratating. Yes, there is a vague resemblance to the show Dead Like Me (which if you haven't seen I totally rec, I believe Netflix has it on instant). I also will admit to a lot of eyebrow raising at the world building. But these flaws are overshadowed by the sheer enjoyability factor of this book.
I like quirky senses of humor in my books, and this writer does that in spades. There were many times this ebook (I used my Kindle) made me laugh. While I still have issues with the dodgy explanation for Lex's violence in the begining at least Lex grows somewhat. There's good pacing, the author doesn't waste our time with dull teen drama. Some is there yes, but it doesn't take over the whole book and is kept to a minimum in favor of the important mystery plot. Plus, even the teen drama is entertaining.
So my general thoughts are this is a fun book and I'm definitely looking forward to the second one. This is a nice one for those of you in the mood for something a little different. Many thanks to the publisher for eARC.
WHO SHOULD READ: Dead Like Me fans, paranormal fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five blades

Saturday Recs (3)

My Recs for books with vampires.
So you read Twilight and are neck deep in this vampire business. Well that's good because there are tons of vampire books out there.

Ones I wholeheartedly rec:
Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris
Insatiable series by Meg Cabot
The Parisol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger (technically mostly about werewolves but has a hilarious vampire by the name of Lord Akeldama who frankly needs his own book)
Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins (has a vampire character who is made of win)
Bloodshot by Cherie Priest

Books that have vampires in them: that I mildly rec:
Morganville Vampires series by Rachel Caine
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantasky
Evernight series by Claudia Gray
Buffy the Vampire Slayer original book bind-ups (I read these back in the day and they were usually solid, the covers they re-released them in are so much prettier though)
The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks
Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Vampire Kisses series by Ellen Schreiber
The Vampire Diaries series by L. J. Smith (actually much better then the TV Show)

Books that have vampires in them but I would only read if you're curious:
Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer
Blue Blood series by Melissa de la Cruz
House of Night series by P. C and Kristin Cast
Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost
Crusade by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguie
Anita Blake series by Laurel K. Hamilton

Book Review: The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind

TITLE: The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind
AUTHOR: Meg Medina
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Um...drama? Not sure, really.
PREMISE: A girl is born during a fierce thunderstorm and when she's born the storms stop, thus her village believes she is connected to god and her prayers bring them good luck.
MY REVIEW: This book isn't bad really. I just think it's a case of a book just not suited for me. The writing is nice, I adored the descriptions of the village, and there were some interesting things in it that are great for discussion. I just was kind of bored throughout it because about midway I started to realize how this was going to go and sure enough, it pretty much ended the way I thought it would.
Another issue I had is that while the story is nice and all, it's...kind of boring. The characters don't really add anything either as they're all cookie cutter characters. The MC was the selfless girl who tried to help out everyone, love interest was the orphan with a heart of gold, father was the traditionalist, aunt was the evil gold-digger type etc. etc. It all made for a nicely written but rather dull read.
But again, I feel this was aimed at the Christian Book reading crowd and lets face it, I'm not a Christian Book Reader. I just don't get the appeal of the genre because I find all the Christian books to be like this one: dull and predictable. With a side of preachy and judgemental though thankfully this book didn't have as much of that, unless you count the one-dimensional character that was the aunt. So really, this was mostly a case of a book just not being to my taste. For Christian book readers though I recomend this wholeheartedly. Thank you to the publisher for this eARC. I'm sorry I didn't like it more.
WHO SHOULD READ: Christian book readers
MY RATING: Three out of Five charms for prayers

Waiting on Wednesday (9)

TITLE: Princess of the Silver Woods
Book 3 in the Twelve Dancing Princesses series
AUTHOR: Jessica Day George
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fairytale retelling
SUMMARY FROM BOOK: When Petunia, the youngest of King Gregor’s twelve dancing daughters, is invited to visit an elderly friend in the neighboring country of Westfalin, she welcomes the change of scenery. But in order to reach Westfalin, Petunia must pass through a forest where strange two-legged wolves are rumored to exist. Wolves intent on redistributing the wealth of the noble citizens who have entered their territory. But the bandit-wolves prove more rakishly handsome than truly dangerous, and it’s not until Petunia reaches her destination that she realizes the kindly grandmother she has been summoned to visit is really an enemy bent on restoring an age-old curse.

RELEASE DATE: November 13

WHY I'M EAGER: I'm a big fairytale retelling fan and I absolutely adore these princess books that George has done and I'm intrigued by how this one isn't a princess tale but a combination of Red Riding Hood and Robin Hood. If Petunia is as awesome as her sisters, chances are I'm going to love this just as much as Princess of the Midnight Ball and Princess of Glass.

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I'd Like to See on a Reality Show

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Authors I'd Like to See on a Reality Show

Hmm...I don't watch much reality TV aside from competition shows and occasionally whenever the tv at work is on the Kardashians or Jersey Shore (this is against my will btw)  but I know the gist of them so I'm going to come up with a batch of authors I'd like to see on the same reality show together. I see this show as maybe something like Jersey Shore where they all live together or something.

1) Stephanie Meyer-Shocker, I know. For me personally because I don't particularly like her, Meyer would probably be that contestant that I just love to hate. She'd probably be like Snooki-universelly loved and hated at the same time. Sometimes by the same people.

2) JK Rowling-Rowling would be the classy above-it-all contestant. You know the one: I'm not getting involved in this drama, but lol you all are kind of idiots.

3) Maureen Johnson-Read her Twitter guys, she's hilarious. I have a feeling Johnson would steal the show.

4) Neil Gaiman-Another author who is just hilarious. He would be the one making all the classic commentary about everything but still being cool about everything.

5) George R. R. Martin-Martin is a very outspoken guy. Plus, he'd probably be the oldest one there and I have a feeling his commentary about the younger authors would be epic.

6) Cassandra Clare-Another author who would just provide hilarious commentary.

7) Holly Black-If you read her Twitter you know when she and Clare get together the conversations are hilarious. These two would be the best friends teaming up against everyone else.

8) Meg Cabot-Again, she's hilarious. Plus I see her, Black, Clare, Johnson, and Rowling all teaming up to have feminist parties and trying to convert Meyer to their feminist ways. Cue epic controversial feminist vs non-feminist rants that the media would talk about for days.

9) Terry Pratchett-Would be the super snarky one. I see him and George butting heads occasionally or being great drinking buddies...

10) Stephan King-King I think would be the calmest one who would just stay out of the drama sipping his drinks and laughing at everyone on the inside.

Book Review: Illuminate

TITLE: Illuminate
Book 1 in the new Gilded Wings series
AUTHOR: Aimee Agresti
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban fantasy, drama
PREMISE: Haven gets a exclusive internship at a hotel and gets caught up in a strange world...
MY REVIEW: Warning: I pretty much loathed this book. So much of this post will be ranting. Now I will point out that yes, this book wasn't meant to be literature or anything. I also will admit some of the stuff with the souls and the allusions to The Picture of Dorian Grey were nice. But none of that is enough to make up for a writer who...is not good. Or at the very least needed much editing.
First of all, like I said, the writing is not good. There were lots of misused theosaurus words clearly put in to try and impress the reader but looked terribly out of place. If I could cut out all the redundant sentaces and useless chapters/scenes the book would seriously be about three hundred pages less. Don't get me started on the really bad dialogue in it. The pacing is so slow and the book winds up being frankly dull. Then there are the extremely one-dimensional characters. Haven is a flat Mary Sue, Dante is a walking gay stereotype (I like LGBT characters and all, but please don't make them stereotypes and definitely don't just have them there to be the funny gay best friend and nothing more), both love interests are so boring I don't even remember their names a week later. Then it's just littered with tropes upon tropes and thus it's predictable and half the things going on in it are so ridiculous I don't know where to begin.
This book wasn't offensive or anything (other then the gay stereotyping) but I personally felt insulted. I mean, does Agresti really think this is all teens/YA readers require in their books to make it a best seller? Throw in a paint-by-numbers plot and you're golden? I do understand were she may have gotten the idea considering what's been selling but still, this is just not even trying to be orginal. It felt like a big unedited NaNo novel that was written on a whim. I'm sorry but I like for my books to show some effort in them. This may not be the worst thing ever written, but it sure is kind of insulting to the reader.
WHO SHOULD READ: Twilight fans I guess, but I think even patient Twihards may get slightly insulted by having the character explain everything to them.
MY RATING: One and a half out of Five ridiculous plots

Stacking the Shelves (2)

This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews.

Library Haul:
Demon's Lexicon Trilogy Book 3: The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan-Finally finishing off this fabulous trilogy. I can't wait for her new book in the fall or Team Human.
Revivalist Book 1: Working Stiff by Rachel Caine-adult zombie urban fantasy thing. Oddly I like Caine's adult books better then Morganville Vampires. Go figure.
Disillusionists Trilogy Book 1: Mind Games by Carolyn Crane-Adult Urban Fantasy thing.
Slide by Jill Hathaway-2012 YA debut. Looks like a paranormal of some sort.
When the Sea is Rising Red by Cat Hellisen-2012 YA debut. Sounds like a urban fantasy/dystopian blend. I haven't heard too much about this one and so I'm curious.
Demon Trappers series book 3: Forgiven by Jana Oliver-Urban fantasy series that I'm slightly hooked on even if it is a Buffy rip-off.
Cheshire Red series Book 1: Bloodshot by Cherie Priest.-Adult steampunkish vampire urban fantasy series that I've been hearing really good things about.
Goth Girl Mystery series Book 1: Buried by Linda Joy Singleton-YA paranormal that sounded cool. Although when I picked it up I didn't know it was a spin-off of another series Singleton had written. Hopefully that won't make a difference.

Saturday Recs (2)

Since tomorrow is Mother's Day (happy Mother's Day to all Moms!) my rec theme this week is going to be awesome fictional moms. Lets face it, mothers are a dying breed in YA. Actually, parents in general are. So if you want to read about a awesome mom to a main character, here are some recomends. For fun, I'm going to include kick-ass mothers on TV Shows as well.

Books with awesome mothers:
Harry Potter series by JK Rowling-aside from Petunia Dursley pretty much all the moms in HP are awesome, even Narcissa Malfoy puts Draco first. And who can forget the epicness that is Molly Weasley?
Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan-Percy's mom is fabulous. I mean she puts up with a lousy boyfriend just to protect Percy! That's a mom.
The mothers in Meg Cabot's books-Cabot's YA moms are all different, have different ways of parenting, and you can tell they love and support their daughters. Some may not be the best mothers in the world, but they definitely do try.
Circle of Magic series (Rosethorn and Lark) by Tamora Pierce-Not all mother figures have to be blood related. These two run a house in a school and take in Briar, Tris, Sandry, and Daja and pretty much help raise them more the characters mothers ever did.
Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter-Cammie's mom is not only a great mom but still badass all while running a school for teenage girl spies in training.
Mortal Instuments series by Cassandra Clare-Clare's mom is badass. Personally, I kind of love Clare's mom more then Clare. ;ducks;
Unearthly series by Cynthia Hand-Best mother or best mother? If you didn't at least get choked up by this mother's sacrifice in book then you have no soul.
Catelyn Stark/Cersei Lannister/Dany from A Song of Ice and Fire series: Say what you will about Cersei is as a person (she is horrible, I agree) but she looks out for her kids, same with Catelyn the whole Jon Snow thing not withstanding. For those wondering why I'm putting Dany on here, I pretty much consider her dragons as her kids.
Gram from the Sookie Stackhouse series: Sookie's grandmother basically raised her and Jason only to get prematurely killed by a vampire hater in the first book.

Awesome mothers on TV:
Morticia Addams from The Addams Family
Cory Matthews' mother from Boy Meets World
Sarah Conner from the Sarah Conner Chronicles
Allison from Eureka
Xena from Xena: Warrior Princess (watch later in the series)
Don Draper's wife (or ex-wife now I guess) from Mad Men (who gets super awesome bonus points for putting up with Don)
Joyce Summers from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Bones and Angela from Bones
Emma Swan from Once Upon A Time (okay she's questionable but she TRIES), if not her how about Snow White?

Book Review: Partials

TITLE: Partials
Book 1 in the new Partials series
AUTHOR: Dan Wells
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Dystopian, adventure
PREMISE: Kira tries to search for a cure for humanity who are now dying.
MY REVIEW: I have really mixed feelings about Partials. I definitely feel like it was a ambitious idea. I do like that it made you think, that Kira was proactive, the world was interesting, there was a fast paced plot, and the dialogue was really nice and I loved the banter going on between the friends.
However I while I liked the world presented here...I feel it was half-hazard sometime and I don't feel it's really possible. I feel like there were several plot holes, particularly how despite working around the clock no doctor before Kira thought to look into the blood issue but she comes along and suddenly, oh hey solution! Kira herself...I didn't connect with her much. She's an okay character, not overly annoying, but she's...flat. Plus I sometimes felt like the author was using the characters as mouth pieces for his own thoughts on what was going on and that got annoying too.
For a first book, this isn't bad. I'm just not overwhelmed by it. It is nice to get a dystopian that isn't all "OMG, love triangle guys!" though.
WHO SHOULD READ: Dystopian fans, fans that don't mind a lack of romance
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five needles

Book Review: A Beautiful Evil

TITLE: A Beautiful Evil
Book 2 in the Gods and Monsters series
AUTHOR: Kelly Keaton
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban fantasy
PREMISE: Ari continues her fight against Athena and hopes to fight her curse.
MY REVIEW: Honestly my feelings on this book are pretty much the same as my feelings on Darkness Becomes Her so this review will be short. There really hasn't been a huge shift in quality lower or higher. It's pretty much more of the previous book.
I still don't get Athena as a villain. Also she's kind of a lame villain? I mean she monologues and gloats for crying out loud! I'm supposed to take a goddess with terrifying powers who doesn't kill Ari when she has the chance right off seriously? Yeah. No. While I still enjoy group dynamics among the protagonists and enjoy the fun world created I still think much of it makes very little sense and I still think Keaton really should work on her dialogue.
All in all, still a average but sort of fun series. May or may not be reading the next one. It'll depend on the mood at that time.
WHO SHOULD READ: Fans of Darkness Becomes Her, mythology fans,
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five snakes

Book Review: Incarnate

TITLE: Incarnate
Book 1 in the Incarnate series
AUTHOR: Jodi Meadows
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy, romance
PREMISE: A girl gets born with a world where people are always reincarnated but she is a new soul...
MY REVIEW: So Incarnate was one of those hyped up books and I do get why it was hyped. It has a really interesting concept and I do like the ideas going on here and there's plenty of creativity to be had. Also the writing is nice. Sometimes a bit metaphor-heavy, but nice.
This was just one of those things that didn't jive for me personally. I didn't hate it. But I didn't OMG love it either. Part of it is the main character was flat and boring and whiny. When the main character annoys me like this one does, I just find it hard to get into a book. While the love interest wasn't truly offensive or anything and certainly better then what I've seen, he also was rather flat and boring. Plus as creative as the world in question was, much of it didn't make sense to me. I mean you have this world that apparently has digital music but then you also have dragons? Also I feel the prejudice against the main character was extremely forced and kind of a weak plot point and mostly there to garner sympathy for the Mary Sue.
I'm giving this author leeway because this is her first book and there are more coming so I recognize that we probably don't have all the answers yet. Whether or not I'll be reading the next book is in question, it'll probably depend on how I feel next year about this book because thhe more I think about it the lesser my opinion of the book is.
WHO SHOULD READ: Twilight fans, romance fans, fantasy fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five butterflies

Top Ten Tuesday (7) Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes

This is hard as I'm somewhat of a quote junkie. If you want to get a good handle on my favorite quotes, you can always look at my quote gadget from Goodreads on the sidebar.

1)  "Every now and then I like to do as I'm told. Just to confuse people."-From Circle of Magic series: Melting Stones by Tamora Pierce

2) "Angry people are not always wise."-From Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

3) "If you want to know what a man is like; take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."-From Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling

4) "People have a habit of inventing fictions they believe wholeheartedly in order to ignore the truth they cannot accept."-From The Gemma Doyle Trilogy: A Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray

5) "If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself."-From Percy Jackson Book 1: The Lighting Thief by Rick Riordan

6) "Stories never really end...even if the books like to pretend they do. Stories always go on. They don't end on the last page any more then they began on the first page."-From the Inkheart Trilogy Book 2: Inkspell by Cornelia Funke

7) "Have been unavoidably detained by world. Expect us when you see us."-From Stardust by Neil Gaiman

8) "You can't judge the many by the actions of the few."-From Sisters Grimm series Book 1: The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley

9) "My bullshit meter is reading that as false."-From the Sookie Stackhouse series: Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris

10) "In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move."-From The Hitchhikers Gude to the Galxy series: The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams

Book Review: Trial by Fire

TITLE: Trial by Fire
Book 2 in the Raised by Wolves series
AUTHOR: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
PUBLISHED: 2011
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Werewolves, Urban fantasy, drama
PREMISE: Bryn learns the ups and downs of being an Alpha when a abused werewolf comes into her territory.
MY REVIEW: This series continues to be enjoyable in the second book. I really do need to read Barnes other stuff because if it's anything like this series I'm going to love it. I still maintain that Bryn is a bit of a Mary Sue but at least she's an enjoyable and useful Mary Sue and the author tries to put depth and explanation for her slightly Deus ex machina power. It's just so nice to have a strong female for once who isn't just saying she's strong, she actually IS.
This is a strong sequel and does all the things a continuation should: add in more backstory to characters that explain much about the ways they've behaved, have consequences for actions taken in the previous books, further character dynamics, explain things previously unexplained, and just continue to entertain.
I'm really loving this series which takes the rather tired werewolf trope and make it enjoyable. This series is a far better version of previous books such as Claire de Lune or Nightshade. I really wish it were more popular.
WHO SHOULD READ: Nightshade fans, werewolf fans, Team Jacob fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five werewolf packs

Stacking the Shelves (1)

After shopping the new In My Mailbox look alike memes I've decided to go with Stacking the Shelves, a new meme hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews. So if you're looking for a IMMB alternative, check hers out!

Just bought two ebooks this week:
Ship Breaker by Paulo Bacigalupi-A dystopian from last year on sale for 2.99. This book has won all sort of awards and I've been meaning to read it for awhile now.
Sky Chasers Book 1: Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan-A debut from last year that is currently on sale for 2.99 at Amazon. I've heard many good things about it, School Library Journal even has it on their best fiction book of 2011 list.

That's it for me this week. Next week is library week, so there'll be lots more.

Saturday Recs (1)

This is going to hopefully become a weekly feature here at my blog. See, I like to rec things and help people find books/TV shows/Movies that they may come to adore or at least enjoy later on. Part of why I started this blog in the first place. So this is part of my way of doing that. I will take a subject/trope/magical creature/any idea and rec things that apply to it. Mostly I will be reccing books, but on occasion I may rec tv shows or movies that happen to go along with the subject in question. So, here is the first Saturday Recs:

If you like: Harry Potter, try these:

Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins
The Chrestomanci Chronicles series by Diana Wynne Jones
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott
His Dark Materials Trilogy by Phillup Pullman
Lord of the Rings series by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Magicians by Les Grossman (haven't personally read but many say it's like a adult HP)
Young Wizards series by Diane Duane
Harry: A History by Melissa Anelli (non-fiction about the history of Harry Potter as well as its fandom and influence)
The Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis
The Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander
Mythos Academy series by Jennifer Estep
The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper
The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black
The Magickers series by Emily Drake
Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
Haven by Kristi Cook
Dark Mirror series by Mary Jo Putney
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede
Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

Note: Some of these you may notice I personally gave low ratings to some of these books such as Dead Beautiful. I am reccing books that I think the reader in question may like based on what the subject. My feelings on said book are being left out of the equation entirely.

If any of you have questions on why I'm reccing something feel free to ask. Also if any of you want me to do a suggestion of an idea of yours, I will be willing to make a list for it for the next Saturday Recs.

Book Review: The Demon's Covenant

TITLE: The Demon's Covenant
Book 2 in the Demon's Lexicon Trilogy
AUTHOR: Sarah Rees Breenan
PUBLISHED: 2010
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban fantasy, drama
PREMISE: Once again, Mae has to rely on brothers Nick and Alan for help when a warlock targets her brother.
MY REVIEW: I finally sat down and read Demon's Lexicon last year and pretty much adored it. It's like a much more better version of Mortal Instruments. I mean, I like MI but I also think the series is rather average (and lately rather boring). To me, Demon's Lexicon is much more creative and is a better quality even though admitedly they are rather similar books.
Like the first book, the most interesting aspect of this trilogy to me was the complex relationship between the characters. None of it was simple. Mae had wierd relations with Nick and Alan as well has her own brother and mother, Jamie has so many issues I don't know where to begin (but remains his awesome self), Nick is...Nick, and Alan remains ever confusing. Having the four of them interact is a delight on every page and always interesting. Plus, after some of those twists at the end I most definitely will be reading the next book soon. Probably next week in fact.
So in short, if you liked/loved Demon's Lexicon then have no fear, the second book is just as good as the third. Now, to all those who've read both this trilogy or Mortal Instruments, who do you think would win in a snark off, Jamie or Magnus Bane?
WHO SHOULD READ: Those that have read Demon's Lexicon, Mortal Instrument fans, UF fans
MY RATING: Four and a half out of Five charms

Book Review: Faery Tales and Nightmares

TITLE: Faery Tales and Nightmares
AUTHOR: Melissa Marr
PUBLISHED: 2012
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Short stories, Urban fantasy
PREMISE: A collection of short stories from Melissa Marr, some old and some new.
MY REVIEW: Short story collections are always a hard thing for me to review because like books, some of the stories in the collection I adore, some I'm indifferent too, others just confuse me.
This is the case with Marr's book. I adore her Wicked Lovely short stories (though it turned out one or two of them I'd already read), the other stories ranged from interesting, to what the hell, to whatever. All of them of course were told with Marr's trademark writing style which I adore.
I reccomend this mostly to hardcore Marr fans and to those Wicked Lovely fans who weren't able to get ahold of her ebook short stories for Wicked Lovely. Other then us, this will be just a nice little collection of stories for the average reader. Maybe give you an idea of what Marr's writing is like.
WHO SHOULD READ: Wicked Lovely fans, Melissa Marr fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five faeries.

Waiting on Wednesday (8)

TITLE: Beautiful Redemption

Book 4 in the Caster Chronicles series

AUTHOR: Kami Garcia and Margeret Stohl

CATEGORY: YA

GENRE: Urban fantasy, romance, drama

SUMMARY FROM BOOK: Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate has spent most of his life longing to escape the stiflingly small Southern town of Gatlin. He never thought he would meet the girl of his dreams, Lena Duchannes, who unveiled a secretive, powerful, and cursed side of Gatlin, hidden in plain sight. And he never could have expected that he would be forced to leave behind everyone and everything he cares about. So when Ethan awakes after the chilling events of the Eighteenth Moon, he has only one goal: to find a way to return to Lena and the ones he loves.

Back in Gatlin, Lena is making her own bargains for Ethan's return, vowing to do whatever it takes -- even if that means trusting old enemies or risking the lives of the family and friends Ethan left to protect.

Worlds apart, Ethan and Lena must once again work together to rewrite their fate, in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series.

 

RELEASE DATE: October 23rd

 

WHY I'M EAGER: Um, did you READ the ending of the last book? Holy cliff hangers Batman! Plus I'm just in utter love with this series. Yes, it can be cheesy but it's just such an enjoyable read. I always look forward to the next book. I'm going to be sorry to see the series go. But word has it that Kami has another book series in the works so I have that to look forward too after I guess.

Top Ten Tuesday (6)

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Books I'd Like to See Made Into a Movie:

1) The Gemma Doyle Trilogy by Libba Bray-I love this trilogy and it has so much to offer. I do also know that it did have a movie deal for while but apparently it's never gotten off the ground. I sort of torn really because I do think this would be an excellent movie but Hollywood has a tendancy to ruin things and I'm sure the feminist messages in the trilogy would be tossed out the window. Plus I'm sure the male lead would be white-washed in a heart beat. I just have very little faith in Hollywood YA films ever since they utterly ruined Percy Jackson and that was practically a hollywood blockbuster screenplay to begin with.

2) The Looking Glass Wars Trilogy by Frank Beddor-I adore Alice in Wonderland mash-ups and the art for this series is just lovely. Word is Beddor has been working on getting a deal for this series since the start. We'll see what happens.

3) Tortall series by Tamora Pierce-I'd actually love to see this made into a TV series because I think her books would be perfect for a TV show along the lines of Game of Thrones. Probably will never happen though as Pierce is very protective of her books and apparently no one has come up with a idea that has satisfied her which is fine by me because I'd rather have a really satisfying product then a crappy one (see Dune).

4) The Subtle Knife by Phillup Pullman-I do think The Golden Compass was good up until the crappy ending that got changed to appease the religious groups. I want them to fix that with a sequel and do in a way that doesn't give a damn about what the church thinks. Unfortunately because everyone is so uptight about this trilogy and all the protesting that was done anyway the first made no money and we will likely never see a sequel.

5) Graceling by Kristin Cashore-This would make a beautiful action packed film. Though like Gemma Doyle a part of me wants to keep it away from Hollywood who would probably make Katsa super girly and again toss the feminist messages out the window (Katsa would probably totally want to have kids and jump Po's bones and they'd get married right away).

6) The Iron King series by Julie Kagawa-Mostly just want to see because the sets would be so fantastic though the focus would probably just be: look, hot boys! So I'm wary of them making a movie of this.

7) The Secrets of the Immortal Nicolas Flamel series by Michael Scott-This would be a action packed fun movie with entertainments galore. As long as they don't go the Percy Jackson route and change everything they would have a blockbuster on their hands.

8) The Kane Chronicles series by Rick Riordan-Again, as long as they don't go the Percy Jackson route and change everything. Also, Carter and the gods better not be white-washed.

9) Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman-As long as they don't try to teen-fy it. Neverwhere is adult. It is not Harry Potter. I just want them to show that just because something is fantasy doesn't mean it always has to be for teenagers. That's a common misconception to those that don't read fantasy/sci-fi and I have to say it's very annoying.

10) The Mediator series by Meg Cabot-again, this is one I actually want as TV Show. As long as it's not anywhere on Disney (they have bad habit of utterly ruining Cabot's stuff, see PD and the Avalon High TV movie) and as long as they keep Suze her badass self.