Tag Archive | 2013

Book Review: Gates of Paradise By Melissa de la Cruz

Gates Cover

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Please note this is the seventh book in the Blue Bloods series. If you haven’t read any of the books you may not want to read this review.

This is the epic conclusion for the half blood Schuyler Van Allen. Left with only a clue as to how to save the world of the Blue Bloods. Oliver and Schuyler must again travel the world in search of answers. Jack and Mimi, traitors to their kind must mask their true intentions from the Lord of the Underworld. Whilst Bliss, now one with the hounds of Hell must claim her birthright and fix the broken fissure of time.

Three different paths that will all lead to the finale battle for the survival of their kind. Who will end up on what side? Schuyler is destined to lead her people back to Paradise, but she’ll have to make a sacrifice to do so. Filled with questions will she be able to find the answers before Lucifer re-enters the Gates of Paradise?

I was thrilled that my library had a copy of this freshly published book! Oh joy! Such rapture! I’m a very empathetic person and although I was excited to sink my teeth (hehe) into this finale, I was also so sad to lose such a comfort of an engaging series. I’ve been following since it began in 2004 and it’s been hard to keep the facts straight as the books have been published every few years. One of the things I loved about this series is that it’s intelligent and smart, delving into ancient history and roman mythology. This book is no different and I am so impressed with Cruz’s ability to blend historical fiction into the modern age.

I gave the book four stars because although I was happy that Cruz took care of the cat (writer’s term), I do feel as if everything happened a bit too neatly. However, this is a personal taste and I believe that how Cruz ended her loved filled destiny series is perfect for her loyal fans that have been pouring over her books for the past nine years.  The send off is just what it needed and because of this I would love to own the entire series and reread it when the mood strikes me. I’m very sad the journey is over, but praise Cruz for a job well done. I’ve been there since the beginning and you’ve never disappointed. 

Book Review: Death by Chocolate by Johanna Pitcairn

Death Cover

Death by Cho info

Valentines Day is supposed to be filled with adoration, love and chocolates from a boyfriend. For Julie, she discovers that her boyfriend of three months is cheating on her with blonde haired Melissa. Spoiled, rich and totally dependant on the superficial California lifestyle, Julie makes a rash decision to run away to Vegas. With her checking accounts and credit cards cut off she struggles to feed herself. When a Gypsy comes along promising a warm meal and a free fortune reading, Julie figures to go along since she doesn’t have anything else better to do.

She’s handed a box of normal looking chocolates that taste out of this world. After one bite Julie awakens in a field, with a handsome shirtless man moving toward her shouting ‘Run!’. Thus begins her adventure in a mysterious world where people speak in riddles and Julie is suddenly faced with memories of forgotten best friend Kara. The chocolates are more than just sweets and Julie is going to have to discover the root of her black heart if she’s going to return to her normal life once more.

This was an interesting read! I was looking for something short and this book fit the bill beautifully. It’s extremely fast paced and feels like something I might have studied in one of my literature classes. I loved that it didn’t have the focus of romance but instead slowly gave the reader insight into Julie’s horrible past. My main critic is that there are too many ‘modern day’ references that date the book. Many of the references won’t be relevant in five years time.

For the most part I really enjoyed Julie as a character. She’s not instantly likable and I enjoyed learning why she is the way she’s become. She doesn’t fit the mould of a traditional YA character and it was thrilling to try to figure out what was going on. The ending has left me scratching my head but for good reasons. I don’t think this book is a first of a series and I hope it stays that way. I like a book that leaves me hanging but gives me enough information for my imagination to make educated guesses. If you’re looking for a discussion worthy short book, give Death by Chocolate a shot. You’ll finish it in two hours and will have plenty to talk about!

The wonderful Publisher Curiosity Quills Press provided this book in exchange for an honest review.  Many thanks to them and the author Johanna Pitcairn for giving me just what I was looking for!

Death by Chocolate is out now! Get your copy today and tell me what you think!

Freshly Published – March

With March comes another range of freshly published Young Adult fiction! Are some of these titles on your hit list? I’ve tried to mix it up with a few stand alone books along with a couple First Books of a series. All summaries are from Goodreads.

Unremembered by Jessica Brody (Unremembered #1)

UnrememberedThe only thing worse than forgetting her past… is remembering it.

When Freedom Airlines flight 121 went down over the Pacific Ocean, no one ever expected to find survivors. Which is why the sixteen-year-old girl discovered floating among the wreckage—alive—is making headlines across the globe.

Even more strange is that her body is miraculously unharmed and she has no memories of boarding the plane. She has no memories of her life before the crash. She has no memories period. No one knows how she survived. No one knows why she wasn’t on the passenger manifest. And no one can explain why her DNA and fingerprints can’t be found in a single database in the world.

Crippled by a world she doesn’t know, plagued by abilities she doesn’t understand, and haunted by a looming threat she can’t remember, Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. But with every clue only comes more questions. And she’s running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to know her from before the crash. Who claims they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?

From popular young adult author, Jessica Brody comes a mesmerizing and suspenseful new series, set in a world where science knows no boundaries, memories are manipulated, and true love can never be forgotten.

The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett (The Arkwell Academy #1)

nightmareSixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target.

Poison by Bridget Zinn

PosionSixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she’s the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom’s future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.

But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart . . . misses.

Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king’s army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she’s not alone. She’s armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can’t stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?

Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she’s certainly no damsel-in-distress—she’s the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.

Butter by Erin Jade Lange

I had the lucky chance to read this book early – find my review here.

ButterYou think I eat a lot now? That’s nothing. Tune in December 31st, when I will stream a live webcast of my last meal. Death row inmates get one. Why shouldn’t I? I can’t take another year in this fat suit, but I can end this year with a bang. If you can stomach it, you’re invited to watch … as I eat myself to death.

So starts Butter, the story of a lonely 423-pound boy everyone calls ‘Butter’. Worse than being ridiculed for his size at high school, he is simply ignored. Desperate, he pledges to eat himself to death live on the Internet – and everyone will watch. When he makes this announcement online, he expects pity, insults, or possibly sheer indifference. Instead, his classmates become morbid cheerleaders for his deadly plan.

Yet as their dark encouragement grows, it begins to feel a lot like popularity. And that feels good. But what happens when Butter reaches his suicide deadline?

Readers will be surprised to find themselves identifying with both the bullied … and the bullies.

Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality by Elizabeth Eulberg

ButterA hilarious new novel from Elizabeth Eulberg about taking the wall out of the wallflower so she can bloom.

Don’t mess with a girl with a Great Personality.

Everybody loves Lexi. She’s popular, smart, funny…but she’s never been one of those girls, the pretty ones who get all the attention from guys. And on top of that, her seven-year-old sister, Mackenzie, is a terror in a tiara, and part of a pageant scene where she gets praised for her beauty (with the help of fake hair and tons of makeup).

Lexi’s sick of it. She’s sick of being the girl who hears about kisses instead of getting them. She’s sick of being ignored by her longtime crush, Logan. She’s sick of being taken for granted by her pageant-obsessed mom. And she’s sick of having all her family’s money wasted on a phony pursuit of perfection.

The time has come for Lexi to step out from the sidelines. Girls without great personalities aren’t going to know what hit them. Because Lexi’s going to play the beauty game – and she’s in it to win it.

Being Henry David by Cal Armistead

ButterSeventeen-year-old “Hank” has found himself at Penn Station in New York City with no memory of anything –who he is, where he came from, why he’s running away. His only possession is a worn copy of Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. And so he becomes Henry David-or “Hank” and takes first to the streets, and then to the only destination he can think of–Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. Cal Armistead’s remarkable debut novel is about a teen in search of himself. Hank begins to piece together recollections from his past. The only way Hank can discover his present is to face up to the realities of his grievous memories. He must come to terms with the tragedy of his past, to stop running, and to find his way home.

Any of them strike your fancy? What is on your current read list?

Book Review: Butter by Erin Lange – Published Today!

Butter CoverinfoBeing 423 lbs at sixteen isn’t easy. Butter is an outcast and secretly in love with one of the most popular girls in school, Anna. Thin, tall with long blonde hair, she’s the dream girl for many adolescent boys. A gifted musician on the saxophone, he hides on his computer under the handle ‘SaxMan’ to woo Anna behind the safety of the screen.

During a typical lunchtime period Butter gets caught between his feelings for Anna and drawing unwanted attention to himself. There’s something about lunchtime laughter that is soul crushing and Butter has had enough. He creates his own website http://www.Butterslastmeal.com. It was supposed to be a joke. Declaring his dare of eating himself to death on New Years Eve. As the countdown begins Butter gets a reaction he never expected, but mirages don’t last forever. It’s a last meal for one and the Internet will be waiting.

I was so excited to be approved for this ARC; I was instantly hooked from the premise. Sharp, clear and focused, this book doesn’t mess around. Butter isn’t a character that most readers can relate too, and more so, he’s not even likeable throughout most of the book. Butter is a typical spoiled teenager who happens to weigh over 400 pounds. This book reminded me of a scene in MTV’s Awkward, where the popular head cheerleader also happens to be overweight. She shouts at her mother while they’re shopping, her family has money and buying clothes isn’t the issue. The problem is that she can’t wear what she wants because those things don’t fit her size.

It’s such a shock to the system. There is no longer a happy medium for body size. There also isn’t praise for accepting one’s self as they are. Butter isn’t the normal case, and his journey as he grows out is fascinating. This book is so different from most of the Young Adult books out there and I praise the author for writing such a unique title.

Bullying is something that needs to be stopped, but how does one address this issue when it happens between parent and child? Or best friends? Or when the underdog is the one bullying themselves as well as others? Controversial, with a scene that will forever be burned into your mind, Butter is a league ahead of where Young Adult books need to go. You’ll be grateful your teenage years are long gone after reading this, and for those that are in the age category, this book is an example that yes things in life will get better.

Faber and Faber provided this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much for this amazing book and many thanks to the author!

Hot off the presses today! Get your copy now:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Foyles

Freshly Published January 2013

 

Oh to live in a world where one gets paid to sit around all day and read and write. 

This is not my life, but perhaps, one day. 

For the time being, these books are on my radar and are hot off the publishing presses this month! I really hope my local library will have a few of these titles in stock soon! Please note, all blurbs are from Goodreads. 

Teeth by Hannah Moskowitz

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Hannah Moskowitz’s (author of BREAK and INVINCIBLE SUMMER) TEETH features a sixteen-year-old boy whose family, in an effort to cure his ailing brother, relocates to a remote island where legendary magic fish are said to have healing powers, and he discovers the island has terrible secrets, including a half-teenager, half-fish.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab

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Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.

Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.

Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.

Being a Keeper isn’t just dangerous-it’s a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da’s death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.

In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption.

Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans

Level 2 Cover

‘I pause to look around the hive – all the podlike chambers are lit up as the drones shoot up on memories … I’ve wanted to get out of here before, but now the tight quarters start to choke me. There has to be more to death than this.’

Felicia Ward is dead. Trapped in a stark white afterlife limbo, she spends endless days replaying memories, of her family, friends, boyfriend … and of the guy who broke her heart. The guy who has just broken into Level 2 to find her.

Felicia learns that a rebellion is brewing, and it seems she is the key. Suspended between heaven and earth, she must make a choice. Between two worlds, two lives and two loves.

Eek! Splintered, one of the books on my 2012 Wish list is finally published! Hurray!

Splintered by A. G. Howard

Splintered Cover

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.
When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

Finally, the wait is over! I was lucky enough to get a early copy of this fantastic book. Check out my review here, but go out and get yourself a copy too! The cover is simply gorgeous! 

Broken by A. E. Rough

Broken Cover

Imagine a modern spin on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein where a young couple’s undying love and the grief of a father pushed beyond sanity could spell the destruction of them all.

What new books have you bought this month? Leave me a comment, I am curious to know! 

 

2013 Reading Goals

A couple of friends of mine are making reading goals for this year. I’m so happy to announce that I have found a job and have also recently applied for my next visa to stay and work in the UK! Do to being a grown up, I now have the opportunity to make actual goals for myself like my friends. A year goes by so quick. When you live abroad it seems time moves even faster. I have goals for my life! I want to accomplish things this year! (I also really, really hope my visa gets approved) 

Anyways, here’s my reading goals for this year!

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1. I know it may sound silly to make buying a book a goal, but I haven’t had a full time job before. London has got some amazing bookstore and frighteningly, bookstores are coming under threat due to Amazon and other online retailers. (Seriously, if you want to buy used books, go to Half.com, a partner of eBay.) Plus I need an excuse to spend time in bookstores and support them!

2. Because sometimes it can be hard to find authors with the letters X and Z. 

3. I start many YA series and then forget to check back when the rest of the books are published, or don’t make the effort to complete them. If they’re good, I want to see how the rest of the books are too!

4. Everyone says it’s amazing and I need to suck it up and give it a go. 

5. Going to meet EL James, of 50 Shades of Grey, was an interesting experience. Many times the events are free and I love the idea of building a library of signed copies!

So those are my reading goals for this year. Do you have any? It’s never too late to start!