tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53451957466288192832024-02-06T21:33:22.490-08:00Movies In My HeadJust me and my imaginary friends blogging about some great YA books.Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.comBlogger147125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-79948920696062068052013-08-31T15:57:00.000-07:002013-08-31T15:57:07.948-07:00Taking a Little BreakHey everybody! I just wanted to make a quick post to let you all know that I'm going to be going on a hiatus. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone because I'm not sure what the next few months will entail. I just started my graduate program and I'm just not going to have the time to keep up with Movies In My Head. That's not to say that I won't be making a post from time to time or reviewing a book once in awhile. I just won't be requesting review books or accepting review requests for the time being and I won't be posting with regularity. I really appreciate each and every one of you and I hope you'll stick around while I figure things out. I'll still be reading of course and poking around the blogosphere so you won't miss me too much I hope! Love you all!Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-18513600814610377492013-08-17T15:12:00.001-07:002013-08-31T14:52:32.572-07:00Stacking The Shelves (23)<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stacking the Shelves is hosted by the amazing Tynga @</span><a href="http://www.tyngasreviews.com/" style="background-color: white; color: #006677; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: initial;">Tynga's Reviews</a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">For Review:</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262751-dancer-daughter-traitor-spy?ac=1"><img alt="Dancer, Daughter, Traitor, Spy" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1363265232l/17262751.jpg" width="126" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16130324-children-of-the-jacaranda-tree?ac=1"><img alt="Children of the Jacaranda Tree" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1354837145l/16130324.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16130435-the-longings-of-wayward-girls?ac=1"><img alt="The Longings of Wayward Girls" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366067463l/16130435.jpg" width="128" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17571907-bellman-and-black"><img alt="Bellman and Black" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1376474738l/17571907.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262736-projection"><img alt="Projection" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1359619942l/17262736.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13642661-belle-epoque"><img alt="Belle Epoque" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1351057673l/13642661.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
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Thanks Random buzzers!!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Bought:</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9557540-f-in-exams" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="F in Exams: The Very Best Totally Wrong Test Answers" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348824708l/9557540.jpg" width="142" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8675320-the-small-hand?ac=1"><img alt="The Small Hand" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327926842l/8675320.jpg" width="124" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8100422-timeless"><img alt="Timeless (Timeless, #1)" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1275460221l/8100422.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/69136.The_Book_of_Lost_Things?ac=1"><img alt="The Book of Lost Things" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1170703577l/69136.jpg" width="129" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9378297-anna-dressed-in-blood"><img alt="Anna Dressed in Blood (Anna, #1)" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1317793801l/9378297.jpg" width="137" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8428064-demonglass"><img alt="Demonglass (Hex Hall, #2)" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1287692542l/8428064.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11454587-spell-bound"><img alt="Spell Bound (Hex Hall, #3)" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1313010167l/11454587.jpg" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7823549-immortal-beloved"><img alt="Immortal Beloved (Immortal Beloved, #1)" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1341291825l/7823549.jpg" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13501787-a-little-princess"><img alt="A Little Princess" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1357471268l/13501787.jpg" width="145" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7937843-room"><img alt="Room" height="200" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1344265419l/7937843.jpg" width="129" /></a></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">As always let me know what you got this week! Happy Reading!!!</b></div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-32718072053903511782013-08-08T12:28:00.001-07:002013-08-08T12:28:55.456-07:00Review: Escape from Eden by Elisa Nader<br />
<a href="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1360938076l/17245704.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Escape from Eden" border="0" height="400" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1360938076l/17245704.jpg" width="260" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Elisa Nader</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary, Thriller, Dystopian</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 271</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> August 18th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Merit Press</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 4/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Since the age of ten, Mia has lived under the iron fist of the fundamentalist preacher who lured her mother away to join his fanatical family of followers. In Edenton, a supposed “Garden of Eden” deep in the South American jungle, everyone follows the Reverend’s strict but arbitrary rules—even the mandate of whom they can marry. Now sixteen, Mia dreams of slipping away from the armed guards who keep the faithful in, and the curious out. When the rebellious and sexy Gabriel, a new boy, arrives with his family, Mia sees a chance to escape.</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> </span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><i>But the scandalous secrets the two discover beyond the compound’s façade are more shocking than anything they ever imagined. While Gabriel has his own terrible secrets, he and Mia bond together, more than friends and freedom fighters. But is there time to think of each other as they race to stop the Reverend’s paranoid plan to free his flock from the corrupt world? Can two teenagers crush a criminal mastermind? And who will die in the fight to save the ones they love from a madman who’s only concerned about his own secrets?</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"</i>~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17245704-escape-from-eden">Goodreads</a></span></blockquote>
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I've always been fascinated with cults. It's that morbid curiosity thing and I just can't help it. So when I heard about this Jonestown-esque story I just had to read it. This book promises suspense, action and shocking secrets and boy does it deliver. </div>
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<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Real Life Dystopia: </b>The setting in this book is masterfully put together. Nader has created a horrible paradise that feels so real I'm not entirely convinced it isn't. Of course the thing is, it is real. No, Edenton isn't a real place, but there have been and probably still are compounds like it out there. For a good example (and I would imagine probably the inspiration for this book) check out <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonestown">Jonestown</a>. Probably the most terrifying thing about this story is that it can and does happen in real life. This isn't some post-apocalyptic dystopian that takes place in the distant future. It takes place right now and not in some alternate reality.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Somebody paid attention in Psychology class: </b>One of the most impressive things about this book is the author's understanding of her characters' psychology. As with victims of systematic abuse, the people of Edenton are controlled by their fear of The Reverend. This fear develops into guilt and they believe they deserve all that he does to them. Those of us not in this situation may not understand why they would not rebel under such cruelty, but the author handles this very nicely. The reader is able to sympathize with The Flock even while hating what their community stands for. </span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Subtle but intense romance: </b>I was really happy with the way that the romance was handled in this story. I think it would have been a mistake to make it the most important plot point. It definitely takes a back seat to the action and suspense. However, the romance that is there is very intense and much different than in most YA novels. Gabriel and Mia both have so many varied issues that it would be impossible for them to have a normal romance. But the chemistry is great and fit in perfectly with the story.</span></span></li>
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<b>DISLIKES:</b></div>
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<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Emotion could have been better at times: </b>There were some moments in the book where I felt like the emotion could have been higher. In particular, there is a scene near the beginning involving cookies. I'll leave it at that so I don't ruin it for you, but you'll know when you get there. I'm reading this scene going "HOLY CRAP WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!" and the main character just sort of acknowledges it and moves onto the next day. It's possible that this was done on purpose to show how numb she has become to cruelty, but good lord. EMOTE!</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Gabriel's parents - WTF?: </b>Gabriel's parents (and really many of the parents here) should be ashamed of themselves. I won't go into detail because I don't want to spoil anything but in one of the last scenes they sit there as terrible things are about to happen to their child. Now, of course at this point they are probably completely controlled by fear so you could give them that, but from what I can gather they've been pretty awful parents since the beginning. So when they are seemingly absolved later on I had a little trouble buying it. I can't imagine being able to forgive people who put me through something like that. Maybe I'm just not Edenton material.</span></span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Overall this book was great. It caught my attention from page one and kept me riveted throughout. I really came to care about the characters and by the end of the book I felt like I needed a good cry and possibly a Xanax. The storyline would have been interesting all on it's own but Nader added her own twists and turns and really amped up the suspense. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.</span></span></div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-10989753154656992942013-08-07T11:29:00.000-07:002013-08-07T11:29:00.288-07:00Mini-Review: Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard<a href="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1333578378l/9369717.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Paper Covers Rock" border="0" height="400" src="http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1333578378l/9369717.jpg" width="265" /></a><u style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Jenny Hubbard</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Historical Fiction, Contemporary</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 192</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> June 14, 2011</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="line-height: 20px;"><u>Publisher</u></b><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b><u>:</u> </b>Delacorte</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 3/5 Stars</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">At the beginning of his junior year at a boys' boarding school, 16-year-old Alex is devastated when he fails to save a drowning friend. When questioned, Alex and his friend Glenn, who was also at the river, begin weaving their web of lies. Plagued by guilt, Alex takes refuge in the library, telling his tale in a journal he hides behind </span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Moby-Dick</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">. Caught in the web with Alex and Glenn is their English teacher, Miss Dovecott, fresh out of Princeton, who suspects there's more to what happened at the river when she perceives guilt in Alex's writing for class. She also sees poetic talent in Alex, which she encourages. As Alex responds to her attention, he discovers his true voice, one that goes against the boarding school bravado that Glenn embraces. When Glenn becomes convinced that Miss Dovecott is out to get them, Alex must choose between them.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9369717-paper-covers-rock">Goodreads</a></span></i></blockquote>
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I love a good boarding school story. All of that teen angst and no parents in sight. It's a great recipe for drama and intrigue. For some reason stories about all boys schools seem to hold a special place in my heart. It's probably because I grew up loving <i>A Separate Peace </i>and <i>The Dead Poets Society, </i>"Oh captain, my captain" and all that. These stories really seem to tug at my heart strings. That's probably why I went into this story expecting so much. It doesn't hurt that <i>Paper Covers Rock</i> was a finalist for the William C. Morris Debut Award. So with my expectations towering, I dove right in (pun intended). Unfortunately, this particular boarding school story was a little stale for me.<br />
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Let's start off on a positive note. The style of the book was really intriguing. It is told in journal form through entries, essays, poems and letters. I always have loved this type of writing style. It allows you to get inside the protagonists head in a way that simple narrative cannot. It also usually helps to make the pacing of the story work. However, with this particular book, the pacing was sometimes off and even at only 192 pages this book took awhile for me to get through. That being said, the journal style was effective in helping me to understand and connect with the main character, Alex. Even though I felt I knew Alex, it was hard at times for me to sympathize with him. He allows others to control so much of what he does and how he thinks and allows himself to be bullied by his (to me totally dull, nothing to write home about) best friend, Glenn. Together the boys get one student expelled and attempt to have a teacher dismissed all to save their own butts. I'm not sure why I should feel much sympathy for such a door mat. <br />
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My other big problem with this book is that the story line is so similar to <i>A Separate Peace.</i> There are plenty of differences of course but the characters seem like less likable knock-offs of Phineas and Gene and the main conflict (a student being injured/killed) after jumping into a river was just too on the nose for me. Really, I probably would have had a much different view of the book if this weren't the case since I spent most of the time comparing the two stories in my mind. Of course the plot lines were different in many ways and I am not at all insinuating that anything underhanded is going on here, but I just felt like I had read this story before and liked it better the first time. <br />
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When all is said and done I can't really say that I disliked <i>Paper Covers Rock.</i> It was a solid story told in an interesting way, but it fell short. I would have like to have seen a more original story-line and more likable characters. The charm of <i>Dead Poets Society </i>and the bite of <i>A Separate Peace </i>were missing for me. In the end, it's a story that is interesting but not enduring. I think this book would be a good introduction if you haven't read a lot of books involving boarding schools. It may really intrigue some of you, I think for me it was just a little late to the party.<br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-30025438406816929582013-08-01T05:00:00.000-07:002013-08-01T05:00:06.987-07:00Blog Tour Stop and Giveaway: Some Quiet Place by Kelsey Sutton<div style="text-align: center;">
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Hi guys and welcome to my tour stop on the Some Quiet Place blog tour hosted by <a href="http://themodpodgebookshelf.blogspot.com/p/upcoming-and-current-tours.html">Mod Podge Blog Tours</a>. My stop is a character profile of Maggie Stone. Huge thanks to author Kelsey Sutton for providing the material. Check out the other stops on the tour and make sure to enter to win a finished hard copy down below.</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Character Profile: Maggie</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Name</b>: Maggie Stone</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Physical Traits</b>: “Maggie,” I say, stopping. I instantly take note of the veins beneath her translucent skin, the trembling, the smudges under her eyes. Her ink-black wig shines weakly in the sun. “Maggie, you shouldn’t be here.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Quote from SQP: Maggie swallows. “I was thinking … you know I joke about death”—the word makes her cringe—“and I brush it off. Hell, I dress like it.” She sniffs, attempts to harden, but it doesn’t work. Not now. Shuddering, she meets my gaze squarely. She’s decided something. “We’re all pretending, all the time. But now it’s different. I feel different. I think I need to face the fact that I’m going to die, and I need to hear someone say it.” </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Kelsey Sutton</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.kelseysutton.blogspot.com/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">www.kelseysutton.blogspot.com</span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">SOME QUIET PLACE, July 2013</span></div>
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<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-18223478314632531462013-07-18T08:00:00.000-07:002013-07-18T08:00:04.133-07:00Review: Prince Of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon<div class="tr_bq">
<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1261604683l/7128341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Prince of Mist (Niebla, #1)" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1261604683l/7128341.jpg" width="266" /></a><u style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Carlos Ruiz Zafon</span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b><u>Translated By:</u> </b>Lucia Graves</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Historical Fiction, Horror, Paranormal</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 218</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> May 4th, 2010 (English version)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="line-height: 20px;"><u>Publisher</u></b><u style="line-height: 20px;"><b>:</b></u><span style="line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 18px;">Little Brown</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 5/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #666666;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">A mysterious house harbors an unimaginable secret. . . .</span><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">It’s wartime, and the Carver family decides to leave the capital where they live and move to a small coastal village where they’ve recently bought a home. But from the minute they cross the threshold, strange things begin to happen. In that mysterious house there still lurks the spirit of Jacob, the previous owners’ son, who died by drowning.</span><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">With the help of their new friend Roland, Max and Alicia Carver begin to explore the suspicious circumstances of that death and discover the existence of a mysterious being called The Prince of Mist—a diabolical character who has returned from the shadows to collect on a debt from the past. Soon the three friends find themselves caught up in an adventure of sunken ships and an enchanted stone garden, which will change their lives forever.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7128341-the-prince-of-mist">Goodreads</a></span></span></blockquote>
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You know those book you read as a kid that just drew you in and totally consumed you for hours on end? If this book had been translated when I was that age this would have been one of those books. What am I saying? It is one of those books. I picked up this little novel (the first in the Niebla Trilogy) on a whim. I didn't feel like reading the next book on my to-be-read list yet and needed something quick to keep me entertained for a few days. <i>The Prince of Mist </i>more than did the trick. It was charming, exciting and truly scary. It was everything a young adult horror novel should be.<br />
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<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Beautiful writing: </b>Zafon's writing is really beautiful. He somehow captures the voices of his characters perfectly while at the same time allowing the reader to make their own observations about the world he creates. The atmosphere was perfect whether that atmosphere was spooky at the time or charming and quaint. The story moved along quickly and succinctly and kept me wrapped up in it the whole time. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Different take on ghosts: </b>I love ghost stories, they're probably my favorite kind, but there's usually some sort of formula. Ghosts are usually dead people who hang around and scare the crap out of the living. Not in this book though. These ghosts are unusual. I'm still not 100% sure how the whole thing went down but apparently they could take different forms, inhabit inanimate objects and resurrect terrifying circus statues. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Truly terrifying villains: </b>Speaking of circuses, there is a ghost clown. I hate clowns, I find them truly horrifying at their best so when one of them is walking around all incorporeal with razor teeth I just about lose it. Throw in some creepy haunted home movies, wardrobe monsters and a ghost ship and I will be sleeping with the light on for awhile. A+ on the scares.</li>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Where are the parents: </b>About half way through the book something happens and the parents and youngest sister leave town. They're gone for the rest of the book only to reappear in the epilogue. I was disappointed in this because I really loved the family dynamic at the beginning of the story and it was sad to see them written out for most of the action. However, I can see why this was necessary so maybe I can't really count this as a dislike.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>The ending (maybe):</b> I'm really not sure about the ending. There are things I loved (the drama and sadness and hope) but I also was kind of disappointed that the story was wrapped up so completely. It looks like Max won't be the focus of the second book and I really liked him as a character so that was a bummer, but it will be cool to see what the author does with the story from here on out. After all, this is The Prince of Mist's story right?</li>
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I can't wait to read the rest of this series and see what type of terror The Prince of Mist will create. The second and third books involve different protagonists and different time periods which is a really unique and fun idea for a series. It will be interesting to see what Zafon has come up with (hopefully no more clowns). I only wish these would have been translated earlier so I could have enjoyed this amazing tale sooner.<br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-59367976165533168562013-07-15T08:00:00.000-07:002013-07-15T08:00:01.344-07:00Book Blitz and Giveaway: Breaking Glass by Lisa Amowitz<div style="text-align: center;">
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<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5XLgfxaWHRgKLMkUdvsNgcb_60KM0gA4T7WWvxV1bS2iIrOxjCfgMPP5_abEVuTj_UBK7q9Sf5sfaW5MdGV-Khu9ZQu8AlreX7QDJt7jc8VjNMEjGRajiuYiyoElJq2temM_X1MUZ7EA/s1600/BreakingGlasscover.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5XLgfxaWHRgKLMkUdvsNgcb_60KM0gA4T7WWvxV1bS2iIrOxjCfgMPP5_abEVuTj_UBK7q9Sf5sfaW5MdGV-Khu9ZQu8AlreX7QDJt7jc8VjNMEjGRajiuYiyoElJq2temM_X1MUZ7EA/s320/BreakingGlasscover.png" width="212" /></a></b></div>
<b>Breaking Glass by <a href="http://mostlyyabookobsessed.us6.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545&id=688556bde9&e=35efd34797" target="_blank">Lisa Amowitz</a><br />Release Date: 07/09/13<br />Publisher: Spencer Hill Press<br /><br />Summary from Goodreads:<br /><i>On the night seventeen-year-old Jeremy Glass winds up in the hospital with a broken leg and a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit, his secret crush, Susannah, disappears. When he begins receiving messages from her from beyond the grave, he's not sure whether they're real or if he's losing his grip on reality. Clue by clue, he gets closer to unraveling the mystery, and soon realizes he must discover the truth or become the next victim himself.</i><o:p></o:p></b><br />
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<b>Available from:</b></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13597760-breaking-glass" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo addtogoodreadssmall_zpsa2a6cf28.png" border="0" src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/addtogoodreadssmall_zpsa2a6cf28.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Glass-Lisa-Amowitz/dp/1937053385/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371497166&sr=8-1&keywords=breaking+glass+lisa" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg" border="0" src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/breaking-glass-lisa-amowitz/1110433133?ean=9781937053383" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo 111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg" border="0" src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg" /></a></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“So where is he?” She cranes her neck, trying to spot Ryan in the crowd. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Heart pounding, my mind hiccups through its storehouse of facts. I reposition myself to block</span></b><b></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">her view. There’s no time to try texting Ryan a warning. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I could tell </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Susannah. Tell her how Ryan has been sneaking around behind her back for over a </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">year, even hooking up with two college juniors in a motel room during one of </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">our out of town meets. But defying the Morgan machine by pointing this out </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">takes too much energy. Instead I blurt, </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Did you realize the Watch Hill </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">She laughs and </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“What? Jeremy, sometimes you can be such a--” </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But her voice </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">trails off as her gaze wanders past mine, her smile crumpling like a paper bag.</span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I follow her line of sight and I know this is it. The crowd has thinned around </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ryan, enough for her to see him with his mouth smashed against Claudia’s.</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Oh, man,” I </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">gasp. I turn to comfort Susannah, but she is already gone.</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I stand, </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">dithering; wanting to run after her and apologize for letting her walk into</span></b></div>
</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">this ambush. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But, no. This is </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">something Ryan needs to take care of. I might have signed on to sweep his mess </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">under the rug, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to clean up after him. I push</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">through the crowd to get to him. </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“What? She <i>what</i>?</span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Did you know she was coming back early?”</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I feel my face </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">heat. </span></b></div>
</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“No.”</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ryan pushes </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Claudia off of him, his stage makeup still glistening and thick, traces of</span></b></div>
</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Claudia’s lipstick smeared on his lips. </span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Good job, Jeremy. You could have at</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">least texted me.”</span></b></div>
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">My hand curls </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">into a fist. I stuff it in my jacket pocket. “She ran out,” I say. </span></b></div>
</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Maybe you </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">can catch her.” </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ryan shrugs, and </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">without a coat, stalks out of the theater into the night. I wait a few minutes </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">then follow. Susannah’s car is gone, and so is Ryan’s. I try to call Susannah, </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">but she doesn’t pick up. </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I get in my car </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">and focus on resisting the water bottle’s siren call, panicked glimpses of my </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">waking nightmare crashing through the floodgates, the terrifying memories swept </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">through with it. The rain and the torrents of water sweeping past, draining</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">into the Gorge, forcing me to remember. To relive it. No. Not <i>now</i>. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I need to stay clear.</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Since eighth </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">grade, when I discovered that liquor dulls my terrors, I have been a master</span></b></div>
</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">thief and spy. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Not even Ryan </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">knows.</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Just a sip to </span></b></div>
</b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">calm my shaky nerves. One tiny sip to beat back the rising waters that threaten </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">to drown me. I can do it. I pride myself on my steely self-control. My ability </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">to remain stone-cold sober even when the track team holds a victory keg party.</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They call me Jeremy the Teetotaler. Jeremy, the History Nerd who never</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">partakes. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I snap open the </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">glove compartment. The innocuous silver bottle is shoved behind the owner’s </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">manual, gas receipts and a collection of power bar wrappers. I raise it to my</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">lips and gulp once, twice, three times; the cold liquid igniting as it hits my</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">throat. It takes two, three more gulps to slow my heart to normal speed. The</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">bottle is nearly empty. I cap it and return it to the compartment, warmth</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">flowing to my cold fingers. I’d need to drink three times as much as that to </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">lose focus.</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Swerving the </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">deserted black roads slick with rain over ice, I follow my usual running</span></b></div>
</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">circuit. This is familiar turf. My backyard, practically. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes. I can do</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">this. Susannah knows my route so I hope she’s come this way and parked, knowing</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’d find her. She wants me to find her. To comfort her. I’ll tell her</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">everything. How I’m sorry for lying to her. For letting Ryan hurt her. And</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">maybe at last she’ll accept that it’s not Ryan she wants, but me. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">But there’s no </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">sign of her. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">After driving </span></b></div>
</b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">and searching fruitlessly, my mind churning with outcomes, the now driving rain</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">blurring my windshield, I can’t stand it anymore. My heart is racing. Just one</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">last sip to fortify myself is all I need. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When I round the </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">next hairpin curve, my headlights flash on Ryan’s car parked behind Susannah’s, </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">engines running. I squint through the rain and mist and spot them behind the </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">guardrail, illuminated in the headlamps’ cone of light. There’s no shoulder on</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">this side of the road, so I pull over when I can, about twenty yards past them. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When I finally</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">get out of the car I can hear her shouts over the racket the rain makes. My </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">head is buzzing, but my thoughts are clear. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In fact, they’ve </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">never been clearer, as the roots that entangle me fall away.</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The damp air </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">smells like freedom. </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Susannah </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">screams, and pounds at Ryan’s chest with her fists. He shoves her hard and she </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">falls backward. I don’t see her get up again. Raucous arguments were nothing </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">new between Susannah and Ryan, but I’d never seen him hit her before.</span></b></div>
</span></b></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">There’s a steep </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">decline into the woods where they’ve chosen to have their argument and I worry</span></b></div>
</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Susannah could have gotten hurt. Ryan disappears now, too. <i>What the </i></span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>hell are they doing?</i></span></b></div>
</i></span></b></div>
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I begin to run </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">at full tilt. I still have some distance to cover, but that’s no problem for </span></b></div>
</b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">me, even with the Absolut pumping heat through my veins. But my boot heel </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">catches on a wet leaf then slides out from under me. </span></b></div>
</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m flying, but </span></b><b><div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I land softly.</span></b></div>
</b></div>
</div>
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWNhjXstywfS0Ymx-rFvlMGTc8sIYVVPYJsa-DQ3yYu1ba5O6ZCi9ET4OKICRmkjsNA0ok4dMhsGSZN6vB0Y4sanOMljXkLh5DwoPmu9014bMAoUtMT1i_2yrQCzBOzFeJrjbcyzMLfd0/s1600/lisa+amowitz.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWNhjXstywfS0Ymx-rFvlMGTc8sIYVVPYJsa-DQ3yYu1ba5O6ZCi9ET4OKICRmkjsNA0ok4dMhsGSZN6vB0Y4sanOMljXkLh5DwoPmu9014bMAoUtMT1i_2yrQCzBOzFeJrjbcyzMLfd0/s200/lisa+amowitz.PNG" width="189" /></a></div>
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">About the Author</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lisa has been a professor of Graphic Design at her beloved Bronx Community College where she has been tormenting and cajoling students for nearly seventeen years. She started writing eight years ago because she wanted something to illustrate, but<br />
somehow, instead ended up writing YA. Probably because her mind is too dark and twisted for small children.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> BREAKING GLASS</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">which will be released in July, 2013 from Spencer Hill Press, is her first</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">published work. VISION, the first of the Finder series will be released in</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">2014, along with an unnamed sequel in the following year. LIFE AND BETH will</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">also be released in the near future, along with graphic novel style art. </span></b></div>
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<b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://mostlyyabookobsessed.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545&id=ff4025f032&e=35efd34797" target="_blank">Website</a>│<a href="http://mostlyyabookobsessed.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545&id=9a1edf8caf&e=35efd34797" target="_blank">Twitter</a>│<a href="http://mostlyyabookobsessed.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545&id=535c50e214&e=35efd34797" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></span></b></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">***GIVEAWAY***</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">1-custom pendant like the one pictured on the book cover</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">2-signed ARCS</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">1-original work of Breaking Glass related art created and signed by the author.</span></b></div>
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2b18141/" id="rc-2b18141" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></div>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script><br />Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-80730499447324892952013-07-10T08:00:00.000-07:002013-07-10T08:00:03.220-07:00Book Blitz and Giveaway: Rush by Eve Silver<div style="background-color: white; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Rush <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/89854-the-game">(The Game #1)</a> </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/417798.Eve_Silver">Eve Silver</a></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Release Date: June 11, 2013<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Publisher: Harper Teen<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Summary<br />
from Goodreads:<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">So what’s the game now? This, or the life I used to<br />
know?</span></i></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game—her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos. In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn’t. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b>Available from:</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13571953-rush" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13571953-rush" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><img align="none" alt=" photo addtogoodreadssmall_zpsa2a6cf28.png" border="0" data-cke-saved-src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/addtogoodreadssmall_zpsa2a6cf28.png" height="45" src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/addtogoodreadssmall_zpsa2a6cf28.png" style="cursor: default; height: 45px; width: 45px;" width="45" /></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"> </span><a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.amazon.com/Rush-Game-Book-Eve-Silver/dp/0062192132/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1372277144&sr=1-1&keywords=rush+eve+silver" href="http://www.amazon.com/Rush-Game-Book-Eve-Silver/dp/0062192132/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1372277144&sr=1-1&keywords=rush+eve+silver" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><img align="none" alt=" photo B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg" border="0" data-cke-saved-src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg" height="45" src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg" style="cursor: default; height: 45px; width: 45px;" width="45" /></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"> </span><a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rush-eve-silver/1112669243?ean=9780062192134" href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rush-eve-silver/1112669243?ean=9780062192134" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><img align="none" alt=" photo 111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg" border="0" data-cke-saved-src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg" height="45" src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg" style="cursor: default; height: 45px; width: 45px;" width="45" /></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"> </span><a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Rush-Eve-Silver/9780062192134" href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Rush-Eve-Silver/9780062192134" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><img align="none" data-cke-saved-src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/gallery.mailchimp.com/3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545/images/book_depo_icon.jpg" height="45" src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/gallery.mailchimp.com/3c46be723ce1fdc018c5f5545/images/book_depo_icon.jpg" style="cursor: default; height: 45px; width: 45px;" width="45" /></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"> </span><a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Rush/book-1dtUlJ3jlEWZrORT-TNcjg/page1.html?s=GmLboQcXnEKFBwGv8gzlpg&r=1" href="http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Rush/book-1dtUlJ3jlEWZrORT-TNcjg/page1.html?s=GmLboQcXnEKFBwGv8gzlpg&r=1" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><img align="none" alt=" photo KoboIcon_zps515cdc1a.jpg" border="0" data-cke-saved-src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/KoboIcon_zps515cdc1a.jpg" height="45" src="https://d2q0qd5iz04n9u.cloudfront.net/_ssl/proxy.php/http/i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u367/nereyda1003/new/KoboIcon_zps515cdc1a.jpg" style="cursor: default; height: 45px; width: 45px;" width="45" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Teaser #1:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">He smiles, a faint curve of his lips that reveals the barest hint of a long dimple<br />
carved in his right cheek. “No, but I can read your expression. And I’ve been<br />
doing this long enough that I know what most people tend to think when they<br />
first open their eyes.”</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Doing <i>what</i> long enough?”</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“This,” he says, and nothing more. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">A second of silence stretches into two. Though I can’t see behind his glasses, I </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">have the feeling he’s not looking at me anymore, that he’s scanning the area, looking for…something. But as I stare at him, <i>I</i> see me—tiny distorted reflections of me in the shiny, convex lenses.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #202020; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Copyright © 2013. Eve Silver. All Rights Reserved.</span></span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Teaser<br />
#2:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I stare at the things in front of me: the Drau. I can’t look away.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Somewhere in the back of my mind, I remember Jackson talking about Medusa. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Don’t look at their eyes.</span></i></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Their mercury eyes.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They’re poison.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">They will kill me.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Copyright<br />
© 2013. Eve Silver. All Rights Reserved.</span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Teaser<br />
#3:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Color and sound explode, too bright, too loud. Even the air on my skin feels like<br />
it’s too much. My fingers go lax. The bag’s handle slides down my palm, then<br />
along my fingers to the tips, impossibly slow. The world tips and tilts and I flail for balance. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Luka </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">grabs my hand and holds tight. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">blink. My house, my open front door, Dad, they’re all gone. My breath comes in </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">short gasps and every muscle in my body feels like it’s knotted up tight.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m standing in a grassy clearing bounded by trees. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">lobby. </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We’ve </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">been pulled.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Copyright<br />
© 2013. Eve Silver. All Rights Reserved.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<b><span style="color: #202020; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></span></b>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">About the Author<br />Eve Silver lives with her gamer husband and sons, sometimes in Canada, but often in worlds she dreams up. She loves kayaking and sunshine, dogs and desserts, and books, lots and lots of books. Watch for the first book in Eve’s new teen series, THE GAME: RUSH, coming from Katherine Tegen Books, June 2013. She also writes books for adults.</span><span class="textexposedshow2"><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; display: none; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hide: special;"><br /></span></span></b></center>
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<b>Author Links:</b></div>
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<b>***GIVEAWAY***</b></div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-57083758228733853382013-07-08T18:58:00.002-07:002013-07-08T18:58:25.797-07:00Mini-Review: Shallow Pond by Alissa Grosso<br />
<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355174219l/16096307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Shallow Pond" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355174219l/16096307.jpg" width="259" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Alissa Grosso</span></span><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary, Mystery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 336</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> July 8th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Flux</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 2/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"<span style="color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Barbara “Babie” Bunting is constantly mistaken for her sisters, but she’s determined not to end up like her family. She doesn’t plan to stick around Shallow Pond after graduation, and she certainly won’t be ruined by a broken heart. That is, until fellow orphan Zach Faraday walks into the picture, and Babie can’t deny their chemistry.</span><br style="color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">When her oldest sister, Annie, comes down with a mysterious illness—initially dismissed as “love sickness”—Babie and Zach start investigating what exactly killed the girls’ mother and why their late father became so consumed by grief. What they find changes everything</span>"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16096307-shallow-pond">Goodreads</a></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is going to be next to impossible for me to talk about this book without any spoilers. But I'll give it a try. I went into this read expecting a contemporary mystery with deep dark family secrets because, well, that's what the blurb says. However, it turned out to be far more complicated and convoluted than I ever imagined. I really wanted to like this one. It has a great premise. Small town girl meets mysterious new boy. Together, they uncover a life-shattering secret. Drama and mystery ensue. Actually it was more like whiny, self-involved girl meets new boy with crazy unbelievable back story and discovers she has an even more unbelievable back story (and not unbelievable in a good way). There were so many twists in this book that it was hard to see how everything would fit together in the end and it really didn't for the most part. To make matters worse our main character, Babie, kept jumping to every possible conclusion except the correct one in each situation. I couldn't understand why she wouldn't just talk to her older sisters about what was going on. It was infuriating. Speaking of sisters don't get me started on Annie and Gracie. Annie is a lifeless character who just mopes around the house all day and refuses to see a doctor even though she's been sick for months. Gracie is spoiled, bitchy and lacks the capacity for human compassion. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then we get to the big event of the book, which incidentally is not finding out why Annie is sick. I can't tell you what that event is because some of the most interesting parts of the book involve the build up to said event. Of course then everything goes completely downhill. By the time I got to the main twist in the book everything was so far out there that I had completely lost interest. I felt like I had been completely mislead about the plot, it felt gimmicky and ridiculous. I know I sound like I'm being harsh but I just had such high hopes for this book. I feel the same way I would feel if someone handed me a horror movie and it ended up being a romantic comedy with no warning. That being said you may read this book and be totally blown away by the twists and turns. They just weren't for me. If I can say anything positive it is that the pacing was good and for awhile I really was eager to find out what was going on. I just wish the plot and characters would have been more to my liking.</span><br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-87161803775276698252013-07-06T10:03:00.002-07:002013-07-06T10:03:34.242-07:00Stacking The Shelves (22)<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Stacking the Shelves is hosted by the amazing Tynga @</span><a href="http://www.tyngasreviews.com/" style="color: #006677; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px; text-decoration: initial;">Tynga's Reviews</a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">For Review:</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13541871-perfection?ac=1"><img alt="Perfection" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331899861l/13541871.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13597760-breaking-glass"><img alt="Breaking Glass" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1335527489l/13597760.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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Thanks to Spencer Hill Press!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Won:</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13540519-defy-the-dark"><img alt="Defy the Dark" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1343675493l/13540519.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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Thanks to Harpe Collins/ Epic Reads!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Bought:</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13406425-burn-for-burn"><img alt="Burn for Burn (Burn for Burn, #1)" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1332791803l/13406425.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9266779-frost"><img alt="Frost" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1305074479l/9266779.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12885649-the-hunger-games"><img alt="The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1)" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327089453l/12885649.jpg" width="130" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12510082-catching-fire" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Catching Fire (The Hunger Games, #2)" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327087419l/12510082.jpg" width="129" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12512617-mockingjay"><img alt="Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)" border="0" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327089826l/12512617.jpg" width="128" /></a></div>
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<b>As always let me know what you got this week! Happy Reading!!!</b></div>
Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-64815255709634287722013-07-01T14:31:00.000-07:002013-07-01T14:31:46.210-07:00Review: This Is W.A.R. by Lisa and Laura Roecker<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1367256585l/17262747.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="This is W.A.R." border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1367256585l/17262747.jpg" width="266" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Lisa and Laura Roecker</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary, Thriller, Mystery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 288</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> July 2nd, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">SoHo Teen</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 4/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">This is W.A.R.</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> begins with a victim who can no longer speak for herself, and whose murder blossoms into a call-to-arms. Enter four very different girls, four very different motives to avenge Willa Ames-Rowan, and only one rule to start: Destroy James Gregory and his family at any cost. Willa's initials spell the secret rallying cry that spurs the foursome to pool their considerable resources and deliver their particular brand of vigilante justice. Innocence is lost, battles are won—and the pursuit of the truth ultimately threatens to destroy them all.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~</span><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262747-this-is-w-a-r" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Goodreads</a></i></blockquote>
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Who doesn't like a good revenge novel? All of us have been wronged at some point and felt powerless to do anything about it. So there's something cathartic about watching someone get whats coming to them. This is W.A.R. is a fun and ultimately satisfying novel that weaves together the stories of four girls bent on bringing their best friend's killer to justice. </div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Four different narrators: </b>I always love it when an author can use different voices to effectively tell a story. It makes for a well-rounded story and allows the reader to see all viewpoints. Each of Willa's friends have their own reason for wanting revenge and their own reason for feeling guilty about her death. The girls vastly different personalities also make the story more interesting and believable. I particularly enjoyed the chapters narrated by Willa's stepsister Madge. She did a great job of making me feel closer not only to her but to her sister as well.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Yuppies who rule with an iron fist: </b>One thing that is vitally important to a thriller is a bad guy you love to hate. The Gregory's fit this bill to a tee. They are spoiled, entitled and completely above the law. They abuse their power and have seemingly no appreciation for the value of other human beings. But they aren't just one-dimensional jerks. There are layers to the Gregory family. The Captain, while obviously an awful human being, is driven by more than just greed. Trip has been emotionally and psychologically crippled by something in his past and James has been driven to rampant alcoholism by his family. You love to hate them, but you want to understand them as well. When you throw in their small lakeside town and the country club that acts as their seat of power the show is quite spectacular.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Not too unrealistic: </b>It would be easy to set up a series of grand schemes that could never happen in real life in this story. The girls are from wealthy families and money is thrown around like it's nothing. But most of the schemes the girls come up with are not completely out of the realm of possibility. </span></span></li>
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<b>DISLIKES:</b></div>
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<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Rich people are horrible: </b>I get a little tired of wealthy people being made into caricatures of Blair Waldorf. Not everyone who has money is rude and spoiled. Now I am not saying that as someone who has money, the dent in my car's rear bumper that has been there since 2008 will attest to that. I am simply saying that as someone who has met all types of people from all different backgrounds. The country club members are some of the most abhorrent people you can imagine. They treat the staff like slaves and behave however they want regardless of how it affects others. I understand that this particular country club had to be this way for the story to work but it still made me roll my eyes.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>I'm still a little confused about the ending: </b> I won't get into spoilers here but I have to say there is something that happens at the end regarding a website that I'm totally confused about. In fact, if any of you have read this and want to explain it to me please shoot me an email. I'd be forever grateful. </span></span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">If you're looking for a fun, fast-paced summer read with lots of vigilante justice, this is the read for you. I definitely will be keeping this on my shelf for summers to come. It's thrilling, shocking and totally satisfying.</span></span></div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-41921533624743581192013-06-20T15:01:00.000-07:002013-06-20T15:01:14.469-07:00Midsummer's Eve Giveaway Hop<div style="text-align: center;">
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It's finally summer and time for some lazy days and lots of reading. This hop is hosted by Kathy at <a href="http://iamareader.com/">Iamareader.com </a> and it's the perfect way for you to get your hands on some great summer reads. For my part I've decided to give away a box of 6 ARCS! All of these are YA and I'll probably throw in some swag too. Because of shipping costs this giveaway is US only (sorry international readers, there will be an int giveaway soon). Make sure you check out the other blogs on this hop for lots more chances to win. As always please be 18 or have a parent's permission to enter. Here's what you can win:</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262747-this-is-w-a-r">This is W.A.R.</a> by Lisa and Laura Roecker</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13425802-pods">PODs</a> by Michelle Pickett</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16287785-piece-of-my-heart">Piece of My Heart</a> by Lynn Madalenna Menna</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9791892-unremembered">Unremembered </a>by Jessica Brody</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12561585-the-sweet-dead-life">The Sweet Dead Life</a> by Joy Preble</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11147422-invisibility">Invisibility</a> by David Levithan and Andrea Cremer</div>
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/5b79b314/" id="rc-5b79b314" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></div>
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<!-- start LinkyTools script --><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/basic_linky_include.aspx?id=201118" type="text/javascript"></script><!-- end LinkyTools script -->Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-40532658002300989902013-06-19T14:32:00.000-07:002013-06-19T14:32:47.877-07:00Mini-Review: Piece of My Heart by Lynn Madelenna Menna<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358135411l/16287785.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Piece of My Heart" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358135411l/16287785.jpg" width="261" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Lynn Madelenna Menna</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 239</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> June 18th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Merit Press</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 2/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Still in high school, Marisol Reyes gets the chance of a lifetime to be a real singer, and she leaps at it. After all, this is the dream she held on to, all the days and nights she spent growing up on means streets of East Harlem. Marisol never gave in--no matter what her boyfriend or her best friend had to say. Who cares if only one in a hundred pretty, talented girls make it? She will be the one. In her rush to fame, Marisol tramples on the heart of her loyal best friend, and Julian, the boy she loves. But will it be worth it?</span><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">One night at a private gig in the Hamptons, the little Latino girl with the big voice from East Harlem gets a severe reality check. A famous rapper who claims to be interested in her talents turns out to be interested in something else, threatening not only Marisol's dreams but her body and soul. Will the realities of the gritty New York music scene put out the stars in Marisol's eyes forever?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16287785-piece-of-my-heart">Goodreads</a></span></blockquote>
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I was really disappointed with this book. I was hoping for something gritty and exciting but instead the story was pretty flat and the characters left a lot to be desired. Menna had such a great opportunity with Marisol. Here's a girl with big dreams and lots of talent, it would have been fun to watch her meteoric rise to stardom or at the very least her development as a person. Unfortunately, Mari was a pretty one-dimensional character. She is painfully naive, totally oblivious to anyone else's feelings and to top it all off whenever someone has a problem with her she assumes it's because they're jealous. Lovely. I couldn't warm up to her character at all. Even at the end of the book when everything is wrapping up and Mari realizes how many people have been using her she continues to fall into the arms of the first loser who comes along. I may sound like I'm being harsh but I was just so disappointed in this book. The only character that was at all likable was Tati. She at least seemed like she had some conviction was an interesting character. Unfortunately her story never really fully developed and she suffered from some of the same downfalls as Mari. I wish I could have loved this book, I wanted to love this book. In the end there just wasn't enough to pull me into the story and the characters were infuriating. I just can't recommend this one.<br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-63202317992423869322013-06-18T17:19:00.002-07:002013-08-31T14:53:53.820-07:00Video Review: The Watch That Ends The Night by Allan Wolf<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348623921l/10814693.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Watch That Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348623921l/10814693.jpg" width="287" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Allan Wolf</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Historical Fiction, Verse</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 480</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> October 11th, 2011</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Candlewick Press</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 4/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #666666;">"<span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><i>Arrogance and innocence, hubris and hope--twenty-four haunting voices of the Titanic tragedy, as well as the iceberg itself, are evoked in a stunning tour de force.</i></span><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><i>Millionaire John Jacob Astor hopes to bring home his pregnant teen bride with a minimum of media scandal. A beautiful Lebanese refugee, on her way to family in Florida, discovers the first stirrings of love. And an ancient iceberg glides south, anticipating its fateful encounter. The voices in this remarkable re-creation of the Titanic disaster span classes and stations, from Margaret ("the unsinkable Molly") Brown to the captain who went down with his ship; from the lookout and wireless men to a young boy in search of dragons and a gambler in search of marks. Slipping in telegraphs, undertaker’s reports, and other records, poet Allan Wolf offers a breathtaking, intimate glimpse at the lives behind the tragedy, told with clear-eyed compassion and astounding emotional power</i>.</span>"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10814693-the-watch-that-ends-the-night">Goodreads</a></span></blockquote>
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With a slow build that leads to an impressive impact, this book is definitely at the top of my list when it comes to Titanic stories. I've loved reading about Titanic and her passengers since I was a little kid. The tragedy has always captivated me. That being said, I'm a pretty hard reader to please when it comes to books about the subject. I find that many authors have cheapened their tales by focusing on love stories or just regurgitating stories that we've all heard a million times before. Allan Wolf doesn't do this. He focuses on the passengers in a way that really makes the reader feel like they know and understand each individual. He weaves a story of humanity and all the triumphs and failures that come with it. The story is told by over twenty different narrators including the iceberg, itself. All of these stories come together as a beautifully told narrative in verse about the ill-fated ship. It is a quick and engrossing read that will thrill you and break your heart all at the same time. <br />
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<br />Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-40523743987324880202013-06-16T15:27:00.001-07:002013-08-31T14:54:09.102-07:00Stacking The Shelves (21)<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="STSmall_thumb[2]" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xRYOk0zIv1M/T6RLOUEZ2LI/AAAAAAAAFKw/7qJhumSkSxY/STSmall_thumb%25255B2%25255D_thumb.png?imgmax=800" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stacking the Shelves is hosted by the amazing Tynga @</span><a href="http://www.tyngasreviews.com/" style="color: #006677; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-decoration: initial;">Tynga's Reviews</a></div>
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I got three books for review in the last couple of weeks. Thanks so much to Quirk, SoHo Teen and Merit Press! Can't wait to read all of them! What did you guys get this week? Let me know down in the comments.</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262747-this-is-w-a-r"><img alt="This is W.A.R." height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1367256585l/17262747.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17162156-miss-peregrine-s-home-for-peculiar-children"><img alt="Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" border="0" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358758977l/17162156.jpg" width="128" /></a><span id="goog_1375769488"></span><span id="goog_1375769489"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16287787-vigilante-nights"><img alt="Vigilante Nights" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355088498l/16287787.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
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As always click the picture for the goodreads link!</div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-24661127733824706622013-06-14T13:29:00.000-07:002013-06-14T13:31:00.422-07:00Review: PODs by Michelle Pickett<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327645122l/13425802.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="PODs" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327645122l/13425802.jpg" width="267" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Michelle Pickett</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Science Fiction, Dystopian</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 312</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> June 4th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Spencer Hill Press</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 3/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Seventeen-year-old Eva is a chosen one. Chosen to live, while others meet a swift and painful death from an incurable virus so lethal, a person is dead within days of symptoms emerging. In the POD system, a series of underground habitats built by the government, she waits with the other chosen for the deadly virus to claim those above. Separated from family and friends, it's in the PODs she meets David. And while true love might not conquer all, it's a balm for the broken soul.</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> </span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">After a year, scientists believe the population has died, and without living hosts, so has the virus. That's the theory, anyway. But when the PODs are opened, survivors find the surface holds a vicious secret. The virus mutated, infecting those left top-side and creating... monsters. </span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Eva and David hide from the infected in the abandoned PODs. Together they try to build a life--a new beginning. But the infected follow and are relentless in their attacks. Leaving Eva and David to fight for survival, and pray for a cure.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13425802-pods">Goodreads</a></span></i></blockquote>
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Ever since I saw Shaun of the Dead for the first time I've been preparing for the zombie apocalypse. Only mentally, of course, unless you count the piles of old shoes currently residing in my trunk as weapons. But I digress. I love, love, love zombies! And it isn't the gore that intrigues me, it's the survival. I remember reading The Boxcar Children when I was little and fantasizing about how cool it would be to live in the woods and use rocks as a refrigerator. That's right, when I was a child I thought life would be great as a homeless orphan. Apparently I haven't changed much. On more than one occasion I have found myself stressed beyond belief with everyday nonsense and thinking, "If the zombie apocalypse is coming why not today?". Now obviously I haven't thought this one out completely, there are things that I'm sure would be terrible. So I'm completely fine reading books about zombies for the time being. PODs isn't entirely a zombie book, in fact most of it is just your run-of-the-mill post-apocalyptic survival story which is fine by me since that's one of the best parts of the zombie genre. It centers around a girl named Eva who is chosen to ride out the end of the world in a government POD with a bunch of other kids. They wait it out in the POD, forming friendships and not knowing what might happen when they go back to real world. It's a pretty interesting concept that's executed well.</div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Not all doom and gloom: </b>Even though I love horror, zombies and the like I can appreciate it when the entire book isn't just depressing as hell. Don't get me wrong this story is all kinds of sad and unnerving but there are also some lighthearted moments and little glimpses of hope which are always important in a story like this one.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>But the doom and gloom are great: </b>The parts that are supposed to be scary or depressing are done really well. I think one of the best things about this book is the authors ability to show the layers of good and bad. A good example of this is at the very beginning where Eva is shopping with her mom for her end of the world wardrobe. She's about to lose everything she loves and she still comments that she'd like a cute new sweatshirt. I don't think this is shallowness as much as an example of how surreal it would be to be a teenager facing a life alone in a post-apocalyptic America. It's very strange, but it works.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>The Real World: PODs: </b>Maybe it's the 90's kid in me but I really liked the strange roommate aspect of the first part of the book. I think the characters meshed well together and there were some really cool moments. I think it was a great way for the author to set up the second half of the book as well. Here we have a group of teenagers that have lost their entire families. They are pushed into a completely isolated POD for a year with no other human contact and then forced to face the harsh reality of the world above. </span></span></li>
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<b>DISLIKES:</b></div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Lots of loose ends: </b>The one thing that really hurt the story for me was the second half. The story changes quite a bit and there were a lot of opportunities for the story to develop. Unfortunately it seems like there were tons of things left hanging. Many of the characters were completely dropped after everyone left the POD and there were huge plot points (like what happened to Eva's parents) that were left hanging. I'm pretty sure this is going to be a series so I can understand not wanting to reveal too much but I felt like there wasn't much resolution and it the story felt unfinished. In truth this is one of those books that I think would have been better as a stand-alone.</span></span></li>
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I wish that the last half of the book would have been a little more like the first half. It just seemed to lack some of that substance that made the first part so interesting. That being said, I would still recommend this book to anyone that love zombies and apocalyptic stories. It's a quick, fun read with some really good action as well as some heart. <br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-47463908084682064502013-06-12T15:32:00.000-07:002013-06-12T15:32:12.998-07:00Mini-Review: Wentworth Hall by Abby Grahame<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1334242042l/12747188.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Wentworth Hall" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1334242042l/12747188.jpg" width="264" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Abby Grahame</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Historical Fiction</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 276</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> May 1st, 2012</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 15px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Simon & Schuster</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 1/5 Stars</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> </span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Eighteen-year-old Maggie Darlington has turned into an entirely different person. The once spirited teen is now passive and reserved. A change Lord and Lady Darlington can’t help but be grateful for.</span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> It’s 1912, and the Darlingtons of Wentworth Hall have more than just the extensive grounds to maintain. As one of Britain’s most elite families, they need to keep up appearances that things are as they have always been…even as their carefully constructed façade rapidly comes undone.</span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> Maggie has a secret. And she’s not the only one…the handsome groom Michael, the beautiful new French nanny Therese, the Darlingtons’ teenage houseguests Teddy and Jessica, and even Maggie’s younger sister Lila are all hiding something. Passion, betrayal, heartache, and whispered declarations of love take place under the Darlingtons’ massive roof. And one of these secrets has the power to ruin the Darlingtons forever.</span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> When scandalous satires start appearing in the newspaper with details that closely mirror the lives of the Darlingtons, everyone is looking over their shoulder, worrying their scandal will be next. Because at Wentworth Hall, nothing stays secret for long.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12747188-wentworth-hall">Goodreads</a></span></i></blockquote>
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Wow, was this disappointing. After this book came out last year I heard some not-so-great things, but the premise sounded good and I love historical fiction so I figured I'd give it a shot. Unfortunately I was underwhelmed. The first two thirds of the story were alright. I wasn't too enthusiastic about the story line since it was pretty much entirely predictable but I was still on board and fairly entertained. The plot was clipping along at a nice pace and I wasn't bored so that was a good thing. There were some signs early on that things were not going in a promising direction. For one thing, the editing was just not very good. The tense kept changing, sometimes in the same sentence. <br />
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<i>"'Do you mean these?' Richina asked and shimmied with arms outstretched, her many diamonds, bracelets, necklaces, and brooches creating such a commotion that a large chunk of plaster falls from the ceiling." ~pg 63-64</i></blockquote>
I could have chalked this up to an oversight but it kept happening and it really messed with the flow of the story. Another huge problem, at least for a history geek like me, was that the author didn't seem to do her research when it came to English titles. The family's last name is Darlington. They are titled nobility and therefore should be called by their proper titles. So if Arthur Darlington is Earl of Fluffbottom (I don't believe his position is ever laid out, so I'm just brainstorming here) then he would be Lord Fluffbottom, not Lord Darlington. However the parents are constantly referred to as Lord and Lady Darlington. It may not be a big deal to some people but it really bothered me. Along the same lines the staff kept calling the daughters Maggie and Lila instead of Lady Margaret and Lady Lila. But I'm nitpicking. <br />
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Let's just move on to the end of the book. Oh the problems I had with this! Throughout this entire book there are a million different things going on and while I was able to correctly predict the outcome of each situation at it's first mention I would have like to see them fully played out. Instead it seems that the author got half way through the book and instead of finishing it just slapped another 50 pages on so it would be over. In one chapter we have Lord Fluffbottom (whom I refuse to refer to as Lord Darlington) storming off to confront his daughter about the big plot twist and then...boom, books over. We never really revisit the whole reason for Lord Fluffbottom's temper tantrum. Instead the author lazily explains away everything getting wrapped up and then we find ourselves in the epilogue where everything has either worked out or is still up in the air. I wanted to chuck my book at the wall. <br />
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This was, overall, just a lazy book. It seems to be trying to jump on Downton Abbey's coattails but with none of the charm or storytelling, and certainly none of the patience. I was willing to hang in there and wait for the pay-off, apparently the author wasn't.</div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-86654069351981377522013-06-09T20:07:00.000-07:002013-06-09T20:09:57.119-07:00Even More Miss Peregrine for Your Nightmare Needs!Hey guys, I just wanted to let you all know about a couple of really awesome things that have come to my attention in the last several weeks. Both have to do with one of my favorite books of all time, <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17162156-miss-peregrine-s-home-for-peculiar-children">Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children</a>! For those of you who aren't familiar with this creepy, weird and altogether crazy-amazing book, it is a novel based around real antique photographs collected by the author. The photos are so strange he had to write a book about them. Miss Peregrine's came was first published in 2011 to wide acclaim. It is the story of a young man who finds out that his late grandfather's stories about a mysterious house full of odd children with supernatural abilities might not just be stories. You can read my review <a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/04/miss-peregrines-home-for-peculiar.html">here</a>. And even though I've linked it before, I'll link the book trailer again for you, because you can't watch it too many times. It's still, hands down, the best book trailer I've ever seen.<br />
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So now for the news! A few weeks ago, <a href="http://www.quirkbooks.com/">Quirk Books</a> contacted me and asked if I'd like to get my hands on a copy of the brand new paperback edition. (Huge thanks to Eric at Quirk btw!) Even if you already have this book in hardback you may want to pick up the paperback as well. It's got an interview with Ransom Riggs, even more pictures and a first look at the upcoming sequel <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12396528-hollow-city">Hollow City</a>! That's right, the sequel now has a name and a release date: January 14th, 2014. I can't freaking wait! This book is more than a story it's a perfect example of found art and I encourage each and every one of you to pick it up.</div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-63215486014129925572013-06-04T16:50:00.000-07:002013-06-04T16:50:06.768-07:00Review: Dare You To (Pushing the Limits #2) by Katie McGarry<br />
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<u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Katie McGarry</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 462</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> May 28th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Harlequin Teen</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 5/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><i>If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....</i></span><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him.</span></i><i><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /></i><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><i>But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all...</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13561164-dare-you-to">Goodreads</a></span></blockquote>
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Katie McGarry has once again proven that I don't, in fact, dislike contemporaries. Actually, when Katie is the author I tend to love them. After waiting almost a year to get my hands on the companion to <i><a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/08/review-pushing-limits-by-katie-mcgarry.html">Pushing The Limits</a></i> (one of my best books of 2012) I was finally able to sink my teeth into <i>Dare You To</i>, the story of Noah's best friend Beth and her journey as she discovers what it means to be loved. Once again, the author broke my heart only to piece it back together again. </div>
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I suppose now it's time to dry my eyes and get to the review, but I have to warn you this is pretty much going to be a gush-fest. That being said I'm not even going to do my usual bulleted format because, guess what, I CAN'T THINK OF ANY DISLIKES. I just loved pretty much everything. I realize this doesn't make for the most interesting review in the world but with writing like this, I don't have much to work with. For some reason Katie McGarry is able to get into the psyche of every type of character and express what they're going through perfectly. Maybe she's a witch, maybe she has an army of brain slugs and she spend her weekends roaming skate parks and malls so she can suck the thoughts out of angsty teens. I don't really care how she does it. Just as long as she keeps it up. Also, if it's the brain slug thing, maybe don't tell anyone.</div>
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I didn't think it was possible that I would like this book better than PTL, actually I liked it even more. Beth was so raw and damaged, it took her a long time to really let her vulnerability show and that made her so much more loveable when she did. It was easy to see why she and Ryan fell for each other regardless of their totally different situations. Just like Echo and Noah, Beth and Ryan complete each other perfectly. I can't imagine them not being together forever. For me the perfection of their relationship can be summed up in three words THE POND SCENE. Read the book, and get back to me. This scene is one of the few times in my life where I have literally gasped with joy LOUDLY at a book. It makes me so happy I can hardly contain myself. It is one of those scenes that just sticks with you forever and makes you feel so many varying emotions that you just have to put the book down and take a second.</div>
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Before you take a look at the cover and decide this is just some gooey romance, think again. Don't worry, there's plenty of romance for those of you who love it, but this book is much, much more than that. At it's heart, this is a story of overcoming obstacles, whether those obstacles are a tragic family history, pressure to be someone you're not or learning to do what's best for you in your life. It is a story about a girl finding the family she desperately needs and a boy who doesn't have it as good as it seems. It is a hopeful, tragic, and downright powerful story. Everyone should read this book. And you don't have to read <i>Pushing The Limits </i>first (although you should definitely read it). McGarry wrote these as stand-alones so you can read them separately. Characters from PTL are prevalent in this book as well, especially Isaiah, Beth's closest friend. In fact the only thing that concerned me about this book was that poor Isaiah is constantly left out in the cold. But wait, remember how I said I had no problems with this book, that's because the third one, <i><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17233800-crash-into-you">Crash Into You</a> , </i>is coming out at the end of this year and it will be Isaiah's book! That's right, everyone's favorite tattooed ruffian is getting his own book. And now I can die happy.</div>
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Oh um, 5 stars...</div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-88664201405947773662013-05-29T13:31:00.001-07:002013-05-29T13:31:17.834-07:00Review: The Sweet Dead Life by Joy Preble<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1338432515l/12561585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="The Sweet Dead Life" border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1338432515l/12561585.jpg" width="263" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Joy Preble</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Paranormal</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 244</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> May 14th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">SOHO Teen</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 3/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">“I found out two things today. One, I think I’m dying. And two, my brother is a perv.”</span><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">So begins the diary of 14-year-old Jenna Samuels, who is having a very bad eighth-grade year. Her single mother spends all day in bed. Dad vanished when she was eight. Her 16-year-old brother, Casey, tries to hold together what’s left of the family by working two after-school jobs— difficult, as he’s stoned all the time. To make matters worse, Jenna is sick. When she collapses one day, Casey tries to race her to the hospital in their beat-up Prius and crashes instead.</span><br style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Jenna wakes up in the ER to find Casey beside her. Beatified. Literally. The flab and zits? Gone. Before long, Jenna figures out that Casey didn’t survive the accident at all. He’s an “A-word.” (She can’t bring herself to utter the truth.) Soon they discover that Jenna isn’t just dying: she’s being poisoned. And Casey has been sent back to help solve the mystery that not only holds the key to her survival, but also to their mother’s mysterious depression and father’s disappearance.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12561585-the-sweet-dead-life">Goodreads</a></span></i></blockquote>
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I'm not really sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book. I haven't read a ton of angel books and most of the ones I've heard of are romances. This novel is about a brother and a sister so romance really wasn't part of the equation. After finishing it I'm still not really sure about this one. It centers around Jenna, an eighth grader with a world of problems. Her father is missing, her mother doesn't leave the house and her older brother is a pot head. When she and her brother are in a car accident and he becomes an angel things get even more complicated. There were definitely things I loved about it, but there was plenty that fell flat as well. </div>
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<b>LIKES:</b></div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>The writing style: </b>The style of the book was really cool. Jenna definitely had a unique voice and the author did a great job of bringing that across. The colloquialisms in the writing added to the charm and really pulled me in.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Jenna's got spunk: </b>I just loved Jenna. She was so full of life and laughter despite her dire circumstances and that really got me attached to her. Throw in her impressive and growing vocabulary and her sense of humor and I was sold on Jenna. Her relationship with her brother was also really genuine and sweet.</span></span></li>
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<b>DISLIKES:</b></div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Amber: </b>I just didn't see the point of Amber, and I don't just mean her character. I also didn't get why Jenna hated her so much or why Amber was such a pill. With fun, lovable characters like Jenna and her brother I was hoping that Amber would have been developed a little more.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>Where's the magic?: </b>This book reads more like a mystery than a paranormal story. There isn't a lot of angel-ish stuff going on except for Casey's physical changes and some little tricks that go by practically without notice. I would have liked to see more of the paranormal/angel element.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b>No surprises: </b>Everything is sort of laid out for you in the synopsis. The reader already knows the big twist (cough Casey's an angel) before the book even begins. So when Jenna finally comes to that conclusion it's not very exciting for the reader. This could have been avoided completely with a different title and description. The other big revelation, that Jenna is being poisoned, is also right there in the blurb. </span></span></li>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I started out really loving this book. Unfortunately, by the time I finished it I wasn't as excited about it. That being said, the writing style alone is enough for me to want to pick up the author's other work. I'm excited to see what she what else is out there. If you're looking for something heavy on the paranormal this book might not be for you. But if you want a cute younger mystery give it a shot.</span></span></div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-73441565870174215572013-05-27T13:24:00.001-07:002013-05-27T13:24:28.045-07:00Book Hauls and Updates and Giveaway Winners, Oh My!Hey guys! I just wanted to let you know that I'm not dead. May has just been a crazy month for me and I haven't had any time really to read or blog. But June looks like it's going to be much easier so I should be able to get back on schedule. So I thought I'd go ahead and put up a book haul to jump start things. But first I wanted to announce the winners of my Blogiversary Giveaway. <div>
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The winner of the prize pack is:</div>
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BETH W.</div>
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And the winner of a book from The Book Depository is:</div>
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RABIAH R.</div>
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Congrats you two! And thank you all so much for making my blogiversary so special!</div>
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Now onto the book haul!</div>
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<b>WON:</b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13721335-starstruck?ac=1"><img alt="Starstruck" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344370459l/13721335.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16065555-september-girls?ac=1"><img alt="September Girls" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351199418l/16065555.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10814693-the-watch-that-ends-the-night?ac=1"><img alt="The Watch That Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348623921l/10814693.jpg" width="143" /></a></div>
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<i>Thanks to Harper Teen, Random House and Tammy at Books Bones and Bunny</i></div>
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<b>FOR REVIEW:</b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16287785-piece-of-my-heart?ac=1"><img alt="Piece of My Heart" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358135411l/16287785.jpg" width="130" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262747-this-is-war?ac=1"><img alt="This is WAR" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1367256585l/17262747.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
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<i>Thanks to Merit Press and SoHo Teen</i></div>
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<b>BOUGHT:</b></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1223606.The_Seer_of_Shadows"><img alt="The Seer of Shadows" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347257418l/1223606.jpg" width="134" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7157310-rot-and-ruin"><img alt="Rot and Ruin (Benny Imura, #1)" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1264898635l/7157310.jpg" width="135" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5982447-love-is-the-higher-law"><img alt="Love Is the Higher Law" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320410250l/5982447.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/99561.Looking_for_Alaska"><img alt="Looking for Alaska" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1365451509l/99561.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>
Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-38705143697763446152013-05-09T12:29:00.000-07:002013-05-09T12:36:33.262-07:00Don't Leave a Ghost Homeless - Save The Book House!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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In the heart of Rock Hill, amid the bustle of the seemingly endless Manchester Rd. traffic hides one of St. Louis' most beloved landmarks. You might miss it if you're driving past but it is in your best interest to find it. I'm speaking of course of the most magical place on Manchester, <a href="http://www.bookhousestl.com/?page=shop/aboutus">The Book House</a>. Growing up in St. Louis there were few places as wonderful for me as this pretty little 19th Century house. With it's friendly staff, resident cat (Blake), and every room packed floor to ceiling (literally) with books both used and new what's not to love? </div>
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Oh, it also happens to be haunted. That's right, local legend says that The Book House is haunted by an apparently very well-read little girl named Valerie. She's a playful ghost who is always willing to help people find what they're looking for. She's even been known to knock a book off of a shelf when a patron couldn't find it (<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Robbie Courtaway, <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1087305.Spirits_Of_St_Louis">Spirits of St. Louis</a></span></i>). Now the property owner wants to tear it down to build a storage unit. A STORAGE UNIT. We can't leave little Valerie without a home, and we can't leave St. Louis without it's Book House. Luckily there are ways you can help.</div>
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Even if you don't live in the area you can help this local treasure stay put. I'm asking you, my fellow book lovers (or hoarders as the case may be) to do me and my fellow St. Louisans a favor in the name of the printed word. There are two things you can do. First of all there is an <a href="http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/save-the-book-house">Indiegogo campaign</a> where you can donate funds that will go toward saving the property. If you aren't able to donate you can <a href="http://www.change.org/petitions/city-of-rock-hill-missouri-stop-the-tear-down-and-redevelopment-of-the-book-house#share">sign the petition </a>and let the City of Rock Hill know that we want to keep our Book House. It only takes a minute and you don't have to be a resident to sign it. Please take a second to help out. My childhood thanks you.</div>
Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-63300056920308016322013-05-09T10:11:00.000-07:002013-08-31T14:54:41.467-07:00Mini Review: Invisibility by David Levithan and Andrea CremerDavid Levithan's work and I have a tumultuous relationship. Although I find his style and passion both beautiful and earnest I have often found that his penchant for pushing his beliefs on the reader abrasive. This seems funny to me because 90% of the time I agree with what he's saying, it's simply his delivery that I am at odds with. As for Andrea Cremer, I am not familiar with her work so I was able to go into Invisibility without prejudice. I was excited to read this book and to see how the authors worked together to build such a unique storyline. <br />
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Unfortunately I was mostly disappointed. At first the story was great. The main character, Stephen, was pretty well-developed in the first few chapters and his relationship with spunky Elizabeth opened up a world of possibility. Throw in her adorable brother, Laurie, and I was sure I was in for a good time. Sadly the book quickly developed into a rushed supernatural plot line that seemed too convoluted for the earlier storyline. It just didn't fit. The last section of the book was a mix of insta-love dramatics and info dumps. All in all I was just disappointed. This book could have been something extraordinary but instead it was just strange and rushed.<br />
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-20111872462634734432013-04-25T14:53:00.000-07:002013-04-25T14:53:00.143-07:00Review: Anthem for Jackson Dawes by Celia Bryce<a href="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353397038l/14800331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Anthem for Jackson Dawes " border="0" height="400" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353397038l/14800331.jpg" width="265" /></a><u style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;">Author:</u><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Celia Bryce</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Genre:</u> Contemporary</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Pages:</u> 240</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Published:</u> April 30th, 2013</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Publisher</u></b><u><b>:</b></u> <span style="line-height: 18px;">Bloomsbury</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Rating:</u> 3/5 Stars</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Source:</u></b> I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Megan Bright and Jackson Dawes are two teenagers who first meet each other on the hospital ward where they are both being treated for cancer. Megan is scared and worried about her illness, but Jackson seems to be an old hand, having been on the ward for ages. And everybody loves Jackson! He is a whirlwind of life and energy, warmth and sparkle. Megan will need to borrow some of Jackson's extraordinary optimism to face her and Jackson's future. A moving story of first love and a remarkably powerful debut novel.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"~</span><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14800331-anthem-for-jackson-dawes" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Goodreads</a></i></blockquote>
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Even though I'm not usually drawn to contemporary romance, I make an exception for issues books. One of the big sub genres for YA contemporary issues books is cancer/illness. With so many "cancer books" out there it's easy for a story like this one to get lost in the shuffle. While <i>Anthem for Jackson Dawes </i>very much follows the same pattern as many of these books, it's still worth the read.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">LIKES:</span></b></div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Jackson: </b>I really enjoyed Jackson's character. He was so much fun and full of energy. He really jumped off of the page for me and helped me get into the story. His adventurous spirit and frequent field trips around the hospital were the best parts of the book for me. Not only is he fun and mischievous, he also has a huge heart. His interactions with the younger patients in the hospital were more touching for me than his interactions with Megan. He was the life force of this story.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b>The overall feeling: </b>In the beginning of the book Megan doesn't want to go to the hospital. It's strange and new and she doesn't feel right there. However, after undergoing months of treatments for her cancer it becomes a second home and she feels out of place when she leaves. The author did a great job of making this feeling real. I was right there with Megan and it was easy to understand her emotions and reservations about leaving the ward. I really didn't expect to feel that way, then again neither did Megan. Atmospherically, the book was great.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b>The dialogue: </b>This is a distinctly British book and the way the dialogue is written really helped the characters come alive for me. I could hear each one of their voices and every one was made so unique and given their own personality through the dialogue. Even without being British myself I was able associate each individual with their dialect and that was a lot of fun.</span></span></li>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Megan wasn't my favorite: </b>First of all, let me preface this by saying that I am used to reading slightly older teen characters. Megan was only 14 and her immaturity was evident throughout the book. However, even leaving room for her age she was pretty whiny and self-centered. I just didn't connect with her the way I would have liked. I also didn't really care for her romance with Jackson. There just wasn't much chemistry there.</span></span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><b>Where's the drama?: </b>For a book about kids who have serious illnesses this book wasn't very heavy on the drama. I kept thinking something was going to happen and then it wouldn't. At the end of the book there were some big events but they sort of passed by without much fanfare which I found odd. I wish there would have been a bit more heaviness to this book.</span></span></li>
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While I wouldn't call this story groundbreaking, it does have it's moments. It is a quick, surprisingly upbeat read that is great for a younger YA audience. It isn't the kind of book that will devastate you and leave you moping for days, but it does tug on the heartstrings. Overall, I would say give it a go.</div>
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Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5345195746628819283.post-70050529496431208442013-04-17T12:43:00.000-07:002013-04-17T12:43:58.993-07:001 Year Blogiversary and 2 Giveaways!!!!<div style="text-align: center;">
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One year ago, today, I gathered up my resolve and decided to put myself out there. I'd been following some great book bloggers and had discovered some amazing reads thanks to them but I had no one to talk about those books with. That's where you guys came in. I decided to start this blog so that I could connect with some of my fellow readers. It started out as a fun hobby, but it has become so much more. From day one you guys were so supportive and really made me feel welcome. I am so happy and honored to be a part of this amazing community of bloggers and readers. My only regret is that I didn't start Movies In My Head sooner! A lot has changed in the past year, there have been crazy ups as well as downs but I have had so much fun running this blog and meeting all of you. I can't wait to see what the next year brings. </div>
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So before I start tearing up, let's get to the fun stuff, huh? </div>
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<b>FIRSTS:</b></div>
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First Review: <a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/04/long-long-sleep.html">A Long Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan</a></div>
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First Review Book: <a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/05/intangible.html"> Intangible by J. Meyers</a></div>
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First Vlog: <a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/06/video-love-it-or-hate-it-tag.html"> Love It or Hate It Tag</a></div>
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First Interview: <a href="http://catiesmoviesinmyhead.blogspot.com/2012/07/sara-walsh-interview-and-giveaway.html">Sarah Walsh</a></div>
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<b>YEAR ONE TOTALS:</b></div>
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Followers: 768 (and I love each and every one of you *group hug*)</div>
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Posts: 124</div>
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Reviews: 55</div>
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Giveaways: 10</div>
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YouTube Videos: 57</div>
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Books Read: 75</div>
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Hours of Lost Sleep: too many to count</div>
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So to celebrate this auspicious occasion and my wonderful followers I've decided to have two giveaways! One will be open to everyone as long as The Book Depository ships to you and the other will be US only. Feel free to enter both if you are eligible. </div>
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First up, for my US followers, I have a very special prize pack. This bundle includes a really cool hardback copy of my favorite book of all time, Jane Eyre, a beautiful birdy notebook, some tabs to mark your favorite quotes with and some super cool mustache bookmarks! I'll also throw in all kinds of bookish swag for the winner!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje40cRNDUBBMHKQHAhp85JA07_XbTT_2-pTfjQunNO4efX-4_MWscMJwNQ9e637HOy-55jFzJQN98xnJCqhwcu1Pduuqmh3QqcVQG-DI8lfyiIKYUYVl4qy2UuvFrkMquAD9MtGEnIil0/s1600/IMG_0010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje40cRNDUBBMHKQHAhp85JA07_XbTT_2-pTfjQunNO4efX-4_MWscMJwNQ9e637HOy-55jFzJQN98xnJCqhwcu1Pduuqmh3QqcVQG-DI8lfyiIKYUYVl4qy2UuvFrkMquAD9MtGEnIil0/s320/IMG_0010.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Unfortunately I can't afford international shipping on this one, but don't despair, I would leave out my lovely international followers! I'm also giving away a book of your choice ($15 USD or less) from The Book Depository! Just make sure they ship to you. As always please be 18 or have a parents permission and please no cheating. It makes me sad.</div>
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So go ahead and fill out the Rafflecopters below and best of luck! Thank you all for being a part of this journey with me. I can't wait to meet more of you and have many more bookish adventures in the coming year!<br />
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/5b79b311/" id="rc-5b79b311" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></div>
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<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script> <a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/5b79b312/" id="rc-5b79b312" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></div>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Catiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10423908022597363442noreply@blogger.com7