The Book Barbies

(Review) The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Title: The Vincent Boys
Author: Abbi Glines
Series: The Vincent Boys, #1
Published: October 30, 2012 (Simon Pulse)
Rating: Last Resort
Format: Paperback, borrowed from the library

Summary: Ashton is getting tired of being good, of impressing her parents and playing ideal girlfriend to Sawyer Vincent. Sawyer is perfect, a regular Prince Charming, but when he leaves town for the summer, it’s his cousin Beau who catches Ashton’s eye. Beau is the sexiest guy she’s ever seen, and even though he’s dangerous, Ashton is drawn to him.

Beau loves his cousin like a brother, so the last thing he wants to do is make a move on Sawyer’s girl. Ashton is off-limits, absolutely. That’s why he does his best to keep his distance, even though he’s been in love with her forever. When Ashton wants to rekindle their childhood friendship in Sawyer’s absence, Beau knows he should say no.

Ashton and Beau don’t want to hurt Sawyer. But the more they try to stay away from each other, the more intense their urges become. It’s getting way too hard to resist....

Oh, where to even start with this book?

If I read past the first 5 pages of a book, it is extremely unlikely that I will DNF it. I am eternally hopeful that things will improve. But I can 100% guarantee that I would have set this one down 80 pages in. I came this close to doing so, and the only thing that kept me going was that I was reading it for the Spring into Summer readalong. So I pushed through.

It didn't get better. In fact, it just kept getting worse. The writing was stilted and repetitive through the entire book. There was very little chemistry between the leads. I did not like a single one of the characters, even the minor ones.

First, there's Ashton. Ashton used to be a secret Bad Girl. She would sneak out at night and do bad things like stuffing frogs into mailboxes with Beau. But then Sawyer asked her out, and she became a Good Girl, squishing those Bad Girl urges down, down, down. Somehow, this means that Beau is the only one who knows that side of her (even though Sawyer used to be the one who bailed them out of trouble, which implies that both Sawyer and all the people who had ever caught her knew she had a Bad Side). Ashton is an idiot, basically. She wallows in her misery and vacillates and whines until she finally makes a the inevitable choice.

And then we have Beau, the Bad Boy with anger issues. Beau has "loved" (or obsessively fixated on, take your pick) Ashton for years, which is apparently his only redeeming quality. Beau is, somehow, the object of many girl's swoonage, and swoon away, if that's your taste. I just don't get it. I like Alphas. I do. I love it when fictional men are big and strong and have sexy, possessive growls and don't like the heroines hanging out with their attractive exes. But there's a line, and Beau was WAY on the other side of it.

I want to rip his damn arms off his body, Ash. Sawyer, who I'd do anything for. I want to hurt him. If he touches you again in front of me, I'm going to crack. I can't take this. ... Just try not to let him touch you. When he touches you, I see red. I can't take it. I don't want to see him or anyone else touch you. ... Staying with him. Letting him touch you, hold you, God. It's eating me alive.

That's right, Ash. How DARE you let your boyfriend touch you? Stay away from him, or I will morph into my Hulk self and go give him a concussion using only my extraordinarily violent fists (oh wait, that's not until later).

Their whole relationship was messed up. I never felt like I fully understood either character or why they were so desperate to be together. Yes, they were attracted each other. That's it. I also don't like how the book seemed to push the "sinning/bad girl" aspect moreso than being true to yourself. In Ashton's case, the two overlapped, but it was presented as much more of a rebellion. So Ashton wanted to give into her Bad Side. Yeah, everyone has bad urges. Guess what? It's not actually always a good idea to follow through on them. It's certainly not the way to start a healthy relationship. What happens when you're finally in that relationship? If the appeal of the relationship is the Bad Factor, then that factor is gone once you're in it. Do you go after the next guy you feel attracted to because that's giving into your Bad Side? Where does it end?

I was SO FREAKING EXCITED for this book. I like well-written cheating storylines. Which may make me a terrible person, but I do. I love forbidden romances and the self-denial aspect of the story. But if these two were "trying to resist," then I'm a monkey's uncle riding on a pig that is flying over a frozen hell. Because OH MY GOD, these two were all over each other from practically the very beginning of the story. Because they "couldn't resist." Okay, fine. But don't write a cover blurb all about "resisting" when the story doesn't involve that at all.

This book did have a few redeeming qualities. I liked the prologue. In the beginning, even though I was a little put off by their first interaction, I was swooning. I loved the idea of these two so much, and they had a few chemistry-laden moments. And HI, best image ever of sweaty guy with awesome abs mowing a lawn. I thought Beau's thoughts actually sounded like his character. I liked Ashton's interaction with her Grana. Aaand, that's all.

Oh, and bonus! This has nothing at all to do with the plot, but I could not review this book and fail to mention it because I CANNOT EVEN:

Spirit girls were girls the cheerleaders added to their numbers so every football player would have a girl to make him goodies on game day. Off the record, spirit girls also happened to help their players with their homework, order pizzas to be delivered to the school for their lunches, and do some unofficial things like back massages and other “hands-on” activities. The starters always picked their spirit girl first, then the rest of the players’ names went into a hat and the spirit girls drew them.

Yes, you read that right. Apparently the cheerleaders at the high school are basically running a fully sanctioned little slavery/prostitution ring under the name of "spirit girls." Each girl is assigned to two guys (because OF COURSE, the boys have a choice, but the girls have none) and then has to cater to their every whim. That is messed up.

I wanted to love this book. I wanted to lose my breath from the chemistry, my mind from being so wrapped up in these two, my heart from skipping so many beats. The premise promised the kind of story that would do that. Instead, all I lost was the time I wasted reading it.

There are some things you don’t expect to see, and Beau Vincent sauntering into church on a Sunday morning is one of them.

(Review) He's Gone by Deb Caletti

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:07:00 +0000

Title: He's Gone
Author: Deb Caletti
Published: May 14, 2013 (Bantam)
Rating: Staying in Tonight
Format: Digital ARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss (Thanks!)

Summary: The Sunday morning starts like any other. Dani Keller wakes up on her Seattle houseboat, a headache building behind her eyes from the wine she drank at a party the night before. But on this particular morning, she’s surprised to see that her husband, Ian, is not home. As the hours pass, irritation shifts to worry, worry slides into panic. And then, the terrible realization hits Dani: He’s gone.

As the police work methodically through all the logical explanations, Dani searches frantically for a clue as to whether Ian is dead or alive. And, slowly, she unpacks their relationship: from its intense, adulterous beginning, to the grandeur of their new love, to the difficulties of forever. As the days pass, Dani will plumb the depths of her conscience, turning over and revealing the darkest of her secrets in order to discover the hard truth—about herself, her husband, and their lives together.

You guys! I did it! I read a book that wasn't young adult OR romance! Not that either of those things are bad, obviously, but it's always good to expand my boundaries every now and again. And what a book to expand with! Deb Caletti is one of my favorite YA authors, and this is her first venture into adult fiction. While it wasn't perfect, I am very glad I read it.

Deb Caletti's writing continues to astound me. She can use the most beautiful words that flow into each other in just the right fashion, but she can use them to say something so shockingly true and accurate. I took longer to read this book than I may have normally, because I found myself going back and re-reading sentences or passages that I particularly loved. And there were quite a few. I saved so many quotes from this book. Unfortunately, some were spoilery, so I won't be sharing them here. But if you read it, you can see them!

He's Gone was a little different than I was expecting. Yes, it's a mystery, but it is much more a look into Dani's head with a very stream-of-consciousness feel. You get to experience her thoughts and perceptions of everything going on around her, but it is broken up with clips of her history. You travel back in time in her memory to see how her relationship with Ian began and progressed. All through this, there is no sugarcoating. Caletti is straightforward about human failings, and I love her for it.

Unfortunately, there were a few things about this book that made it less than perfect. The main problem was that, due to the way it was written, the story got a little boring after a while. At certain points especially toward the end, I was ready for things to move forward, whether it be in Dani's memories or in the present, but they took a long time to do so. Also, the resolution was a little rushed and underwhelming, but I was also jarringly interrupted right at the climax of the book. So there is a possibility that this impacted my enjoyment of it.

Overall, He's Gone was definitely worth reading! Caletti was at the top of her writing game, there was excellent tension building regarding the mystery aspect, and it made me think. Being inside Dani's head was fascinating, especially toward the end of the book when doubt began circling around and she began to reach conclusions about herself, Ian, and the possibilities surrounding his disappearance.

...love at first sight is also disaster at first sight, only you don’t know it yet. You can’t know or hear it over the roar in your chest.

I want to understand it all, but my mind has its own instant off switch that’s tripped by lengthy explanations, instruction manuals, and rules to board games read aloud.

Fashion is a communication problem to solve, and I have enough trouble speaking with words, let alone footwear.

If reading counted as a sport, I’d be a gold medalist.

Top Ten Favorite Covers of Books We've Read {28}

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon andRacquel) — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:47:00 +0000

Top ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke & The Bookish, and this week's topic is:

Top Ten Favorite Book Covers Of Books We've Read

Racquel's picks:
First of all, round of applause because I've finally learned an easy, quick way to put all these covers into one picture on Photoshop. I might cry from happiness! Next, this was HARD. A lot of covers I love love love are not covers of books I've read! So I tried my best to pick recent covers.

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer: this cover is a thing of beauty plus purple is obviously my favorite color so I just really, really, really adore this cover. And the main character's name is Calla and those flowers on the covers are callas. Yay to matching cover! However they changed this hardcover U.S. cover to something hideous *cries*
02. Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor: The hardcover U.S. copy of DoSaB is the most beautiful thing evaaar. It's shiny and pretty and even better! The writing is as beautiful as the cover. Win. Win. Win!
03. Out of Reach by Carrie Arcos: Okay so yes, the girl is in straight up winter attire while the book is set in a beach town in California in the summer. MINOR detail. What I really like about this cover is that it catches the hopeless tone present in the book. I think despite the winter/summer thing, this cover and even title could not have fit the book better. It's perfect!
04. To Sir Phillip, With Love by Julia Quinn: I just love love love love love these types of cartoon/illustration/WHATEVER you call them covers. I LOVE them. I think they're so cute. I loove them, okay?
05. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare: The Infernal Devices series is probably the nicest thing on my shelf. I love how the match. I love the how they're shiny and have reflected covers and the characters on the covers actually resemble Tessa, Will & Jem, the characters of the book. I just have to repeat: this series is probably the fancies thing on my shelf ♥

Sharon's picks:
01. Playing Hurt by Holly Schindler
02. The Queen of Kentucky by Alecia Whitaker
03. Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill
04. My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
05. Entwined by Heather Dixon
I have an intense love of negative space, vibrant colors, and fantastic use of fonts. Oh, and girls in pretty dresses and castles. ♥

|Review| Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Title: Outlander

Author: Diana Gabaldon

Series: Outlander #1

First published January 1st, 1991

Genre: historical romance, time travel
Rating: B

Goodreads summary:

The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon--when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach--an "outlander"--in a Scotland torn by war and raiding Highland clans in the year of Our Lord...1743.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into intrigues and dangers that may threaten her life...and shatter her heart. For here she meets James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire...and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

Outlander is not a book I would have picked up on my own but it's obvious that it's a romance must so I trusted the romance community and picked up this mammoth-870-pages-long book and yeah, it's long. It definitely doesn't use big font and minimum sentences per page to fool you into thinking it's long because it really is just simply long. Can we get a work count, anyone? 2 million words, perhaps? It took me 4 days to read this and I was constantly reading everyday. Usually it takes me one day or two days if I'm lazy to finish a book. Outlander is one book that is the size of 3 normal books and now that I've articulated to you that this book is long!!! I'll get on to my review because I actually really enjoyed Outlander.

Outlander really surprised me when it came to the main characters and I think that definitely made me love the book more. Claire was smart, "quick" and definitely wore the pants. She really impressed me! But as the book goes on, the 1700's civilization she's transformed to does break her and she has to adapt to the ways of that time period and she does. She lost some of her female power that I looooved so much at the beginning but it's understandable. She was transformed to a whole new CENTURY. She has to take in the customs of the time period or else it's death so I guess I can live with her character growth especially since she did stay as the Claire I love. Mostly.

Now for Jamie, for some reason, I assumed he was an alpha, laird of all of Scotland, the head of the army, the warrior of the high and low landers, the hero of all heroes and etc. because I'm used to heroes being the alphas to all things but I was shocked when I realized that Jamie is not really the alpha of anything. I had to go read a few reviews to confirm that YES, Jamie is the hero! that's how surprised I was. But I love love loveeed how the book begins with this sorta-beta-hero Jamie. Claire is even older than Jamie by a few years and this makes for a lovely, sweet romance that made me grin like an idiot and go "awww" a few times.

Outlander is set in ugly times of a brewing war and okay, I have a ridiculously high tolerance for everything. Nothing really shocks me or makes me cringe but there were a lot of ugly aspects in Outlander due to the time period that Diana Gabaldon doesn't sugarcoat and I, Racquel, cringed plenty of times during this book. This NEVER EVER happens and it's so so awesome.

This is a time travel novel but then again it's not. Besides the initial time travel that takes place in the beginning, the paranormal behind that isn't really mentioned again which is not a bad thing because this book was all about the politics and life of the time period that Claire is transformed to, the romance and Claire's personal struggles and that really worked!

The book has 7 different parts and I definitely liked some way more than the others. Sure, I was confused about some of the political things and was frustrated with certain parts (anything concerning the character Geillis was frustrating!) and at first I didn't appreciate the harsh portrayal of the world, but I grew to appreciate that for it's honesty so overall, I really, really liked this book.

If you're a romance reader, I definitely recommend that you read Outlander. Don't let the 870 pages scare you because they're an enjoyable 870 pages and no joke, by the time I finished this book, I wanted even more. 870 pages weren't enough! This series has 7 books in it and an 8th on way, all books over 800 pages long and I think the 8th book is not even the last of the series. Wowzers. Will I be continuing this series? Definitely! Sometime in the future I will. I can't see myself reading the next books one after the other because that will probably take me a full month of only reading this series to get through them so I'm going to take it slow and read the next book when the mood strikes.

Rating: [B] A One of a kind romance novel!

First:

It wasn't a very likely place for disappearances, at least at first glance.

Favorite:

“There are things that I canna tell you, at least not yet. And I'll ask nothing of ye that ye canna give me. But what I would ask of ye---when you do tell me something, let it be the truth. And I'll promise ye the same. We have nothing now between us, save---respect, perhaps. And I think that respect has maybe room for secrets, but not for lies. Do ye agree?”

Teaser:

“No wonder he was so good with horses, I thought blearily, feeling his fingers rubbing gently behind my ears, listening to the soothing, incomprehensible speech. If I were a horse, I’d let him ride me anywhere.” *snicker*

|Review| Golden by Jessi Kirby

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Fri, 17 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Title: Golden

Author: Jessi Kirby

Published May 14th 2013 by Simon & Schuster

Genre: contemporary YA
Rating: D

Goodreads summary:

Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

I'll just say, this book is really just not for me. I really thought it would be because I like contemporary YA and I loved Jessi Kirby's debut but Golden was not a book for me. It all started with:

-Super smart main character with a boring life? check

-Fashionista, pretty, sidekick bff who's wild? check

-Unlikeable mom? check

-done with boring life & wants to do something main character? check

This made me groan and say "not again!" because I've read this book before. Multiple times. But I hoped that Jessi Kirby will make me forget all about that and wow me with her awesome writing and while her writing WAS awesome, I just couldn't get into the book.

I just did not care about Parker and her story. Sure I liked her, but I didn't care. Anyone can relate to Parker because everyone at one point was feeling confused about their life and wanted to do something more but the way this was addressed in Golden was so. damn. cheesy. I couldn't stomach it.

The book revolves around Parker finding a composition notebook of a girl who died but was never found. The composition notebooks is an English assignment, a journal that seniors write in and turn in to the teacher and in 10 years, the teacher will mail the composition notebook to the their owners so they can see how much they have changed and grown and if they have followed their dreams. This presented a mystery to Parker and I found the mystery pretty ridiculous and added to the cheesiness. I couldn't stop rolling my eyes. Though at one point I couldn't stop reading because I had to find out more about the mystery but that was in hope that what will be revealed will make me like the book. But it never got better for me and I also didn't find it very realistic. However, I REALLY loved the composition notebook idea. I'm even considering doing one. It will be a before college -- after college thing because even though I'm a senior and this is the perfect time, I don't think I can wait 10 years to look at it again.

There was also an art vs. artifact tone to the book and a lot of characters wanted to be painters, poets and such. Yeah, no. You want to be an artist? super cool! But I'm over the art vs. artifact debate because it's usually portrayed as so black and white. Nothing is black and white.

More cheesiness: love at first glance, literally. First kisses in the rain. Talk of constellations and stars (god, I *hate* this one. You don't even know. I don't find it even one bit romantic. If a guy ever told me something about stars, I would laugh at his face. And I've done that before. He called me a bitch after. Umm, hell yeah I'm a bitch.) and what killed me: someone named Hope. I was done at that point. Add a weak romantic interest & romance plot, weak mom character and I just can't say that I liked this book.

This was NOT a terrible book! Not at all but my reading experience of it was not pretty. I don't think I can find a part of it that I actually enjoyed BUT I can say that it did present questions worth thinking about and I like how it was centered around this quote, "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your own wild and precious life?" (--Mary Oliver) but I didn't like the execution. But like I said, the composition journal is actually really cool and other quotes and questions presented area always something to think about. But there is also so much cheesiness and soul searching I could talk before I have to throw up. Don't let me stop you from reading from Golden though. Everyone enjoyed it, why wouldn't you?

Rating: [D] Unfortunately, nothing really worked for me.

First:

There is no such thing as a secret in this town.

Favorite:

"Well, could you give it a little gas, then? I'm starving."
"How can you be hungry? You ate two breakfasts."
Trevor glances down at the speedometer. "I'm already doing eighty."
"I have a fast metabolism." Kat says. "Apparently faster than Trevor Collins here is willing to drive."

Teaser:

There are a few other things I've decided to take a chance on in these two days of my one wild and precious life.

Top Ten Books Dealing With Tough Subjects (27)

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:00:00 +0000

These are in no particular order and have various tough subjects - from kidnapping to abuse to incest. The one thing they have in common is that they are all great books. And if you have a stress ball and/or tissues handy, I would recommend them.

01. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
02. Live Through This by Mindi Scott
03. Dreamland by Sarah Dessen
04. Stay by Deb Caletti
05. The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
06. Butterfly Tattoo by Deidre Knight
07. Stolen Lucy Christopher
08. Precious and Fragile Things by Megan Hart
09. The Truth About Forever Sarah Dessen
10. Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas

Bout of Books Challenge: Alternate Titles

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Tue, 14 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Welcome to one of the two challenge being hosted on the second day of Bout of Books! I hope your first day of reading went well and if not, it's only day two! You have time to catch up! Now onto the challenge:

Alternate titles: what if you had the chance to rename a book? What would you title it? You could take your mission seriously and think of a new, better fitting title or you could do a silly new title. Just pick any book you've read and give it a new title OR you could pick a book you either read or haven't read and give it a new title based on the book's cover. Just get to renaming!

Our alternate titles:

The One With All The Swoons* By Lisa Kleypas

*Disclaimer. This does not refer to a specific Lisa Kleypas book but rather it refers to ALL her books. They all have MAJOR swoonage!

The Regency Girls Guide to the 80's: Of Tanning Lotions & Big Hair by Julie Anne Long

Just look at that piece of art of a cover! Doesn't the new title fit? (by the way, this is one of our favorite books EVER! Don't judge a book by it's cover, or it's awesome retitle ;D)

The Guardian by Richelle Mead

I don't mind Vampire Academy but some people find that title cheesy and embarrassing so The Guardian totally fits! However, the rest of the series is actually has super fitting titles.

Reminders:

-You have 24 hours to complete this challenge (Closes Wednesday at 12:00 am CST)
-There is no giveaway this time, sorry!
-Re-title as many titles of books you've read as you want or re-title as many titles based on the cover as you want, just have fun with it!

Racquel's Bout of Books 7.0 Goals & Updates

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Mon, 13 May 2013 23:30:00 +0000

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 13th and runs through Sunday, May 19th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 7.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog.

I'm participating in the Bout of Books read-a-thon again because it was fun last time plus I'm *whispers* 12 books behind. Yeah. That's NOT good!! I need to get caught up!

Goals:

Read at least 4 books
Participate in at least 1 Twitter chat
Participate in at least 4 challenges

I originally wanted to challenge myself with a reading goal of 5 books but let's not kid ourselves. I haven't been on top of reading lately, I'm obsessed/addicted/need-major-help with Merlin and I'm kind of busy with end of school stuff so I'm not going to set up myself for disappointment.

Books I should but probably won't read during this read-a-thon:

So good luck and happy reading to everyone reading and check back here on Tuesday for the challenge Sharon and I are hosting here :D

Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun {26}

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon andRacquel) — Tue, 07 May 2013 05:02:00 +0000

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke & The Bookish. This week's topic is:

Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun

Racquel's Picks

Now that I've sat down to do today's topic, I realized that I absolutely loathe and despise this topic but since I told Sharon I will do it, I'm not backing out. Why don't I like it? Well, I don't want you to think these books don't have substance and depth to them because THEY DO. Plus, when I want something light & fun I read Blue-Eyed Devil. Come on. Anyone who has read that book KNOWS that that book is not light and fun. I'm a BIG rereader and anytime I'm down and want a comfort read, I read a favorite book, even if that means reading a tough subject book. I never want to read a light and fun read. I just want to read a book I love. Does that make sense?

01. Two-Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt
02. Practice Makes Perfect by Julie James

03. Megan Meade's Guide to the McGowan Boys by Kate Brian

04. Negligee Behavior by Shelli Stevens
05. Ten Things We Did by Sarah Mlynowski

Sharon's Picks

01. Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill
02. Sex, Murder and a Double Latte by Kyra Davis
03. What Happens in London by Julia Quinn
04. Vision in White by Nora Roberts
05. Yours to Keep by Shannon Stacey

(Bout of Books 7.0) Goals & Updates

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Tue, 07 May 2013 00:30:00 +0000

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 13th and runs through Sunday, May 19th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 7.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog.

I am so excited, you guys! I lovelovelove readathons, and Bout of Books is my favorite of them all! This time around, you might notice my goals are a little light. This is due to the fact that I graduate on Saturday, move into my new apartment this weekend, and start my internship (along with my job that I already work) on Monday...which is also the day Bout of Books starts. So my life is going to be a little hectic. But am I going to let that stop me? No, siree! Also, due to the whole just-moving-into-the-apartment thing, it is likely that I will not have super reliable internet access, so I probably won't be able to do as many challenges as I usually like. But we will still be hosting a challenge here! Fear not.

My Goals for Bout of Books 7.0

   • Read 4 of the following books
   • Discover some awesome new blogs and friends
   • Participate in at least one of the Twitter chats
   • Participate in two or more challenges (not including the one hosted here)

Books To Read

   01. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
   02. Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty
   03. Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith
   04. How to Lead a Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller
   05. About Last Night by Ruthie Knox
   06. Can't Buy Me Love by Molly O'Keefe
   07. Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks
   08. Silk Is for Seduction by Loretta Chase

*If I feel so inclined, the rest of the Jessica Darling books totally count as acceptable substitutes.
**Also, I will be reading This Is What Happy Looks Like as part of a readalong during these dates! So it will be included for sure.

Updates

Monday (5/13)
Books Read Today:
  Completed:
  In-Progress: This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith (270 pages)
Challenge: None
Total Books Read: ~.75
Total Pages Read: 270

Tuesday (5/14)
Books Read Today:
  Completed: This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith
  In-Progress: Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith (278 pages)
Challenge: #1: Alternate Title Challenge hosted here at The Book Barbies!
#2: Soundtrack Challenge hosted at Medusa's Library
One of the first that comes to mind for this is the Breaking Dawn Part 2 soundtrack and the Matched trilogy. I was obsessing over this soundtrack at the same time as I was reading these books, and they actually went really well together! So now the two are connected in my head.
Total Books Read: ~1.75
Total Pages Read: 411

Wednesday (5/15)
Books Read Today:
  Completed: Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith
  In-Progress: Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase (78)
Challenge: None
Total Books Read: ~2.25
Total Pages Read: 524

Thursday (5/16)
Books Read Today:
  Completed:
  In-Progress: Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase (78)
Challenge: None
Total Books Read: ~2.25
Total Pages Read: 524

Friday (5/17)
Books Read Today:
  Completed:
  In-Progress: Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase (107)
Challenge: N/A
Total Books Read: ~2.5
Total Pages Read: 553

Saturday (5/18)
Books Read Today:
  Completed: Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase
  In-Progress: Scandal Wears Satin by Loretta Chase (11)
Challenge: None
Total Books Read: ~3
Total Pages Read: 1086

Sunday (5/19)
Books Read Today:
  Completed:
  In-Progress: Scandal Wears Satin by Loretta Chase (40)
Challenge: None
Total Books Read: ~3.25
Total Pages Read: 1115

Wrap-Up
Okay, so apparently, I underestimated the sheer amount of time an internship, plus a job, plus moving (and all the errands that entails) takes. Plus how much it made me actually want a decent amount of sleep each night. Not to mention the fact that I didn't have internet, and apparently our library's public wifi is practically nonexistent. Which, sadly, meant that I could not participate in any of the Twitter chats. And only one challenge besides ours (which Racquel typed; we communicated about it via text). This was officially my least successful BOB ever. I still had fun and consider myself a participant, because I did try to read more than I would have otherwise. But I am definitely looking forward to the next BOB when I'll be able to fully participate.

|Review| The Program by Suzanne Young + Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Mon, 06 May 2013 05:15:00 +0000

Title: The Program

Author: Suzanne Young (Website | Twitter)

Series: Program #1

Published April 30th 2013 by Simon Pulse

Genre: dystopian YA
Rating: B-

Goodreads summary:

In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program.
Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.

I've waited for The Program for a long long time now and I'm glad to say it did not disappoint! The book is split into 3 parts and the book got better as I further went into the book. I had my doubts during part 1 because it was full of cheesy "I'll save you" romance but I didn't mind it when I realized that it did play a part in the book and it was toned down later on. From the beginning, I was invested with the characters and yup, I had feels.

The dust jacket of The Program. The title on the front & on the spine in the final copy is white though.

The Program, both the book and the actual program, is well, scary. Imagine having your memories stripped away from you? Your past, lost? and all of this is LEGAL. Heck, your parents make you go thru this! Creepy. Some parts made me feel violated. I just wanted to hug my brain and my memories because what are we without those memories? This line really stuck with me and it sums the problem The Program creates:

He sounds frustrated, and I realize that he has the same conflicting feelings that I do. Emotions that are there, but without cause. Feelings that aren't attached to memories and therefore meaningless.

That's why I really enjoyed The Program. I haven't read many dystopian books but in my mind, I imagined The Program set in the future and everything is in lock down and the government doesn't allow anything and etc. but I was surprised when I realized that The Program is set in a world just like today's. Everything is the same except the Program exists. Which makes this book even more believable. This really could happen! Grieving parents would allow such a program to exist if it means their children could be happy and safe from themselves. However, I don't want to get to into that because the suicide issue isn't discussed thoroughly which was fine by me because this isn't an ISSUE book but I do believe it will be further explored.

This is how the book looks like without the dust jacket. I love it!

I was definitely rooting for the characters, they were trying their best, doing stupid things in the process but really trying to make the best out of living in a really harsh world for teenagers. Sloane is a great main character and I just wanted to jump into the book to protect her. She was a normal teenage girl but the Program makes hard for teens to be carefree. James is Sloane's boyfriend and I did like him. I do want to see more depth to him in the next book though. I also loved Realm, a boy Sloane meets while she's in the Program, but I fear Suzanne Young will go in a bad direction with him. I never got the vibe that he a was part of a love triangle (neither did Sloane, for that matter!) but some people have apparently been feeling that way. I want to see even more from him and I hope his character is even explored further. Plus, I wanted Sloane to start treating him right! He does everything to help her but Sloane doesn't get it. But oh how I liked-and-hated that. On one hand, it happens, on another, Sloane! Be smart!!!

Usually with dystopian and paranormal books, I get caught up with wanting more building and explanations and that distracts me from the story but since The Program is set in world like today's, for once I wasn't asking a million questions. But I definitely how questions that I hope will be answered sometime in the series otherwise I'll be really cheated. I also did want to see more personality from Sloane's parents. But this is a problem I have with most YA parents. They're usually cardboard cut out zombies. Bleh.

The Program had a cool twist that I didn't see coming but really enjoyed and I definitely can't wait for the next book since the end was GREAT. It wasn't a cliffhanger per se but it did leave me wanting the second book immdeiatly.

Rating: [B-] A good start to a series. I'll be waiting for the sequel!

First:

The air in the room tastes sterile.

Favorite:

"I'm just saying," James adds, walking back over to the couch and dropping down next to me. "If I didn't have this one"––he hikes his thumb at me––"I might be your new stepdad."

Teaser:

They're always watching. Never forget that.

Giveaway time! Thanks to the publisher, I'll be offering 2 finished, hardcover copies of
The Program and this is U.S. only. Good luck! This is a book you want to read.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Encore fun! Jamie @The Perpetual Page Turner has this AWESOME post about the The Program themed book club meeting she had. It's fun and true to the book. Plus she also has a giveaway!

(Triple Review) Tessa Dare Novellas!

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Sun, 05 May 2013 14:54:00 +0000

Book: Beauty and the Blacksmith by Tessa Dare
Series: Spindle Cove, #3.5
Published: April 30, 2013 (Avon Impulse)
Rating: Lunch Break Read
Thoughts: Diana finally got her own story! I was so excited for this, because I've been waiting for it since the beginning of the series. It was also great having a lower class hero. Not that I don't love my dukes and earls, but it's a nice change of pace. Diana and Aaron had immediate chemistry! Yet it didn't feel unfounded; I could feel the fact that something had been brewing - at least on Diana's side - for a while even though we didn't know the back story yet. Perhaps the best thing about this book is that it was just a straight-up love story. Yes, they had to deal with some issues related to class, but for the most part, it was refreshingly simple, completely adorable, yet substantial. It just made me smile so much! I will definitely keep this one in mind next time I need a quick pick-me-up read.

Yes, you’re big. Yes, you’re strong. Big and strong don’t add up to invincible.

Book: Once Upon a Winter's Eve by Tessa Dare
Series: Spindle Cove, #1.5
Published: November 15, 2011 (Samhain)
Rating: Lunch Break Read
Thoughts: To be honest, I read this one quite a while back, so the details are a little fuzzy. But it had several good qualities. Violet was obsessed with languages and quite adept at them. As I love languages, I loved this aspect of the story! It also wound up being the important factor that led to the interaction between Violet and the mysterious hero. Also, the story progressed at a great pace! It was slow enough to heighten the tension surrounding the mystery, but not so long that it dragged out. I also enjoyed the references to the first book in the series. I would be interested to go back and read it again to see if there was any foreshadowing regarding future Spindle Cove books. For instance, she did that in Beauty and the Blacksmith, which I picked up on (and giggled) because I read Any Duchess Will Do (#4) before I read it.

Even if she did possess wiles, she wouldn’t know how to use them.

Book: The Scandalous, Dissolute, No-Good Mr. Wright by Tessa Dare
Published: December 11, 2012 (Avon Impulse)
Rating: Staying in Tonight
Thoughts: This book! The second I saw the title, I knew I had to read it, and for good reason! I wound up loving it. I love Dare's humor and her overall writing style. I love how she writes characters that are so wonderfully real. They had flaws. They were selfish. But they also matured. I loved the interactions between Eliza and Harry, particularly the earlier ones. I also love that she actually addressed the age difference between them. There were several instances when Eliza jokingly called Harry ancient. It had superb tension, and I was amazed at how much emotional and relationship development there was for such a short book. The book took place over several years, and while the format of relationship "excerpts" might not have worked in another story, it worked perfectly here. It made me swoon. It made me laugh. I would definitely recommend this one.

Devilish men should not be allowed to hold kittens, babies, or bouquets of wildflowers. There ought to be an Act of Parliament.

Be Good To Me: Graduation is Upon Us Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Thu, 02 May 2013 19:48:00 +0000

May is the month of awesome. Sharon is graduating May 11th and while Racquel graduates June 7th, she'll be done with school by the end of May. VERY EXCITING. Plus Bout of Books is this month!

Racquel read:

Yes six books are listed only BUT I don't care what anyone says, Outlander (870 pages!!!) counts as THREE books. I read the equivalent of NINE books this month, y'all. I didn't read very much because I spent April watching Lost Girl, a show about Fae and it's awesome.

The first two seasons are on Netflix for U.S. viewers and the third season just ended recently. The main character, Bo, is a bad ass and her side kick, Kenzi, is so amazing, I wish she had her own show. Definitely watch it. Anyways, after that, I started Merlin.

Merlin gives me A LOT of FEELS. It's a medieval fantasy about sorcerers and it's just great. 4 out of 5 seasons are on Netflix so get to it U.S. peeps. Lastly, I started watching Hannibal with my brother and wow.

Hannibal just started airing on NBC and this Thursday, episode 5 will air. It's about a cannibalistic serial killer and an FBI agent, Will Graham, who's hunting him down. The acting in this show is just phenomenal. Hugh Dancy as Will Graham and Mads Mikkelsen as Hannibal are just so darn perfect for their roles. I'm obsessed with these characters and what will happen to them.

I just wanted to share that because these 3 shows are worth your time but back to books!!

Racquel's April favorites:
Love Irresistibly by Julie James - I didn't think it could be done but Julie James did it. She topped her Love Irresistibly, I was chanting "this book perfect".
other 5 novels. The entire time I was reading
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare - This series is just GREAT. No second book syndrome with this book. It was even better than Clockwork Angel. This is a must read series.
Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers - This book gave me ALL. THE. FEELS. I dare say it's better than Grave Mercy and I LOVED Grave Mercy so I don't say that lightly! It's official-- Robin LaFevers is a fantastic writer.

Sharon read:
042. The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
043. The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead
044. Beauty and the Blacksmith by Tessa Dare
045. Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
046. Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning
047. Losing It by Cora Carmack
048. Faefever by Karen Marie Moning
049. Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning
050. Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning
051. Once Upon a Tower by Eloisa James
052. Love Irresistibly by Julie James
053. Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers
054. Mine to Hold by Shayla Black

Sharon's April favorites:
So many! April was a GREAT book month. I LOVED experiencing the Fever series. They just got better at the series went on, and loved Jericho and Mac so much it is ridiculous. Love Irresistibly was fantastic! I will have to read both it and About That Night again to see which I love more! I also very much enjoyed Once Upon a Tower by Eloisa James. And, of course, freaking INDIGO SPELL made my life in a thousand ways. ♥

May releases we want:

Top Ten Words/Phrases That Will Make Us Pick Up a Book {25}

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon andRacquel) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 06:33:00 +0000

Racquel:
01. Arranged marriage. I was going to say, don't judge me, but HA. I don't care so go ahead but I do love arranged marriages in fiction. In historical romance pretty much.
Favorites: Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas & Confessions from an Arranged Marriage by Miranda Neville

02. Vampires. I, Racquel, just said that, YES. I love vampires. I've always loved vampires. I will always love vampires and NO. Vampire books are not dead.
Favorites: Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead and I have to mention him: ERIC NORTHMAN. He is the greatest vampire around and if everyone disagrees?

03. Marriage-in-trouble. Not a lot of romance readers like this one because it ruins the romance fantasy or whatever, I don't really understand it, but maybe because I'm not married but OH WELL. I like seeing couples fall back in love! Makes the romance even sweeter!
Favorites: Not Quite a Husband and Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas

04. Alternating 1st person POV between girl and guy main characters (okay, 10 key words). I just love this. It makes the romance a whole lot better and the book more interesting since we're in two different heads. It doesn't count if it's 3rd person though! Must be 1st person.

Favorites: Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles and Two-Way Street by Lauren Barnholdt

05. LISA KLEYPAS. Automatically pre-ordered. Gettttttt it.
Favorites: god, I list my Lisa Kleypas favorites EVERY FREAKIN' WEEK. Just pick one. It's a favorite. Trust me.
Sharon:
01. Slow burn. Because hi, have you met me? If I see this phrase in a review of a book, I am guaranteed to pick it up unless there is something seriously offputting in the cover blurb. Basically, it's my favorite thing to read ever. Example: A Notorious Countess Confesses by Julie Anne Long

02. Any arrangement of the words "best," "friend," and "brother" (Best friend's brother, brother's best friend, YES TO ALL) Example: Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn

03. Forbidden. Judge me all you want, but I freaking LOVE the forbidden aspect of relationships. Whether it's because it's a friend's ex, the heroine is his ward, he's a special agent in charge of her, WHATEVER. Regardless of the plot, if there are reasons for there to be angsting and longing and I-so-shouldn't-want-you-but-I-do dynamic, I am SO there (and the key to making this trope work is to make the ending caving/result good enough to live up to the build.) Example: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

04. Strong Heroine. There are few things I enjoy more than a good book with a strong female lead. Example: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

05. ALL THE FEELS. Yes, this term is making its way quickly into the "overused" category. But when I see this in a review, it always makes me take a second look. I love those books you don't just read; you experience. You feel everything through them. Example: Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon Wrap-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 21:51:00 +0000

Which hour was most daunting for you?
Um, that would be hour 18, during which I faded in and out for about 10 minutes, and finally fell asleep, even though I meant to stay up for the next 2 hours. I wasn't allowing myself to stay up past that because I had to be awake to interpret the play today. But: funny and confusing story! I fell asleep reading, so my hand was still holding the pages open to my place. But somehow when I woke up after a bit, I was holding a different spot 100 pages after I stopped? So, I don't know if somehow it flipped open, or if I was turning pages in my sleep or something, LOL. Regardless, when I jerked back awake, I was like, "No! I at least need to read to the end of this hour!" But I started reading and was really confused because I didn't know what was going on. I flipped back a couple pages to refresh myself and didn't remember those either. Being half asleep, this was too much for my brain to handle, so I just decided to shut out the light and go to sleep for real. This morning, I looked at the book and saw what had happened. Still not sure how it happened, though.

Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
I didn't read either of these during this readathon, but they are books that have kept me up until all hours of the night before.

Both Mara Dyer books by Michelle Hodkin
What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long
Practice Makes Perfect by Julie James

Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
Nope! I love how it is set up. For myself, one thing I plan to do differently is schedule one or two points ahead of time (and set an alarm on my phone so I don't forget), so I can participate in a challenge or two. This time, I knew I was going to lose a huge chunk of Saturday evening, so I only wanted to read the whole time. But I think it would be fun to do a challenge or two.

What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
I had a really great variety of books I was excited about to choose from.

How many books did you read?
2 full books, and 102 pages of another. Not great, but better than last time!

What were the names of the books you read?
Love Irresistibly by Julie James
Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers
Mine to Hold by Shayla Black

Which book did you enjoy most?
Love Irresistibly.

Which did you enjoy least?
Mine to Hold. Although I'm liking it overall, there are some things I'm not crazy about.

How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
VERY! I love readathons. And I am determined that one day, this one will fall on a day I can dedicate entirely to reading rather than having big RL things intruding on my marathoning time.

(Review) Any Duchess Will Do by Tessa Dare

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 13:42:00 +0000

Title: Any Duchess Will Do
Author: Tessa Dare
Series: Spindle Cove, #4
Publish Date: May 28, 2013 (Avon)
Rating: Staying in Tonight
Format: Digital ARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss

Summary: Griffin York, the Duke of Halford, has no desire to wed this season—or any season—but his diabolical mother abducts him to “Spinster Cove” and insists he select a bride from the ladies in residence. Griff decides to teach her a lesson that will end the marriage debate forever. He chooses the serving girl.

Overworked and struggling, Pauline Simms doesn’t dream about dukes. All she wants is to hang up her barmaid apron and open a bookshop. That dream becomes a possibility when an arrogant, sinfully attractive duke offers her a small fortune for a week’s employment. Her duties are simple: submit to his mother’s “duchess training”… and fail miserably.

But in London, Pauline isn’t a miserable failure. She’s a brave, quick-witted, beguiling failure—a woman who ignites Griff’s desire and soothes the darkness in his soul. Keeping Pauline by his side won’t be easy. Even if Society could accept a serving girl duchess—can a roguish duke convince a serving girl to trust him with her heart?

When I first laid eyes on Any Duchess Will Do, I was immediately struck with a bad case of Instalove. Hearts began popping up around my head, and "This Magic Moment" started playing in the background. Such an interesting premise! The duke and the serving girl? Duchess lessons a la The Princess Diaries, albeit with an older, more rakish Michael for me to swoon over? WANT. While the actual story did not exactly wind up aligning with that particular idea I had in my head, I was immensely pleased with it nonetheless.

Pauline was an interesting character. She was a serving girl in Spindle Cove. She was practical, rational, and direct, but she also had dreams. She was loyal and supportive of her sister Daniela, who had a developmental delay of some sort, and their relationship was very touching. She was hilariously unqualified to be a duchess and had an unfortunate habit of cursing and...well, basically, lots of things a duchess shouldn't do.

Griff was staunchly against the idea of getting married, but he did not want to tell his mother the true reason. While this is made clear early on, the reader is given no clues as to why. So you're simply left wondering until the answer comes flying out to you over in left field and hits you right in the gut. His anti-marriage feelings aside, though, I liked reading about Griff from the beginning. He was just so utterly ducal. In a good way.

I also had a real soft spot for Griff's mother. She was quite amusing, and I wound up caring about and enjoying scenes with her more than I would have anticipated. I also loved seeing the little cameos with some of the old Spindle Cove characters! That made me smile a lot. In fact, Griff himself had made an appearance in one of the preceding books, which I had completely forgotten about until it was mentioned.

Of course, some of the elements of the story were predictable. It was, after all, "the practical girl's fairy tale." But the majority of it was not what one would expect. And all of it, predictable or not, was thoroughly enjoyable. There was a scene with a goose that had me giggling uncontrollably. Dare amped up the hotness factor, and there may have been a scene or two that left me fanning myself and reaching for a cool glass of water. Whatever the scene, I loved reading about Griff and Pauline and how they dealt with their accidental, inconvenient feelings.

I usually associate Tessa Dare with humor. I tend go to into her books expecting a fabulous romance and a lot of laughs. And I got them. But with this book, I got quite a few tears, as well. Some were good, and some were bad. I was not anticipating such an emotional read! While it is by no means the next Steel Magnolias, I would keep a tissue or two handy while reading.

Basically, I guess the moral of my story is this: When it comes to Any Duchess Will Do, expect the unexpected. It will surprise you. It will make you cry. It will make you fall in love. So let it. Experience it. Enjoy it. Love it. Spindle Cove is one of my favorite historical series, and Any Duchess Will Do was a wonderful installment. I am already eagerly awaiting the next one!

Pauline looked to the window, expecting a pig to fly through it. A pig strumming a lyre and speaking Welsh, perhaps.

I was hoping to hear something like, ‘I have a creeping skin disease.’ Or, ‘I hoot like a barn owl when I reach orgasm.’ Those would be deterrents. I’m not sure the second is strong enough, actually. Curiosity might win out over trepidation.

I know how mirrors work. They’re all in league with the cosmetics trade. They tell a woman lies. Drawing her gaze from one imagined flaw to another, until all she sees is a constellation of imperfections. If you could get outside yourself, borrow my eyes for just an instant... There’s only beauty.

If there was anything better than the smell of books, it was the smell of books mingled with the scents of strong tea and spice biscuits – and all of it on a rainy afternoon.
*All quotes from ARC or galley, so final copy may differ.

|Review| Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 17:02:00 +0000

Title: Clockwork Prince
Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices #2
Published December 6th 2011 by Margaret K. McElderry Books
Genre: historical, paranormal YA
Rating: A
Goodreads summary:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?

As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.

I don't read many series so I'm not familiar with Second Book Syndrome (SBS) but I can safely say that Clockwork Prince does not suffer from SBS. I even dare say that Clockwork Prince is just as good, if not better than Clockwork Angel.

When it comes to Clockwork Prince and the Big Major Plot that's spanning the series, nothing of extreme importance happens. a few things were set up for the climax that's sure to happen in the next book but really, Clockwork Prince was all about the characters and that worked really well!

We learn more about Tessa and same with Clockwork Angel, I still felt the barrier between Tessa and I because of the 3rd person POV. I like her and think she's awee-soome but to be honest, forgettable compared to other characters. Though I still like her! Anyways, we get more page time for Henry and Charlotte (YAY!), the couple who run the London institute Tessa is staying at and more of Sophie, a servant (but really so much more valuable than that) at the institute, which makes me happy happy happy since I LOVE Sophie. I could read an entire series with Sophie as the main character. Sophie simply is b a d a s s.

The book also finally reveals what happened to Will and I did say in my Clockwork Angel, that will is "rude to the point of cruelty" and while it's obvious that "there is more Will than meets the eye but that does not change the fact that he was a jackass" BUT, and it PAINS me to say this, Cassandra Clare really sheds some light on Will's character and behavior and dammit, it is a freaking GOOD excuse to his behavior! I did not for one second think that I was going to let Will off the hook but grrrr, Cassandra Clare hit me with a good one and my resistance broke. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I feel for ya, Will Heronalde. Do I forgive him? Not completely. I still stand by the "rude is rude" statement but yeah, Will is back on my good side. Watch out, Jem! (Yes, I still prefer Jem. Tessa could have Will. I can have Jem. Happily ever after.)

Like I anticipated, Magnus Bane DOES get a bigger role in this book and can I just say, I LOVE Magnus. LOVE him. Woolsey Scott is introduced thought he's a teenty tiny minor character but he did provide a few laugh out louds. Gideon Lightwood was also introduced and yup, another character I loved. Also, readers who read Clockwork Prince I have a Magus related question for you!

Pretty much, my reaction while reading this book is: "this book is perfect." I laughed. I was heartbroken. Things got intense at parts. I was shocked here and there. I laughed some more and I just enjoyed the hell out of Clockwork Prince and I took my sweet time reading because I wanted to savor it. It was mostly character driven and Cassandra Clare made that WORK. The setting and time period are also just treat because steampunk is always fun to read and the paranormal world is definitely the best I've ever encountered (I've only read a few paranormal books but still!).

Rating: [A] An amazing, amazing installment. Read. This. Series.

First:
The fog was thick, muffling sound and sight.

Favorite:
"In that case mine's 'genuphobia.' It means an unreasonable fear of knees."
"What's the word for a perfectly reasonable fear of annoying idiots?"

Teaser:
"I asked him why he did not end his life, and he said he still felt one thing, and that was fear-- fear of what lies after death."

Top Ten Books We Liked More/Less Than Expected {24}

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:58:00 +0000

Racquel:

Books I thought I'd like MORE:

01: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins: usually when I don't like a book, it's a combination of too much hype that give me ridiculously high expectations or the book just didn't CLICK with me but I can't say the same for Lola. I had sooooooo sooo many issues with the story itself and to this day, I cannot fathom why I'm one of the very few people who sees these problems. Which is sad because I loved Anna and I preordered Lola and was expecting to love it, especially since reviews were all great and I did read it the moment it arrived but god, I hate hate hate this book. Sorry, Sharon! (who loves this book.)

02: If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman: so much hype for these two books and when I read them, I was like meh. But I think Gayle Forman is just not an author for me. Her writing is great but I never like her stories.

03: My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick: overall, I don't regret reading this book but I had issues with it that kept me from fully enjoying it like everyone else.

04: Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake and Eleven Scandals to Start to Win a Duke's
by Sarah MacLean: this series is a favorite for romance AND non romance readers but I do not get it. At all. Another case where the author is just not for me.

On a positive note, a book I thought I would like LESS but surprised me:

05: What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen: I love Sarah Dessen but I went into What Happened to Goodbye expecting to hate it because I was disappointed by the last SD book I read, Along for the Ride, and I read a What Happened to Goodbye spoiler that led me to the conclusion that this book sucks so I told myself it was going to be a terrible book and what would you know, I LOVED IT. With expectations that low, there is no place to go but up! This is my third favorite SD book. It was just great and the spoiler I read turned out to be misleading. Yay!

Sharon:
01: Nine Rules of Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah Maclean. One of the myriad things Racquel and I have bonded over is our bafflement regarding the widespread love of this book. I didn't hate it, but it fell smack dab in the middle of mediocre for me. (Note: Unlike R, though, I did enjoy Eleven Scandals!)

02: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire. I have loathed very few books with the intensity I felt toward this one. Had it been advertised differently, I would have been able to forgive it. But my expectations were one place and this book was somewhere else entirely.

03: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand. After my abandoning-less-than-50-pages-in (which I almost never do) experience with Fallen, I was convinced angel books weren't for me. Boy, did Cynthia Hand (with a lot of help from Tucker ♥) prove me wrong!

04: Proof by Seduction by Courtney Milan. I went into this book unsure of whether or not I was going to like it overall due to some potential aspects of the story. But I was desperate for more Courtney Milan, having finished her Turner series. And then lo and behold, this one was amazing!

05: Hunting and Gathering by Anna Gavalda. I cannot for the life of me remember what put me onto this random and obscure book, a translation from its original French. But I know that, although I had high expectations, I did not expect to fall in love to the degree I did.

Second Chance Saturday |3| A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 18:09:00 +0000

The goal of Second Chance Saturday is to give a second chance to a book/author/series we've written off for some reason. Check out the previous two SCS we did here.

This Month's Featured Book:

A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare
Published August 30th 2011 by Avon
Spindle Cove #1
Goodreads summary:

Welcome to Spindle Cove, where the ladies with delicate constitutions come for the sea air, and men in their prime are... nowhere to be found. Or are they?

Spindle Cove is the destination of choice for certain types of well-bred young ladies: the painfully shy, young wives disenchanted with matrimony, and young girls too enchanted with the wrong men; it is a haven for those who live there.

Victor Bramwell, the new Earl of Rycliff, knows he doesn't belong here. So far as he can tell, there's nothing in this place but spinsters... and sheep. But he has no choice, he has orders to gather a militia. It's a simple mission, made complicated by the spirited, exquisite Susanna Finch—a woman who is determined to save her personal utopia from the invasion of Bram's makeshift army.

Susanna has no use for aggravating men; Bram has sworn off interfering women. The scene is set for an epic battle... but who can be named the winner when both have so much to lose?

What happened: I bought A Night to Surrender ready to love it but I quit at the 22% mark. The story and main characters were not clicking with me.

This book was a second chance because... Tessa Dare is historical romance favorite for both romance and non romance reader. I did not want to be the one person who's left out of the reading fun.

Second chance thoughts: sad to say, but this is one time that giving a book a second chance did not transform it to a favorite. I ended up enjoying A Night to Surrender somewhat but in end, all I can give it is a D+ rating. The reason I put it down the first time was because it was full of "let me unleash your pleasure" talk which ALWAYS makes me roll my eyes. Plus it was immediate which was something I'm sick of. Give me the slow burn!!!!!! I really just didn't enjoy the romance at all. The hero, Bram, could think of nothing but being with the heroine *eye roll* and the heroine was just saint like. No one can get things done like her. Anyone in town needs help? They go to Susanna. No one can solves their own problems. Susanna had to solve those problems because Susanna is perfect. Yeah, that didn't work for me. Susanna pretty much wanted everyone in town to do what she said and operate under her rule. And the last straw was when someone is wounded and in a fatal situation, Susanna and Bram somehow turn the conversation about themselves when they were supposed to be discussing getting aide for the person who's hurt. That pretty much killed everything for me.
Lastly, both Bram and Susanna have been through tragedies and I felt this was a cheap ploy to add angst. I really did not care a single bit about how both of them overcame their respective tragedies because I could see the author pulling the puppet strings.

However I did laugh out loud a few times and I was getting crazy looks from people because I couldn't stop smiling at parts. But those part usually involved Colin, Bram's cousin & the hero of the next book and the only scene I truly loved was between Colin and Minerva, who's Colin's heroine in the next book A Week to Be Wicked.

Worthy-of-sharing quote:

"We are men. Last I checked, anyhow."
"It's not just a matter of having the proper equipment. It's using the equipment properly."

Verdict: [D+ rating ] not much better than my first try but I did laugh plenty of times & I will give the Spindle Cove series another second chance (or is it third at his point?)

Author Interview with Lindsey Leavitt

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon andRacquel) — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 04:43:00 +0000

Title: Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt
Published March 26th 2013 by Bloomsbury
Genre: Contemporary YA
Goodreads summary:

When Mallory’s boyfriend, Jeremy, cheats on her with an online girlfriend, Mallory decides the best way to de-Jeremy her life is to de-modernize things too. Inspired by a list of goals her grandmother made in1962, Mallory swears off technology and returns to a simpler time (when boyfriends couldn’t cheat with computer avatars). The List:
1. Run for pep club secretary
2. Host a fancy dinner party/soiree
3. Sew a dress for Homecoming
4. Find a steady
5. Do something dangerous
But simple proves to be crazy-complicated, and the details of the past begin to change Mallory’s present. Add in a too-busy grandmother, a sassy sister, and the cute pep-club president–who just happens to be her ex’s cousin–and soon Mallory begins to wonder if going vintage is going too far.

We have an author interview with Lindsey Leavitt, author of Going Vintage, a cute contemporary YA about a sophomore girl who decides to cut out technology from her life. We've reviewed Going Vintage here on The Book Barbies & it's a book worth recommending! Without further ado, enjoy this interview with Lindsey Leavitt:

1. Have you ever gone on a technology hiatus? If so, from what, and how did it go?

I gave up technology for one week while researching this book. It was a quiet, dark period that I don’t care to remember. I also just moved into a new home, so was without internet or cable, all during my release week. My thumbs hurt from trying to keep up with business stuff on my I-phone. Although I got a lot packed and unpacked, I felt like I was missing out on something always!

2. I love how Mallory went through vintage clothing phases! I [Sharon] love vintage clothes. Do you have a particular era or decade that is a favorite, clothing wise?

Oh, early sixties by far! I like the lengths of the dresses and the fullness of the skirts. Although I also really like forties. Women were finally allowed to be smart and sexy, and that shows in the fit of the clothes.

3. How did you research all the details of the sixties that were mentioned in Going Vintage?

I read a lot of books from that period (listed in acknowledgements pages of the books), went through old LIFE and LOOK magazines, talked to people who were teens at that time, looked through pictures, watched videos and movies, listened to music… it was a fun book to research.

4. I [Sharon] loved Oliver! How did you come up with such a unique character? Didyou have inspiration in the form of an actual person for some of his quirks or characteristics?

Oh, to know someone like Oliver! My husband read the book, and swore Oliver was based on him, but that is not the case (sorry honey). The boys in my books usually come after I’ve developed my main character, and their traits come from what connects and repels.

Although the reindeer beanie he wears is based on this alpaca hat my husband used to wear in college that I loved.

5. Do you make lists like Mallory and Oliver? If so, what was one of the last things you listed?

I make lots of to do lists. Today’s (admittedly boring) list…

Mail package to Jayci
Talk to Caitlin
West Elm with Heather??
Groceries
Read with girls
Pay bills
Answer interview questions

OK, I’ll stop there. I’m feeling bad how little I got done. Glad I have this interview so I feel some sense of accomplishment.

6. Do you have any YA books you'd like to recommend? We're always for the look out!

I love Lisa Schroeder, Rachel Hawkins, Robin Benway, Sarah Ockler, Sara Zarr, Jessi Kirby… these are auto-buys for me.

7. Can you give us a hint of what to expect from you in the future? Any new books?

I’m working on a contemporary YA that is set in Las Vegas. It should be out next year, but I’m still figuring it out—don’t even have a title, let alone a pitch. I’m cryptic, aren’t I?

Thanks you Lindsey for stopping by! Check TBB review of Going Vintage & give the book a try!

About Lindsey:
Lindsey Leavitt is a former elementary school teacher and present-day writer/mom to three (mostly) adorable girls. She is married to her high-school lab partner and lives in Las Vegas, Nevada. She is the author of the PRINCESS FOR HIRE series, SEAN GRISWOLD’S HEAD, & GOING VINTAGE.

Find Lindsey: Website | Twitter | Blog | Facebook

Going Vintage Tumblr

(Review) Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 14:00:00 +0000

Title: Unravel Me
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Series: Shatter Me, #2
Published: February 5, 2013 (HarperCollins)
Rating: Stay Up 'til 2 AM
Format: Hardcover, purchased

Summary: Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance. She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life

Well, it is official! For the first time since my book blogging career began back in December of 2011, I have read a 5 star book (re-reads excepted)! There have been some super close calls (Shatter Me, Outlander, What I Did for a Duke). But Unravel Me was the first that made me give the full-out five-star rating, which I (obviously) save for a very select few books.

I almost filmed a vlog several times over the first couple days after I finished. But I thought if I gave it some time, I would be able to form more coherent, logical thoughts. Because let's just be honest: My review at that point, especially in vlog format, would have been nothing but spoiler-filled, incomprehensible, crazy flailings. Well, it's been some time. It's been more than some time, actually. And it's still difficult to formulate the words for this book.

I'll start with the obvious: Ms. Mafi's writing. The woman absolutely astounds me with her ability to craft words. The cadence, the unique symbolism, the emotion, the way her words flow together. I cannot wrap my brain around how much I love her writing. This was more evident than ever in Unravel Me. I am thoroughly convinced Tahereh Mafi could write a tome on the complexities of soil, and I would read it.

I loved the further development of the secondary characters. Some I decided I did not like (Castle). Some, however, were the complete opposite. For example, Kenji! My love for Kenji grew threefold after reading Unravel Me, and it was already pretty high. I just loved his sense of humor and how he used it, even though he can be serious. I find him a very interesting character, and I hope to continue to get to know him over the next books.

Warner. You knew it was coming. I loved seeing his character developed even further than it was in Destroy Me. I enjoyed every single scene with him in it, and I wanted to see him even more than we did. I became more intrigued by his not-fully-good, but not-fully-evil character. The chemistry between Warner and Juliette was incredible. And just in case you couldn't tell, for me, the SS Adam has officially sunk (or been "destroyed," if you will ;D ). Mafi got me to completely jump ship, and that doesn't happen with me! Admittedly, I am a lot less stubborn regarding the pick-one-and-stick-with-it approach to shipping than I used to be. I'm the queen of multishipping lately; rarely do my loyalties shift so drastically. But Mafi accomplished it. Although I do still like Adam.

There are a few more things I could discuss regarding this book. For instance, the world-building was developed a little further in this book, which I appreciated. But at the same time, I could possibly ramble on forever. It is also very difficult for me to discuss a lot of things without spoiling the book. So I will wrap it up.

To be honest, I was the teensiest bit concerned that maybe Unravel Me wouldn't live up to my sky-high expectations. I needn't have worried. I absolutely plan to read this book again. Probably soon. I've already read Shatter Me and Destroy Me twice. May as well make it even!

The Shatter Me series is hands-down my favorite currently-in-progress YA series. Just catching a glimpse of the Unravel Me spine on my bookcase is still enough to make me want to start physically flailing or take the book out and hug it to me. Which I did off and on for about two days after finishing this book. Shut up. You know you wanted to do it, too. I await #3 (and #2.5, as well!) with a breathlessness that may eventually warrant medical attention. I have no doubt it will be worth it.

It’s the kind of kiss that makes you realize oxygen is overrated.*

But time is beyond our finite comprehension. It’s endless, it exists outside of us; we cannot run out of it or lose track of it or find a way to hold on to it. Time goes on even when we do not.

I love it when he tells me that he likes the way I feel because it goes against everything I’ve heard my entire life and I wish I could put his words in my pocked just to touch them once in a while and remind myself that they exist.

I’m checking my pockets for spare words and sentences but I’m finding none, not an adverb, not a preposition or even a dangling participle because there doesn’t exist a single response to such an outlandish request.

*Replace "kiss" with "book" and this describes Unravel Me, basically.

|Review| Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 16:46:00 +0000

Title: Clockwork Angel
Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices #1
Published August 31st 2010 by Margaret K. McElderry Book
Genre: paranormal YA
Rating: A
Goodreads summary:

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What’s more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

I'm not a big paranormal reader but I did enjoy the first three books of the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare and I've had Clockwork Angel sitting on my shelf for a few months now waiting for Clockwork Princess release so I could devour the series in one go. And what's not to devour? Steampunk + historical setting + great heroine + two great boys + well written paranormal world = a must read book & series.

Tessa: she's strong and likeable but due to the 3rd person POV, I didn't feel 100% connected to her. There was a barrier between us but despite that, I liked her and rooted for her because she's quite the badass heroine.

Secondary characters: at first, Charlotte was so nice, she made me roll my eyes. However I really grew to love her when I realized she had other qualities besides being so kind and angelic. I also really, really loved her husband, Henry. I would not mind reading more about them! On the same note, I also loved Sophie and Thomas. I wanted more page time for all of the them. However, Jessamine is a horrible, sorry excuse of nephilim and she should drown in the Thames. But all in all, a great, well developed group of secondary characters. Magnus Bane is present in this book but it was very brief and I wouldn't even consider him a secondary character but more on the tertiary level. But It's clear he will have a bigger role in Clockwork Prince (book two in the series) and I'm looking forward to that.

Jem: there is nothing NOT to love about Jem. #TeamJem for the win, okay? He genuinely kind, funny and he put up with Will which say A LOT about him. We learn a lot about Jem and his family which just made me want to jump into the book and hug him.

Will: I surprised myself by not falling in love with Will since EVERYONE loves him but why would I love him? Will is rude to the point of cruelty at some parts of the book. It's obvious and it's even stated that Will has not has the easiest life however, both Jem and Tessa have also been through horrific stuff but that doesn't mean they were mean.

"Jem says you lie to make yourself look bad," she said. "And perhaps that is true, or perhaps he simply wishes to believe that about you. But there is no reason for excuse for cruelty like this."

That quote sums up exactly what I have to say about Will. Multiple times, we see that there is more to Will than meets the eye but that does not change the fact that he was a jackass. Do I hate Will? No, I can even say I like him but after everyone's praises about him I'm just shocked. I just find the whole "I'm a bad boy but not really I just have issues so I'm gonna protect people around me by being an asshole so they don't get close to me" routine pathetic pathetic pathetic. Grow a pair and man up, buddy boy. Don't think I despised Will, because I didn't. I know he's an extremely important character and hating him will ebb my enjoyment of the series so I'm trying my hardest to see the good in him. And there is some good.

Romance: Sure I adore adore adore Jem but Will + Tessa had better chemistry. Tessa could have Will, I can have Jem, and we can live happily ever after.

Action + plot: Great and even grotesque at parts. There was a twist that I did not see coming at all so that was awesome! (I *always* read spoilers so I'm never surprised.)

Setting: I BEYOND loved the London, 1878 setting and the time period and it really made the book that much better however I felt that the dialogue felt to modern at times. But eventually, I got over that.

Rating: [A] The Shadowhunter world is just so fleshed out so revisiting it again is just such a pleasure. Plus plain and simple, this book is extremely well-written and reading it was a real treat. If you haven't read this series, DO IT!

First: The demon exploded in a shower of ichor and guts.

Favorite: “Are you implying that shreds of my reputation remain intact?" Will demanded with mock horror. "Clearly I have been doing something wrong. Or not something wrong, as the case may be." He banged on the side of the carriage. "Thomas! We must away at once to the nearest brothel. I seek scandal and low companionship.”

Teaser: “There's plenty of sense in nonsense sometimes, if you wish to look for it.”

If you haven't read Clockwork Angel go buy it right now (it's a book worth buying!) and if you have read it, what do you think? I'm I being too harsh on Will?

(Review) Close Enough to Touch by Victoria Dahl

noreply@blogger.com (Sharon (A Book Barbie)) — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Title: Close Enough to Touch
Author: Victoria Dahl
Series: Jackson, #1
Published: August 28, 2012 (HQN Books)
Rating: Staying in Tonight
Format: Digital galley provided by publisher via NetGalley

Summary: For makeup artist Grace Barrett, Hollywood isn't the land of golden opportunity. It's the land of difficult divas, cheating boyfriends and unemployment. So when her great-aunt offers her a free place to stay in Jackson Hole, Grace thinks she'll spend a little time in the sticks to figure out her life, and then move somewhere exciting to live out her dreams. But it turns out that there are a few more thrills in this small town than Grace was expecting. Cole Rawlins is a rugged Wyoming cowboy born and bred. Yet he can't help but be drawn to the fascinating big-city girl who moves in across from him. He wants to get close enough to Grace to see past her tough facade, but if he does, she might see the real Cole. The one with a Hollywood history gone bad. As they discover a sizzling attraction, it becomes harder for him to keep his demons at bay—and those fires from long ago may burn them both.

They'll need more than scorching-hot passion to make this opposites-attract affair work. But if they can learn to trust one another enough to reveal their secrets, they just might have a chance at forever.

Victoria Dahl is one of those authors whom I always enjoy but never remember to list or look up when I'm at the library or in the bookstore. But she just writes such fun, sexy stories with her own flair. They're really good, and Close Enough to Touch was no exception! I'm also totally in love with the cover. The purple, the negative space, the plays with fonts.

One of my favorite things about Close Enough to Touch was the originality of the heroine, Grace. Far from the visual her name might inspire, Grace was a touch girl with purple hair, black boots, and a few things in her past that might cause sideways glances. Being a city girl, Grace wasn't sure what to make about a lot of the aspects of small town life. It was amusing to watch her adjust to the difference. She also had secrets she had to deal with.

Cole was a super sexy cowboy who also happened to be incredibly frustrated, due to the fact that he was injured. And as such, he could not work. He had bunches of down time, interspersed with brutal but helpful physical therapy appointments. Then Grace moved into the room next to his. It was dislike at first site, but of course, it didn't last. Soon enough, Grace and Cole were discovering more and more they had in common, despite their apparent differences.

I liked all the touches Dahl included. The small-town bar was great. Grace's eccentric aunt who only rented to men (Grace being the sole exception). How Grace got to experience real friendship outside of her only long-time best friend. The side romance that was incredibly cute.

Close Enough to Touch was definitely an enjoyable read. I'm also super excited for Too Hot to Handle, the next book in the series. Merry absolutely cracked me up, and I can't wait to read more about her. But back to Close Enough to Touch: If you love watching the sparks fly as dislike turns to something else a lot more fun and a lot more romantic, this one is for you!

This made it official: Grace Barrett’s life was over. Or, at the very least, it was so irrevocably screwed up that a quick death would be a blessing at this point.

Even cowboys can take a hint when you’re bashing them over the head with it.

She’d started the day off in her underwear in a hallway. That seemed like the kind of day that should end with a beer.

Once a guy ruffles your hair, your vagina has ceased to exist for him.

Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character* {22}

noreply@blogger.com (Racquel (A Book Barbie)) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 18:53:00 +0000

Note: We decided to limit ourselves to ONE hero per author, which was a challenge for some. *cough*Lisa Kleypas*cough*

Racquel's picks:
01. Hardy Cates from Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas: Hardy Cates will always and forever be my #1 hero. He just transcends all the other heroes. Moment of silence for Hardy, please. (My English teacher made us have a moment of silence every time we said Gatsby's name. It was especially hard when we had a WHOLE unit on the The Great Gatsby.)
02. Knight Sebring from Knight by Kristen Ashley: Knight is so intense and could be scary but most importantly, he's HAWT. The things he says *fans self* I read most of his dialogue twice. It was that great. Welcome to Racquel's list of best fictional men, Knight. It's an honor.
03. Russ from Lovestruck Summer by Melissa C. Walker: round of applause for the patient saint that is Russ. Most of the fictional men I love, I would probably kill in real life (not you Hardy, stay perfect). However, Russ is so sweet and genuinely kind, he would totes be a REAL LIFE swoony guy.
04. Gavriel Duval from Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers: read the book. Fall in love with the story, the romance and Duval. It's worth it.
05. Bram Griswold from Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel: yeah yeah he's a ZOMBIE but it's what's on inside that matters *wink*.

Sharon's picks:
(Yes, I totally cheated. I CAN'T DO THIS, OKAY. It was hard enough to pick just 5 each. Plus, I tend to think of them separately, anyway.)

ADULT
01. Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I cannot make a list of literary crushes and not include him. That would be like Fourth of July without any apple pie. Or Friday with no two pizzas. (Name that reference!)
02. Carter Maguire from Vision in White by Nora Roberts. YOU GUYS. I know I always say Sir Harry Valentine is my favorite Beta hero, but he might have to be demoted to favorite historical Beta hero. Because upon my recent re-read of Vision in White, I rediscovered my love of Carter Maguire. And seriously. He's an English teacher (MAJOR points, there) who is all kinds of awkward and adorable.
03. Sir Harry Valentine from What Happens in London by Julia Quinn. See above. I still harbor LOTS of love for Sir Harry, though. ♥
04. Ranger from The Stephanie Plum Series by Janet Evanovich. I have loved Ranger for the better part of a decade. Since the age of too-young-to-have-been-reading-these-books. The strong, smoldering, silent type. YES, PLEASE.
05. Hardy Cates from Sugar Daddy & Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas. Yes, Racquel put him on her list already, and normally, I would just stick an asterisk up there indicating that I agree. But in light of my recent re-reads, that just was not NEARLY enough to indicate how much I love him.

YA
01. Wes Baker from The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen. Um, I have been in love with Wes Baker for a very large portion of my life. I have no desire to stop now.
02. Tucker from The Unearthly Series by Cynthia Hand. COWBOY. Super cute. Sarcastic. Loyal. Yeah, love him.
03. Jase Garrett from My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick. I am a sucker for the Nice Guy in YA books. And Jase is Nice Guy to the max, while still having a wonderful personality and being great with his siblings.
04. Adrian Ivashkov from The Vampire Academy & Bloodlines Series by Richelle Mead. ADRIAN. I don't know what it is about him. Because logically, I should not love him as much as I do. He has a lot of habits I don't like at all. But he's still freaking wonderful.
05. Warner from The Shatter Me Series by Tahereh Mafi. Aaaand speaking of people I should not love as much as I do? Yeah. I'm crazy. I guess we'd make a good pair??

*And let's not kid ourselves here. We totally crush on them in our human form. And we're not ashamed.

The Book Barbies

(Review) The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

(Review) He's Gone by Deb Caletti

Top Ten Favorite Covers of Books We've Read {28}

|Review| Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

|Review| Golden by Jessi Kirby

Top Ten Books Dealing With Tough Subjects (27)

Bout of Books Challenge: Alternate Titles

Racquel's Bout of Books 7.0 Goals & Updates

Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun {26}

(Bout of Books 7.0) Goals & Updates

|Review| The Program by Suzanne Young + Giveaway

(Triple Review) Tessa Dare Novellas!

Be Good To Me: Graduation is Upon Us Edition

Top Ten Words/Phrases That Will Make Us Pick Up a Book {25}

Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon Wrap-Up

(Review) Any Duchess Will Do by Tessa Dare

|Review| Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Top Ten Books We Liked More/Less Than Expected {24}

Second Chance Saturday |3| A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare

Author Interview with Lindsey Leavitt

Top Ten Favorite Books We Read Before We Started Blogging {23}

(Review) Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

|Review| Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

(Review) Close Enough to Touch by Victoria Dahl

Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character* {22}