You can now find me at-

http://skywayavenuereads.blogspot.com/

I’ll start at the very beginning. This blog was first run by Bree. It was created by Bree. Blogger to wordpress migration, the posts, everything was pretty much Bree. I (Misa) only came in a few weeks before her decision to switch over to wordpress – she’d convinced me to try out book blogging as her co-blogger.

I don’t know how she told you guys when she left the blogosphere because of personal matters, or if she even told you guys about me coming in and eventually taking ore everything for her. But now you now.

Misa and Bree? We’re two totally different people and, for over a month now, I’ve been trying to run the blog for Bree. But here’s the thing: Bree was like superwoman. Seriously. She promised at least one post per day, read a bajillion book’s per year, and posted book reviews sometimes even two days after she received a book for review. And did a bunch of awesome events and things for the bool blogosphere.

I, honestly, can’t do that. So for a while I’ve been trying to juggle school life with The Magic Attic, and trying to keep all those promises Bree made when she ran the blog – things like daily posts, speedy reviews, etc. But now, I’ve come to a point in which I want to – need to – stop. I can’t keep up with all this stuff. I feel like the quality of my posts have gone down as I try to post daily, and hurry to finish a book and hurry to post it’s review. Frankly, my posts and reviews are sucking.

But I love the blogosphere. I don’t want to leave – the book blogging community’s really something amazing. I love being able to share my love of book’s with people who love them just as much as I do. I love meeting people who share common interests with me. I love the enthusiasm that everyone has. Really, it’s amazing.

But I can’t keep up with Bree. Here at The Magic Attic, most still think I’m Bree and expect things from me that Bree did. And I’ve tried keeping up with everything, but I can’t.

I used to love book blogging. And I still do. But attempting to do what I can’t do takes all the fun out of it. Not to mention I really don’t like the wordpress system and the way everything’s set up >.<

So I, too, have decided to leave The Magic Attic. Right now, I’m setting up another book blog – one that I’ll build from scratch. If you’ve been hanging around recently, like my posts, and want to come on over with me, I’ll post a link when I’m finished setting everything up.

This blog will really be mine – everything from the review policy to the posts itself will be purely me. I won’t be able to promise posts every single day, but I know I can post at least five times a week. Especially with my crazy bursts in which I write and schedule tons of reviews in a short timespan. I won’t have to struggle to keep up with expectations someone left for me – I’m setting my own expectations now.

It’ll really be me this time, guys.

And I feel like, with this change, book blogging will really be fun for me again.

I’ll have fun.

Stay tuned for the link to my book blog soon!

*bursts into an over-dramatized version of ‘This is Me’ by Demi Lovato*

Leave a comment below with your opinion on the book and/or the cover (if you’ve read it, let me know how much you loved it!) for a chance to win a few bookmarks, a sticker, and a postcard as well as a bookbag featuring the beautiful covers of Karice Bolton’s two trilogies! This giveaway is international, and will end June 20th, so hurry and comment for a chance to win this package of pretties!

When a visit to the Tower of London triggers an overwhelmingly real vision of a beheading that occurred centuries before, Cole Ryan fears she is losing her mind. A mysterious boy, Griffon Hall, comes to her aid, but the intensity of their immediate connection seems to open the floodgate of memories even wider.
As their feelings grow, Griffon reveals their common bond as members of the Akhet—an elite group of people who can remember past lives and use their collected wisdom for the good of the world. But not all Akhet are altruistic, and a rogue is after Cole to avenge their shared past. Now in extreme danger, Cole must piece together clues from many lifetimes. What she finds could ruin her chance at a future with Griffon, but risking his love may be the only way to save them both.

Transcendence. I wrote up my whole review then realized that I misspelled Transcendence every single time – how embarrassing is that?

Transcendence is a story of past lives and memories and revenge and stolen kisses… Okay, maybe not stolen kisses – most of the kisses are toe-curling, smile-inducing, and definitely replay-able and replay-worthy. And, while not very original, I found it to be a good, easy read.

The characters were likable. Griffon was the hot, mysterious male lead, as well as charming and pretty easy going. Cole had… I guess you could call it a very average character? She wasn’t overly or noticeably spunky, nor was she a very kick-ass fighter or, on the flip side, a very whiny or wimpy person. She was in-between all of them, which makes her easy to understand because, honestly, aren’t we all kind of like that?

The mystery was my favorite. I thought I had everything sorted out. I thought I knew who Veronique and Griffon was in her past life. I thought it was so freaking obvious – why didn’t the characters realize yet? And then the author comes out with the big reveal, and you’re kind of frustrated in a way because then you’re left thinking that the reveal seemed so obvious – why didn’t you notice? But you didn’t. The reveal on who they were – especially Veronique – was possible, but their characters so un-focused on and almost unseen in a way that you hadn’t thought to include them in the possibilities.

I didn’t really like how Cole was introduced to the Akhet, though. It was a very ‘hey, so you’re a special kind of person. I’m a special kind of person. Deal with it’ situation, and Cole freaked – understandable. Her reaction was understandable, but the way she was introduced to everything (the initial scene) was a bit out there – I found it weird for Griffon to choose that moment when he could’ve waved her up and come up with some believable explanation – I bet he could come up with one. That was my little nitpick.

And also, I wish we got to know more of Cole’s past lives. Not just the one that ended with an execution, and had to do with Alessandra – what of the other ones? What of her flashbacks on those? And I hoped to know more about her relationship with the King in the life that ended with an execution, too – wasn’t that one of the key reasons for her death? Why not mention more about it other than one sentence?

But overall, Transcendence was a good book – easy to follow, with a cute relationship (I loved Cole and Griffon together!) and an awesome mystery. It had a few not-so-good bits, and admittedly I found the ending to be a bit slow for my taste, but it does pick up. And the book does get better quickly.

Is Transcendence a book worth a look at? Sure!

But anyways, I was talking about vampires and an *ahem* certain group of sparkly ‘vegetarian’ dudes. And, honestly? I don’t think that even the Cullens are vegetarian. On the flip side (since carnivores are the closest things to being the opposite of a vegetarian), I don’t think any vampires are vegetarians, either.

Does S. Meyer not know the definition of ‘vegetarian’? No? Well, I’ll look it up for her [copied from that little window that comes up when you Google 'definition of vegetarian'] -

veg·e·tar·i·an/?veji?te(?)r??n/
Noun:
A person who does not eat meat, and sometimes other animal products, esp. for moral, religious, or health reasons.
Adjective:
Of or relating to the exclusion of meat or other animal products from the diet: “a vegetarian restaurant”.

So, since (if I remember correctly – I haven’t touched my copy of Twilight in years) the Cullens deem themselves ‘vegetarian vampires.’ So now you’ll have to explain how

A). All other vampires eat meat (they don’t – we’re talking about blood) while the Cullens don’t.
B). How they don’t eat meat or other animal products while the other vampires do.
C). They don’t eat meat and other animal products for moral, religious, or health reasons [*snicker*]

As a generalization (or, at least, a generalization of all the vampire books *I’ve* read), no vampires eat meat (or have to, at least) – they need to drink blood in order to survive.

And on not eating meat or animal products? Didn’t the Cullens go hunt mountain lions or something in one scene? And I remember reading about how the Cullens emphasized that they only drank blood from animals and not humans?
So let’s go back to that second definition:

Of or relating to the exclusion of meat or other animal products from the diet

Yeah? Everything sounds about right? So from this we can gather that-
1). Vampires are not carnivores [Carnivores eat meat; Vampires drink blood]
2). The Cullens are not vegetarians [Vampires don't *generally* eat meat to begin with - it's part of their nature.]
3). Something went awry with that dream of Stephanie Meyer’s.

Thoughts?

My Thoughts:
A huge improvement from book two, but… It looks just like one of the covers Anya Bast’s Elemental Witches or Dark Magick series.

My Thoughts:
:O Well, Shatter Me‘s first cover had zero resemblance to the actual story whatsoever. This cover’s definitely a whole lot better. And look at the trees/eyelashes! It’s blue! And pretty in a weird-ish, strange way.
I’m in love.

Could you tell us a little about yourself?

Oh, I’m so bad at these questions! I feel like I’m terribly boring and have no clue what to say.
But I’ll do my best; my name is Brenna and I’m the blogger behind Esther’s Ever After (I know, I know- the name thing is confusing since I’m not named Esther). I’m 21 years old, and I just finished my BA in political science and french language & translation. I’m starting law school in the fall.
And here’s a fun fact for you: I’m a Christmas baby! Born right on Christmas day and I love everything to do with Christmas.

How long have you been book blogging for?

My one year blogaversary is this July! (Started book blogging in July 2011)

How did you come up with the title of your book blog? Was it your first choice?

Well, my book blog wasn’t originally a book blog. It was actually just a regular old blog until I just kind of fell into book blogging. So I kept the name. Esther’s Ever After was something I just thought up – the story of Queen Esther is one of my favourites, and I figured it was kind of like an earlier Cinderella story. And I LOVE fairytales and thought it sounded nice. When I started book blogging I just ran with it & kept the name and theme.

How did you discover and start book blogging?

I have no clue how, but I found Goodreads one day and started reviewing on there. And then I was discovering more books, so I was reading more often and branching out a bit more than usual. I think I discovered the book blog community after I won a couple Goodreads First Reads giveaways, and I was looking for more info/reviews on certain books.

What would you say is the best thing about book blogging?

Connecting with people. I never would have imagined this when I started blogging, but I have met so many wonderful people because of my blog! It’s great because you instantly have something in common: a passion and love for books! Whether it’s connecting with other readers, other bloggers, authors, or even publishers it’s always great to meet fellow book lovers.

And of course, the ultimate question: what’s your favorite book? If you’re like me and are unable to name just one, naming a few titles is perfectly fine =D

I’m terrible at this question too.
Okay, I REALLY love The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Katniss (as a character) resonates so strongly with me and I think I just seem to identify with her more than other characters. And all the political ideas and themes in it really appeal to the inner poli sci nerd in me as well
But I grew up on Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, and I still have a big heart for fairytales.
Yet fantasy is my first love; I love just about any fantasy book I read. I’m a huge fan of Tamora Pierce’s Tortall books!
Oh, and I adore Sarah Dessen and her books.

Do you have any hobbies outside of book blogging?

Hmm. I guess I work out- does that count? I started seriously weight lifting about 6 months ago and I like going to fitness classes. It’s gotten to a point for me where I actually ENJOY doing it (most days haha!)

Do you have a specific place where you read? If so, where?

I’ll read just about anywhere. But usually it’s my bed or the bathtub! (I amazingly have yet to drop a book in the tub yet… but I know I’m playing with fire)

What’s a type of book you wish there was more of?

More high fantasy YA! I think we’re seeing a bit more of this now, but it still seems fairly rare.

What was one book you read that others seemed to love, but you disliked?

Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma – interestingly enough, it wasn’t even the incest that bothered me the most. I know that Tabitha really wanted to make us question norms and taboos, and I think that’s great but I didn’t buy into it as a love story, even had they not been brother and sister. I didn’t find it sweet or romantic, but more dysfunctional (understandably so), and even abuse and dangerous in a lot of ways.

What was one book you read that others seemed to dislike, but you loved?

Hmm. I think most of the books I love, most others seem to love as well. But I know a lot of people didn’t really like Crossed (Matched #2) by Ally Condie but I thought it was brilliant. MUCH better than Matched, in my opinion.

And, lastly, if you could have lunch with any five characters, who would it be and why?

Peeta (The Hunger Games), mostly because I think he’s a sweetheart, and I know he’d bring some really yummy cakes & bread. I love bread.
Anna & St. Clair (Anna & the French Kiss) (who should really count as one) because they’re HILARIOUS, especially together! And if Anna & St. Clair count as one, then they can bring Sean (Anna’s little brother) with them too because he’s soo adorable and he loves Star Wars so we’d get along really well.
Alex (Delirium) just because I have the BIGGEST book crush on him.
And I’m going to say Fire (Fire) because the whole time I was reading that book I was so curious about what she looked like and kept trying to imagine someone THAT beautiful. Plus I think she’s a great character!

Tempest Maguire is happy with her decision to embrace her mermaid nature and live among her mother’s clan within the ocean’s depths. Even though training to one day ascend the throne for the aging mermaid queen is rigorous, she finds refuge in the arms of Kona, the selkie who first opened her up to her mermaid side. But when word comes that one of her brothers has been gravely injured on land, Tempest immediately rushes to his side—which also brings her back to her old flame, Mark. And in her absence, a deadly battle begins raging at the hands of Tempest’s old nemesis, the sea witch Tiamat. As the dangerous war erupts, Tempest’s two loves—Kona and Mark, sea and land—will collide for the first time, both to protect her and to force her to choose.

Tempest Unleashed… well, it has a drop-dead beautiful cover. Some people pointed this out on Goodreads too, but doesn’t it kind of remind you of The Little Mermaid? You know the movie posters when she’s on the rock with water spraying out all around her? Yeah. The cover looks like older, blonde Ariel. Haha.

Actually, Tempest Unleashed wasn’t as bad as I though it was. It wasn’t one of my favorite book’s, but it wasn’t a bad read, either. My main complaint would be that it was too bland and too easy on the characters. A little more than the first half of the book was just focused on the daily life of a mermaid. Nothing really happened. It was all just ‘Tempest did this’ and then ‘Tempest did that differently’ and ‘Tempest wished this’ and then the common ‘Tempest misses and loves Mark. Tempes loves Kona.’ Wash, rinse, repeat.

Then, just when you think things are getting interesting, things also get really easy. Need a way to defeat Timat? No problem. It might not work, but here’s what her mom did – it might give you an idea. Important secondary character ‘died’? No problem – she’ll come back to life. Main character in life-endangering trouble? No problem – the guy she’s saving will break free to become her knight in shining armor. Main character loves this guy more? No problem – the other guy was going to break up with her because ‘he didn feel as if he had the time’ anyways.

And there really is no dilemma with the ‘love triangle’, either. One clearly seems more friend-like than the other. And in the end? It’s such an easy ending – anyone could see that coming.

In Tempest Unleashed, there wasn’t a lot of effective buildup or suspense. Things just happened and ended one by one, and you knew how it was going to end because everything ended with smiles and puppies and rainbows. Everything had a perfect, seamless ending that was both the easy way out and super predictable. It was hard to be really engaged when you could tell what was going to happen.

So overall, I found Tempest Unleashed to be suspense-less and predictable. Despite what my review might’ve lead you to believe, I didn’t actually dislike the book. It was an okay book – not too heavy on any aspect, and very plain.

Tempest Unleashed would be great for any fans of the previous book, though. I have a feeling most fans are going to like what happens and how it all ends. Brace yourself for the throngs of estatic fangirls – they’ll be charging your way soon XP

They kind of really look pretty much the same to me, just that there’s this huge white wing in Dark Angel. BUT THEY LOOK REALLY SIMILAR. And pretty. Preeetty *O* Can I have that dress? LOL. I really like them both, though I’m not sure about how much The Goddess Test cover actually represents the book… O.O But anyhow-

What about you? What do you think? Let me know! Also, if you have any look-alike covers you’d like to have featured, please contact me!

My Thoughts:
The guy’s body is facing a little too far to the right for his hips and feet to be placed the way they were without his skin twisting a little. And on that cover, his skin’s perfect. And the way the dress flutters around that girl’s legs should mean that we see a little bit of her feet. But we don’t.

But even more than that, dang, doesn’t the floor look so artificial and plastic? >.>

A-wkward.
[Up to here is the same thing I said in my comment on Meg @ The Book Glaaxy's post]

But, woah, Finale??? Y’know, ’cause that’s such an original title. I’ll just take Nora’s hair and dress. Y’all can take the book, and Plastic Patch. And, daaaaaang. Wasn’t it supposed to be the Hush, Hush *TRILOGY*? Better take back her diploma – seems like Fitzpatrick doesn’t know how many books there are in a trilogy.