Shabby Readings

Waiting On Wednesday #5

2012-03-07T03:24:00.002-08:00

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for

Seraphina

by Rachel Hartman

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life.

In her exquisitely written fantasy debut, Rachel Hartman creates a rich, complex, and utterly original world. Seraphina's tortuous journey to self-acceptance is one readers will remember long after they've turned the final page.

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

2012-03-06T05:59:00.000-08:00

Date read : March, 4, 2012

Challenge :2012 YA/MG Fantasy Challenge ,Debut Author Challenge

Rating : 3/5
Add to Goodreads

New soul Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why. No soul Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame? Heart Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies--human and creature alike--let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all? Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

My Thoughts

Ever looked at a book, and thought, I'm gonna fall in love with this one!
That's what I thought would happen with Incarnate, I just loved the cover (how vain of me, but meh! you know you did it too!), but sadly, I did not fall head over heels for Incarnate.

Now hold on, I'm not saying that I did not like it, I liked it a big deal. I loved Ana, she was strong and weak, silly and serious, cautious and impulsive, oblivious and wise, all at the same time. She isn't lying helpless somewhere waiting to be saved, she is trying to find out where she came from, and why. She felts guilty for something she had no control over. And when every time she finds out some new fact about Sam, she doesn't just get that glossy look in her eyes, and assure him everything is A OK! No, she tries to figure out how can she hand that new truth about him, she use her brain, not her hormones! How many YA heroines can you say has done this? Not that many, I know!

The premises of Incarnate, while not exactly unique, it still has it's appeal. I really liked Jodi Meadows take on Incarnation, I haven't read lots of books on that concept, but some of the ones I did, handled it horribly. Jodi's writing had me griped so much that I stayed late to try and finish the book, I did not win against sleep. But I did manage to finish it on my way to work, I had to know, I just had gotten to the fun part where....

Aaaaah I'm not gonna tell, go read for yourself!

So if so far, I had nothing but good things to say about the book, why didn't I fall in love with it?? Mostly because of Sam No it's not like that. He's a cool guy I swear. And it's not his fault at all. I guess it was mine. It's just, every time I read about Sam, every time he talked, moved or drunk coffee, I kept imagining this OLD guy. I blame Jodi for this, she did an good job making sound like the all the years he lived, that I couldn't just imagine him young. And every time he was with Ana, I just imagined an old guy with a redhead. Something like this

I know I know! It's not fair! But I couldn't see Sam as a 18 years old.

That's the only reason keeping me from give this book anything but 3 stars! But if you can get past this, I'm sure you will love this book like I never could.

Three Butterflies

(3/5)

Starters by Lissa Price

2012-03-05T02:55:00.001-08:00

Date read : March, 2 , 2012

Challenge : Debut Author Challenge

Rating : 3/5
Add to Goodreads

Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man. He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders—seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in Callie's head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter, living in her mansion, driving her cars, and going out with a senator's grandson. It feels almost like a fairy tale, until Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party—and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than Callie could ever have imagined. . . .

My Review

My Review An advance review copy was provided by the publishers via NetGalley.

So I'm gonna try to review this book without giving away any spoilers. It took me a while to read this book, and it wasn't because I didn't enjoy it, but since I was provided with an eARC, and it took me a while to figure out how to download it to my eReader.

Starters had a slow start, I know it's the first in a series, but still, I found myself bored at times, and the last 100 pages were packed with action, I can't say I expected the turn of events at the end but it felt rushed, it throw off the balance, and left me with an uneasy feeling I couldn't place. And this is the only reason that's keeping me from giving the book 4 stars.

Over all, Starts is fun read, you will try to predict what happens next, but most of the times, you will get it wrong. I'll be reading the next book for sure.

The Fine Art of Truth or Dare by Melissa Jensen

2012-03-05T02:35:00.001-08:00

Ella is nearly invisible at the Willing School, and that’s just fine by her. She’s got her friends—the fabulous Frankie and their sweet cohort Sadie. She’s got her art—and her idol, the unappreciated 19th-century painter Edward Willing. Still, it’s hard being a nobody and having a crush on the biggest somebody in the school: Alex Bainbridge. Especially when he is your French tutor, and lessons have started becoming, well, certainly more interesting than French ever has been before. But can the invisible girl actually end up with a happily ever after with the golden boy, when no one even knows they’re dating? And is Ella going to dare to be that girl?

Date read : March, 1 , 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

Rating : 2/5
Add to Goodreads

My Thoughts

So, I've been waiting to read this book, well, since I saw it floating around blogs and GR, it sounded like it might be a good one, they did mention Anna and the French Kiss meets something else I haven't read, and blessed him/her who wrote the synopsis, he/she has no clue whatsoever how to compare books, because AatFK rocked, and TFAoToD SUCKED!

Truth : I felt cheated, I was expecting a lot of fun truths and dares..

Hey! Don't judge me! I loved playing truth or dare!!

Why I think this books sucked:

1. Ella.
Yes, I think the number one reason I hated this book was because of her, I think if you take Ella of the book, you'd have a winner. She's someone who -in a million trillion years- I wouldn't be caught dead with, she's boring, boring... and yes BORING! And she talks to dead people. No no, not ghosts, not spirits, not even zombies, she talks to this dead artist, like, TALKS to him, in my standards, if you're not in paranormal /fantasy novel, it's never a good sign if you talk to dead people.

2. The flat eventless encounters with Ella and Alex.
That says it all. There was nothing that drew me to like the "romance". The shared a lemon soda and watched Jurassic Park in french **** is that the part which is suppose to be similar to AntFK??*** Bo ho! I had more romance with a guy I went out once who talked about his mother 90% of the time, seriously! YA authors, learn to romance PLEASE!

3. The writing.
I found myself skipping pages at the second half of the book, not that the first half was better, but I was hopeful it would get better, at some point, I was hoping someone would kill someone so I won't have to, that surely had to spice things up!

4. Ella.
Yes I know I mentioned her, but I hated her so much that I had to list her again.

5. Alex.
I hated the major characters of the book, isn't that sad! The main reason I hated Alex was, that after a few weeks of "hiding" Ella from the school and his friends, she shows him her scar, ** and this is the only time I felt anything but hate for Ella** his response was and I quote

“I don’t even know what okay would mean,” he said. “‘Okay.’ We’ve never been okay. We’ve been kinda scrambling for it. I mean . . . crap . . . Thank you. For showing me. I know it cost you something. But Jesus, Ella, I really don’t want to feel like I have to constantly be reassuring you of things you should know for yourself. It’s exhausting and takes all the . . . I don’t know . . . satisfaction . . . out of saying what I feel.”

Oh yeah, he's prince charming alright. Yes I get that they're only 17 and shit, but this is a girl who hid her scar from the world, it took herself confidence, made her shy, and she found it in herself to finally show that scar to some, he goes like "uh! um, I can't keep reassuring you it doesn't bother me, I've been doing it for three weeks for god sake!" Yeah, Alex, you're "the man"!

There were some things that saved this book from getting a 1 star, or going to my less-than-one-star shelf, Frankie is one of them, I wanted to read more about him. Ella's family is another, I guess each deserved a star for being in the book, I felt sorry for them.

Two stars in my book, means I get to use this book for future sarcastic remark, and that's what I'm gonna do!

Two Leafs

(2/5)

Waiting On Wednesday #4

2012-01-31T23:56:00.000-08:00

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for

Insurgent

by Veronica Roth

It's more like dying to read than waiting ;)

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so. Goodreads

But again, who isn't!

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

2012-01-31T03:10:00.000-08:00

Date read : Jan, 30, 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight, she's going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. He's out there somewhere—spraying color, spraying birds and blue sky on the night—and Lucy knows a guy who paints like Shadow is someone she could fall for. Really fall for. Instead, Lucy's stuck at a party with Ed, the guy she's managed to avoid since the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow, they're suddenly on an all-night search around the city. And what Lucy can't see is the one thing that's right before her eyes.Goodreads

“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.”
― Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island

What I thought

I think I'm in luck this year, so far, I read these beautiful written books, with hidden meanings, and wonderful words, that grip your heart and won't let go, this one, has claimed a place in my heart, and won't let go.

I had this book in my Goodreads Recommendations for a while, and I wasn't sure I wanted to read it, it didn't hold my attention, but then I found it on my eReader while heading home, and decided to give it a try, I was captivated from the first few pages,

Where’s the fire, Lucy Dervish?’
In me. Under my skin.

Paints guys with grass growing from their hearts and girls with buzzing lawn mowers.
How can you not be in trance after reading something like that?

I can't say that I had a lot of experience with graffiti, we don't have much around where I live, but I always get these forward emails from a friend who is obsessed with them, I always thought they were cool, but now, I'm about to be obsessed myself, art in any kind or form is something I admire and respect, I don't have to like it or understand it to respect it. Thank you Cath Crowly, for giving me a new art to appreciate.

Graffiti Moon is about a girl and a boy, who have a wild night with there friends, find themselves, lose themselves, and come out with a bit more understanding of the world. It's about finding hope, when all things seem to be lost, it's about accepting who you love 100% even if they are 85% "weird". It's about friendship and how far would a person go for that best friend who stood by when all was falling apart. There is nothing new with the concept of Graffiti Moon, but at the same time, you have this feeling, that you never read anything like this, and Yes, I assure you, you haven't.

Cath Crowly is one smooth author! She used this book like a wall and did her own graffiti with magic world filled with pinks, blues, and a hundred shades of red. I loved how she painted Lucy and Ed, they were magical creatures from a real world ( and I don't mean this in a paranormal way ), I love their friends as well., relationships in this are unique and warm, conversations flow in a manner that you wish you were there with them.

I loved this book, everything about it, it was a good read I wished I hadn't put off for so long.

My favorite quote

“I guess love's kind of like a marshmallow in a microwave on high. After it explodes it's still a marshmallow. but, you know, now it's a complicated marshmallow.”

4/5

Four Flower

Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

2012-01-27T10:34:00.000-08:00

Date read : Jan, 24, 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though - she leads them as the captain and quarterback on her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys, and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university. But now there's a new guy in town who threatens her starring position on the team... and has her suddenly wishing to be seen as more than just a teammate. (Goodreads)

What I thought

As I started reading this book, I was hoping it will not be a disappointment from all the good reviews I read about it, I liked Jordan right away, she had these great friends, she had a good relationship with her family, even though she didn't have her father's full support, it was still a nice family, I really liked that, most YA novels rule out the parents, to create more drama, but here you find a great brother, a supporting mother, a father who will not stop Jordan from doing what she loves, even though he does not like it.

Jordan is funny, she is creative in her own way, when she starts writing in her journal, she tries to find her own voice, and it's really fun to read her poems.

As I progressed in the story, I was starting to get more scared, from what? Well Jordan met Ty, I thought she will have this big make over, and be all girly-girly, thank god that did not happen, and I was scared that she will be as closed mind as most people are, but she really thinks about things, and admits when she is wrong, I hardly see that in YA novels.

I liked all the characters in this books, Jordan's teammates were great, they defend her and protect her, and most importantly, they respect her as a leader, even when she started having feelings for guys. My favorite was Henry though, he is as complicated as Jordan is, he too, made some mistakes, but he owned up to them, he grew as Jordan did, he's funny as hell, and who doesn't love green eyes!!

This book is a light fun read, I couldn't put it down. Some might say there are some weird things happening in this book, like Henry's sleepovers, but for me, I like weird things ;) To these people I always say: If things are not happening the way you are used to, doesn't necessarily mean they are wrong, you people *shockingly* are not the center of the world! Yes, what a surprise! I for one, really enjoyed this book, and I'll be reading the next one for sure. I'm starting to like sports related books, maybe if I read some more I will start watching real sports.... Naaah never gonna happen!

4/5

Four Ribbons

In Loving Memory

2012-01-25T05:59:00.000-08:00

For Mum...

A year of firsts has pass, I'm missing you everyday...

الله يرحمك

Waiting on Wednesday #3

2012-01-24T22:56:00.000-08:00

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for

Slide

by Jill Hathaway

Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth—her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting off lately, more distant, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

Goodreads

What are you waiting for?

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

2012-01-23T03:02:00.000-08:00

Date read : Jan, 19 , 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. She's stuck at JFK, late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's in seat 18B. Hadley's in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it. (Goodreads)

What I thought!

If you want to read The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, you should not expect some over the roof story that will will leave you guessing what will happen next, and afterward you would be thinking, "DAMN there is noway that would happen!" No this isn't of kind story.
This story, is cute, hopeful, and heartwarming, after you read this story, you will be thinking, "I'm glad that this stuff happens", the story itself is nothing out of the ordinary, but I found myself loving it anyways. It's not just the event of the story that makes you love it, it's the characters, and I loved both characters, Hadley had to deal with her father's wedding, and Oliver was flying home, for a reason he didn't tell Hadley, They connect, they talk, they start to like each other, I won't spoil what happens but I promise you will like the end :)
I loved the writing style, I always believe, that it's not the story you tell, it's how you tell it. And Jennifer E. Smith has got herself a fan :)

Here are some quotes that I loved from the book.

In the end, it’s not the changes that will break your heart; it’s that tug of familiarity.

“I like how you’re neither here nor there. And how there’s nowhere else you’re meant to be while waiting. You’re just sort of… suspended.”

There’s always a gap between the burn and the sting of it, the pain and the realization.

“Oh, honey,” Mom jokes. “You’re more like a whole suitcase. And you’re not lost.”
Hadley’s voice is very small. “What if I am?”
“Then it’s just a matter of time before you get found.“

It was his fault, all of it, and yet her hatred for him was the worst kind of love, a tortured longing, a misguided wish that made her heart hammer in her chest.

After all, it’s one thing to run away when someone’s chasing you.
It’s entirely another to be running all alone.

He’s still her dad. The rest is just geography.

4/5

Four Doodled Stars

Waiting On Wednesday

2012-01-18T00:02:00.000-08:00

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for

Spell Bound

by Rachel Hawkins

I loved the first two books, if you haven't read them yet! Grab them so you can join the fun when this one comes out.

Hailed as “impossible to put down,” the Hex Hall series has both critics and teens cheering. With a winning combination of romance, action, magic and humor, this third volume will leave readers enchanted.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

Goodreads

Cinder By Marissa Meyer

2012-01-16T23:56:00.000-08:00

Date read : Jan, 16, 2012
Challenge : 2012 YA/MG Fantasy Challenge , 2012 Debut Authors

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

(Goodreads)

My Shabby Review

Wow, a cyborg Cinderella, who would've thought of that! Well, Marissa Meyer did. Who knew!

I liked Cider a lot, she was on the edge of being funny in a sarcastic way, although we don't see much of her humor. She wants to be more than society allows her to be, a Human. the price the cyborgs pay for staying alive is that they become 2nd class citizens, people look down on them, and they are treated like slaves, they cannot have their freedom, Cinder is one of them, she does not have any recollection about how she became that way, or why, she does not remember her live before she became a cyborg. All she knows is that her adopted father found her in Europe and took her into his care, and soon after died of a plague that is haunting Earth. Leaving her to a Stepmother that hates her, and two stepsisters, one she loves, and one she doesn't. Cinder earns money for the family by being the best mechanic the city knows, but she cannot use that money to buy her self new parts for herself unless she steals some away. She meets prince Kai when he needs an android to be fixed.

I don't want to give any Spoilers.

Cinder is a complicated personality, she keeps to herself, she sometimes agrees with society's look on cyborgs, but most of the time, she fights, she wants to survive, she does what she needs to do to be able to free from her stepmother, she sometime wishes she could cry, and sometimes is glad she can't. Cinder is confused, she knows she has human feelings, but tries to deny them. She struggle with what she is until the end of the book, so I didn't see much growth to her character, maybe in the next book, she'll begin to understand more about herself.

Kai, oh Kai!! He flirts, he grins, he jokes, he is the crown price of new Beijing, and he likes Cinder, he doesn't quite hide that fact, but he does not know about Cinder's "special parts". I liked Kai a lot! He is not your normal mysterious badboy hero in YA books, he knows his responsibility toward his people, and willing to do what's needed to be done whatever it is. I really liked Kai, he was a price charming indeed ;)

The book as a whole was fun, but I found myself guessing what would happen next, and most of the time I guessed right, but there were some twists that I didn't expect. I didn't really get into the story at first, the world building was a tad boring at first, and at the same time, I found it never explained some major things, like ( how did people get to live on the moon?) or ( how is it that Cinder has wires connected to her brain and yet, she has emotions like humans?). Meyer kept the basic elements of Cinderella's story, while creating a new whole story, but this book is missing some information I wanted to fully understand Meyer's world, I hope there will be more answers in the next book.

I can't say I like her writing style. I found it a bit ordinary, nothing special. but it was focused and smooth, and not once I found myself wondering :( what the hell is she trying to say? ).

Over all, I liked this book, I'll be reading the next one as well.

3/5

Three Colorful Flowers

Cover Lover

2012-01-16T02:26:00.001-08:00

I love books! And vain it may be, but I love pretty covers as well, I wouldn't judge a book by it cover, but I can at least appreciate it ;)

I loved this edition's cover for Ana Karenina! Must have it

I loved this cover when I saw it, though the book didn't sound that hot.

Click on the image for a Goodread link.

Waiting on Wednesday

2012-01-11T00:51:00.000-08:00

I'm gonna jump in and do memes! They look like fun!!! :D First one I try!

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I am waiting for :

Endlessly by Kiersten White

(goodreads)

The final chapter of Evie's adventures. Old friends, new ones, all wrapped up in impossible decisions. And some ball gowns. Because what's a life of normal and paranormal drama without a ball gown or two?

Isn't the cover just lovely!!

DYSTOPIAN DOMINATION PART 2 And Cold Fury by T.M Goeglein

2012-01-10T02:19:00.000-08:00

So... Are you a fan of dystopia genre like I am? Well great, amaterasureads have a great event planed for the year. Go check it out there! Great giveaways and interviews!! GO GO Already!!

And check Cold Fury by T.M Goeglein

Sara Jane Rispoli is just a normal sixteen-year-old girl coping with school and a developing crush— until her parents and younger brother are kidnapped, and she discovers her family has been a key figure of Chicago’s Outfit (aka the mob) for decades. Her father, grandfather and great grandfather all used their special ability, cold fury, to settle disputes between the two mob factions—the muscle and the money. And unless Sara wants the mob to think her now missing family has turned state’s evidence, she will have to fill her father’s shoes as the mob’s peacemaker, using her own cold fury.

Sounds cool right!!
Check out Sara Jane here!

rafflecopter Giveaway!

2012-01-10T02:08:00.000-08:00

Check it out!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Not That Kind Of Girl by Siobhan Vivian

2012-01-06T05:57:00.000-08:00

Published September 1st 2010 by Push

Natalie Sterling wants to be in control. She wants her friends to be loyal. She wants her classmates to elect her student council president. She wants to find the right guy, not the usual jerk her school has to offer. She wants a good reputation, because she believes that will lead to good things.

But life is messy, and it's very hard to be in control of it. Not when there are freshman girls running around in a pack, trying to get senior guys to sleep with them. Not when your friends have secrets they're no longer comfortable sharing. Not when the boy you once dismissed ends up being the boy you want to sleep with yourself - but only in secret, with nobody ever finding out.

Slut or saint? Winner or loser? Natalie is getting tired of these forced choices - and is now going to find a way to live life in the sometimes messy, sometimes wonderful in-between. (Goodreads)

My Shabby Thoughts

I read about this book in some book blogs, plus it was recommended via Goodreads, I started reading YA Contemporary, YA chick Lit, YA Realistic Fiction, (whatever you wish to call it), a few months ago, I think the first novel I read was Anna and the French Kiss , which I loved, I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I enjoyed YA paranormal, but Anna and the French Kiss got me hocked, I read some more after that, and most of them I really enjoyed, so I started reading Not That Kind of Girl, for I thought it would be a fast easy read, but to my disappointment, I did not like it, at all.

Natalie, that is a person I can relate to, smart, knows what she wants, and focused, wants the best for her friends, and thinks boys are ecky, ( not that I think that now ;) ) I was this kind through out my high school, and it did help that I went to all girls high school. But for some reason, I hated her, she had some depth, but I couldn't bring myself to like her. We had no chemistry, AT ALL, she was a bit judgmental, and she was selfish, she wanted her friend to suffer so she can stay her friend, she wants people to act according to what she believes is right, I think this was the author's point, how she changed her ways and discovered that her judgments cost her dearly, but it came too late, after I hated Natalie. I like her friends far more than I liked her.

The pace of this book, well it was a tad boring, I forced myself to finish it, since it's not as bad as the other books I didn't finish. For me the book was boring, and it seemed like it was 800 pages.

Maybe it's just me, but some parts didn't make sense, how she suddenly started to sneak out after her parents fell asleep. How her parents were absent from her daily life. How she won the elections while she hardly had friends. How she could suddenly not care about her SATs. It all felt outta character, and not in away explained very well, she has a fight with her best friend, and suddenly she is transformed to a new person? Conner and Spencer showed more character than Natalie ever did, these two, I liked.

I didn't hate this book, but I didn't like it either.

2/5

Two Paper Hearts.

Sarah

Shatter Me By Tahereh Mafi

2012-01-04T23:58:00.000-08:00

Published November 15th 2011 by Harper/HarperCollins

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

(Goodreads)

My Shabby Thoughts

Well, well, well. What do we have here, I didn't expect to like this book, I had this feeling that I will groan everytime I hear an x-men reference, but for my utter surprise, that didn't happen till the end of the book.

Let's talk about Juliette, I still don't know if I like her or not, she sounded INSANE at the beginning, but who wouldn't be after being locked up for exactly 264 days. I have to admit something though, I like Juliette's crazy incoherent thoughts at the start of the book, all that counting and all. But It's toward the ending that I find that I somehow started to dislike her a bit, just about when she started thinking about Warner and admiring how good looking he is, and when I read this

Soldiers are already pouring into what used to be my room, shouting and confused, probably shocked to find Warner in such a feeble position. It was really too easy to overpower him. It worries me.

It makes me think we did something wrong.

What exactly was wrong with running away? Why is she worrying about him?

Saying that, I liked how she was sure she was a monster, but even though, she didn't try to act like one. She still cared about human life, after all she's been through, her life, her parents, the asylum, she still held to her humanity, tried to see the good in the bleak world they live in.

Now to Adam, I'm sure I like him (ohhh yes!) I can't seem to resist the blue eyes in any book! Adam was a mystery, till the last minute, I kept waiting for the punch line where he turns evil and wants to take over the world, but that didn't happen, it troubled me to see the soldier Adam, it seemed that how he acted when he was a soldier was a preview to his other side, cold, contained , calculated, I didn't care for that Adam, he scared me a bit to be honest, but the off screen Adam, was gentle, sweet and caring, that Adam I liked.

Adam knows how to survive, he knows he has to do all it takes to get who he loves safe, I just hope that this will be something he can use to help the Omega Point.

Now the book as a whole, I loved it, It had the nice pace. Being told from Juliette's PoV, you start out being confused as she is, and as the story moves along, things start to unveil and you start to understand the world they live in, and why things happen the way they did. Though some questions are not answered, we still have two more books to know the things I wanna know, I almost cried from the cliffhanger at the end, (OH Tahereh, how you shatter my heart ;) ) I can't wait till I read the squeal.

One thing more thing I love about the book was the lyrical writing and the beautiful wordings, I sometimes stopped to actually think about some sentences, I bookmarked almost every page, some of my favorite quotes, ( I have so many to count to be perfectly honest!) No page number sorry, I read it as an eBook.

-- I know the sky falls down every day.

The sun drops into the ocean and splashes browns and reds and yellows and oranges into the world outside my window. A million leaves from a hundred different branches dip in the wind, fluttering with the false promise of flight. The gust catches their withered wings only to force them downward, forgotten, left to be trampled by the soldiers stationed just below.

-- Raindrops are my only reminder that clouds have a heartbeat. That I have one, too.

-- He shifts and my eyes shatter into thousands of pieces that ricochet around the room, capturing a million snapshots, a million moments in time. Flickering images faded with age, frozen thoughts hovering precariously in dead space, a whirlwind of memories that slice through my soul.

--Truth is a jealous, vicious mistress that never ever sleeps, is what I don’t tell him. I’ll never be okay.

--He leans back against the couch. Runs a free hand over his face. Seasons change. Stars explode. Someone is walking on the moon.

--“Life is a bleak place,” he whispers. “Sometimes you have to learn how to shoot first.”

--He pulls me close, too close. I’m frozen in five hundred layers of fear. Stunned in grief, in disbelief.

--“Juliette.” His voice hugs the letters in my name so softly I die 5 times in that second.

Well, I have more, much much more, but for now I will share these.

This kindda writing is my cup of tea, I don't usually find this lyrical writing in English based books, in Arabic books, it's more common. It's never the same when translated, so I always found it difficult to explain to my non Arabian friends why books differ from on language to another, or maybe I'm just bad at translation. I really enjoyed this book for it's writing, a bit more than I enjoyed it for the story. Sometimes how you tell a story, makes all the difference in the world.

5/5

Five Flowers

Sarah

Kaboooom!

2012-01-03T01:14:00.000-08:00

Hello world,

Well not so much as world, as much as myself and the poor bastard who typed the URL wrong :)
I never tried blogging, I have no idea why, I always enjoy reading blogs, fashion blog, cooking blogs (YUM), books blogs, whatever I StumbleUpon and add to my GoogleReader's feed. I guess most of the time, I have nothing to say, I tend to listen more to people than talk, but I'm in noway a quite person, I'm loud, and once I'm in my confront zone, with friends or family, I talk and won't shut up! I have a loud laugh as well, so it's a bless I'm not laughing all the time ;)

Recently, I began reading some of my once-in-a-year diary entries, and for my surprise, I thought it was fun, I always thought I had a way with words, well not like I'm an undercover poet, or un discovered novelist, (so don't get your hopes up, seriously!) but my sister and my friends always told me that I know how to choose the right words, especially when we're in a fight and I go for the killing blow! ((see I have some powers at least, don't fight me, or I will cast the wrath of insults on you!)) , so I always shied away from letting anyone read what I write.

But since it's a new year, and I'm turning... 28 ( OK OK , 30, Happy now???) I decided to try and do some of the things I always enjoyed and wish I could do, So here I am, trying to do a blog about books and music, since I'm bound to be doing one or the other. I have to confess, English is not my first language, nor it's my second, it's my third, being raised to speaks three languages, it wasn't easy to master three of them, but even though, I found a magic in each language, and found myself drawn to English more then others, that's why I read more English books than I do in Arabic. And that's why I found that I can express myself more in English than in Chechen ( my first language).

So, if you reached this far, you win a prize!! (say beetlejuice three times and magic will happen) Nah, you don't win a thing, I'm sorry, you just had the pleasure to read my AWESOME words!! And you have a small idea why if and when any part of my review or post don't makes sense or seem lacking, you will know why.

I look forward to doing this! Let 2012 begin!!

Sarah