Cover of the Week - Timeless

Timeless by Alexandra Monir
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: January 11, 2011
Page Count: 304 

Description from Goodreads:

Amazon Best Books of the Month, January 2011

When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor’s world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she’s never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century’s worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life – a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance.

Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves – a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives.

Top Ten Bookish Pet Peeves ( all those things that annoy you in a story, with book covers, bookstores, etc.)

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the blog The Broke and the Bookish. To participate, go here.

 

1. Stickers on books. 

I can't stand when book stores put any kind of sticker on the book, especially if its across the title or the description!

 

2. Library dust covers. 

Oh crinkly, clear, barely hanging on dust cover, how I despise you! I would gladly rip you off of my borrowed book but the librarian has decided to use an entire roll of scotch tape to try and hold you together and in place.

3. Covers that have nothing to do with the story! 

Why would a book about a drought in some landlocked place have a picture of the ocean on the cover? Good job illustrator, I can tell you read what the book was about before coming up with that awesome cover!

4. Names that require a pronunciation guide in the back of the book.

I don't mind some names that are a little tricky like Gaelic names but not every character needs to have some impossible name that I have to spend so much time trying to say that I give up and change it to my liking!

5. Overly describing everything in the story. 

I don't need to know the exact color of the tapestries in this room or that. I don't care if there is a side table next to the bed with a nick knack from the time you went to Disney Land with your grandparents. If it doesn't directly relate to what your trying to tell me I don't care!

6. Finding word errors and bad kindle copies. 

I can handle a few misspelled words here and there but if I'm constantly finding errors or words have been replaced with something that makes no sense then it gets a little annoying!

 

7. Stopping mid-chapter. 

I have a really hard time putting a book down if I'm mid-chapter. I can't just put a book down in the middle of a page or chapter...I just can't. My husband, who doesn't really read much, just can't seem to understand this!

 

8. Trilogies or series with a wonky book thrown in. 

I love when I read a really good book and find out there are more books to continue the story. What I don't like is when one of the books is just kind of there, it might have one or two characters from the previous books but has nothing to really do with them.

 

9. Too tight spine. 

I want to be able to fully open my book not have to wrestle with it to see the words close to the spine.

 

10. Rushed endings. 

The ending of a book is one of the most important parts to me. It can leave you feeling fully satisfied or it can leave you feeling like you must have grabbed a bad copy that missed the last few chapters or something. There is nothing more disappointing that reading a great book and coming to the end and feeling like it just didn't live up to the rest of the book.

 

StoryBook Fridays

To all the parents out there, who like myself, enjoy reading to their little ones,

this list is for you! 

Every Friday I will post 5 children's books that I enjoy reading to my daughter.

I hope you discover some new and interesting books from my suggestions. 

Remember to read to your little ones every night!

1. If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff

If you give a moose a muffin he's going to want some blackberry jam to go with it and chances are ...if you start reading this book you won't be able to put it down! My daughter loves all of the "If you give a..." stories!

 2. The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! by Jon Scieszka 

This is an adorable retelling of the classic childrens book, The Three Little Pigs. In this telling you'll get to see the Big Bad Wolfs side of the story!

 

3.  Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper

What’s Cooking in the old white cabin? Pumpkin soup, the best you ever tasted! This story is about working together, taking turns, and trying new things. It is filled with beautiful illustrations and is a story I don't mind reading over and over.

 4. Russell the Sheep by Rob Scotton

What happens when a sheep can't sleep? 

Follow this adorable sheep in his quest to get some shut eye!

5. Friends by Helme Heine

Friends is a story about three friends who do everything together but when night falls they learn that sometimes friends have to be apart but that it's ok because true friends can always find each other, even if its just in their dreams. Nice watercolor pictures and an adorable story about friendship!

Cover of the Week - Steel

Steel by Carrie Vaughn
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: March 15, 2011
Page Count: 304

 Description from Goodreads:

It was a slender length of rusted steel, tapered to a point at one end and jagged at the other, as if it had broken. A thousand people would step over it and think it trash, but not her.

This was the tip of a rapier.

Sixteen-year-old Jill has fought in dozens of fencing tournaments, but she has never held a sharpened blade. When she finds a corroded sword piece on a Caribbean beach, she is instantly intrigued and pockets it as her own personal treasure.

The broken tip holds secrets, though, and it transports Jill through time to the deck of a pirate ship. Stranded in the past and surrounded by strangers, she is forced to sign on as crew. But a pirate's life is bloody and brief, and as Jill learns about the dark magic that brought her there, she forms a desperate scheme to get home—one that risks everything in a duel to the death with a villainous pirate captain.

Time travel, swordplay, and romance combine in an original high-seas adventure from New York Times bestseller Carrie Vaughn.

Angelfire

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton
Publisher: Harper Collins / Katherine Tegen Books
Publication Date: February 15, 2011
Page Count: 464

Description from Goodreads:

This debut, the first novel in a trilogy, is achingly romantic, terrifying, and filled with blistering action.

When seventeen-year-old Ellie starts seeing reapers - monstrous creatures who devour humans and send their souls to Hell - she finds herself on the front lines of a supernatural war between archangels and the Fallen and faced with the possible destruction of her soul.

A mysterious boy named Will reveals she is the reincarnation of an ancient warrior, the only one capable of wielding swords of angelfire to fight the reapers, and he is an immortal sworn to protect her in battle. Now that Ellie's powers have been awakened, a powerful reaper called Bastian has come forward to challenge her. He has employed a fierce assassin to eliminate her - an assassin who has already killed her once.

While balancing her dwindling social life and reaper-hunting duties, she and Will discover Bastian is searching for a dormant creature believed to be a true soul reaper. Bastian plans to use this weapon to ignite the End of Days and to destroy Ellie's soul, ending her rebirth cycle forever. Now, she must face an army of Bastian's most frightening reapers, prevent the soul reaper from consuming her soul, and uncover the secrets of her past lives - including truths that may be too frightening to remember.

I finished reading Angerfire last night and have been trying ever since to think of something to write that would explain the AWESOMENESS that is this book! I'll start by saying that before I was even half way through I was on goodreads.com seeing if there would be another book after this one...and I'm SO happy to say that yes, this will be a trilogy!! The only bad part is having to wait til 2012 to read it!!

Don't walk, run to the nearest store to get your hands on this book!  

StoryBook Fridays

To all the parents out there, who like myself, enjoy reading to their little ones,

this list is for you!

Every Friday I will post 5 children's books that I enjoy reading to my daughter.

I hope you discover some new and interesting books from my suggestions. Remember to read to your little ones every night!

1-1.5 The Gruffalo & The Gruffalo's Child

 

 2. The Tin Forest

 3.Leonardo, the Terrible Monster

 4.The Lorax

 5.Ooey Gooey

The Vespertine

The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell     
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
Publication Date: March 7, 2011
Page Count: 293

Description from Goodreads:
It’s the summer of 1889, and Amelia van den Broek is new to Baltimore and eager to take in all the pleasures the city has to offer. But her gaiety is interrupted by disturbing, dreamlike visions she has only at sunset—visions that offer glimpses of the future. Soon, friends and strangers alike call on Amelia to hear her prophecies. However, a forbidden romance with Nathaniel, an artist, threatens the new life Amelia is building in Baltimore. This enigmatic young man is keeping secrets of his own—still, Amelia finds herself irrepressibly drawn to him.
When one of her darkest visions comes to pass, Amelia’s world is thrown into chaos. And those around her begin to wonder if she’s not the seer of dark portents, but the cause.

I'm finding it hard to write a review for this book. Was it fantastic? No. Did I like it and would I recommend it to others? Yes. After reading this book I felt that high you get when you finish a book with a good ending and thought "wow that was good." but the more I thought about it the more parts of the story where a little confusing or I wish that the author had gone into more detail. The Vespertine was well written and had somewhat poetic prose. Make sure you pay attention to the dates when a new section starts otherwise you'll be a little confused. 

Overall though I did enjoy this, it makes a quick read at only 293 pages. I say go ahead and give it a chance! Here's a quote from the book that might snag your interest. 

"The stars could have burned out around us, the moon could have fallen from the sky, and I wouldn't have known it. Not when he leaned indecently close and pressed his cheek against mine to murmur, "Tell me a secret." I wanted him to tell me how he stopped time like that. How he read my mind. I wanted to admit I wondered if thoughts of me troubled him when he lay awake at night. But I could make none of that come to my lips.... Instead... I whispered back, "I've seen the future." He didn't laugh. He didn't mock, not like he had done at Privalovna's performance. In the middle of our waltz, he stopped, nose to nose with me. He uncovered me with a look that somehow bared him, too. And his question told me everything - that he stopped time because he needed me, that he read my mind because we were one. That I troubled his nights, indeed, because what he asked revealed it all. "Am I with you there?"
~Amelia and Nathaniel, The Vespertine by Saundra Mitchell 

I was able to review this book, courtesy of Netgalley.com.  

Lost in the River of Grass

Lost in the River of Grass by Ginny Rorby 

Publisher: Carolrhoda Books

Publication Date: March 1, 2011

Page Count: 264 

Description from Goodreads:

"I don't realize I'm crying until he glances at me. For a moment, I see the look of anguish in his eyes, then he blinks it away and slips off into the water. I immediately think of the gator. It's still down there somewhere..."

A science-class field trip to the Everglades is supposed to be fun, but Sarah's new at Glades Academy, and her fellow freshmen aren't exactly making her feel welcome. When an opportunity for an unauthorized side trip on an air boat presents itself, it seems like a perfect escape—an afternoon without feeling like a sore thumb. But one simple oversight turns a joyride into a race for survival across the river of grass. Sarah will have to count on her instincts—and a guy she barely knows—if they have any hope of making it back alive.

Lost in the River of Grass takes on the classic survival genre using one of the country's most unique wild places as a backdrop. In this tense, character-driven thriller, Sarah must overcome prejudice and the unforgiving wilderness in a struggle to survive.

Lost in the River of Grass was not something I would usually read, but I’m glad I did. This book was based on a true story, as Ginny Rorby states on her website. “Lost in the River of Grass is based on the true story of my husband’s ill-fated trip to the Everglades with his then girlfriend in his airboat. While they were ‘visiting’ one of the hunting camps in the Everglades, the airboat sank. It took them three days to walk out. I wrote the original story of that ordeal for Fort Lauderdale’s Gulf Coast magazine, published in the late 1990s.” Check out her website here. This book reminds me of Hatchet in some ways. It’s a story about survival with a little humor and romance thrown in. 

At first I wasn’t really that into this book but it gets better page after page. The characters of Sarah and Andy are so believable. Everything about them is so true to a almost fourteen, and fifteen year old, the way they act and how they handle situations; but not in an annoying “gosh you’re so immature and childish way.”  Although I have to say I’m 24 and would probably freak out too if I was in that situation! As the story progressed I really started to like Sarah and Andy! There were so many times that I felt like I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what the next moment would bring. I would definitely recommend this book to someone looking for a quick read!

I was able to review this book, courtesy of Netgalley.com. Thanks Netgalley!

Cover of the Week - Watched

Watched by Sharde Richardson  
Publisher: Jolt
Publication Date: May 30, 2011
Page Count: Unknown

Description from Goodreads:

Mikayla doesn’t want much: just to rock out to her favorite band, become the next Kwiki Stop video gaming champion, and keep her Q-tip habit under control. What she does want is the sight of the sudden inexplicable dark auras around everyone to stop. Problem is, those auras are demons and Mikayla is the last trait holder with the power to ban them. Which is a total buzz kill.

To make matters worse, the town folk of Sulphur Springs don’t look the same, and her classmates are a little dark in the eyes. There are murders, suicides, reckless skinny-dipping, gratuitous use of Q-tips, and newfound powers that Mikayla must learn to control.

Her past becomes present when a shape-shifter tells her what her true identity is, and how to keep the demons of Hell from nipping at her Converse. Through him she’ll discover who to trust, who to kiss, and how valuable her abilities are to the right beings. Because the evils of Hell aren’t staying down without a fight.

Or without her soul.

I love everything about this cover. The colors, the explosion of light, the movement, everything about this cover makes you want to grab it and take it home with you! I can't wait to read it!

Top Ten Dynamic Duos (those bff's, partners in crimes, or powerful couples that you just can't forget about).

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the blog The Broke and the Bookish. To participate, go here.

 1.Vampire Academy ~The whole series

Rose and Dimitri

2.The Summoning ~The Darkest Powers Trilogy 

Chloe and Derek

3.Brightly Woven 

Sydelle and North

4.Firelight

Jacinda and Will

5.Nevermore

Isobel and Varen

6.Watermelon

Claire and Adam

7-10. Are all Julie Garwood novels...what can I say, that woman knows how to write! I have LOVED every book of hers that I have read!

7.The Secret

Judith and Iain

8.The Bride

Jaime and Alec

9.The Prize

Nicholaa and Royce

10.Honor's Splendour

Madelyne and Duncan

I hope you check out some of the books on this list. They are all great reads! 

What are your top ten?

Demonglass

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins
Publisher: Hyperion Books CH
Publication Date: March 1, 2011
Page Count:368


Description from Goodreads:

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she?

When I finished Demonglass the only thing I could think was "OMG it can't be over!". I just sat there staring at it like more pages would appear if I wanted it bad enough...too bad that isn't how it works! 

 Sophie's dad finally shows up at Hex Hall and convinces her, along with Jenna and Cal, to spend the summer with him in England before she decides if she really wants to go through with the Removal. Once there she finds out there are other demons and her and her dad set out trying to find who has transformed the teens and why. Archer shows up and Sophie is still drawn to him and can't seem to stay away even though she knows they can't and shouldn't be together. There are some major revelations and some big secrets exposed in this book. Demonglass is the perfect blend of mystery, action, and romance and ends on a total cliffhanger!! I almost can't stand that the next book in the series won't be coming out til sometime in 2012! 

Definitely read this book!!

Cover of the Week - Entwined

Entwined by Heather Dixon
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Publication Date: March 29, 2011
Page Count: 480

Description from Goodreads:
Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late. 

The cover of Entwined is beautiful, magical, enchanting even! When I look at this cover I feel like I'm following a princess through a secret garden of some sort, like I want to stay with her and find out where she's going or where she came from. Essentially this is a re-telling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses and I can't wait to read it!

2011 Read Your Name Challenge

Lately I've been wanting to join a challenge that was a little different from your standard, read this many books of this kind or that kind. I wasn't having much luck so I decided to throw one together myself! This is the first challenge I have set up so bear with me! It's not going to be all technical where you have to sign up for this and that. It's just a simple "this will be fun" kind of thing.

I call it the "2011 Read Your Name Challenge". It's really simple! All you have to do is pick out book titles that start with the letters of your name. Can't get any easier than that!

For Example: 
B: Book of Love by Abra Ebner

         R: Reincarnation by Suzanne Weyn

                    A: Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

     N: Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

     D: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

    I: Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

Here are the rules:

1. You don't have to read in the order of your name and you don't have to decide right away which books you want to read.

2. This challenge CAN crossover with other challenges.

3. You can use your first name along with your middle or even your last if you are feeling adventurous.

4. Finish by December 31st, 2011.

5. Have FUN!

Please leave a comment letting me know you have joined the challenge, if you have a blog I would love to see your blog URL attached to the comment! Please add the button to your sidebar and make sure that it links back to this post so others can join the challenge if they wish!

2011 Highlander Reading Challenge

I've decided to participate in the 2011 Highlander Reading Challenge hosted by Lori at Escape Between The Pages. The challenge is to read 20 Highlander books from Jan. 31st through Dec. 31st. 

Like I need any excuse to read about sexy, strong, manly men?!

I'll keep my list here for easy access and update it as I read.

Hope you join in on this challenge!

1. Sold to a Laird by Karen Ranney
2. When the Laird Returns by Karen Ranney
3. The Secret by Julie Garwood
4. Ransom by Julie Garwood
5. Shadow Music by Julie Garwood
6. Saving Grace by Julie Garwood
7. Captured by the Highlander by Julianne MacLean
8. The Truelove Bride by Shana Abe

Top Ten Books I Just HAD To Buy...But Are Still Sitting On My Bookshelf

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the blog The Broke and the Bookish. To participate, go here.

1.Shadow of the Sun 

2.Sisters Red

3.Wicked Lovely

4.Graceling

5. The Iron King

6.Delirium

7.Dead Until Dark

8.Darke Academy: Secret Lives

9.The Dark Queen

10. Switched

The Replacement

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff                      
Publisher: Razorbill
Publication Date: September 21, 2010
Page Count: 343


Description from Goodreads:
Mackie Doyle is not one of us. Though he lives in the small town of Gentry, he comes from a world of tunnels and black murky water, a world of living dead girls ruled by a little tattooed princess. He is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now, because of fatal allergies to iron, blood, and consecrated ground, Mackie is fighting to survive in the human world.

Mackie would give anything to live among us, to practice on his bass or spend time with his crush, Tate. But when Tate's baby sister goes missing, Mackie is drawn irrevocably into the underworld of Gentry, known as Mayhem. He must face the dark creatures of the Slag Heaps and find his rightful place, in our world, or theirs.

I'm going to give this book a solid 3 stars. It was good but I don't think I'll ever reread it. I found the beginning very hard to get into, in fact after reading a chapter I put it down and read a different book instead. I did want to read the whole thing though so I trudged through the beginning and actually got a little into the book. 

Just like the description says this book is dark and full of unnatural things. When Tate's little sister goes missing Mackie is forced to confront who and what he really is and decides that he can't let something horrible happen to the toddler. He faces some pretty nasty challenges on his quest to save the little girl and eventually comes to love himself and let others love him back. This book does have teen drinking, cussing, and a little toplessness...just as a warning. 

Overall this book was very dark and grungy but not bad. I would recommend it to someone looking for something completely different. I can say that I have never read a book quite like this one. If you read it I would love to know what you think!  

Brightly Woven

Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken                          

Publisher: Egmont USA

Publication Date: March 23, 2010

Page Count: 354

Description from Goodreads:

Sydelle Mirabil is living proof that, with a single drop of rain, a life can be changed forever. Tucked away in the farthest reaches of the kingdom, her dusty village has suffered under the weight of a strangely persistent drought. That is, of course, until a wizard wanders into town and brings the rain with him.

In return for this gift, Wayland North is offered any reward he desires—and no one is more surprised than Sydelle when, without any explanation, he chooses her. Taken from her home, Sydelle hardly needs encouragement to find reasons to dislike North. He drinks too much and bathes too little, and if that isn’t enough to drive her to madness, North rarely even uses the magic he takes such pride in possessing. Yet, it’s not long before she realizes there’s something strange about the wizard, who is as fiercely protective of her as he is secretive about a curse that turns his limbs a sinister shade of black and leaves him breathless with agony. Unfortunately, there is never a chance for her to seek answers.

Along with the strangely powerful quakes and storms that trace their path across the kingdom, other wizards begin to take an inexplicable interest in her as well, resulting in a series of deadly duels. Against a backdrop of war and uncertainty, Sydelle is faced with the growing awareness that these events aren’t as random as she had believed—that no curse, not even that of Wayland North, is quite as terrible as the one she herself may carry.

Brightly Woven was a breath of fresh air. I really enjoyed reading this book. It reminded me of when I was younger reading books like Dragon's Milk and Dealing with Dragons. Not that this is a book about dragons, its just the old world feel of it. It's like being transported back to a time when magic was still possible. Plus the cover is gorgeous!


Brightly Woven has mystery, adventure, romance, and magic all "woven" into one great story. Although the end wrapped up quite nicely I would definitely read a sequel if one were to come out! I hope you check out Brightly Woven and let me know what you think!