TGIF!



This Friday's Question:

 

Character Envy: If you could be one character from a book, 

who would you choose & why?

 

A: I would love to be Bella Swan just so I could have Edward and Jacob's attention. (Don't judge me!)

I would also like to be Grace Brisbane from Shiver. Why? Because she has Sam! I wish I had a boyfriend as sweet as Sam!

I would also like to be Four from Divergent. He's so cool and collected.

Feature and Follow Fridays!



Guess what? I'm the feature Blogger on Alison Can Read this friday!! Go check me out!

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee's View and now Alison Can Read as well . It's an awesome way to meet new bloggers and friends!

Q:  Let's step away from books for a second and get personal. What    T-Shirt slogan best describes you? 

A: My brother bought me a T-shirt that says, "Who needs drugs, I go broke buying books." That shirt describes me pretty well considering most of my money does get spent on books. And I wouldn't waste my money on anything else to be honest. I can't think of anything else that I want.

Booking through thursday

Q: What’s the latest you’ve ever stayed up reading a book? Is staying up late reading a usual thing for you?

A: The latest I've stayed up reading a book was till 3 am. I was reading the Hunger Games and just couldn't stop. I will usually stay up till around 12 or 1 am but that's it.

Waiting on Wednesday



Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine! Each week, bloggers spotlight what upcoming release they're eager for.

 

What I'm waiting for: Crossed by Ally Condie

Release date: November 1st 2011

 

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

 

 

I'm interested in finding out what Cassia will face in Crossed. I'd also like to know what the rebellion would be like and what it would be about.

Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

At first, I couldn't really get into the story. I was bored for the first 10 chapters or around there. Then once Cassia started getting interested in Ky it got a little better. From there is when things started getting more interesting and exciting.

There a couple things that I just didn't understand. One of them was why Cassia got so obsessed with Ky when she had been extremely lucky and gotten Xander, her best friend, as her match. One would think she would be extremely content with life and not want to ruin that. Another thing was why the society took their artifacts. I don't remember it being explained. Also, am I the only one who thought the society was a pretty decent place? I didn't think it was that bad.

I think the best thing about this book was the secret love scenes between Cassia and Ky. I don't know why but I love forbidden love. I just do. Every scene in which Cassia and Ky were being secretive and falling in love made me sigh. I couldn't get enough of those scenes!

Overall, I think it was a decent book and I'm looking forward to reading Crossed, the second book in the trilogy.

Rating: 7

Review : Linger By Maggie Stiefvater



In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other.  Now, in Linger, they must fight to be together. For Grace, this means defying her parents and keeping a very dangerous secret about her own well-being. For Sam, this means grappling with his werewolf past . . . and figuring out a way to survive into the future. Add into the mix a new wolf named Cole, whose own past has the potential to destroy the whole pack.  And Isabel, who already lost her brother to the wolves . . . and is nonetheless drawn to Cole.

 

At turns harrowing and euphoric, Linger is a spellbinding love story that explores both sides of love -- the light and the dark, the warm and the cold -- in a way you will never forget.

At First, this book was a little boring and slow but towards the middle it began to get really good. I was use to Sam and Grace's povs but Cole and Isabel's were new. I didn't really like Cole at first because I thought he was a jerk but towards the end he redeemed himself. With Isabel, I had mixed feelings. There were moments in which I liked her but there where other times in which I couldn't stand her. Maggie's writing was just as great as it was in Shiver if not better. I just cannot get enough of her writing.

My favorite thing of this whole book had to be the ending! I was so blown away by it that I kept rereading it.

If you've read Shiver but haven't gotten around to this book yet, you need too! And if you haven't even started this series then you need to do that first!

Rating: 9

In my Mailbox

I found this cute mailbox picture over at Call Me Crazy Book blog.


In my Mailbox is hosted by Kristy at the Story Siren

This weekend I received an email by Borders announcing that all stores were going out of business and it made me Incredibly sad. So before all the good books were taken, I went down and bought a couple.

Bought:
  Nightshade By Andrea Cremer


 Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro

 If I Stay By Gayle Forman



TGIF

This Friday's Question:

Bookshelf Tour: Where do you keep your books at home? 

Are they organized?

A: I keep all my books on this big shelf I have in my room. I have it right in next to my bed, that way I can just reach over and grab whatever book I want, when I want. My books are organized by shelf, each different shelf symbolizes how much I liked a book. So all my favorites are on one shelf and then all the ones I didn't like so much are on a different one and so on.

Follow Fridays

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee's View. It's an awesome way to meet new bloggers and friends!

Q. Name 3 authors that you would love to sit down and spend an hour or a meal with just talking about either their books or get advice on writing from?

A: Three authors who I'd love to get together with would have to be Maggie Stiefvater, I love her writing because its so lyrical. Lauren Oliver, I really liked her writing in Delirium. And the third one would be Suzanne Collins, I would love to hear her tell me the story of how she came up with the idea for such an amazing series.

Booking Through Thursday



Q: What’s the first book that you ever read more than once? (I’m assuming there’s at least one.)

What book have you read the most times? And how many?

A: The book I've read the most times is The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton

It was the first book I ever owned. I've read it around 5 times. I love it so much that I can recite the whole first page my memory.

In My Mailbox



In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.

 

Finally received Forever By Maggie Stiefvater. I'd pre-ordered it a long time ago and it finally arrived this week in the mail.

Bought: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

 

TGIF



This Friday's Question:

Book Blogger Appreciation: Which book blogs have inspired you 

or made a difference in your blogging experience?

 

A: The first book blog I stumbled upon was Book Crazy from Jenn. It was the first one I started to follow and I really liked it. After that I started to look for more and came upon a couple more that have really inspired me. For example I'd So Rather Be Reading from Kelli and Natalie and The Bookish Type from Casey. I feel that these girls are really honest with their reviews and that we have similar taste in books so I trust what they have to say about them.

Follow Fridays!



Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee's View. It's an awesome way to meet new bloggers and friends!

Q: What do I do when I am not reading?

A: Nothing... just kidding! I browse through the web a lot. I listen to music a lot as well. I love movies so I watch them as much as I can. I give my dog lots of loving. I also eat and sleep daily.

Book Blogger Hop



The Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word!

Q: How/Where do you get your books? Do you buy them or go to the library? Is there a certain website you use like paperbackswap?

A: I get most of my books from Barnes and Noble or Half Price Books. I also have gotten plenty from Amazon.com.

Booking through Thursday



Q: There are so many crappy biographies … would you rather read a poorly-written biography of a fascinating life, OR an exquisitely well-written, wonderful read of one of a not-so-interesting life?

A: I think I would rather read a well written biography than a poorly written one. Because no matter how fascinating the life is, if its poorly written it won't be able to keep my attention as well as on that's exquisitely well written.

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine! Each week, bloggers spotlight what upcoming release they're eager for.

What I'm waiting for: Tris and Izzie by Mette Ivie Harrison

 Release date: October 11th 2011

A modern retelling of the German fairytale "Tristan and Isolde", Tris and Izzie is about a young witch named Izzie who is dating Mark King, the captain of the basketball team and thinks her life is going swimmingly well. Until -- she makes a love potion for her best friend Brangane and then ends up taking it herself accidentally, and falling in love with Tristan, the new guy at school.   - From Goodreads

I really liked the movie Tristan and Isolde, so I'm looking forward to reading a modern version of that story. And also, how pretty is that cover?!

Review: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

the cold.
Grace has spent years watching the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—watches back. He feels deeply familiar to her, but she doesn't know why.

the heat.
Sam has lived two lives. As a wolf, he keeps the silent company of the girl he loves. And then, for a short time each year, he is human, never daring to talk to Grace...until now.

the shiver.
For Grace and Sam, love has always been kept at a distance. But once it's spoken, it cannot be denied. Sam must fight to stay human—and Grace must fight to keep him—even if it means taking on the scars of the past, the fragility of the present, and the impossibility of the future.

 Because Forever, the last installment of this series, comes out on Tuesday, I'm gonna go ahead and review the first two books. I was going to review them later when I reread them, but I thought this was a more appropriate time to do it. 

Shiver is a story about love and werewolves. But I think its more about love. The love that Sam and Grace share is just too cute. This book didn't have a lot of action but I was completely fine with that. I loved reading about Sam and Grace just spending some time together.

The werewolves in this book change by temperature not by the moon. I thought that was different in a cool way. Usually with all the other werewolf stories, I always think about how cool it would be to be a werewolf but with this story it was the complete opposite. There was nothing cool about these werewolves. It was just a sad disease that they had and were stuck with.

This book is one of my favorites and if you haven't read it yet, then you need to!

Rating: 9

TGIF



 TGIF is a feature at Greads! that lets one recap their week's posts and has a different question each week.

TGIF Question: Blogger Confession: What's the last book you could not finish?
(or had a hard time finishing?)

A: I haven't really had to many books that I can't finish or had a hard time finishing. I'm the kind of person who kind of force myself to finish a book. I don't like leaving it unfinished. But if I just can't take it anymore, then I do put it away and tell myself that I will finish reading it someday, even though I probably won't.

Books I forced myself to finish :  1. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

                                                  2. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold 

                                                  3. April in Paris by Micheal Wallner

                                                  4. Forever by Judy Blume

Books I didn't Finish:                  1. Betrayed by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast 



Follow Fridays!

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee's View. It's an awesome way to meet new bloggers and friends!

Q. Let's step away from besties...What is the worst book that you've ever read and actually finished?

A: The worst book for me would be 1984 by George Orwell

If it had been up to me I would never have even read it, but it was required in my English class so I had no choice.

Booking Through Thursday

 

Q: What animal-related books have you read? Which do you love? Do you have a favorite literary dog? (Snoopy, anyone?)

A: I have read Marley and Me, Water For Elephants, White Fang... Those are the first that come to my mind, I can't think of any other ones. I don't remember much of White Fang, but I loved Marley and Me and Water For Elephants. Those are two of my favorite books.

Waiting on Wednesday



Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine! Each week, bloggers spotlight what upcoming release they're eager for.

What I'm waiting for :   Awake at Dawn by C.C. Hunter
Release date - October 11th 2011



Now that she’s settled in at Shadow Falls Camp, Kylie Galen’s determined to discover the extent of her supernatural abilities.  But with a ghost insisting someone Kylie loves is about die, a rogue vampire on a murdering rampage, and her sixth sense telling her someone is watching her, Kylie’s quest for answers is quickly put on hold. 
 
To make matters worse, just when she’s about to give her heart to Derek, a half-fairy, he starts pulling away.  When Lucas, a werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past, returns, Kylie’s feels more conflicted than ever. Her weekend with her mom should have been the just the break Kylie needs, but it turns out to be her breaking point.  Someone from the dark side of the supernatural world has plans for Kylie—and it'll take all her resources to get back to Shadow Falls alive... - from Goodreads

Since I'm almost done with Born at Midnight, and I really like it so far, I can't wait to continue with Kylie's story and read more about this world in which vampires, werewolves, witches and many other supernaturals exist. This looks like a series that I'm really going to enjoy.

Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top 10 Tuesday time – a weekly bookish meme hosted over at  The Broke and The Bookish. Today's topic is : 

Top Ten Rebels In Literature (characters or authors) -- Those people who stood up for what they believed in despite the cost of doing so.

1. Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. She is bad ass and she stood up for what she believed in. she stood up against the capitol.

2. Melinda from Speak. She rebelled by not speaking and that's really hard to do.

3. Cinna from The Hunger Games. He rebelled by making fashion statements. He was the reason why Katniss was called the Mockingjay.

4. Tris from Divergent. She didn't allow herself to be made less just because she was small. She also over came the stereotype that was placed on her for being from abnegation.

5. Lena from Delirium. She was taught that love was a disease but she went ahead and loved anyway.

6. Bryn from Raised By Wolves. She didn't allow the pack to take her independence.

7. Carlisle Cullen from Twilight. He refused to drink human blood and never did.( I think? I'm pretty sure?)

8. Gale from The Hunger Games. He would hunt illegally and he joined the rebels against the capitol.

That's all I can think of at the moment. 

Review: Raised by wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Adopted by the Alpha of a werewolf pack after a rogue wolf brutally killed her parents right before her eyes, fifteen-year-old Bryn knows only pack life, and the rigid social hierarchy that controls it. That doesn't mean that she's averse to breaking a rule or two.

But when her curiosity gets the better of her and she discovers Chase, a new teen locked in a cage in her guardian's basement, and witnesses him turn into a wolf before her eyes, the horrific memories of her parents' murders return. Bryn becomes obsessed with getting her questions answered, and Chase is the only one who can provide the information she needs.

But in her drive to find the truth, will Bryn push too far beyond the constraints of the pack, forcing her to leave behind her friends, her family, and the identity that she's shaped? - From Goodreads


I'm a sucker for werewolves, so when I heard about this book, I just had to go out and buy it. And I'm really glad I did because I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

What I loved the most about this book was the way Barnes built the werewolf world. She gave us so much information and I truly felt like I was there learning to understand every rule and law the werewolves had. I also really liked Bryn. She was brave, smart and independent. She had spunk and I liked that.

Now, I don't know if I'm the only one who felt like this, but I didn't feel connected with Chase. I felt like his character needed more developing. I didn't understand his feelings for Bryn clearly. I also found some parts cheesy but it is a werewolf book so that should be expected. I also was just a tad bit confused at the end but it wasn't to big of a deal.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I am looking forward to reading the second book Trail By Fire.

Rating: 8



Review: Red Riding Hood

The blacksmith would marry her.
The woodcutter would run away with her.
The werewolf would turn her into one of its own.

Valerie's sister was beautiful, kind, and sweet. Now she is dead. Henry, the handsome son of the blacksmith, tries to console Valerie, but her wild heart beats fast for another: the outcast woodcutter, Peter, who offers Valerie another life far from home.

After her sister's violent death, Valerie's world begins to spiral out of control. For generations, the Wolf has been kept at bay with a monthly sacrifice. But now no one is safe. When an expert Wolf hunter arrives, the villagers learn that the creature lives among them--it could be anyone in town.

It soon becomes clear that Valerie is the only one who can hear the voice of the creature. The Wolf says she must surrender herself before the blood moon wanes...or everyone she loves will die. - From Goodreads

 I'm going to go ahead and admit that I watched the movie before I got a chance to read the book. But I don't think that it really made a difference to how I felt about the book. I liked the book. It wasn't to exciting though. There were parts that I expected to me really actiony but weren't. Also the beginning is different from the way the movie was, which I find a little weird since the book is based off of the screenplay from the movie.

I really liked the setting of the book. It reminded me a lot of The Village, how all the people were afraid of the wolf. I really enjoyed the twist that was made on the folktale that we were all told as children. It was different and I liked it.

The book doesn't end like the movie does and because you have to go online to read the last chapter.

Rating: 6

Q. ACK! Your favorite book/movie character (example Hermione Granger played by the Emma chick) just walked into the room! Who is it and what would be your first reaction? You get extra points if you include visual stimulation.

A: Hmm... I have so many favorite characters that I can't decide! I guess if I saw Jacob Black/ Taylor Lautner walk into my room I'd probably go into shock. And then I would humiliate myself by crying and professing my love for him. Just kidding, I'd probably try and keep it cool. Well... I would try.