tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15083730373281878412024-03-05T23:02:24.434-06:00Books4Hearts - Book ReviewsBook reviews for kids, tweens, and teens. Many books can be enjoyed by all though! Thank you for being interested in our site!
-Cat, Angela and SEP.Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.comBlogger304125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-4144318060585451072012-06-23T20:00:00.005-05:002012-06-23T20:01:41.160-05:00"Story Time" by Edward Bloor<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>"All I know is this," Kate told her brusquely. "I'm not going to Lincoln with you on Monday morning, I'm going to Whittaker. And I'm not going home with my mother and fatehr tonight, I'm going home with just my mother. So I guess I don't believe in wishes coming true, either. If I really want good things to happen, and bad things to stop happening, it'll take more than wishing. I have to act. And I have to act now."</em><br />
<br />
Kate and her uncle, George, are regular kids. Kate is in eighth grade, Uncle George is in sixth. Kate is ready to go to Lincoln middle school and play Peter Pan in the play, and George is ready to learn things and invent things as well.<br />
And then Uncle George passes the entrance exam to the Whittaker Magnet School.<br />
<br />
Before they know it, both Kate and George are absorbed into the Whittaker Magnet School district 'octopus' and are attending the school with the highest scores on standardized tests. Although George is excited to be in a place where his genius is appreciated, Kate is not too happy to be in with the 'mushroom children' and personal assistant to Heidi Whittaker, the girl who dresses like a 'Swiss Milkmaid'.<br />
But when eerie things begin in the school, neither of them know what to expect. With the help of a woman who only speaks in nursery rhymes, Kate's mother June, the staff of the White House, and a whole cast of other characters (Whether willingly or not), the two children will uncover a mystery that stretches back to the founding of the school, and nothing will be the same again.<br />
<br />
<em>Kate stared at the supine figure of Walter Barnes. She felt a pang of sympathy for the old librarian. but that pang was quickly replaed by another feeling, a feeling that something big had just happened. She didn't know what it was, exactly, but she did know this: It was something that the Whittaker-Austins, with all their money and all their power, could not control. It was a first chink in their armor. Perhaps it was a door to a door to a door that would lead her out of there.</em><br />
<br />
I rather enjoyed this book.<br />
As a homeschooler, it fills me with a sort of righteousness when I read about the failings of the public school system, and this book is a criticism of said system of schools. With a school that only focuses on standardized tests (much like many schools nowadays actually do), it emphasizes the positive aspects of imagination, art, fantasy, and whimsy.<br />
This book is also written somewhat like A Series of Unfortunate Events or Pepperment in the Parlor, so if you liked any of those books, I believe you'd like this one. Sort of in that J fiction and yet... aimed for older people type of writing. It's interesting.<br />
<br />
I have to say, however, that I did not particularly like Kate until near the end of the book where she goes through a character change. Uncle George was cool, however, and I liked some of the other characters as well.<br />
Also, although I think the ending was okay, it wasn't spectacular or anything to be overly impressed with. I'd recommend this book, but I'd also say not to expect anything mind blowing from it.Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-30752540110584923532012-06-16T11:29:00.002-05:002012-06-16T11:29:57.041-05:00"Lessons From a Dead Girl" by Jo Knowles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>I squeeze my hand shut and hold our secret in it. Any time I start to wonder why on earth Leah Greene wants to be my best friend, I tell myself not to think about it.</em><br />
<br />
Leah Greene is dead.<br />
Laine doesn't know what to think, or how to feel. Should she be sad, for losing her F.F., friend forever? Should she feel relieved, because she wished Leah would die? Should she feel freed, from her past, from the doll closet, from Leah herself?<br />
<br />
Laine hated Leah. Hated her for everything she made Laine do, for all the times in the doll closet. She didn't understand Leah, didn't understand why she did the things she did or said the things she said. And yet, Laine wonders how different the two really are, and who Leah really were.<br />
<br />
As Laine tries to understand Leah and the tragedy of her death, she tries to also understand the lessons that Leah taught her, find their meaning, and find out if she can forgive the unforgivable.<br />
<br />
<em>"It will come off," I say, scrubbing harder. But even when my hand is almost raw, I still see some of the red marker.</em><br />
<em>I go back to my room and hug George again.</em><br />
<em>"We won't be friends forever," I whisper into his fur. "We won't."</em><br />
<em>But he keeps smiling, like he knows better.</em><br />
<br />
First of all, I do not recommend this book to anyone under the age of fifteen. A lot of the themes are quite mature, and I don't think that I could handle this if I were any younger than I am now.<br />
<br />
Moving on, however, I have to say that this was a very interesting book. It had different story themes than I've ever read before, and I really liked the complicated relationship between Leah and Laine. I actually thought that all of the relationships in this book were interesting, complicated, and well developed, except for possibly the ones with Web and Jess (which were well developed, but not as interesting.)<br />
I liked how all the characters had their own motives and personalities, and how all of them acted like real human beings.<br />
<br />
I have to say that the writing style was also quite amazing, and it really absorbed me. I liked how it was written in sort of a hopeless way, and at the end you're sort of handed a bittersweet and hopeful ending. It's also nice because you don't have to wait too long to get to the ending- I read this book in probably about 45 minutes. <br />
<br />
Overall, it was an excellent book for older readers.<br />
<br />
<em>"I'm not afraid of you," I lie. "I just think I should get back."</em><br />
And I don't want to play your games.<br />
<em>"I think you're afraid."</em><br />
<em>"Why do you always do this?" I ask. I don't know why I bother. I should just step off the gazebo and disappear.</em><br />
<em>"Do what?" she asks innocently.</em><br />
<em>"Act this way. Like you're playing some game. Like you're out to get me." I pause as the familiar fear courses through me. My heart pounds so hard in my chest it hurts. But instead of running away, I take a deep breath. "Why do you hate me so much, Leah?"</em><br />
<em>"Me?"</em>Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-73764042353747335942012-06-06T14:06:00.000-05:002012-06-06T14:06:31.678-05:00"Incarceron" by Catherine Fisher<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>Walls have ears.</em><br />
<em>Doors have eyes.</em><br />
<em>Trees have voices.</em><br />
<em>Beasts tell lies.</em><br />
<em>Beware the rain.</em><br />
<em>Beweare the snow.</em><br />
<em>Beware the man</em><br />
<em>You think you know.</em><br />
<em>~Songs of Sapphique</em><br />
<br />
Incarceron is a prison. Built to contain the undesirables of a world, it's huge. Vast enough to contain cities, mountains, oceans, valleys. Built to be a paradise, Incarceron has become a hell, and there is no escaping. Trapped until they die, most of the inmates have given up on leaving.<br />
But not Finn.<br />
<br />
In the Outside, time seems to have been stopped at the 17th century. Artificially preserved, Claudia's world is run by computers and protocal. She's doomed to an arranged marriage and tangled with an assassination plot she doesn't support but doesn't discourage either.<br />
<br />
When the lives of Finn and Claudia collide, there's no telling what will happen.<br />
Incarceron is everywhere.<br />
Incarceron is everything.<br />
<br />
<em>They stared at the dark slit, waiting. She half expected a crowd of Prisoners to burst through.</em><br />
<em>But nothing happened, so she stepped forward, and opened the gate.</em><br />
<em>And looked Inside.</em><br />
<br />
This book was rather rare for a couple of reasons. First of all, it's a YA book that I actually enjoyed. Second of all, there were several plot twists I didn't predict, and third of all, I only hated one of the characters.<br />
<br />
The setting of this book is very interesting. It's a peculiar mix of Gregor the Underlander, 2001: A Space Oddyssey, Labyrinth, Alice in Wonderland, The Supernaturalist, Doctor Who, and a whole lot of imagination. It was fascinating if only for the setting, and I enjoyed it immensely. Incarceron was spooky, and reminded me a bit of HAL, which captured my interest immediately. If nothing, read for Incarceron!<br />
<br />
The characters were interesting as well. It was difficult, but I decided that my three favorite characters were Keiro (Finn's oathbrother), Jared (Claudia's tutor), and The Warden (Claudia's father.). The single character that I truly did not like at all was Attia, who I found to be jealous, petty, stuck up, "holier than thou", and just annoying. But the others were pretty cool, I must say.<br />
<br />
Also, the plot twists. I'm usually pretty good at predicting the way that books will go. In fact, some of the earlier twists I predicted immediately, but about three fourths of the book the author threw a twist at me that literally left me sitting and going "Wow. I did <em>not</em> see <em>that</em> coming. Wow. Wow. O.o". The plot is interesting, not very predictable, and has plenty of things going on that it moves quite quickly.<br />
<br />
Overall, this was a really good book, and I'm definitely going to read the second one. :)Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-25683139829382998402012-05-17T18:07:00.000-05:002012-05-17T18:07:36.123-05:00"Geek Fantasy Novel" by E. Archer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>As any aeronautical engineer will confirm, fairies do remarkably well in unicorn-drawn carriage crashes. Their strategy is simple: Keep to the center of teh carriage and fly with quivalent speed against the rapidly decreasing velocity of the vehicle.</em><br />
<br />
Ralph Stevenson has been taught never to wish for anything. As anyone will tell him, wishes are dangerous and should therefore be avoided. As an extreme geek growing up being teased by his peers, he has also learned not to mingle with people.<br />
So Ralph focuses on his video game designing.<br />
When he is suddenly jerked out of his day to day life by an invitation to go visit his relatives in Europe, his parents immediately say no. But Ralph has other ideas, and soon sneaks off to visit his odd British relatives.<br />
But that's not all...<br />
Ralph is soon whisked away into magical lands where bunny rabbits explode, where narrators mess with the story line, where teddy bears work as headsets, and where you never exactly know what's going to happen next.<br />
Not even the narrator.<br />
<br />
<em>Prisoners magically trapped beneath planks of flooring do moderately well. The otherwise death-hastening wood serves like the lap restraint on a roller coaster.</em><br />
<br />
I really did like this book a lot. It was some random novel that my mom picked up at the Salvation Army and gave to me one day at piano lessons. The name is interesting, and the synopsis/back cover are as well. This book was original, it was witty, it was funny, it was clever, and it was geeky.<br />
The concept in particular was fascinating, and I don't think I've ever seen a book where this has been done before... Not to mention the fact that the characters are simply brilliant. I loved them all. Even Chessie. Even the narrator.<br />
Maybe particularly the narrator?<br />
Either way, this was an amazing book.<br />
<br />
<em>Axe-wielding duchesses, however, make out substantially worse. And unfortunately, an axe-wielding duchess careening about a carriage is a problem for everyone.</em><br />Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-79333198450685270902012-05-10T16:26:00.000-05:002012-05-10T16:26:21.246-05:00"The Agency: A Spy in the House" by Y. S. Lee<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em></em><em>Insurance fraud.</em><br />
<em>Sunken ships.</em><br />
<em>Guilt money.</em><br />
<em>A ransacked office.</em><br />
<em>There was at least one more missing detail...</em><br />
<br />
Mary Lang is a preteen girl living in the streets of Victorian era London. She picks pockets and breaks into houses to survive, until she is caught and sentenced to hang.<br />
When she is miraculously rescued from the gallows and sent to Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls, it's a new life. A life away from the crime and theivery she left behind. It's a new chance to be independent- a rare thing in Victorian era Britain.<br />
But when Mary, now going with the last name of Quinn, finds herself yearning for more, she is hired by the headmistresses of the academy to work for The Agency- a top secret detective agency exclusively for women agents.<br />
Mary's thrilled to be working for The Agency, and even more thrilled when she recieves her first assignment. Posing as a hired companion, she's to assist a more experienced agent in investigating missing ships containing smuggled items. But not all is as it seems in the household, and no one is who they appear to be.<br />
<br />
<em>Just before he caught her, she had a moment of sick premonition. It had been the same way the first time- the last time- she'd been caught. A flash of dread, of knowing. And then it happened.</em><br />
<br />
I picked this book up from the library because I'm fascinated by the Victorian era. I decided that it looked interesting, took it home, and read it in what would amount to about 24 hours. It's a pretty fast read, particularly once you get more than halfway into it.<br />
<br />
The interesting thing about this book is not just that the characters are amazing, but that it seems like an incredibly realistic portrayal of Victorian era London. The jacket says that the author completed her PhD in Victorian literature and culture, and studied London. You can definitely tell this while reading the book- she includes many details that make the backdrop of this book to be exciting and foreign- and yet utterly realistic.<br />
<br />
The characters are also quite amazing- Particularly James and Mary (the main characters), who happen to have some of the most wonderfully witty lines that I've read for a while.<br />
However, although I enjoy the characters, I find the plot to be a little meandering and it has a slightly confusing end in my opinion. There were several times when I had to go back and reread as section because I didn't quite catch what was going on. Several times also near the end things just seem to go a little too good for the characters, with Mary's mysterious instincts. I also didn't particularly like the end- it was a little abrupt and it made me a little sad.<br />
Despite this, I consider it to be a good book and if I see more from this series, I will be getting them from the library.Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-9751300380704367122012-02-20T12:52:00.000-06:002012-02-20T12:52:24.503-06:00"Immanuel's Veins" by Ted Dekker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>"This story is for everyone. But not everyone is for this story."</em><br />
Toma Nicolescu, a warrior, is sent by Catherine the great to protect two sisters and their mother. At first convinced that it is just a simple job- He, after all, will not cave to the sisters beauty like his friend Alec will- and all he must do is help the mother arrange a marriage for the eldest sister, Lucine.<br />
<br />
That just goes to show how mistaken Toma can be.<br />
<br />
When a strange group of Russians arrive, Toma senses something strange about them. They seem more attractive, more powerful, and yet far more repulsive than anyone he knows. However, he sees nothing wrong with them or their strange ways...<br />
At first.<br />
As his suspicion of the beautiful strangers rises, so does his love for Lucine, and soon both are entangled in a dark plot, power, and a battle between good and evil.<br />
<br />
<em>Looking back now, I can say the series of incredible events that forever changed my understanding of this ordered world began in earnest in that moment. Though I did not recognize or embrace it then, the axis of this planet surely shifted. The stars reversed their course and sent a spell of love and anguish, tears and laughter into the valley, and I was too thickheaded to yet see it. </em><br />
<br />
Ted Dekker is a truly amazing author.<br />
I was drawn into the book as soon as I read the first page, and it only took me a few days to finish it. The writing is beautiful, and he uses so much symbolism that sometimes it's hard to tell what's an allegory and what's not.<br />
<br />
The characters also brought me into the story- None were perfect, and yet I never got mad at the main characters (the story is told from Toma and Lucine's points of view) for doing something so dumb that it was ridiculous. All the characters had their own distinct personalitites, and for most of the book I was kept guessing about who was going to do what.<br />
<br />
The plot also deserves mention- I guessed a few of the plot "twists", but overall felt like I didn't quite know what was going to happen next.<br />
<br />
Overall, this is an incredibly wonderful book, and I enjoyed it very much. However, it is also a clearly Christian book, so if that does not appeal to you, you probably won't enjoy this book so much. Also- this was a book found in the "grown up" section of my library, and as such needs treatment in that way. I would not recommend this book to anyone under fourteen, due to some of the adult themes.Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-27745450687106766112011-12-19T09:35:00.000-06:002011-12-19T09:35:19.650-06:00"The Iron Knight" by Julie Kagawa (The Iron Fey, #4)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF268jY06mLNmsAq4sO42vCAL1vXkKdjib8bcjstFFr_1yZ4sHCzwBoTECa9ajFyVUs11dNGAlkIw5sCSRxxNfvhZyZdGqK2gjO9bPFNUMi66PPFqc1BQPdgfAiKPBXWulAAPlRaHHsN3Q/s1600/The+Iron+Knight+-+Julie+Kagawa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF268jY06mLNmsAq4sO42vCAL1vXkKdjib8bcjstFFr_1yZ4sHCzwBoTECa9ajFyVUs11dNGAlkIw5sCSRxxNfvhZyZdGqK2gjO9bPFNUMi66PPFqc1BQPdgfAiKPBXWulAAPlRaHHsN3Q/s320/The+Iron+Knight+-+Julie+Kagawa.jpg" width="210" /></a>(ATTENTION: This review is for the fourth book in the Iron Fey series. There will probably (read: definitely) be some spoilers from the other books. Especially regarding the Iron Kingdom, because it’s not something I can (or particularly want to) avoid in the review. Please beware. If you haven’t read the first three books or the two novellas, I encourage you to check those out: <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/04/iron-king-by-julie-kagawa.html">The Iron King</a>, <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/04/iron-daughter-by-julie-kagawa-iron-fey.html">The Iron Daughter</a>, <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/04/mini-review-winters-passage-by-julie.html">Winter’s Passage</a>, <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/04/iron-queen-by-julie-kagawa-iron-fey-3.html">The Iron Queen</a>, and<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/08/mini-review-summers-crossing-iron-fey.html"> Summer’s Crossing</a>. YOU ARE WARNED.)<br />
<br />
First thing: this book, the conclusion to the epic adventure that is the Iron Fey novels, which those who have read them have mostly become rather attached to, will make you cry. Seriously. There will probably be water works. Regardless of your being team Ash or team Puck or team ‘why don’t they both just give up on that crazy Meghan iron fey chick’, you will probably still cry, if you’re the type of person to ever cry during books.<br />
<br />
Ash. *sniffle*<br />
<br />
Anyway. As the conclusion to this series which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed so far, as well as the first and only book in the Iron Fey series to be from Ash’s perspective rather than Meghan’s, I was almost concerned that I wouldn’t like it as much as the others. <br />
<br />
That was naïve of me, I should’ve considered that it was: a) Ash. and b) Julie Kagawa, epic author extraordinaire, wrote it! <br />
<br />
It was awesome. Action packed, emotion filled, and beautifully written. I really can’t say more in this review. I want to, but I don’t want to spoil the whole thing which would be awful for everyone else. All I can say is thanks. Thank you, Julie Kagawa, for this awesome series that totally changed my mind about ‘stupid faeries’ and for the crazy roller coaster ride that it was and its epic conclusion. P.S.. thanks for geeking out about My Chemical Romance like twice. Haha!Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-82856862039021277512011-12-16T19:59:00.000-06:002011-12-16T19:59:25.864-06:00"Shatter Me" by Tahereh Mafi<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9Ta1cUj5EJGB50g1O2WC68jnS0AP0sFZ4A8CEG7LkLNYgtIk21Y6vPbzCZ2w-QVW0jtrgnH1fp0QYHC_rmlEIbaS5vixz-ADc9CfnpYensic-2aLc4-orFIBofQW25OJHhCAWVydsgAx/s1600/Shatter+Me+-+Tahereh+Mafi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9Ta1cUj5EJGB50g1O2WC68jnS0AP0sFZ4A8CEG7LkLNYgtIk21Y6vPbzCZ2w-QVW0jtrgnH1fp0QYHC_rmlEIbaS5vixz-ADc9CfnpYensic-2aLc4-orFIBofQW25OJHhCAWVydsgAx/s320/Shatter+Me+-+Tahereh+Mafi.jpg" width="212" /></a><span id="freeText10251099097832839237"><strong>"Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.</strong> <br />
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. <br />
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. <br />
<strong>Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.</strong> "-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11472297-shatter-me">goodreads</a></span><br />
<br />
I read “Shatter Me” in about 2 & ½ hours when I probably should’ve been doing schoolwork. I thought I’d start the book and read a chapter during a break in math homework and go back to what I was doing. That didn’t work out so well… I started Shatter Me and was immediately enraptured with the thoughtful, possibly crazy, progressively awesome heroine, Juliette, as well as the deceptively dark (or not as much as it seems? You‘ll see. Read it!) dystopian world she resides in. It was absolutely psychological, considering being locked up in a cell in contact with no other people for so long in desolate conditions, all while stewing over the fact that you do awful things to people by simply touching them-- whether she wants to or not.<br />
<br />
The writing was another thing entirely. It was amazing. It kept me right inside the story until the end. It was also just really pretty. Then, there was the whole thing with Juliette’s thoughts and her confusion of a contradicting thought process with the whole words crossed out thing in thoughts…<br />
<br />
I’ve seen Shatter Me referred to as a dystopian, a thriller, a paranormal, a romance combined with any of those things, and I’ll just say it’s all of those. Dystopian, for the world-- though I wouldn’t say that’s quite the main focus like in some other novels, there’s other things! Paranormal, because she can hurt people with only a touch ‘for no reason’. Romance, because there is another incredibly complex main character, Adam, and I think you can just guess that there’s going to be something between them (and their relationship, the lack there-of, and the general tension? Stunning.). Thriller, because I kept turning pages and found that I was literally gripping the edge of my seat at the climax and some other parts. Psychological, because inside Juliette’s head is a scary, twisted, traumatic place to be in a psychologically fascinating kind of way. And really? The other genre I’d put it in, and as number one: genre Awesome. Awesome in a real sense of the world. In an awe-inspiring writing, complex and likeable character filled, complicated and deceptive plot, dark and controlled world, sort-of-way.<br />
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Needless to say, (but I’ll say them anyway) two things: I cannot wait for the sequel, Tahereh Mafi is awesome. On that note, I’ll end this with the surprise third thing: the cover is epic sparkly.Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-18154293501108897182011-12-14T10:06:00.000-06:002011-12-14T10:06:26.474-06:00Things!Hey guys.<br />
<br />
So, you probably noticed that in November I said I would be 'back' to my routine of posting more often here at Books4Hearts. I got caught up in some other stuff, and planned to actually, like, legit, be back December 1st. However, I ended up spending quite some time kind of helping to re-do another project in the book blogger universe. I'm psyched to say I'm the new co-blogger-person at <a href="http://www.youngbloggersunite.com/">Young Bloggers Unite</a> with Austin from <a href="http://www.readingteen.net/">Reading Teen</a>. If you've never heard of YBU, it's a community centered blog sort of thing started a few months ago for the young book bloggers of the blogging community, originally by Melina from <a href="http://www.readingvacation.net/">Reading Vacation</a> and HD from <a href="http://www.readingwritingbreathing.com/">Reading Writing Breathing</a>. Shortly after, Austin joined them. HD and Melina decided they no longer had time for YBU, and so they stepped down and Austin stepped up, and he asked me to join the team! YBU has just come back from a while 'off the air' which he and I spent re-thinking YBU, re-making the schedule, and re-designing the blog, which took a lot of work-- now that it's set up, I promise I'm back, ha. I recommend that you check out YBU if you're a young blogger who wants to connect with the others, with discussions (ex... Today we're debating: Twilight vs. Harry Potter), guest posts, and more. <br />
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I have been preoccupied with other things as well, but I'm not trying to make excuses, everyone's busy! I just had finals and homework has been consuming my life and there's been some family stuff and all that.. The holidays are fast approaching as well! But ANYWAY. I didn't just make this post to talk about YBU or to tell y'all why I haven't been posting. I also meant to make a post about Google Friend Connect. 70 people follow this blog using GFC, and google recently announced that GFC was no longer going to be available for non-blogger blogs. Books4Hearts *is* a blogger blog, however it's been hinted at and would kind of make sense that google might eliminate GFC for all blogs eventually and it's their right to do it at any time. SO in light of this I suggest, to make it so that your review-reading is not interrupted that you either:<br />
1) Follow the blog via email. To the right of this post under the GFC following widget there's a place to enter your email address to follow the blog via email.<br />
2) Like <a href="http://www.facebook.com/books4hearts">Books4Hearts on Facebook</a>, if you don't already. <br />
3) Follow<a href="http://www.twitter.com/books4hearts"> @Books4Hearts on Twitter</a>, if you don't already. I realize that I'm not always good about posting/tweeting every time someone posts at B4H but I'll certainly try to be more attentive about that! <br />
<br />
Anyway. I hope everyone has a Happy Holidays! And I'd like to thank everyone that reads Books4Hearts and follows and comments even when there aren't a lot of new posts and when there are-- I appreciate it! I'd also like to thank Angela and SEP for being awesome blogmates even if they can't necessarily post often, but I for one enjoy when they do and also, more importantly, they're great friends-- seriously, it sounds chees-y but it's true, they're seriously amazing people! :D<br />
<br />
Just, again: HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! Whatever you celebrate, haha... May your Christmas be white, may the light of your menorah be bright, etc...) :)Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-39576977809009054202011-11-19T11:29:00.001-06:002011-11-19T11:30:50.667-06:00"Crossed" (Matched, #2) by Ally Condie<span id="freeText17798483737200800696"><span style="font-size: x-small;">*Note: I want to apologize for not personally being as active in book blogging as I usually try to be. (If anyone even noticed!) I know for a while there, I was posting reviews and such every day/2 days/even 3 days. I would like to get back to that but I'm also very busy at the moment (if it tells you anything, after I finish typing this, I'm going to go do a mountain of french homework). Additionally, I seem to have like a reviewing writer's block. But regardless, I hope to try to get back to 'business-as-usual'. Anyway, basically, just thank you people for visiting the blog and all that business even though it isn't quite as busy as usual, haha!*</span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpmanC3ks5n61G8Gtm1eiJYB1vQC2a7bf5geznH1GE1Qvls4TGnp218uqrhAziFj3w24jKfe5aCLOHQJtrch3wH62mLuuxcuXrqA1X7jCq6CL5HQZyCTeuQsgO2tuMo2x1Gy3-c6T_K_6/s1600/Crossed+-+Ally+Condie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpmanC3ks5n61G8Gtm1eiJYB1vQC2a7bf5geznH1GE1Qvls4TGnp218uqrhAziFj3w24jKfe5aCLOHQJtrch3wH62mLuuxcuXrqA1X7jCq6CL5HQZyCTeuQsgO2tuMo2x1Gy3-c6T_K_6/s320/Crossed+-+Ally+Condie.jpg" width="212" /></a><span id="freeText17798483737200800696">("Crossed" is the sequel to "Matched". If you haven't read "Matched" you may want to check out <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/01/matched-by-ally-condie.html">that review</a> instead so as to avoid any spoilers in this one! You are warned.)</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17798483737200800696">"Crossed" was a good book. The writing, one of my favorite elements of "Matched" with its poetry and flow were impeccable, again. The poems at the beginning were good, too-- the actual poetry. They enriched the story. Problematically though-- it wasn't awesome. It was good. I was a little bit disappointed that I wasn't totally blown away after being so excited for it. While I didn't expect an incredibly adventurous book filled with violence and suspense or anything like that, I was expecting a little bit more adventure-- the ending of the first set up for some grand endeavor to the end of the Society, and I expected that to a be a little bit more </span><span id="freeText17798483737200800696">exciting that it was. There was a journey, a long one, a hard one, throughout the Society and outside it. However, sometimes it seemed to drag.</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17798483737200800696">Also, I really liked Cassia, the heroine, in the first book. But in "Crossed" I didn't like her nearly as much, because I felt she was so absorbed in thoughts of Xander and/or Ky rather than what was going on and the bigger picture or even her family. It was like in parts of "Catching Fire" or "Mockingjay" when I started to get (super) annoyed with Katniss for being caught up between Gale and Peeta rather than, you know, EVERYTHING ELSE. *slight exaggeration.* I did still like Xander and Ky, and am less convinced about being 'team Xander' like before. It's harder now. Ha! </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText17798483737200800696">The bottom line: "Crossed" was good book and I liked it, just not as much as I expected. </span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-47191719693226797952011-11-15T17:36:00.001-06:002011-11-15T17:47:51.003-06:00"The Falcon" by Jackie French Koller<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<em>"Sure." I heard Jim's pen scribbling again. "Our time's about up anyway. Just one more question, though. Do you have any idea why so many unusual things happen to you?"</em><br />
<em>"Yeah," I snarled. "God hates me."</em><br />
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Luke Carver is a 17 year old who can't seem to help getting in trouble. Every time he goes anywhere, he seems to get in trouble. He messes up so many times that it sure seems like God hates him. After all, how else would he get into such wacky, horrible situations?<br />
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Luke has secrets, though. There are things he hasn't told anyone. He hasn't even told his journal the full truth. After all, if it isn't his fault, why does he have to tell anyone?<br />
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<em>"Yes," I said quietly. "I'm fine." Then I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the seat. I was tired, too. So, so tired...</em><br />
<em>Just like I am now.</em><br />
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This was one of the shortest books I think I've read. It was, strangely, also one of the most interesting. It was one of those books where you think that it's not going to be that gripping, but then you find yourself wondering, throughout the day, what's going to happen next.<br />
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I really liked the way that the author pulled out the mystery of what happened to Luke before the book started. It was really interesting, even though it wasn't as "dark" as they made it out to seem. It was interesting, though.<br />
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I would actually recommend this book to anyone who really liked The Catcher in the Rye, mostly because the writing style seemed quite similar to me, and it's about the same sort of aged guy.<br />
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All in all- pretty good of a book.Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-49057906307710356542011-11-12T18:25:00.001-06:002011-11-12T18:29:26.910-06:00"The Witch's Brat" by Rosemary Sutcliff (guest reviewer Runningfree)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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"From the moment I picked up The Witch's Brat, I was hooked. Sutcliff follows the journey of a deformed, quiet, boy with the gift of healing in his hands, a head for herbs and their uses, a heart of kindness. One shoulder is hunched and his leg is crooked, leaving even the simple manner of walking to be a painful and arduous task. One day, on his way back from errands, he stops and watches the neighbor's cow who has, over the past three days, been growing extremely thin. Lovel believes the cow ate something that is causing her to lose so much weight so rapidly and is concerned. The neighbors raise a fuss, saying he's cast the Evil Eye upon their milking cow and Lovel is the reason the cow is sick. The neighbors create such a ruckus that a mob starts and soon stones are thrown at Lovel, driving him out and away into the wide, unknown world.
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In less than 200 pages, I grew to admire Lovel and his tenacity, watched him grow in confidence as he discovered his gift for healing, and cheered him on when he doubted himself and his purpose.
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Sutcliff's writing is so rich and hearty, I love her storytelling prowess, her ability to weave in so much without bogging you down. I can't say that I adore her characters like I've adored other characters but I admire them, I want to be like them, they are real, down to earth, dust covered, people that bleed, cry, and struggle through years of adversity.
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Lovel, though he has been beaten by men, still has the capacity to forgive and care for them when they are ailing, old, weak and tired. He heals them, much as he heals himself.
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I'd HIGHLY recommend this book no matter your age. For those of you who don't read any witchcraft, don't let the name throw you off. There is no sorcery whatsoever."Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-1783859408756339752011-11-04T21:09:00.001-05:002011-11-04T21:10:15.192-05:00"Daughter of Smoke and Bone" by Laini Taylor<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidqjR4tuh16inVRQuAQoZWd2OsiFqThyUfMJUEFzOaEmeo_yIE_zOln9xdAU_N83Tuvl69he8VMpuHWGB14-uJkhbLxnCKqhTbyGwziYEU-DxThiiHCIhUlf3a82q6dwA0r379KNb-vARw/s1600/Daughter+of+Smoke+and+Bone+-+Laini+Taylor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidqjR4tuh16inVRQuAQoZWd2OsiFqThyUfMJUEFzOaEmeo_yIE_zOln9xdAU_N83Tuvl69he8VMpuHWGB14-uJkhbLxnCKqhTbyGwziYEU-DxThiiHCIhUlf3a82q6dwA0r379KNb-vARw/s1600/Daughter+of+Smoke+and+Bone+-+Laini+Taylor.jpg" /></a><span id="freeText1759254097709282590">"Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. <br />
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low. <br />
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war. <br />
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out. <br />
When one of the strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?"-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a></span><br />
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This book was so many things. It was suspense, confusion, tension, beauty, strength, and weakness. There was romance and then there was hatred. There were memories and there was flipping in between their present and their past. There was a girl, Karou, our heroine of the story, and she had naturally blue hair. And that's cool too. The writing was beautiful and created superbly vivid imagery. At times, reading The Daughter of Smoke and Bone I was confused, because I couldn't decide what I thought of characters-- even Karou. By what I think, I meant whether I trusted them, and Karou is the main character! It was weird. It was deception! It was exciting. Akiva is awesome. All the characters were well developed even with their veils of mystery. The way time passed or flitted back and forth between the future and the present for the narrative, especially near the end, was difficult to get used to at first but then I ended up liking that too.<br />
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It was a peculiar book. With its many dimensions and complicated inner-workings it wasn't like anything I've read before. I have nothing to compare it to! It surprised me and it lived up to the hype. The writing kept me totally wrapped up in the story and engrossed in its complex world with its depth and clever wording-- Laini Taylor totally hit that out of the park! All that having been said; I look forward to the sequel!<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Thank you to Little Brown for the opportunity to review this book!</span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-51109385048124415552011-10-30T18:42:00.000-05:002011-10-30T18:42:37.901-05:00"Ashes" by Ilsa J. Bick<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_3gpTlOrr2V2zxc9qg2b-Ds9ae-4neMVNF077uezOHXDjXnKheDA1HABhluF-gJ_h55ooAqcuFX9Z05qoTJLd86inufp80516xAHureLW1q5fKVLe6m3QpfGnt16sUWTA86bOBKsluZD/s1600/Ashes+-+Ilsa+J.+Bick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_3gpTlOrr2V2zxc9qg2b-Ds9ae-4neMVNF077uezOHXDjXnKheDA1HABhluF-gJ_h55ooAqcuFX9Z05qoTJLd86inufp80516xAHureLW1q5fKVLe6m3QpfGnt16sUWTA86bOBKsluZD/s320/Ashes+-+Ilsa+J.+Bick.jpg" width="213" /></a><span id="freeText13589556993910472017"><em>"It could happen tomorrow . . .</em></span><br />
<span id="freeText13589556993910472017"><em></em>An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the sky, destroying every electronic device, wiping out every computerized system, and killing billions.<br />
Alex hiked into the woods to say good-bye to her dead parents and her personal demons. Now desperate to find out what happened after the pulse crushes her to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom—a young soldier—and Ellie, a girl whose grandfather was killed by the EMP. </span><span id="freeText13589556993910472017">For this improvised family and the others who are spared, it’s now a question of who can be trusted and who is no longer human."-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a></span><br />
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<span id="freeText13589556993910472017">Ashes is one of the best zombie books I’ve read, up there with <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/03/forest-of-hands-and-teeth-by-carrie.html">The Forest of Hands and Teeth</a> and<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/07/zombie-survival-guide-by-max-brooks.html"> The Zombie Survival Guide</a>, as well as one of the best post-apocalyptic books I’ve read (and probably one of the more ’realistic’ as well). But Ashes is so much more than that. As I was reading it I thought of it as one of those dolls that opens up and there’s another doll and another doll and another doll and another doll. Every page, there were more complicated (but awesome) things going on. Incredibly fast-paced, sometimes things happened so fast that I didn’t understand them right away-- but I don’t think Alex the protagonist did either, so that just enhanced it. Ashes bled fear, anxiety, tension, action, gruesomeness, creepy, scary, psychological stuff, and shock throughout the whole book. It was incredible! Also, it’s perfect for reading any time but I think I picked a fabulous time to read it, right around Halloween. <br />
<br />
Alex is an epic heroine for the story. She’s a strong female character that doesn’t let herself totally give up for any reason, even when falling for a guy. She took charge and survived after the EMP, and helped others along the way. Granted, she also received help from several people, including Tom, the mysterious guy they meet along the way, however it wasn’t a *total* damsel-in-distress moment. Alex showed raw emotion throughout the book without being wimpy or anything like that. Tom was pretty cool too, when we got to meet him, and Ellie as well. Characters in this book (and a lot of similar books to these) are integral to me, I think, because you don’t typically see as many characters as often while they’re fighting their way through the EMP ravaged world. <br />
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An original thing that I liked about Ashes is that, while some post-apocalyptic (or dystopian) books avoid the actual disaster, experiencing it or explaining it, it started out from the beginning right before and the reader gets to see the whole thing unfold. I think a lot of the time it’s avoided because sometimes it’s hard to convince the reader and have them be like, ‘yeah, this could actually happen. The world really could end this way.’ and even I’m like that sometimes but Ashes convinced me. I’ll be thinking about the horrifyingly realistic (and horrifying in general) world from the book for a long time.<br />
The bottom line: if you’re looking for an epic book, especially a scary post-apocalyptic zombie novel, Ashes is for you. I can’t wait for the next one! </span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-45468745942269239472011-10-23T20:28:00.000-05:002011-10-23T20:28:44.757-05:00"Paper Towns" by John Green<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOGYkr-q_agaTKGcH2r9bNX-NLZfKW0mdGVoQXNcoy_XOtdf0MAeZDTU4348reHEh2Eitay-4aTLFpcTUgovsHhtGK6OJpSZ6yNTq3RLJH38qQ8VpwlrhpfNXoaZWztMuScISZK3u1Yjn/s1600/Paper+Towns+-+John+Green.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOGYkr-q_agaTKGcH2r9bNX-NLZfKW0mdGVoQXNcoy_XOtdf0MAeZDTU4348reHEh2Eitay-4aTLFpcTUgovsHhtGK6OJpSZ6yNTq3RLJH38qQ8VpwlrhpfNXoaZWztMuScISZK3u1Yjn/s320/Paper+Towns+-+John+Green.jpg" width="212" /></a>"Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life–dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge–he follows. After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues–and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.<span id="freeText819497025378345661">"-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661"><i><b>"The town was paper, but the memories were not."</b></i></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661">In this edition of 'Sometimes Cat likes Contemporary', she falls hard for a book called "Paper Towns" by John Green. Not remarkable on the surface. The cover has a thumbtack on it and thumb tacks are cool but thumbtacks don't say, 'HEYTHISBOOKTHISBOOKTHISBOOKIT'SAMAZING'. </span><span id="freeText819497025378345661"><i><b></b></i>The quote above about towns that are paper, or paper towns, that's amazing, right? It's good. It's SO good. This book. Too good. Written beautifully, oh so magnificently so. SO MANY quotable things in "Paper Towns" too. I figured it would be good, because of a few reasons: everyone seems to love John Green and his epic-nerdness and what isn't to love about epic nerd-ness? Nothing. Also, the vlogbrothers videos are excellent and nerdy and cool, and DFTBA (Don't Forget to be Awesome) and stuff. But mainly, last year my friend KT was talking about this book and was like, 'YOUNEEDTOREADTHISBOOK' and I was kind of like, 'yeah, I should do that sometime!' but mostly it left my mind. I was re-interested in reading it because of all the talk about <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fault-Our-Stars-John-Green/dp/0525478817">"The Fault in Our Stars"</a>, Green's upcoming novel, and borrowed it from her and oooh I loved it. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661">First, I loved the characters. I loved Quentin and his weirdness and his tendency to be timid and how he thought Margo was so awesome in the true sense of the word awesome. I liked his friends and how he had real life teenage friend relationships and how sometimes you have weird friends and that's okay and when it comes down to it your friends are there for you and you'd die for them and them you, probably. I liked Margo Roth Spiegalman and her epic-ness and how she has the name Margo Roth Spiegalman and how her full name in its Margo Roth Spiegalman glory is used casually in the book just because she's Margo Roth Spiegalman. I appreciated her clever escapades and her willfulness to live by her own agenda and taking charge. I liked that she roped Quentin into her master plan and as that's going you begin to see her vulnerability and the true Margo Roth Spiegalman and not just the idea that Quentin and everyone else has of Margo Roth Spiegalman. I also like that I just used her name like 6 times and I'm okay with that. I like that this book has such a crisp and unique oh-so-very realistic and clever voice and it's addictive. I like that this book is forcing me to write a review where I break all kinds of grammatical rules because it's inappropriate that I just used the word 'and' so many times but I don't mind because that's the way I feel about this book.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="freeText819497025378345661">What I'm saying is, "Paper Towns" broke some rules for me, but that was great and it was great otherwise as well. It made me use "and" so many times in this review that it should be illegal. It made me be in awe of a character with a name like Margo Roth Spiegalman and it was awesome. It had nerd-ness and fabulous adjectives. There was an epic road trip (two, if you count the first adventure), and it wasn't even that cliche even thought it should've been. It introduced me to the concept of paper towns in more ways than one, and a fabulous little place in New York called Agloe and its overwhelming population count of one.</span></div>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-84711555089960556532011-10-18T19:19:00.001-05:002011-10-18T19:20:04.273-05:00"This Dark Endeavor (The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein)" by Kenneth Oppell<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig0T9HaQejB92FTJBvOO2IUbwzWtnsPRC2xCSHWfjXmX1RVL4hLqyB34xfgYhKZ8gn6gu6xn7cehD-oRgxbV66sXofu4QhAWwnqz4AKfsxZUGJVy9QgPX58d03HMrA1EKddwVtrpJ_qM7a/s1600/This+Dark+Endeavor+by+Kenneth+Oppel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig0T9HaQejB92FTJBvOO2IUbwzWtnsPRC2xCSHWfjXmX1RVL4hLqyB34xfgYhKZ8gn6gu6xn7cehD-oRgxbV66sXofu4QhAWwnqz4AKfsxZUGJVy9QgPX58d03HMrA1EKddwVtrpJ_qM7a/s320/This+Dark+Endeavor+by+Kenneth+Oppel.jpg" width="218" /></a><span id="freeText10810015259603311548">"Victor and Konrad are the twin brothers Frankenstein. They are nearly inseparable. Growing up, their lives are filled with imaginary adventures...until the day their adventures turn all too real. <br />
They stumble upon The Dark Library, and secret books of alchemy and ancient remedies are discovered. Father forbids that they ever enter the room again, but this only piques Victor's curiosity more. When Konrad falls gravely ill, Victor is not satisfied with the various doctors his parents have called in to help. He is drawn back to The Dark Library where he uncovers an ancient formula for the Elixir of Life. With their friend Elizabeth, Henry and Victor immediately set out to find assistance from a man who was once known for his alchemical works to help create the formula. <br />
Determination and the unthinkable outcome of losing his brother spur Victor on in the quest for the three ingredients that will save Konrad's life. After scaling the highest trees in the Strumwald, diving into the deepest lake caves, and sacrificing one’s own body part, the three fearless friends risk their lives to save another."-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a></span><br />
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Okay, if any of you ever saw<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2009/11/frankenstein-by-mary-shelley.html"> my review of "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley</a>, you know that I liked it, but also was maybe a little bit underwhelmed after my expectations from the Hollywood portrayal of the Frankenstein monster (yes I realize this is absolutely *blasphemous*). I'm actually re-reading it right now, and appreciating it a lot more. (Give me a break, it was one of the first Gothic 19th century novels I'd read, and it was a lot to take in!). </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText10810015259603311548">I wasn't at all sure what to expect from this book but I loved it! It was so good. The portrayal of young Victor Frankenstein to show the childhood that isn't talked about in Frankenstein was epic. It showed us some of the events that could've lead to the famous Dr. Frankenstein and his *slightly* twisted ways. From reading Frankenstein, I could totally believe that this is what his adolescence would've been like; the culmination of 'teenage-angst', bitterness, and tragedy to warp his future. Victor's character was well developed and the voice of the novel was great. The tension between Victor and Elizabeth (and the different kind between Victor and Konrad) was remarkable. It did move a bit slow for me at times but so did "Frankenstein", and many other books that I end up liking. The mystery and misadventures were daring and cool to read of, and it was interesting to draw parallels to what occurs in the original novel in Victor's adult life. Also, one might think that "This Dark Endeavor" would be cliche or cheese-y, another one of those unoriginal 'teenage monster' stories but it was much more.</span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText10810015259603311548">I also looked up the book because I wanted to know if there would be a sequel, which I would be very interested in if that's possible or maybe it would be too much, but anyway I saw that it's going to be made into a movie which would be amazing because I could totally see this book as a movie-- super creepy. Also, for the bottom line of random notes, look at the cover!! So eerie and dark, absolutely perfect for the book! </span><br />
<span id="freeText10810015259603311548"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Thank you to Simon&Schuster for giving me the opportunity to review this book. Reader's Note: As usual, this in no way swayed my opinion.</span></span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-74366753613059187982011-10-13T19:35:00.001-05:002011-10-13T19:37:10.233-05:00In which I meet Moira Young and Becca FitzpatrickSo, you guys know<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/06/blood-red-road-by-moira-young.html"> how much I liked "Blood Red Road" by Moira Young</a>, right? Well, my friend Elena, who also picked up the book (Yay for YA love.) found out that she (and "Hush, Hush" author Becca Fitzpatrick) was coming on tour to IL (another place besides where we went, too, and one coming up still) and told me a few days ago. It was a, 'I'm going to this and you should come.', kind of thing, and I didn't think I'd be able to, but I did!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg49ZdCDT4plmq3qZjQ6Qyd3fuMecu95yGufP9Lf00dPff4EX_k11v0g3HjtJuOeWp9wD6J_JiMgQM3xlEBejcqGG1U5Vyl_ECvAS4r2mcmdlcGwSAJvog0c1Ayv5Fi_fnu-Z03WR7dZFPV/s1600/Me+with+Elena.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg49ZdCDT4plmq3qZjQ6Qyd3fuMecu95yGufP9Lf00dPff4EX_k11v0g3HjtJuOeWp9wD6J_JiMgQM3xlEBejcqGG1U5Vyl_ECvAS4r2mcmdlcGwSAJvog0c1Ayv5Fi_fnu-Z03WR7dZFPV/s320/Me+with+Elena.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elena and I and our books.<br />
Also apparently I'm not looking at the camera.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>It was fun! (Unsurprisingly!) I'm really glad Elena let me know about the event-- I had no idea. Becca Fitzpatrick gave this really interesting/funny talk about how she came to write "Hush, Hush" and became a writer and such. Moira Young also gave a very interesting talk and read from "Blood Red Road" which was excellent and she read from an epic scene of the book (seriously, epic.) <br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">*If I had been thinking, I would've taken photos of the authors talking, and then I would've posted them right here. Obviously I wasn't.*</span></i><br />
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Then they let people ask questions and some people asked what I thought were really good questions. And, I think it was after someone asked about movies to books or something, Moira Young mentioned that "Blood Red Road" had been optioned for film and Ridley Scott is going to be directing it! Elena and I didn't realize that had been announced and we were totally squee-ing (on the inside. Moira was still talking!). Becca Fitzpatrick also told a particularly funny story about a situation that she took from her life as a teenager and put in "Crescendo", regarding asking a boy to a dance, her friends, and a hot dog... <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_udHcxiVXwpXf7l9hLgmSjH4_4FTSqLW2ASmX5EKE5PsVZRid40OTZPgcZZ7LDmuzti-0nSocxe922SgK6bBuUmSdGgqWb9iKAD8fuKUYwDT7VITxo-O-_xy60S6R3Ettq79-bFijPk64/s1600/Standing+in+Line.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_udHcxiVXwpXf7l9hLgmSjH4_4FTSqLW2ASmX5EKE5PsVZRid40OTZPgcZZ7LDmuzti-0nSocxe922SgK6bBuUmSdGgqWb9iKAD8fuKUYwDT7VITxo-O-_xy60S6R3Ettq79-bFijPk64/s320/Standing+in+Line.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Standing in line to get books signed! Hm. That rhymes. Odd.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Then we got our books signed. I haven't read "Hush, Hush" and didn't have it but I bought it there, especially after hearing Becca talk I want to read it! We also took photos:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9asgXcrc3C65vmcp_LhoL2S3h42xHabt0_RTtYV_F7caVJx0sD8-vk_wOkzdvWEaF8czJlFzuFAECNHVIW7G-zpNGAhNl0Zo5spJ3P5_aafibop-SGaFEisoC5pUKsQwSqJoBx5s94UHQ/s1600/Me+with+Moira+Young.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9asgXcrc3C65vmcp_LhoL2S3h42xHabt0_RTtYV_F7caVJx0sD8-vk_wOkzdvWEaF8czJlFzuFAECNHVIW7G-zpNGAhNl0Zo5spJ3P5_aafibop-SGaFEisoC5pUKsQwSqJoBx5s94UHQ/s320/Me+with+Moira+Young.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Moira Young!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOpIaMPLZMn5vlhSAk4x557l8bDYpFEd4nLn-Ohfp8nBJZCfvtIUNClegK8ImyHUwHaObZQ-tA66AHK_I6IE2sjEQ4ZbJhyphenhyphenyEIE-8iWIsAfEJxCt3cuARR61BazmFJH4iKWFIxxvO7AFgw/s1600/Me+with+Becca+Fitzpatrick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOpIaMPLZMn5vlhSAk4x557l8bDYpFEd4nLn-Ohfp8nBJZCfvtIUNClegK8ImyHUwHaObZQ-tA66AHK_I6IE2sjEQ4ZbJhyphenhyphenyEIE-8iWIsAfEJxCt3cuARR61BazmFJH4iKWFIxxvO7AFgw/s320/Me+with+Becca+Fitzpatrick.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Becca Fitzpatrick! <br />
Why do I look so weird in this picture, anyway? I look fairly normal in the first one! :P</td></tr>
</tbody></table>So, basically, it was a fun time. It was super nice to meet the authors, and they were also very nice! <br />
<br />
If you want to attend a stop on Becca Fitzpatrick's tour for "Silence", there are three more stops for the US part of the tour and even more scheduled for the UK and Canada, <a href="http://beccafitzpatrick.com/USSilenceTour.html">check them out here. (You should go.)</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEVXSjqw-nPCdr_WfSwej5da1Dz198pBrneW5GY7MzJZG0zX0hSwEiLdv67FsusnL7muqGIv4S2E9ItesCBDQKcer7sne9O_uXQdhqQue17S5TOMvaaa1rWgQt4POLCCr6qeOOkTP3UIa/s1600/Hush%252C+Hush+and+Blood+Red+Road.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEVXSjqw-nPCdr_WfSwej5da1Dz198pBrneW5GY7MzJZG0zX0hSwEiLdv67FsusnL7muqGIv4S2E9ItesCBDQKcer7sne9O_uXQdhqQue17S5TOMvaaa1rWgQt4POLCCr6qeOOkTP3UIa/s320/Hush%252C+Hush+and+Blood+Red+Road.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The books! Also feathers. (Hush, Hush-- wings... fallen angel.. yep. And, Blood Red Road has Nero too!)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-32708311454603976902011-10-10T20:56:00.001-05:002011-10-10T20:58:57.894-05:00"The Son of Neptune" (Heroes of Olympus, #2) by Rick Riordan<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgphzFuNCnK97pDZKEpvpwoKSTw40eS7MbOxki4uRqHZAhOsAd9VxwXoVHAoZuQR8Uk3hPiWQru0Hh4yz6NT_7tF7H3miC8Rx9_0cpghwdsssu2wZi2CjKuK3qGdB0GQiaxfWaQOzva8LT9/s1600/The+Son+of+Neptune+-+Rick+Riordan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgphzFuNCnK97pDZKEpvpwoKSTw40eS7MbOxki4uRqHZAhOsAd9VxwXoVHAoZuQR8Uk3hPiWQru0Hh4yz6NT_7tF7H3miC8Rx9_0cpghwdsssu2wZi2CjKuK3qGdB0GQiaxfWaQOzva8LT9/s320/The+Son+of+Neptune+-+Rick+Riordan.jpg" width="212" /></a>No description. Why? Because I didn't like any of the descriptions: too long, too spoiler-y, or generally too much. Did I think I could do better for a little summary? Nope.<br />
(This review will probably contain spoilers for the first book. You might want to read <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2010/12/lost-hero-heroes-of-olympus-book-1-by.html">The Lost Hero</a> review instead. YOU ARE WARNED.)<br />
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<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2010/12/lost-hero-heroes-of-olympus-book-1-by.html">The Lost Hero</a> was seriously awesome, and being the first book in a companion series to THE <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2009/08/percy-jackson-and-olympians-book-1.html">Percy Jackson </a>series by THE Rick Riordan, I didn't expect any less. Obviously I had high expectations for the sequel, "The Son of Neptune" which I impatiently awaited and narrowly avoided totally forgetting about. It was even better than the first though! Really good. So why did I like it?<br />
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The characters, as with the last one, were great. This one was told through three perspectives (as with the last one), each offering their own personalities with depth and history. That's one of my favorite parts of the book, actually, there were a lot of flashbacks and back story to the new main characters (of the 7? You'll find out) Frank and Hazel, from different families and *cough*times*cough*. Then, I'm brought to another of my favorite parts of the book, and this isn't a spoiler because the first page opens with him, PERCY. Percy is back and we read a lot of the book (I'd be inclined to say the majority of the book is from his perspective, but I'm not sure) with him. I think everyone's missed him since the end of 'his' series, or at least I have. He doesn't totally hijack the story though, it's still about the new heroes and it's also in third person rather than in the Percy Jackson books where it was ALL from his perspective in first person.<br />
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Besides characters, the settings were epic, as they are in the rest of Riordan's books. They cover a lot of ground in "The Son of Neptune", always moving. There's more mythology (duh.) as a lot of the book involves the Romans too as opposed to only the Greeks. The pace was quick too, the 520 pages passed lightning fast (get it? Lightning. Yeah...). The voices of the characters were fabulous, very different from each other which I was glad of, I can't stand it when I can't figure out who I'm reading as or forget.<br />
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I did have a few small disappointments, I wish we'd seen the characters we met in The Lost Hero; Leo, Piper, and Jason. I also wish that certain characters had been reunited (finish the book. You'll know what I'm talking about.) but I realize that's part of the cliffhanger thing. Overall though? I loved it and can't wait for the next book installment of The Heroes of Olympus.Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-13388571614886742972011-10-05T16:35:00.001-05:002011-10-05T16:37:42.064-05:00"The Shattering" by Karen Healey<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQRK3m0tfhq0WyR7tP5ZdbG1HGj6NjDmuqwNJrtLgCs3QTjMEmJ5Nw6F3VLkTU8T3Wp1NerMcsEh_thgo8a5SNAEM1Q8xFXCiwVXrHbfsfr-O05twEM9q62QO-wgvjfJj1M8msBs5va_8/s1600/The+Shattering+-+Karen+Healey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQRK3m0tfhq0WyR7tP5ZdbG1HGj6NjDmuqwNJrtLgCs3QTjMEmJ5Nw6F3VLkTU8T3Wp1NerMcsEh_thgo8a5SNAEM1Q8xFXCiwVXrHbfsfr-O05twEM9q62QO-wgvjfJj1M8msBs5va_8/s320/The+Shattering+-+Karen+Healey.jpg" width="213" /></a><span id="freeText17645370683472851378">"Seventeen-year-old Keri likes to plan for every possibility. She knows what to do if you break an arm, or get caught in an earthquake or fire. But she <i>wasn't</i> prepared for her brother's suicide, and his death has left her shattered with grief. When her childhood friend Janna tells her it was murder, not suicide, Keri wants to believe her. After all, Janna's brother died under similar circumstances years ago, and Janna insists a visiting tourist, Sione, who also lost a brother to apparent suicide that year, has helped her find some answers.<br />
As the three dig deeper, disturbing facts begin to pile up: one boy killed every year; all older brothers; all had spent New Year's Eve in the idyllic town of Summerton. But when their search for the serial killer takes an unexpected turn, suspicion is cast on those they trust the most.<br />
As secrets shatter around them, can they save the next victim? Or will they become victims themselves?"-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a></span><br />
<span id="freeText17645370683472851378"></span><span id="freeText17645370683472851378"> </span><br />
<span id="freeText17645370683472851378"></span><span id="freeText17645370683472851378"> This book was weird. I don't mean that in a bad way-- I consider myself weird (hopefully in a good way), I think my friends are weird (definitely in a good way), and basically the rest of the world weird (in its own special way). It was really suspenseful, too. I think the multiple perspectives were smart, they made each of the characters shine just a little bit more and kept up the suspense. Why did multiple characters/perspectives keep up the suspense? Not each of the characters knew what the other one knew so it was a lot of back and forth. It was a mystery, a true mystery book, keeping me flipping pages for the 'who did it??!?" conclusion until the end. The ending shocked me. Let me rephrase that-- parts of the ending were how I *thought* it would end but other parts I didn't think would happen or hadn't even considered. That's always good, a shocking ending when it makes sense and if it's really a knock-you-off-your-feet kind of thing that's even better.</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17645370683472851378">This book was a lot to think about; a lot to consider. I questioned how I would react, and if I would go about solving the mystery the same way. I love books that do that! I also appreciate when a book keeps you thinking about it or its ending and it sticks with you for a while, which it already has ('what?' you ask. 'You just posted the review, how would you know that!?' Actually I read it over a week ago, maybe two weeks, but I've been having trouble *actually* gathering my thoughts about it. And I've been busy.. ANYWAY...), and it will probably continue. It's also a stand-alone. I like when I can get the ACTUAL WHOLE STORY and it EVEN has the nerve to pack a punch. Not that I hate series, it's clear that I don't, but once in a while, seriously: STANDALONE BOOKS. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText17645370683472851378">I'd recommend "The Shattering" to someone looking for a dark, stand-alone, mystery book packed with suspense with an ending that will shock you.</span><br />
<span id="freeText17645370683472851378"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Thank you Little Brown for the opportunity to review this book. As usual, that didn't alter my opinion!</span></span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-12196641638797528472011-10-01T20:14:00.002-05:002011-10-01T20:17:06.398-05:00"The Julian Game" by Adele Griffin<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtSHGrDB8EMQHZAfVZ97W4_o45xoZr77_ylLhpTAWVdyS4MW4ANXpf4CpgDnPok1xwLVWIL4QyTH6tbyZ7LqxY_p7E_-YwW8NquAyff5oAX63XKToLtyHRT8sV4LSQLP-qonDxyZwAhSiq/s1600/The+Julian+Game+-+Adele+Griffin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtSHGrDB8EMQHZAfVZ97W4_o45xoZr77_ylLhpTAWVdyS4MW4ANXpf4CpgDnPok1xwLVWIL4QyTH6tbyZ7LqxY_p7E_-YwW8NquAyff5oAX63XKToLtyHRT8sV4LSQLP-qonDxyZwAhSiq/s320/The+Julian+Game+-+Adele+Griffin.jpg" width="212" /></a><span id="freeText9140559250471858091">"All new girl Raye Archer wants is a way into the in crowd, so when ice-queen Ella Parker picks her to get back at her ex, the gorgeous Julian Kilgarry, Raye is more than game. Even if it means creating a fake Facebook identity so she can learn enough about Julian to sabotage him. It's a fun and dangerous thrill at first, but Raye hadn't counted on falling for Julian herself-and igniting Ella's rage."-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a> (actually this is only 1/3 of the GR description, but it's the most necessary part AND the second part is *almost* spoiler-ish!)</span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText9140559250471858091">I have been eager to pick up another one of Adele Griffin's *many* novels since reading <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/08/tighter-by-adele-griffin.html">"Tighter"</a> (which was pretty amazing!). I'd heard good things about this one. Again, I really loved Adele's addictive, fast-paced, keeps-you-reading writing. It was another fairly short book at 200 pages and if it weren't for the necessity to get up early the next day I would've probably stayed up reading it all the way through like I did with Tighter. While a different sort of book entirely, I had the same 'what's going to happen next!?! This could go terribly wrong!! I must find out the end!!' thoughts while reading it. Even though "The Julian Game" is contemporary I had that scary movie suspense (don't open that closet! don't answer the door! NOOO) feeling throughout as well. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText9140559250471858091">I admit, I didn't like this one as much as Tighter. I think it was a good book and an important book because it's about things that can happen to anyone that uses the internet unwisely *cough*creatingafakepersontomanipulatesomeonenamedJulian*cough* (that's what happens in the book, anyway) and also backlash via the internet. Cyber-bullying. It's a serious problem. Even if Raye didn't necessarily make a good decision when staging the act of 'Elizabeth' to fool one of her peers, the backlash was worse. Those things happen all the time, sometimes it's on the news; kids have committed suicide because of cyber-bullying and its emotional impact just as with bullying at school or anywhere else-- it's a very real thing, is all. I never actually liked any of the characters especially because of their decision which often had me frustrated, but I didn't hate any of them either-- it was more of indifference. </span><br />
<span id="freeText9140559250471858091">Overall, I didn't love "The Julian Game" as much as I'd hoped, but I did adore the writing and thought the length was perfect.</span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-23144557089484518382011-09-24T18:00:00.001-05:002011-09-24T18:23:09.158-05:00"The Eleventh Plague" by Jeff Hirsch<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjanErew62XvzGDGePBp9rcw_XWc0uPCeYQzm1Yc_ZKqrKoF3_XJiJG-Q8E521P5VOcMDJ487V_OD_XKFtQUO_rWT1yBZwII4cke71lwpbh765XxF4VpJgI0L1o6uZw20aMxsV3WTd1ZM_8/s1600/The+Eleventh+Plague+-+Jeff+Hirsch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjanErew62XvzGDGePBp9rcw_XWc0uPCeYQzm1Yc_ZKqrKoF3_XJiJG-Q8E521P5VOcMDJ487V_OD_XKFtQUO_rWT1yBZwII4cke71lwpbh765XxF4VpJgI0L1o6uZw20aMxsV3WTd1ZM_8/s320/The+Eleventh+Plague+-+Jeff+Hirsch.jpg" width="232" /></a>“In the aftermath of a war, America’s landscape has been ravaged and two thirds of the population left dead from a vicious strain of influenza. Fifteen-year-old Stephen Quinn and his family were among the few that survived and became salvagers, roaming the country in search of material to trade for food and other items essential for survival. <br />
But when Stephen’s grandfather dies and his father falls into a coma after an accident, Stephen finds his way to Settler’s Landing, a community that seems too good to be true, where there are real houses, barbecues, a school, and even baseball games. Then Stephen meets strong, defiant, mischievous Jenny, who refuses to accept things as they are. And when they play a prank that goes horribly wrong, chaos erupts, and they find themselves in the midst of a battle that will change Settler’s Landing forever.”-<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a><br />
<br />
Hehehe. So, I had a misconception (I have no idea why I thought this, actually, look up there it even says influenza) that “The Eleventh Plague” was about zombies. As in, zombies being the eleventh plague. Yeah. It’s not, FYI. However, I went into the book expecting zombies and didn’t get them, but wasn’t disappointed. (Books don’t have to have zombies to be good for the record. It’s just a bonus.) Instead of a zombie smashing book I found a book about life after “the Collapse” (which I assume is the collapse of humanity-- a culmination of wars with other countries and the plague, but that’s not explained specifically), a book about survival, and ultimately, for me: a book about hope and community, and its necessity even after a disaster. Even if the world is technically already ‘over’ if you will. Even though the book wasn’t overly emotional these were the impressions it gave me.<br />
<br />
Stephen is a nomad at the beginning of the book; both in the moving around all the time literal sense of the word, and to me, emotionally. He’s only close to his grandfather (if you can call what we see of their relationship that) and his father, and he used to be close to his mother before she met her end. That’s the other thing: this book is kind of about loss. Overcoming loss and finding that hope and community. Throughout the book Stephen has to figure everything out. That’s probably why I liked him so much a main character-- he didn’t know everything, not even close. He had a ton of flaws. Sometimes flaws (kind of like I was talking about in my <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/09/anna-and-french-kiss-by-stephanie.html">Anna and the French Kiss review</a>) can make the book if they’re done right. This is one of those books, I think. <br />
<br />
Additionally, there quite a bit of action and when necessary, creepiness. There was romance that I didn’t expect (I basically thought she was going to continue ignoring him completely) with a troubled girl who really identified with Stephen. The ending was great because it wasn’t completely picture perfect-- also, it left me wanting more without being a total cliffhanger and infuriating me. I believe there’s a sequel or companion novel coming though this novel could easily stand-alone, I look forward to more of the story!Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-9968927076743830802011-09-22T10:59:00.000-05:002011-09-22T10:59:24.320-05:00"Witchlanders" by Lena Coakley<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5L8ffOllF5nUaFEHd8KZG3O5THONOVY1276_cOsdS7NCgbQVXxEbhGI3SJzvujuHBv_uJrmT7xobBpLpkjzHcrutE-lhxpXLHs1LpGfIjPpZ6ygUUSJwiw_hcKZToJrdhQhrNeXON3h9o/s1600/Witchlanders+-+Lena+Coakley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5L8ffOllF5nUaFEHd8KZG3O5THONOVY1276_cOsdS7NCgbQVXxEbhGI3SJzvujuHBv_uJrmT7xobBpLpkjzHcrutE-lhxpXLHs1LpGfIjPpZ6ygUUSJwiw_hcKZToJrdhQhrNeXON3h9o/s320/Witchlanders+-+Lena+Coakley.jpg" width="212" /></a>“High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future. It’s all a fake. At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated? But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned— <br />
Are about him.” -<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/">goodreads</a><br />
<br />
Hello there, epic like complicated fantasy novel, a variety of book I almost always seem to fall for. “Witchlanders” is fantasy, people. The fantastical world within is amazing; reminiscent of the worlds “Eragon“, ‘Narnia‘, or “The Lord of the Rings“, and I totally loved those. No one is flying dragons, there’s no talking lion, and there aren’t any hobbits to be found, but it’s the feeling. A whole different world, with magic and its varied abilities, a broad sense of imagination where you never know what’s going to happen next-- what character will discover their magical ability or what new creature will appear. It makes you want to know more, more about what their magic is, what the singing is, what’s up with the witches shrinking coven, what is going on with Ryder and Farien? Main character Ryder is excellent too. I was kind of confused about Ryder; he’s a great main character and I really liked him but the cover has a girl (I presume his sister, Skyla, but not sure), and I don’t know I just expected the protagonist to be a girl for some reason. I’m entirely okay with it being Ryder though, he was really interesting, and determined. <br />
<br />
An interesting thing I noticed throughout the book, is that some things, especially the characters, aren’t physically described much. At the beginning that actually annoyed me, but then as I read on, I unintentionally formed my own picture in my head and it was crystal clear. I don’t know if this was intentional on Lena Coakley’s part or not but it was brilliant and I’m guessing it was. The pace was good overall also, it did seem a bit slow at times but I think that happens in all fantasy books… <br />
<br />
I’m also not sure if there’s going to be a sequel to this one or not, but I hope there is! It didn’t really seem like a stand-alone with the ending, but more importantly; I want more of the world in Witchlanders and Ryder’s adventures!<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Thank you Simon&Schuster for the opportunity to review this book.</span>Linda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-45656589138308429632011-09-20T13:37:00.000-05:002011-09-20T13:37:40.293-05:00"Jane Jones: Worst. Vampire. Ever." by Caissie St. Onge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301988130l/9753545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" rba="true" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301988130l/9753545.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><br />
<em>For someone who had, prior to that week, never broken a school rule, I'd sure made up for it in two days. I'd become a one-woman crime wave! Okay, maybe just a one-girl minor-infraction machine. Still, I'd gotten pretty bold.</em><br />
<br />
What do you think of when you hear "vampire"? Do you think, fabulous life style? Do you think, sexy undead creature who will never die? Do you think, Dracula?<br />
You probably <em>don't</em> think, "Blood intolerant, flat chested, teenage girl from the Dust Bowl who is forced to live to eternity".<br />
So, basically, you don't think of Jane Jones.<br />
<br />
Jane's life is pretty wacked up. She's lived for years, moving around with her family, who just happen to also be vampires. Her brother is a genius, but forced to be a preteen forever. Her dad works long hours during the day (eesch), for minimal pay. Her mom wants to do her best for her daughter, but doesn't really know how, and Jane?<br />
Esh.<br />
If Jane's life sounds weird as it is, what's the adjective when<br />
1. Her favorite teacher starts acting strangely<br />
2. She's accused of being bullimic<br />
3. Two boys, one alive one vampire, fall for her simultaneously<br />
4. She finds a "cure for vampirism"?<br />
<br />
<em>Something sharp hit me right between the eyes and before I knew what was happening, I was on the floor defending my life. When I finally got the better of my attacker, I stood up and discovered, to my horror, I 'd been fighting with a pair of antique skis and a long moth-eaten wool robe that had fallen on me from what I now saw was an overstuffed closet.</em><br />
<br />
This was a pretty... interesting book. Unusually, I actually found it humorous, and I enjoyed it. I liked the fact that Jane wasn't fabulously beautiful or rich, but on the other hand, I also think that that card has been played a little two often in the past few years. This is definitely not "good literature" but I don't think I lost any brain cells from reading it. I'd recommend it only as a "I'm bored what can I read" sort of book, or when you've read a big heavy book and need some fluff to recover from it. Or, you know, if you love vampires of all forms and are just looking for another book to read.<br />
<br />
Also, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who can't take any jabs at the myths of vampires, vampire slayers, or teenagers.Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-40044302910570417082011-09-16T18:15:00.001-05:002011-09-16T18:17:58.501-05:00"Anna and the French Kiss" by Stephanie Perkins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0-udPbqY0lT4nauNA5S9NvzQRHC7l-O-B0VVi1_ZjCUnAuU9THhR_rQvqY2DYo_bL4q3TXjsdptS3ZQBUFXZrETQVzg1ITJz3f4kskAICjnSCKx7ms5_eU0Fxu2zX2b250E9IJQc4G9qs/s1600/Anna+and+the+French+Kiss+-+Stephanie+Perkins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0-udPbqY0lT4nauNA5S9NvzQRHC7l-O-B0VVi1_ZjCUnAuU9THhR_rQvqY2DYo_bL4q3TXjsdptS3ZQBUFXZrETQVzg1ITJz3f4kskAICjnSCKx7ms5_eU0Fxu2zX2b250E9IJQc4G9qs/s320/Anna+and+the+French+Kiss+-+Stephanie+Perkins.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>“Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home. As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?”-goodreads<br />
<br />
Wow. This book surprised me. You’ve probably noticed by reading my reviews, I don’t read contemporary that often. I mean, sure, I like<a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/08/lock-and-key-by-sarah-dessen.html"> a good Sarah Dessen novel</a>, I really liked <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/04/summer-i-turned-pretty-by-jenny-han.html">The Summer I Turned Pretty</a> books, and <a href="http://www.books4hearts.com/2011/08/five-flavors-of-dumb-by-antony-john.html">Five Flavors of Dumb</a> is one of my new favorite books, BUT I read a lot more science-fiction/paranormal/dystopia/mystery/horror stuff as compared to anything supposedly based in reality. I’m not sure if that’s because I like to read about things other than reality or because I think most so-called ‘realistic’ fiction seems so very unrealistic to me, or something else, but regardless, picking this up was REALLY out of the norm. I mean, read the title and description, look at the cover. Geez. Chick-lit-y central, yes? In fact, I really wouldn’t have picked up this book, but I’ve read so many good reviews about it and I kept seeing it at libraries and bookstores and such and thought, hey, I’ll give it a try. It’s just a book. Maybe I’ll dislike it… but so what, you can’t like everything!<br />
<br />
While out of my regular-reading-zone, this book amazed me. I pretty much loved it. Of course, I adored European-American love interest St. Clair, and I really liked Anna’s spunky sarcasm and intelligence, but that’s not all (I’m going to try to never say ‘that’s not all’ again because reading that in my head, it sounds like an infomercial). The flaws. If this book was anywhere near perfect, though nothing is, it was because of the character’s flaws. I realize that makes no sense. But it’s because everything wasn’t perfect. Anna and St. Clair didn’t immediately fall for each other. This book was not just completely about their puppy-love. This was not a simple scenario of, ‘girl goes to study abroad, finds perfect boyfriend, lives happily ever after, lalalalalala’. They had their problems and obstacles. There were other characters with the same. Their families were completely dysfunctional at best. I liked that a lot. Most importantly about Anna&St. Clair, first and even in the end I think, they weren’t just boyfriend/girlfriend. They were best friends. Also, the setting: amazing. Paris. So descriptive in a way that didn’t bore me at all, but I really got the feel of it. Additionally, I’m on my second year of French so when a character said something in French, rather than waiting for them to explain it or figuring out what they were saying in the context, I understood it.That has nothing to do with the book itself but I thought it was cool!<br />
<br />
So I guess the moral of this story review, is that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover/description/concept (even if they're a total cheese-fest) or assume you won’t like it, heck, you shouldn’t judge that way in most areas of life-- gosh knows, you’ll probably be wrong, like me. :PLinda (Cat)http://www.blogger.com/profile/04905769241094850513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1508373037328187841.post-36657149709550954252011-09-12T09:12:00.001-05:002011-09-12T20:24:28.178-05:00"The Wizard, the Witch, and Two Girls from Jersey" by Lisa Papademetriou<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ku6oosrHL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" nba="true" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ku6oosrHL.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><em></em><br />
<em>They had disappeared. All that was left was the copy of </em>Queen of Twilight <em>and two smoking coals.</em><br />
<em>The clerk stared for a minute, then did the only reasonable thing he could think of. He pressed a button on the intercom.</em><br />
<em>"We need a cleanup in the checkout aisle," he said.</em><br />
<br />
What would you do if you were transported into a fantasy book with someone you were completely different from?<br />
That's the situation that Heather and Veronica, two teenage girls, find themselves in when they both reach for the same copy of the school's assigned reading... The Queen of Twilight.<br />
Suddenly, they're transported into a magical world.<br />
And let's just say their journey doesn't start out so well.<br />
<br />
After accidentally killing the heroine of the book, they're left in a pickle. Only one person can get them out of the book, and back home... But he doesn't get his powers back until the end of the (Real) book... And who knows how that's going to work now that the plot has already changed?<br />
The only way to get out?<br />
<br />
To play along to the end.<br />
But as they try to battle the evil Queen of Twilight and her sisters, the Duchess of Breakable Objects and the Countess of Uncomfortable Humidity, they might find out that appearences can decieve...<br />
<br />
<em>"My, you dwarves have such cultured phrases," Chanttergee told Veronica s he listened to her, wide-eyed. "Would you teach Chattergee some of your foreign tongue?"</em><br />
<em>At that, Veronica unleashed some of her most creative and colorful expletives, which caused the squirrel to gasp in admiration and burst into applause.</em><br />
<br />
DO read this book if you enjoy silliness.<br />
DON'T read this book if you take your fantasy novels seriously.<br />
DO read this book if you enjoy a quick read.<br />
DON'T read this book if you get offended by people making fun of teenagers.<br />
Because all of these things feature quite strongly in the book.<br />
<br />
I, for one, rather enjoyed this book. Sure, sometimes both of the girls got on my nerves. Sure, it sort of annoyed me about the jabs at D&D being a "geek" game (even though it is).<br />
But all in all?<br />
It was really entertaining, and a fast read.<br />
Everything that YA books dream of becoming...Angelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18367954400853483390noreply@blogger.com0