Teaser Tuesday (3)

Teaser Tuesday is a meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

This is how Teaser Tuesday works:

• Grab a current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

'I held onto the sink like it was a raft and I was drowning. "Please.  Let's just leave.  You and me." A faint, girlish whisper.  "Graves. Please."'

-- page 177 of Jealousy by Lili St. Crow

Beautiful Creatures

So, Beautiful Creatures has been nominated for the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) Teen's Top Ten Awards!!  I loved Beautiful Creatures when I first read it back in February.  I think that I should write a review for it... Anyways, to go vote for the book, click on this link which will send you to a survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/teenstopten2010 . OR, you can click on this button:

Add this button to your blogs, too, to spread the word if you want Beautiful Creatures to win!

Cleo :)

Unraveled Scavenger Hunt!!!

Hey everyone!!!

We have some really cool news!!  So, for the release of Unraveled by Gena Showalter, they're having a scavenger hunt!  If you want to participate, just read this:

Gena Showalter’s YA series, Intertwined, about sixteen-year-old Aden Stone, a paranormal magnet who has, well had, four souls trapped in his head, continues this fall with the release of UNRAVELED (Harlequin, September 2010). Now, Aden is down to three souls bossing him around, but along the way he’s picked up the title of Vampire King to add to his ever-growing list of worries (which includes a prophecy that says he’ll bite the dust after a knife through the heart). To celebrate UNRAVELED’s release, Gena and her YA buds are hosting a scavenger hunt on their blogs.


The all-star lineup of hunt participants includes authors Rachel Caine, PC Cast, Marley Gibson, Rosemary Clement-Moore and Tina Ferraro, as well as Gena, natch, and The Knight Agency blog. Three grand prize winners will each win a $100 Visa gift card, plus Gena's giving away signed copies of UNRAVELED to five lucky runner-ups. All you have to do is find all eight letters, unscramble them and email the word to Contests(AT)KnightAgency.net. To find out where the letters are hiding in the great internet universe, click here for a contest road map and rules.

This contest runs from Monday, August 30th to Thursday, September 2nd. All entries must be received by Monday, September 6th at midnight ET.

Review: Betrayals

Title: Betrayals

Author: Lili St. Crow

Date Released: November 17, 2009

Pages: 296 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
No more little miss nice girl. 
The Real World is a frightening place.  Just ask sixteen-year old orphan Dru Anderson, a tough girl who has taken on her fair share of bad guys.  She's armed, dangerous, and not going down without a fight.  So it's gonna take her a while to figure out who she can trust...

Poor Dru.  Her parents are long gone.  Her best (okay, only) friend Graves has been bitten by a werwulf.  And she just learned that the blood flowing through her veins isn't entirely human.  Now Dru's strange and handsome saviour, Christophe, has her hidden away at a secret Schola for djamphir and wulfen teens.  Trouble is, she's the only girl in the place.  The really bad news?  Dru's killer instinct says that one of her schoolmates wants her dead.

With all eyes on her, discovering a traitor within the Order could mean a lot more than social suicide...

Review:
So, as you can see, Margaret reviewed Strange Angels and now I am going to review Betrayals which are both in the same series that revolves around the not so fantastic life of Dru Anderson.

I find the series very fascinating because usually you'd think of a male protagonist being the one hunting down all the things that go bump in the night, but in this one, it's a teenage girl named Dru.  In Betrayals, you see Dru go through her ups and downs and frustrations, while being at the Schola.  You also see Graves change A LOT more (who is a loup-garou, a half human, half werewolf creature).  He kinda turns into this kind of average, goth boy into a more manly... goth...boy.  I really wished that Christophe were in this book more because in both books it doesn't really seem like he's there all the time... especially in this book.  If he's a pretty central character, I think that he should've been in it more. 

I have to admit that while Dru remains at the Schola, it is a bit slow (that's why I rated it 4 out of 5), but it gets better when things start coming together.  The action also starts picking up towards the middle, when Dru finds out more about herself, and others, as well as a fight that begins towards the end (there's always a good fight at the end :) ).  And of course there's the betrayal... which draws you in because you really want to know who the betrayer is. 

I REALLY wished that St. Crow would write like a handbook or something for this series because there are a lot of words, and people, that I don't remember.  I think that that could be helpful for other people who enjoy this series, like Margaret, Baylee and I.

This book wasn't exactly as good as the first book, but you definitely must read it to find out more about Dru and others that she is close too, because this contains a lot of information.  The ending was really good too and leads into Jealousy.  It also kind of makes you want to find out about what will happen to Dru at the Schola Prima. 

Cover Review:
I really love the cover and how it has Dru, Graves and Chrtistophe on it.  Dru looks like she's being cautious while Graves is staring at Christophe, keeping an eye on him.  And Christophe is just staring seriously (and sort of mysteriously) straight ahead.  Anyways... I love it :) 

Be on the lookout for the review of the next book in the series, Jealousy!

Cleo :)

*Description from back of the book

Lili St. Crow's website
Strange Angels website

Follow Friday!

YAY! It's Friday today!!! Which means that I have survived my first week of school... But!  It also means that today is Follow Friday, which is hosted by Parajunkee's View!!!

And the Follow Friday question is...

What is the first book you remember reading?

Hmm... for me, I think it was the Katie Kazoo books when I was in 2nd grade.  Junie B. Jones too!  But wait... in 1st grade they made me read Henry and Mudge which really upset me because most of the other girls got to read Junie B. Jones... What about you guys?

Our FIRST Award!! From 3 Very Awesome Blogs :)

We would like to thank Jenai at ~ Bookingly Yours ~,  LupLun from Lupines and Lunatics as well as Brooke at Cupcake Queen Book Reviews for giving the award to us! 
So if you received this award from us, you need to:

1) Post this award on your blog as well as linking the person that gave the award to you in your post.

2) Pass the award to 15 other bloggers that you have newly discovered.

3) Don't forget to contact the people you have given the award too!!

Here are the awesome, new bloggers that we have discovered:

1. Random Ramblings
2. Confessions of a Teen Bookaholic
3. Booknerds are pretty too
4. Erika Breathes Books
5. Reading Vacation
6. in which a girl reads
7. The Story Siren
8. WV STITCHER
9. The Compulsive Reader
10. Pure Imagination
11. ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥Princess Bookie♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
12. Black Fingernailed Reviews
13. Supernatural Snark
14. Baylee's Books
15. Adventures of Cecelia Bedelia

Waiting on Wednesday (1)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.  Waiting on Wednesday is a post where you can write about upcoming releases that you REALLY are looking forward to reading (like I always am :) ).

This week I am waiting for...

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Releasing on: August 31, 2010

Description:

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: Jem, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length...everyone, that is, but Tessa.

As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world...and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

Everyone is probably waiting for this book just like me... and it comes out in 6 days!! :O  I've read all of The Mortal Instrutment books and I thought that they were just purely amazing and my friend said that City of Glass was the last book (even though we both now know what there are gonig to be 2 more additions to The Mortal Instrutment series)!  I got all excited when I heard that Cassandra Clare was coming out with a new book... and series that will still revolve around the Shadowhunters, but just in a different setting (and a different time frame too).

Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com

SCHOOL!

Hello Everyone :D

So, school has officially started for us high schoolers(or at least for Baylee and I... Margaret starts tomorrow :) ) and it's back to the times of busy-ness.  So, we might get busy and not be posting as often as we would like... but we will always try our best to read as many books as we can throughout the school year :D

I might be busy because I decided to take all honors courses and one AP (and I'm only a sophomore hahaha).  But I'll always try to read during class (when there's nothing to do, of course) and before I get to bed (how I usually get my reading done).  So always expect a review from me! 


Well, there should be a new review up soon (I'm slowly working on it since it's one that I haven't read in a while and am having a hard time remember it... but I need it for my review of the next book in the series) and I'm glad to see that there are more followers following everyday! 

Cleo :)

MOCKINGJAY!

Hey fellow book geeks!

just would like to mention that Mockingjay, the final installment in the Hunger Games Trilogy, comes out today! d(^o^)b Check it out!

margaret signing off!

keep reading folks!

Review: Strange Angels

Title: Strange Angels
Author: Lili St. Crow
Date Released: May 14, 2009
Pages: 293
Rating: 4.9999 out of 5

Description:
Dru Anderson has been “strange” for as long as she can remember. She travels from town to town with her father, hunting the things that go bump in the night and eat the unwary. It’s a weird life, but a good one–until it all explodes and a zombie busts into her new house.

Alone, terrified, and trapped in an icy town, Dru’s going to need every inch of her wit and training to stay alive. Can she trust the boy who is just a little too adult–and just happens to get bit by a werwulf? Or the strange blue-eyed boy who tells her she’s heir to a long-forgotten power? Can she even trust her own instincts?

Because Dru is not the first in her family to be killed by the darkness of the Real World. The monsters have decided to hunt back–and now Dru has to figure out who to trust, who to fight, and when to run. And not incidentally, she has to figure out how she’s going to get out of this alive.

And she has to do it by sundown, or it’s all over…

Review:

Four words: I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK. I actually read it quite a while ago but I felt the urge to spread the word about this freaking awesome book.

I loved the fact that Dru was different from the damsels from every other supernatural novel. She's got the guts. She's got the attitude. She's got the spunk and strength and depth that all other girls from most other novels lack. Dru Anderson is a fighter, and she helps her dad track the supernatural that puts humans in danger when the novel opens.

The beginning was admittedly a little bit tedious but I liked it anyway, what with such a change of a character with toughness. And besides I could kind of relate to the complaints of Dru due to the constant moving, having moved twice myself and knowing that more would've been a lot rougher for Dru. But believe me, the action starts and once it starts, it never stops. You never know what's out there and what's going to happen next, but it doesn't seem to be anything good, and it keeps you tense. Once you start the book, you don't put it down.

The development of the characters throughout the book are interesting too, most notably Graves when he gets pulled into the whirlpool of Dru's life. Dru herself changes as a main character, when her roots are ripped out beneath her and it made the novel even more interesting.

Even though this is probably one of my absolute favorite books, I couldn't give it a full 5, because, well it was a bit short. It doesn't feel very short at all, but I know Lili St. Crow is already coming out with a 4th novel, and I think if she combined the some of the plots together to make a thicker book, they would've been more of a success. Because I don't know about the rest of you, but I love a great novel filled with action that I can read for maybe a week.

Anyway, great read, amazing book, pick it up next time for an engaging story and a girl who can definitely be the perfect role model. thanks soooooo much to Cleo for suggesting this book for me!

Cover Review:

The cover is simple: Dru standing, hair whipped around, pretty much glaring out of the book. What appealed to me though was the the quote at the top: DRU ANDERSON. Night Hunter. Knife Thrower. Heart Breaker. THAT got me opening the book and start scrambling through it. Two thumbs up! d(^o^)b

margaret signing off!

keep reading folks!

Review: Geek Magnet

Title: Geek Magnet

Author: Kieran Scott

Date Released: March 3, 2009

Pages: 308

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Description:

See, KJ is super nice, smart, pretty, the stage manager of her high school's spring musical, Grease...and a total geek magnet.She's like the geek pied piper of Washington High, drawing every socially clueless guy in a five-mile radius. If only Cameron Richardson, star of the basketball team and hottest guy in school, would follow her around and worship her the way her entourage of dorks do.

Enter Tama Gold, queen of the popular crowd, star of Grease, and solution to all of KJ's problems. She insists that KJ is too nice, and the nice girl never gets the guy. Tama's ready to help KJ get cruel, ditch the dorks, and win Cameron's heart. But is KJ?

Review:
For the record, I personally think that description was horrible. Really preppy and makes me want to barf, but anyway...
Normally I don't read this kind of girly books about high school drama. It's really monotonous and there's not much of a difference between each book. Every plot is the same. But I got really tired of (really really good!) books with such seriousness - seriously I was going under depression for the characters. So I went to the library and got the pinkest book I could find.
Anyway the whole plotline was really predictable from the start, but interestingly enough there were some twists that I didn't expect. KJ seemed a bit gullible to me, but Robbie sounded really cute and some of the chemistry was interesting enough.
Critically speaking, it's not a very good book, but for some weird reason, I enjoyed it. It does teach you to stay true to yourself and how to deal a bit with life and how everything does work out in the end. So if you just wanna kick back and read something entertaining and short and of course, filled with drama, pick up this book. Oh and one more moral - geeks rule. Period.

Cover Review:
I found the cover...somewhat weird what with the nerdy guy (who I think is Andy...) staring at KJ, but it seemed interesting, especially with the title Geek Magnet scrolled across the locker. Anyway it's not bad.

margaret signing off!
keep reading folks!

Follow Friday

Hi Everyone!

Follow Friday is hosted by Parajunkee's View. 

Feel free to look around and follow me if you like :)  Me and my friends, who will also be writing reviews (hopefully... :D ), just started out about 2 weeks ago.  So, there isn't much yet.... but there will be soon!

Cleo

New Button!

Hey Everyone!

Brooke at Cupcake Queen Book Reviews made this awesome button for me :)

You can get it in the column to your right...or left... or maybe it is the right... my brain has turned into mush right now hehe :)  -------->
She can make awesome buttons or other things too if you want.  Just ask her!

Cleo

Review: Before I Fall

Title: Before I Fall
Author: Lauren Oliver
Date Released: March 2, 2010
Pages: 470
Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:
What if you had only one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?

Samantha Kingston has it all—looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12th should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it’s her last. The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. In fact, she re-lives the last day of her life seven times, until she realizes that by making even the slightest changes, she may hold more power than she had ever imagined.

Instead, it turns out to be her last.

Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact. Reliving her last day during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death—and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

Review:
I REALLY liked this book (I read it in like 4 days which is pretty fast for me for a book of 400+ pages), even though I didn’t like the main character... but I thought it was pretty awesome and powerful in some way because it’s about second chances and trying to change things. I heard that it was a really good book from my friend, who let me borrow the book, and I thought that it would be sort of boring since the main character, Sam, replayed the same day, Friday, February 12th, over and over again. I thought that everyday would just be the same and repetitive, but Lauren Oliver did a really great job of making everyday different from the day she dies.

I really didn’t like Sam in the beginning of the book (who did?) because of who she was in the hierarchy of high school and how she acted towards the outcasts like Juliet Sykes and Kent McFuller. I also didn’t understand why she would date a guy like Rob even though she said that she didn’t like how his sweater smelled, how he wore his hat, his Valogram, etc… It also annoyed me how she liked him even though he told her in 6th or 7th grade that he would never like her because she was weird. It made me really happy in the end though, when she becomes a totally different person and changes her ways like smoking and drinking.

This book makes you think A LOT about different things from life to which group should you really be in? Oliver did a really great job of keeping me reading because you really wanted to know what happened. And it wasn’t all that predictable either. I really liked it and I think that anyone else would enjoy this, too!

Cover Review:
I thought that the cover was really nice and how it depicted Sam looking solemn.  I don't think that the cover could get any better than that.

*Description from Goodreads.com

Lauren Oliver's website & blog

Teaser Tuesday (2)

Teaser Tuesday is a meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading.

This is how Teaser Tuesday works:

• Grab a current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away!  You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"Elody, Ally, and I knew something must have happened in New York, but Lindsay wouldn't tell us when we asked her, and we didn't push it.  You don't push things with Lindsay."

--page 247 of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver.

Review: Charlie St. Cloud

Title: The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud

Author: Ben Sherwood

Date Released: May 20, 2005

Pages: 269 (my version was the movie edition)

Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:

The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud tells the haunting story of a young man who narrowly survives a terrible car wreck that kills his little brother. Years later, the brothers’ bond remains so strong that it transcends the normal boundaries separating life and death. Charlie St. Cloud lives in a snug New England fishing village. By day he tends the lawns and monuments of the ancient cemetery where his younger brother, Sam, is buried. Graced with an extraordinary gift after surviving the accident, he can still see, talk, and even play catch with Sam’s spirit. But townsfolk whisper that Charlie has never recovered from his loss.

Into his carefully ordered life comes Tess Carroll, a captivating, adventuresome woman training for a solo sailing trip around the globe. Fate steers her boat into a treacherous storm that blows her back to harbor, to a charged encounter with Charlie, and to a surprise more overwhelming than the violent sea itself. Charlie and Tess discover a beautiful and uncommon connection that leads to a race against time and a desperate choice between death and life, between the past and the future, between holding on and letting go.

Luminous, soulful, and filled with unforgettable characters, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud is one of those rare, wise books that reveal the mysteries of the unseen world around us, gently transforming the worst pain of loss into hope, healing, and even laughter. Suspenseful and deeply moving, its startling climax reminds us that sometimes tragedies can bring about miracles if we simply open our hearts.

Review (*SOME SPOILERS*):
I think that Charlie St. Cloud was just plain awesome :)  I loved how it was so magical and had a very cute, happy ending.  This book taught me to live life and if something terrible happens, don't let go of your life... treasure it. 

I also really liked the plot and how it wasn't that confusing.  At the beginning, I wasn't as attached to the book but when I got about half way through (when Tess turned out to be a spirit), it really kept me reading and I ended up finishing that half when I was volunteering at a local library (because my job mainly consists of helping the children's summer reading program... and no one really comes in from 4 - closing time...).  This book is pretty intense in some ways because it addresses life and how precious it is and how you shouldn't just throw it away like it's a piece of trash, but you do need to let go of things that are holding you back in life, even if it's a loved one.  I loved the relationship between Sam and Charlie too.  How they loved each other sooooooooo much that they couldn't let the other one go.  Everything also connects in the book because when I realized that Tess was somewhat dead, I also realized that the book never said anything about her pulling into the harbor or how she got to the cemetary.  I just figured that she got there safely somehow since her boat was able to turn itself upright.

Oh! And you'll love how I came across this book... It's because the movie came out :) I seriously thought that the movie would rock (I haven't seen it yet), so I decided to by the book, which is totally different since Charlie is supposed to have caramel colored eyes (not green).  But I still hope that the movie is good, in it's own way.

Cover Review:
Hahahaha I never knew that I'd end up with Zac Efron on the cover of my book... but he does look rather cute ^^  Anyways...  I think that the cover is okay, to make it better it should've probably depicted Tess in it because she's one of the main characters in the book. 

P.s.  I'm REALLY sorry that this contains spoilers!!  I try not to add spoilers to reviews...  but then this would be missing a chunk of how I felt about it...  Hope you liked it :)

*Description from Goodreads.com

Ben Sherwood's website
Charlie St. Cloud movie website

Teaser Tuesday (1)

Teaser Tuesday is a meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. 

This is how Teaser Tuesday works:  You grab a book that you're currently reading and let it fall to a random page.  Then, you give two or more sentences from that page along with the title of the book and the author.  Be sure to not post any spoilers :)

"'Two steaks? Oh really!'" Margie said, arching a well plucked eyebrow. "'Fish for two?'"

--page 102 of Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood.

Newest Member! xD

Hello people of the world. My name is Baylee and this is my first post! How special no? :D So as Cleo said I'm the newest contributor to her blog, and I also have my own blog: Baylee's Books: YA books for all readers! I love to read I've always been a big reader.  I read a lot of fiction books, romance novels, historical fiction, manga, paranormal/supernatural, and mystery novels! Yes, that's pretty much like everything. So blogger is being a meanie and it isn't letting me write about myself in the about me section so this is...for now...my about me section! Hope to post again soon, and enjoy your reading! ;D

XoXo~ Baylee ~

Update Again :)

Hey everyone!!

We have another addition to this blog and her name is Baylee :)  She will also mainly read manga, paranormal fantasy, and other genres.  Baylee is also one of my very good friends and I'm glad that she's joining us.  She also has a blog that she just started called Baylee's Books: YA books for all readers. So you might want to check that out too :)

Cleo :)

Review: The Hunger Games

Title: The Hunger Games

Author: Suzanne Collins

Date Released: September 14 2008

Pages: 374

Rating: 5 out of 5

Description: Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with every one out to make sure you don't live to see the morning?

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Review:

Well I'll start my first review with a totally stellar book! The Hunger Games is a book about the future where survival is the focus of life, not the latest band breakup or the newest brand of lip gloss. Where North America was is now Panem, consisting of the Capitol and twelve districts. To make sure the districts don't rebel the Capitol hosts the annual Hunger Games, in which one boy and one girl ages 12 - 18 from each district are chosen to fight to the death in an arena.

The story follows Katniss Everdeen who volunteered to represent District 12 in the Hunger Games in place of her younger sister.

The concept the Hunger Games is a cruel but unique idea that keeps you on your toes. Suzanne Collins keeps you on your toes when you read this, anticipating what will happen, feeling the character's frustration, indecision, and confusion. The writing is real, the characters intriguing, and your addicted to it once you start, desperately waiting to see the outcome of the 24 tributes. You see what happens when people are pitted each other for survival, and what they choose to value the most.

Overall a really good read and not too many big words to make you head hurt while still being a sophisticated young adult book. two thumbs up! d(^o^)b

PS: If you're gonna read The Hunger Games you're gonna want to read Catching Fire too which is the second novel in The Hunger Games series and continues the drama. Mockingjay is the final book coming out in about two weeks!!!

Cover Review:

You can tell the books different by its cover...no sappy girls that mostly indicate ANOTHER supernatural novel. The simple mockingjay pin is presented to Katniss in the novel, and represents her. Yet to me the cover also depicts the mechanical obedience that the districts are forced into by the Capitol...who knows. Read the Hunger Games and judge it yourself!

margaret signing off!

keep reading folks!

Review: Beastly

Title: Beastly

Author: Alex Flinn

Date Released: October 1, 2007

Pages: 300

Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:

I am a beast. A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog, but a horrible new creature who walks upright – a creature with fangs and claws and ...more I am a beast. A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog, but a horrible new creature who walks upright – a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I’m talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It’s no deformity, no disease. And I’ll stay this way forever – ruined – unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and a perfect life. And then, I’ll tell you how I became perfectly beastly.

Review:

I thought that Beastly was a cool intake of a modern Beauty & the Beast from the Beast's point of view, who is really a spoiled rich kid named Kyle Kingsbury who lives in New York City.  Alex Flinn adds modern touches by using a chat group and other modern brand names.  I think that perhaps she tried a little too much and made it sort of cheesy in a way, but other than that, I thought this was a pretty good book. 


This book kind of held me in suspense, even though it was predictable, since I wanted to know if he would turn back into a human again and gain the love of Linda.  And of course you don't figure it out till the end, but if you've at least seen the Disney movie version of Beauty & the Beast,  then you probably know what would happen to both characters.


I can't wait till the Beastly comes out in movie theaters on March 18, 2011 (which is a long time... it was supposed to come out in July of this year!!).  Even though the movie seems a bit different from the book (Kyle doesn't have any fur as the beast... he's bald and has tattoo's and cuts on him), I'm sure that it would be a pretty good movie.


Cover Review:
I love the cover!! I like how it's simple and depicts the white rose that Magda (the housekeeper) got Kyle as a corsage for the dance he was attending the night he turned into the beast.  The number of petals on the rose also represented the amount of time he had before he was a beast forever.  The font for title is also cool since it has thorns on the sides.  I think that it was the cover that attracted me to the book... who knows! :)


*Description from Goodreads.com


Alex Flinn's website
Beastly movie website

Review: Gone

Title: Gone

Author: Michael Grant

Date Released: July 1, 2008

Pages: 558

Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:

In the blink of an eye. Everyone disappears. GONE.

Except for the young. Teens. Middle schoolers. Toddlers. But not one single adult. No teachers, no cops, no doctors, no parents. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what's happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day.

It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your birthday, you disappear just like everyone else...

My Review:

I absolutely LOVED this book and how it was so intense.  Intensity is good for me sometimes because it'll keep me reading like every second of the day.  Even though it's pretty violent (lots of people die...), it was a good read that was captivating, and one of those books that I couldn't put down because its plot had so many twists and turns. 

I also liked how Michael Grant put how many hours until something major happened at the end of the book.  It really kept me on my toes and wanting more.  The situation in this book also makes you want to keep reading on because you want to find out: are they going to survive the FAYZ (which was also a pretty clever name (it stands for Fallout Alley Youth Zone))?  Is everyone going to develop powers (yes, most of the kids have some pretty crazy powers)?  Is Caine going to end up taking over the leader role of Perdido Beach and will Sam not let that happen?  There's so much stuff going on in this book that it's sort of hard to keep up with, but it'll all come together in the end.  And of course it has to end on a cliffhanger right?

This book also made me realize how valuable parents and other adults are in this world because they help us survive.  Most of the kids didn't really know how to take care of themselves or get food.  Some of the kids in this book would also take up bad habits because nobody was there to tell them no. 


I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys sci-fi, A LOT if action, and a bit of violence.  If you decide to pick this book up at your local bookstore or library, then you should pick up the second book, Hunger, because you won't be able to put that down either.


Cover Review:
I think that the cover is okay, but the models for the cover do look desperate, or like they're waiting for something good to happen to them since they've struggled so much to survive in this chaotic new world.  This cover definitely fits the book, as an artistic design, like the cover for Shiver, wouldn't. 


*Description taken from back of the book.


Michael Grant's website at Harper Collins

Nice meeting y'all

Hey! Margaret here! just wanted to say its awesome to have joined a book blog so thanks a bunch to Cleo for letting me join. most of the info is posted below so all i wanna say is keep looking out for some reviews! keep reading folks!

Update

Hi everyone!!


Well, we have another person, who's actually my very good friend, who will be blogging with me too.  Her name is Margaret and she will write book reviews as well mostly on manga, paranormal fantasy, and maybe occasionally some classics, too :)


Maybe later today we'll have some reviews up for you :)


Cleo

Welcome!!!

Hi everyone!!!


Welcome to Booklopedia where I will be reviewing mostly YA books. I mainly read paranormal books about things such as werewolves, vampires and faires, but there will always be little bit of something else, like right now I'm reading Charlie St. Cloud which is totally not about what I listed above, but right now it's going great! Hopefully later on it'll be one of the books that I'll be reviewing!


Feel free to recommend books I should read and review and I'm open to any genre (except for: non-fiction) and I hope you enjoy!!


Cleo