Review: Elixir

Title: Elixir
Author: Hilary Duff with Elise Allen (co-author)
Date Released: October 12th, 2010
Pages: 327
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Clea Raymond has felt the glare of the spotlight her entire life. The daughter of a renowned surgeon and a prominent Washington DC politician, she has grown to be a talented photojournalist who takes refuge in a career that allows her to travel to the most exotic parts of the world. But after Clea's father disappears while on a humanitarian mission, Clea's photos begin to feature eerie, shadowy images of a strange and beautiful man—a man she has never seen before.

When fate brings Clea and this man together, she is stunned by the immediate and powerful connection she feels with him. As they grow closer, they are drawn deep into the mystery behind her father's disappearance, and they discover the centuries old truth behind their intense bond. Torn by a dangerous love triangle and haunted by a powerful secret that holds their fates, together they race against time to unravel their pasts in order to save their lives—and their futures.

Review:
About a year after her father's disappearance, Clea Raymond is still trying to cope with the loss, but she starts seeing this same person everywhere.  She sees him in the same places as her and her pictures.  When she's sent on a trip to Brazil, she finally meets this mysterious man, and together, they go on quite an adventure to find her father.  On this adventure, they not only unravel the mystery of her father's dissappearance, but also their past lives together.

First off, I really hope that this review doesn't contains spoilers.  Secondly, Oh my goodness.  This was such a good book!  When I first heard that Hilary Duff was writing a book, I was like, "WHOA!  What?  The Hilary Duff?  The one who starred in Lizzie McGuire???"  She probably got that a lot, because it's not like every day you see an actress or actor write a book.  However, Hilary Duff and Elise Allen managed to write a really, really addicting book.  I finished it in two days, and let's just say that two days is really fast for me.  I was also supposed to be studying for finals, but that didn't really work out for me...
 
I thought the whole thing about an elixir for life and the idea of having a soulmate was really cool.  Although, for me it kind of seemed to parallel the Fallen series with the whole thing about the female character being reincarnated and the male character being able to live forever (even though in this book he's not an angel), so, maybe it's not exactly original, but it was still a really great and addicting book!  It just had it's own twist on the reincarnation aspect of the book.

I liked Clea.  Notice how her name is almost like mine?  It felt so weird when reading it!  It actually kind of annoyed me how her name was so close to mine, but was off by one letter!  Well, anways, Clea probably wasn't the strongest character, but you can relate to her because imagine that your dad went missing and you don't even know for sure if he's dead or not?  I thought it was the coolest thing how her hobby was photography because I totally wish that I could actually take a decent picture and get it published in a magazine.  Sage seemed like the total hot guy that everyone would just absolutely die for.  'Nuff said (I think).  One little annoying thing about Elixir was how Clea fell way too fast for Sage...  Overall, a really, really great book.  Don't let the fact that a famous actress wrote this book stop you from actually reading it.  Give it a try!  It totally captivated me and I can't wait until the next book comes out.

Rayna was super duper cool!  Maybe she's a little pushy and sort of like that stereotypical rich girl (I don't think that she's actually wealthy though...), but she tries to do nice things for Clea and help her cope with her loss.  I actually found it ironic because Rayna was described as loving the limelight and everything, where as Clea doesn't like all the attention, but Clea has the famous parents, where as Rayna's mom worked for Clea's family.  Just wanted to point that out...  Ben was like the other hot guy that everyone wants to like, but they like Sage, so they can't choose between the two (that would be me).

Ben and Sage are both smart and seem like fairly attractive guys, so if and when this book reaches Twilight status, a battle will probably break out between the two male leads.  Kind of like Edward vs. Jacob, but instead it's Sage vs. Ben.

Overall, Elixir is a pretty good book!  In some ways, it seems to have taken some things from other books such as Fallen, not really making some of the ideas in this book totally original.  Don't let the fact that a famous actress wrote this.  Give it a try!  If you're not sure if you'll like it or not, just get it from the library.  I honestly think that it wasn't all that bad.  Now I'm totally waiting for the sequel to come out (it left on a cliffhanger)... *sitting here, waiting*

Cover Review:
I. LOVE. THIS. COVER!  It's purple (!!!) and simple, but that beautiful iris really makes the cover stand out.  This was actually one of my Cover Crazy covers.  So, click here if you want the full reason why :D

Cleo :)

*Description from Amazon.com
**Review copy borrowed from library.

Cover Crazy (11)

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme that was created by Tawni over at The Book Worms to show which cover(s) you are absolutely going crazy over!

This week I'm loving the cover for Rival by Sara Bennet Wealer!

Here's why I love it:

• I absolutely love the beautiful, vibrantly red flower on top of the black and white piano keys.  The black and white keys really makes the flower stand out.
• I haven't read the book yet, but I'm pretty sure that the whole cover is symbolic, judging by the description (leads to goodreads.com).  Like the petal that's seperated from the flower is Kathryn, the girl that's been like the "leper" of the school.  The piano probably symbolizes the music.
• Actually, one little bit of criticism here... I think that the title actually gets sort of lost in the background...  The flower sort of takes up all the attention and the title itself is a little small.

Do you guys like this cover too? 

Cleo :)

What Should I Read??

I have this LARGE TBR pile just sitting on my book shelf.  Maybe it only has 9 books because I know some of you bloggers out there have like insanely huge piles.  Soooo, I guess mine is pretty small...  BUT!  I'm letting you guys help me choose what I read next (because I'm having the hardest time choosing), after I finish The Anatomy of Wings by Karen Foxlee.  Oh, wait.  Scratch that.  Make that 8 books now :)

Here are the contenders...

• The Darkest Powers series by Kelly Armstrong (The Summoning is the first one, but I have all 3 books right now)
• The Dark Divine by Bree Despain
• Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
• XVI by Julia Karr
• Ash by Malinda Lo
• Harry Potter and the Sorcer's Stone by JK Rowlings

Just comment below and I'll tally them up when I'm done with what I'm currently reading! 

Cleo :)

Review: Bloated Goat

Title: Bloated Goat
Author: Manley Peterson
Date Released: September 28th, 2010
Pages: 80
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
When Granny Hammy finds Bloated Goat face down in her front yard's drainage ditch, her grandson Cocky Doodle thinks nothing of it. In fact, he says that’s just another normal day for his best friend. But when they discover that Bloated Goat has little black Xs for eyes and is even more bloated than normal, they realize it is much more serious.

Follow them on a humorous adventure as they get tangled up with jewel thieves, a despondent wolf, an alligator gangster, a kingdom of hungry mushrooms, a shocking skunk wedding, and a mysteriously powerful chameleon known as Crazy Ned.

Review:
One day, Cocky Doodle's best friend, Bloated Goat, is found with x's for his eyes, which of course means that he's dead.  This unfortunate death leads to the funny adventure that Cocky and Granny Hammy go on to give Bloated Goat the proper burial he needs.  Along the way, Bloated Goat somehow manages to get mixed up with a skunk, mushrooms, a wolf, and many more wild animals that live in this crazy forest.

Bloated Goat isn't exactly young adult.  It's probably more of a middle grade type book, and I think that it's something that my little brother would like because it is pretty hilarious and has the humor that little kids would definitely love.  It reminded me so many times of the TV show on Cartoon Network, Adventure Time (which my siblings love and think is the funniest show in the world).

It would be a great book for kids, that I'm pretty sure they'll enjoy.  It's funny and a quick read (it's only 80 pages, but in the Kindle version I believe).  The storyline is very original and imaginative (I don't think that I've ever read a book like this) and the adventure is absolutely crazy, filled with lots of twists and turns, and encounters with some very strange people (such as Crazy Ned). 

I'd totally recommend it to other people.  This book doesn't really have to be for just kids because I'm sure that there are other teens out there like me, or even adults, who would like a light read that's really funny. 

Cover Review:
I really like the cover and it really fits this book.  Did you know that the author's daughter did the cover?  Didn't she do a good job?  I think she did an amazing job! 
Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com
**Review copy received from author.  Thank you Manley Peterson!

Recomendation?

Hey guys!


I had a question about this book called Glimmerglass by Jenna Black. It sounds really interesting to me and I've heard the title before so I was thinking of trying it out. The thing is though, it's about faeries, and books about faeries usually start off well with me...and then I lose interest. So I was wondering if any of our followers had read this book and what you thought of it? I'm reading a book right now but I'm not sure if I like it enough to finish so I was hoping to find a good book to read afterwards. What do you think, should I read Glimmerglass? Or is it a pass? 


Thanks for the help guys!


~XoXo Baylee~ 

Follow Friday (22) AKA In Which I Talk About School...

This week's question:

What is/was your favorite subject in school?

Ohmygoodness.  I think I can go on and on about this forever.  Well, I'll have to say that English class is my favorite.  It's really easy, and no offence, but I don't see how you can get a bad grade.  I absolutely love it when teacher's let you have a little reading period.  In 8th grade, my english teacher let us read for about 30 mins. at the beginning of each class.  Of course I always had a book in hand :) My next favorite subject is Biology.  I loved that class when I had it last year!  I love science in general, but Chemistry is okay.  Can I talk about my least favorite?  *This is where you should say, "NOOO!" because that might go on forever, too* Right now, I HATE my Algebra 2/Trig class.  I got a C+ on the final... And I honestly felt ready for that final.  My mom thinks it might just be the teacher... I mean she's a nice teacher, but she just makes things waaay to hard.  Three people left that class this semester because it was too hard...  I'm also not the biggest fan of history so I really don't see why I took the AP European History course at my school.  So that was me just totally ranting about school because I think that that's probably the 2nd biggest thing in my life.  Books are 1st :)

So what about you guys?  Do you have a favorite subject?  Tell mee!!! It doesn't have to be as long as what I wrote lol :)

Now I will run off to go watch the Vampire Diaries... How many of you guys watch it?  Isn't it amazing?  I've actually only read the first book, or the first two.  I think it was in a volume?  The TV show is definitely different from the book, but I still like it :D

Hope you guys have a great weekend!  I'm working on a couple reviews, so look forward to seeing them!

Cleo :)

Review: Extraordinary

Title: Extraordinary
Author: Nancy Werlin
Date Released: September 7th, 2010
Pages: 393
Rating: 3 out of 5

Description:
Phoebe finds herself drawn to Mallory, the strange and secretive new kid in school, and the two girls become as close as sisters . . . until Mallory's magnetic older brother, Ryland, shows up during their junior year. Ryland has an immediate, exciting hold on Phoebe, but a dangerous hold, for she begins to question her feelings about her best friend and, worse, about herself. Soon she'll discover the shocking truth about Ryland and Mallory: that these two are visitors from the faerie realm who have come to collect on an age-old debt. Generations ago, the faerie queen promised Pheobe's ancestor five extraordinary sons in exchange for the sacrifice of one ordinary female heir. But in hundreds of years there hasn't been a single ordinary girl in the family, and now the faeries are dying. Could Phoebe be the first ordinary one? Could she save the faeries, or is she special enough to save herself?

Review:
Extraordinary opens up when Phoebe meets Mallory in the beginning of 7th grade.  They become best friends, and remain best friends all through the 4 years that the book skips.  When it picks up again, 4 years later, things really start to change for Phoebe and Mallory when Ryland comes into the pictures, Mallory's older brother. 

One thing I really liked was Nancy Werlin's writing style because it fit the book perfectly.  It sort of felt a little haunting and creepy, like the book itself.  It was serious, but also probably made the book seem sort of monotone, if that even makes sense.  It kind of seemed bland and didn't really have that wow factor that would've made my jaw drop.  Maybe somethings were shocking and kept the plot going, but it just didn't really capture my attention like most books do.  When I read a book, I imagine what the whole scenery is like in my head.  So, when I tried capturing what I thought the whole scenery would look like, it seemed sort of black and white, and dull.  But that was just for me. 

Sometimes Phoebe was kind of frustrating because you can see that her relationship with Ryland was not real at all because sometimes Ryland was really mean and would be all like "You're worthless" and she's like "Okay" to the point where she basically believes him and breaks down.  I get the point of why he was like that and it was part of the whole mission that Mallory and Ryland were sent to the regular human world to do.  But still.  Another thing that really shocked me about Phoebe was how she was begging Mallory to be her friend in the beginning of the book.  Who does that?  Phoebe doesn't really have the strength for most of the book that I admire in most characters that I read about.

Back to the positive side of this book:  I actually really liked the ending.  It kind of made me want to cry and I felt proud of Phoebe for finally coming to her senses.  Another good point is that I think that the whole storyline was original.  The blending of history and faeries was really cool and I loved the idea.  I just wish that it could've been more interesting and captivating.  If it just had that one more thing, then this probably would've been a really good book. 

I really thought I was going to fall in love with Extraordinary because I absolutely loved Nancy Werlin's other book, Impossible. I actually didn't end up liking it that much. I thought it was sort of strange, and kind of boring.  If you're looking for a story with a different twist of the faerie world, then go for it!   

Cover Review:
This cover is beautiful!  It looks very enchanting and fits a story that's about the faerie realm.  I love all the grass and trees, and the girl running in the forest.  It's really pretty :)

Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crazy (10)

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme that was created by Tawni over at The Book Worms to show which cover(s) you are absolutely going crazy over!

This week I think that the cover for Wish by Alexandra Bullen is totally awesome!



Paperback Version

Hardcover Version

Here's why:

• I love the dress!  It's so cool how it's made of stars and fades into the background.
• I think it was great how they went with a star themed background with a comet on the "i", because it just screams that this book is about a wish (the title makes it obvious too though heehee)
• I actually like the paperback version more because there's much more emphasis on the girl and the dress.  In the hardcover version she's so small!!

I actually haven't read the book yet, but my sister has it and I've read the description.  It sounds pretty good :)

Do you guys like it?  Or dislike it?

Cleo :)

As You Can See...

YAY!  I made some changes background-wise for Booklopedia :)  I thought that it needed a little change, so I switched it up a bit.  I noticed that the main part of the blog (where all the posts are) is a little squished and small...  So, I  was just wondering: Does it annoy you that it's smally and squished?  I liked it before where it was nice and big.  But this background that I chose is a 2 column one so it's smaller (vs. the 3 column ones that I usually pick).

Cleo :)

Review: The Maze Runner

Basic Information

Title: The Maze Runner

Author:James Dashner

Publisher/Publish date:Delacourt Books for Young Readers/October 6, 2009

Pages: 374 (Hardcover)

Rating: 5

Synopsis

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he s not alone. When the lift s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.Just like Thomas, the Gladers don t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they've closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up, the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.




REVIEW


   AH MAY ZING. I just absolutely loved this book. This is another one if the science-fiction genre book I found and started reading and I loved it soooo much. I love Thomas, his character is just so awesome, he doesn't take no for an answer and he always follows his gut. Even though his memories have been wiped clean he still manages to keep cool and you can just tell he is a natural born leader. I love the friendship he forms with Chuck and I loved the relationship he has with Teresa, although I have a few problems with her in the second book. 
   The Gladers are all stuck in this Maze and have been trying for 2 years to study it and get out. Some of the Gladers don't trust Thomas because Teresa shows up the day after he does which isn't normal on any account. I couldn't put this book down because I just HAD to find out the secret behind Thomas's lost memories and WICKED. I loved all the characters in this book, even the "villains" just because they added to the drama and mystery of the whole situation. Another thing that makes this book so amazing is the fact that you can't tell who the bad guys or the good guys are. One moment you think Thomas is a victim but it turns out he has ties to WICKED... yet he harbors a deep hatred for them and he can't remember why. Then WICKED is supposedly evil because they sent the Gladers to the Maze, but are they really? Because the Gladers can't remember anything they don't know who to trust except each other...and sometimes even that can't save them. 
   I think what really hooked me on the book was Thomas. I just love his character so much, and it's not like one of those fan girl crushes you know? He's just different. Usually you have this really hot male lead that you instantly love because of his sarcastic attitude, or if you always go for the underdog, (which is usually me) then you have this sweet, equally hot guy that you feel bad for. But with Thomas its different. He's just and average looking 16 old boy, but what draws you to him is his persistent personality and his intelligence because dang this guy is like a genius. He doesn't sit and feel sorry for himself and he truly cares for everyone. He has this natural leader aura about him but it isn't obnoxious. Its like he feels responsible for every Glader and he can't leave anyone behind to save himself or others. He's very selfless and mentally strong. So I'm suggesting this book to you because:


1. It was AWESOME.
2. I think you would find the characters refreshing just because they aren't really the norm. I think it's just their situation that just makes them stronger characters.
3. This book isn't lacking romance..although there is more in the second book, you can still see the relationship growing between Thomas and Teresa.
4.The second book is an equally awesome book which I was sooo grateful for because I had been disappointed with The Hunger Games' sequels. 


SO I totally recommend this book, I usually don't give fives just because it's hard to find a book that is super perfect, but for me this had the right amount of everything in it. BTDUBS it's being looked at for movie rights!!!!:D If they start making a movie and screw it up I swear I will be so angry...but anyways read the book because it was awesome! :D


~XoXo Baylee~

Review: I Am Number Four

Basic Information
Title: I Am Number Four
Author: Pittacus Lore (Pseudonym)
Publisher/Publish date: HarperCollins Publishers/ August 2010
Pages: 440 (Hardcover)
Rating: 3 1/2 


Synopsis

Nine of us came here. We look like you. We talk like you. We live among you. But we are not you. We can do things you dream of doing. We have powers you dream of having. We are stronger and faster than anything you have ever seen. We are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books but we are real.Our plan was to grow, and train, and become strong, and become one, and fight them. 


But they found us and started hunting us first. Now all of us are running. Spending our lives in shadows, in places where no one would look, blending in. we have lived among you without you knowing.
But they know. 
They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They killed them all.


I am Number Four. I am next.




REVIEW


Okay, so after reading The Hunger Games I've kinda been into the whole science-fiction genre, which I have always steered clear from. One of the books that I found was I Am Number Four. Cleo got me the book for Christmas, (yay Cleo!) and I had been waiting to buy it because it sounded sososososososososo good. I loved the concept of how they (they being the 9 teenage aliens who escaped from the planet Lorien as children) were all being hunted down in order and they had to hide around the globe with only their Cêpan, or guardians, to take care of them. This book is supposedly the first to a six book series which, after reading the first book I'm really happy about, although not necessarily in a good way. I was a little disappointed with this first book because I like a lot of action and I think that's what I was expecting. But a good portion of this book was spent introducing the characters, the history of Lorien and why the 9 Lorien children had to escape in the first place. This is all IMPORTANT stuff to the novel but for some reason I found it kinda...slow? Maybe? For lack of a better word I'll say slow but it just wasn't "OMG I LOVE THIS BOOK AND I CAN'T PUT IT DOWN" like I thought it was going to be. Whether the reason for this is because the book was written by two different authors or not I'm just hoping for the sequel to be better than the first and for the series to get better as it goes on.
 Another reason why I think this book was lacking for me was because of the romance. I think the book kinda centered on it a little bit too much, and for me, John's love interest was kind of a dull character. For some reason I just didn't like her, even though she does something really cool towards the end of the book I just felt that she was too...boring...or normal? I mean I know why the chose that type of girl for John, because that's all he wants to be is normal...but he isn't. I just hope that if she is featured in the next books that they give her a little more depth. I also hope there is more action in the next books showing John unlocking more of his powers and battling more Mogadorians (the evil Aliens that destroyed and took over Lorien). But just because this book was a little disappointing to me DOES NOT mean I'm not going to recommend it because I think the concept is just too original and awesome to ignore.So if you do decide to read this book maybe you'll completely disagree with me and that's awesome! But if you do agree with me, I would just wait for the second book to decide whether its a must or a bust. 


P.S. I totally think the movie is not going to do this book justice. Even though I was a little disappointed with the book I still loved it and, based on the previews, I'm really not liking they way the movie is turning out. I'm still going to see it but I have a feeling it's going to be a disappointment. 


~XoXo Baylee~

Follow Friday (21)

This week's question...

Who do you cheer for?

I'm not really a sports person.  So, I don't really have a team that I cheer for :(

Just some random updates/stuff:

• I'M DONE WITH FINALS! 
• And I have survived :) 
• So, look forward to some more posts about cool things (like books!).

Hope you guys have an awesome weekend!  I know I will!  Because I don't have school for 4 days!  Which means you should be hearing a lot from me :D

Cleo :)

Review: Amy & Roger's Epic Detour

Title: Amy & Roger's Epic Detour
Author: Morgan Matson
Date Released: May 4th, 2010
Pages: 344
Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:
Amy Curry thinks her life sucks. Her mom decides to move from California to Connecticut to start anew—just in time for Amy's senior year. Her dad recently died in a car accident. So Amy embarks on a road trip to escape from it all, driving cross-country from the home she's always known toward her new life. Joining Amy on the road trip is Roger, the son of Amy's mother's old friend. Amy hasn’t seen him in years, and she is less than thrilled to be driving across the country with a guy she barely knows. So she's surprised to find that she is developing a crush on him. At the same time, she’s coming to terms with her father’s death and how to put her own life back together after the accident. Told in traditional narrative as well as scraps from the road—diner napkins, motel receipts, postcards—this is the story of one girl's journey to find herself.

Review:
This has got to be the cutest book ever!  I absolutely loved every single bit of it from the writing to the characters and thought it was, well... EPIC!  I did not want this book to end at all, and when I only had a couple pages left, I tried savoring it as much as I could.  This has totally inspired me to go on a road trip across the United States at least before I die.

I thought that this was definitely a very cool book from start to finish!!!  I absolutely fell in love with Amy and Roger and just about every other character in this book, especially the ones that they met on their epic detour.  Almost everyone they met helped Amy get through her problems and start living life again.  But this book isn't just about Amy, it's also about Roger who's trying to get through problems of his own as well.

It was great how you could really see how Amy was changing into the person that she was before the accident, or maybe even a new person, throughout the trip.  This trip really helped her get her life back on track and I was glad that she was able to.  Roger was pretty awesome and I loved all his doodles and playlists in Amy & Roger's Epic Detour.  The one thing that annoyed me about him was how he was how he sort of obsessed over his ex-girlfriend.  Other than that, he seemed like that kind of guy anyone would want to be friends with because he was kind and caring.

One thing that was really cool about this book was when you got to see pictures and little scraps from their road trip together.  It was really awesome and were the parts that I would look forward to seeing.  I admit... sometimes I'd skip to the next one just to see the pictures... But who wouldn't?  They were just really awesome!  It was kind of made me feel like I was experiencing some parts of the trip with them!

Something that made me jump up and down and run straight to my mom was that this book mentions Pasadena :)  Which I happen to live very close too.  And it also mentions a yogurt shop called 21 Choices, which I have happen to been to before.  (And I had their snickerdoodle yogurt which was really good, btw :P )  So, I just thought that it was really cool getting to read about a familiar place because that doesn't really happen that often :)  I think that I'm overusing the word cool now hahaha...  But this book was just plain cool!

I would totally recommend this to just about every single person I know out there because I personally thought that this book was just way to epic to put into words.  I really hope that Morgan Matson writes another book because I'll be right in line waiting to buy it.  If you're reading this, I recommend that you go out now to either your library or bookstore and get this book!  I loved this and I'm pretty sure that you will too!

Cover Review:
LOVE THE COVER!  I love how it shows the road in the background, and Amy and Roger holding hands is just way to cute!  I love the emphasis on the 'Epic' and how there were little curls on the 'E'. 

Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crazy (9)

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme that was created by Tawni over at The Book Worms to show which cover(s) you are absolutely going crazy over!

This week I'm absolutely in LOVE with the cover for Elixir by Hilary Duff!

Here's why:

• It has PURPLE EVERYWHERE!  Did you know that purple is my favorite color?  :)
• I really love the iris that's in the middle of the cover.  It's sooo pretty and is sort of significant in the book.
• I really like the font too!!!  It's simple and clean cut (if that's how you would put it...).  The short title but the big font really makes it stand out.
• The cover is pretty simple itself too.  It really concentrates on the flower which is probably what draws the most attention to the book.

I just finished this book yesterday night... So look forward to a review soon!  (After I finish my exams though :/ Sorry!)

Cleo :)

An Awesome Delirium Giveaway!

If you haven't heard yet... Over at Lauren Oliver's blog, she's giving away 5 signed copies of Delirium! 

Who wouldn't want to win one?  One lucky winner will also get receive a book thong!  This is so awesome :D  Oh!  It also runs till the end of the month :)

Hope you guys have a great rest of the weekend!!!

Cleo :)

Follow Friday (20)

This week's question:

What makes up your non-human family?

Two dogs!  But one of them lives in China :(  I actually never imagined that I would ever have two dogs at one time, but when we came back from China without our first dog, we decided to get a new one... So that's how we ended up with two!  I love animals so I keep asking my mom if we can get a bird, turtle, hamster, rabbit, and whole bunch of other pets, but of course she said no ><  I guess even just having one dog can be a handful :)

Hope you guys have a fabulous weekend! 

Cleo :)

Review: Entice

Title: Entice
Author: Carrie Jones
Date Released: December 14th, 2010
Pages: 266
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:

*May contain spoilers*

Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together forever.

But that's not quite how things have worked out.

For starters, well, Nick is dead.

Supposedly, he's been taken to a mythic place for warriors known as Valhalla, so Zara and her friends might be able to get him back. But it's taking time, and meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But how to get to Valhalla?

And even if Zara and her friends discover the way, there's that other small problem: Zara's been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn't just turned... she's Astley's queen.

Review:
I was so excited when I got this book for Christmas because I love this series, and it left off on such a huge cliffhanger in Captivate (the second book) that I just had to get this one!  I really wanted to love this one like Need and Captivate, but there were just some little things that I didn't really like about this book.

However, let's start off with the absolutely awesome things though :D  I thought it was great how it started off because it picked off right where it left off in Captivate so there wasn't any lost time and you kind of knew what was going on (unless you completely forgot what happened in the previous book, like me for instance).  The characters were great.  I really liked how you got to see Zara adapt to her new life as a pixie and how it was really hard for her because her closest friends and family members aren't the biggest fans of pixies and being a pixie is A LOT different from being a normal human being.  And oh. my. goodness.  Astley just makes me want to cry!  I think that he's really changed since Captivate because when you first met him he was sort of hostile, mean, and really wanted Zara to be his queen, but now he wants different things and to make Zara happy that make him so much more loveable than when he first appeared.  Entice just made choosing between Nick and Astley a whole lot harder.

Another good point was that I liked how Carrie Jones added some humor to some of her characters like Issie and Cassidy to lighten up the mood a bit since some really sad events happened in both this book and Captivate.  They definitely made the book funny and were probably my favorite characters throughout the book! 

What I didn't like so much about this book were some of the events that took place... or how the speed of the plot went.  I'm not sure if they're intertwined or totally separate, but I think that some things that happened in this book happened way to fast.  It was almost like it never happened or it was no big deal.  It also didn't flow as nicely as I would have liked it, but the plot was still great with lots of twists and turns that really kept the book sooo intriguing. 

This was a pretty good follow up to the Need series.  I didn't like it as much as I liked the first two, but it definitely has some good scenes and information about the pixies that will most likely leave you with your mouth hanging open :D  The ending was fabulous, too!  It ended nicely, even though some of it might have been a bit predictable.  I definitely need the fourth book (which is still untitled I believe...).  It's the last book right?  I hope it isn't!  But as they say, all good things must come to an end...  So, if you haven't read Need yet, then you must get it!  And then get Captivate... Then get Entice! 

Cover Review:
It's really beautiful!  I LOVE how the pixie dust is coming out of her mouth and she's breathing it into the air.  The branches in the background kind of make the book look a little creepy, but it's not creepy at all!  Maybe just a little sad, but it has a great happy ending :)
Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crazy (8)

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme that was created by Tawni over at The Book Worms to show which cover(s) you are absolutely going crazy over!


This week I'm absolutely loving the cover for The Anatomy of Wings by Karen Foxlee.

Here's why I love it:

• There's something so refreshing and calm about this cover, even though it revolves around a young girl's older sister's death.
• I think that that's so cool how they got a picture of someone in the air... Or made it that way since you can photoshop pictures now... But yeah!  It's definitely very cool and kind of makes me want to jump in the air.  Haha, I know, very random :D
• The scenery in the background is really pretty even though it's blurred.  It kind of reminds me of the countryside because you can see trees and what looks like a little town on the very bottom.

What covers are you guys going crazy over this week?  Any extra thoughts or comments on this cover?

Cleo :)

Just Wondering...

Would you guys rather prefer that I block out the descriptions for sequels or other books in a series?  I find that they sometimes have spoilers and I definitely don't want to spoil it for you at all if you haven't read it yet.  Just simply leave a comment saying yes or no.

Thanks guys!!!

Cleo :)

Review: Hush, Hush

Title: Hush, Hush
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Date Released: October 13th, 2009
Pages: 391
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.
 
Review:
Hush, Hush was pretty awesome!  I really liked the whole idea of angels in this book and thought it was some what different from other books on angels that I have read... or the only ones which are Fallen and Torment by Lauren Kate.  I saw some similarities like there's the fallen angel and the whole forbidden romance thing, but it has some differences in the- would you call it mythology?- of fallen angels, like the complexity of the human vessel, and the Jewish holiday Cheshvan (Thank you Baylee for letting me know as I completely forgot!)  But, basically, some things in Hush, Hush were pretty original from other books about fallen angels that I've read. 

Despite the fact that I thought that Hush, Hush, I gave it 4 stars because to me, the ending was sort of rushed and weird.  It just didn't really seem to satisfy me, if you know what I mean.  I also didn't like how there were like multiple people that they suspected to be the stalker.  Like one moment it would be this dude, then they'd change their mind and it'd be that person.  But then, no!  Wait!  It's this person now!  But I guess if you think on the bright side, it really kept you on your toes :)

I actually did not like Nora that much, but I did like Vee, until she started hanging out with Elliot and Jules a lot more.  Vee kind of seemed like the best friend that anyone could probably want because she was pretty funny, plus she and Nora seemed like that had tons of fun together.  Now back to Nora... There were something's that I just didn't really like about her.  I found her maybe a little annoying because she was suspicious of basically every single new person that she had an encounter with.  She's also pretty vulnerable, as Patch says ac couple times.  Other than that, I guess she was pretty courageous because she does have to live in a big house by herself in basically the middle of nowhere... If I were her, I'd personally just freak out.  Patch was pretty cool.  He came of  kind of scary at first and had this whole bad boy image going on, but then you come to eventually realize that he cares about Nora.

Another good thing about this book that really kept me glued to it were the many plot twists.  Even though there were all those suspects of who the stalkers were, there were other really interesting plot twists that really kept the book moving.  The beginning wasn't that bad either because you know how sometimes the beginning of a new series could be kind of boring and slow?  This one gets right into action with a really intriguing prologue and the appearance of the mysterious Patch in the very first chapter. 

It's a pretty good, suspenseful read with a different view of fallen angels that was pretty cool!  Hopefully, when I get to read the second book, Nora will be stronger and not as vulnerable.  I think that I'll have to get Crescendo now... And probably end up waiting for the third and last book of this series, Tempest, as well :D 

Cover Review:
Oh my goodness!!  This cover is very awesome!!!  I just LOVE how Patch is falling, because he is a fallen angel.  It's also really cool how it's in black and white but at the top, it's tinted red.  It's a very dark cover, and sort of fits the whole books setting.  It also screams "FALLEN ANGEL!!!"  So don't expect it to be about... mermaids... Hahahaha!

Cleo :)

*Description from Goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Updates!

Well, it's the end of the week and we've been kind of MIA lately and not posting as much as we would like to (this week there was a Cover Crazy post on Monday, Baylee did her Best Books of 2010, and there was a post on the cover for Passion), but we are working on tons of reviews (I have 4, and Baylee has 3). 

I'm not sure if I'll be posting much in the next week or so because I have exams soon and I'm supposed to be studying my head off, but I can't bring myself to sit at my desk and study which could be a problem... I just have so many books to read that sound really good!!  I have Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly and Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin in my pile right now as well as other books that sound fantastic and I can't wait to get through them!  I'm also trying hard to finish some reviews that I've put off for a little while, so look forward to that.

ALSO!!! Remember when I asked you guys to help me choose which series I should read this year?  Well guess which one totally won??

HARRY POTTER!

Yes!  I've never read Harry Potter before in my life (except for maybe part of the 1st one...).  And I have the first 4 books.  There must be something wrong with me since those of you who chose it seem to absolutely love it.  I think what I'm going to do is read all the books and give my opinion about it when I'm done with the whole series :D  If you guys don't remember what I'm talking about... just click HERE and it'll take you to the post.

We're also in the process of creating a giveaway for you guys.  Since it's our first giveaway, we're trying to make it extra special.  It's just that some of us (I'm thinking of you Margaret...) never seem to have the time to talk and discuss it.  Baylee and I basically have our part all planned out but our dear little MarMar seems to be totally MIA...

Now, I'm going to go to try and concentrate on studying but knowing me, my mind will eventually drift off to reading and finishing up those reviews...

So there's your little update on what's been going on here in Booklopedia :D

Cleo :)

The Cover for Passion is Revealed!

YES!  The cover for Passion by Lauren Kate has finally been released!!!

I love the cover and I think that the cover artist did a beautiful job!  I definitely cannot wait for the book to come out now!  

I like how they sort of switched it up this time by adding some color like the red on the rose and the pink of the sky.  It's definitely has a really pretty cover like the first two books in the series.

Cleo :)

My List for Best Books of 2010 (:

The Best of 2010 in Books!

Today marks the last day of a great year :(  2010 marks the birth of Booklopedia (that sounded really cheesy hahaha), the first time I've ever actually stuck to writing down all the books I've read, and a lot of other wonderful book-related and not book-related things.  So, to basically sum up this year, in books of course, I have decided to be a part of a survey created byThe Perpetual Page Turner!!! 

1. Best book of 2010? 
Hmmmm.....Okay I'm going to have to say The Hunger Games or Last Sacrifice because these books were just amazing. The Hunger Games series fell flat a bit for me but the actual first book, The Hunger Games, was written extremely well and Last Sacrifice was the ending to one of my favorite series and it was just the perfect ending.

2. Worst book of 2010? 
Well, I don't think there are bad books, just different styles and opinions. But one book that I found to be a bit disappointing was Firelight. From the cover and the description I was hoping for a bit more...substance? I think it was an enjoyable love story but that's really what it focused on so I'm hoping the sequel will be better.


3. Most Disappointing Book of 2010? 
See question 2. Another book though that disappointed me juuuuuuuust a little bit was I am Number Four. It was a GREAT book, I wanted to read it after I finished The Hunger Games series, but for some reason the book just didn't live up to the description. I would definitely still recommend this book but I think the second book might be better. (And the movie does not look that appealing either, it does not follow the book's story line AT ALL)


4. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2010?
The Hunger Games!!!! I did not want to read this book. At all. I had no interest in it, I didn't care for the concept, I just was indifferent to it. But Cleo told me to read it, so I did. It was one of my favorite books of all time. But, keep in mind that doesn't mean I liked the entire series, just the first book.


5. Book you recommended to people most in 2010? 
Hmmm...for 2010 I would definitely recommend Last Sacrifice but it order to read that you'd have to read the other books first. But I also liked Nightshade because I feel like it's got a really good storyline that will definitely get even better as the story continues.


6. Best series you discovered in 2010? 
The Immortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare is awesome! 

7. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2010? 
Suzzane Collines, Pittacus Lore (pseudonym for James Frey and Jobie Hughes), Sherrilyn Kenyon, and Andrea Cremer. (:


8. Most hilarious read of 2010?
Hmm...most hilarious.... I actually really liked the Percy Jackson series. It always makes me laugh and I've read the series over and over and over. Also Infinity By Sherrilyn Kenyon.

9. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2010? 
Basically all the books that I put under #5 and #6..and #8 :D

10. Book you most anticipated in 2010? 
Definitely the Last Sacrifice, you should have seen me, I kept reminding my mom everyday that I needed to have Last Sacrifice the day it came out so she pre-oredered it on Amazon for me! haha

11. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2010? 
Favorite cover would be a tie between Nightshade, because it's purple, beautiful, deadly, and mysterious all at once, and Torment. It was so dark and gloomy but incredibly beautiful at the same time.

      

12. Most memorable character in 2010? Calla in Nightshade or Luce in Torment. Calla was a strong character from the start who knew what she wanted and she'd do whatever it took to get it, but Luce started out kinda as a weak character who couldn't do anything on her own and she really developed in the second book.

13. Most beautifully written book in 2010?

Hmm...I liked Anna Goddberson's Bright Young Things because her books always have that really glamourous feel. She's writing about beautiful, young, glamourous people living in New York getting caught up in webs of drama and lies, and that feeling of being the hottest young thing out there really transfers through her writing and I'm able to feel like I'm a part of all the high fashion. 

14. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2010?

Probably Anna Goddberson's Bright Young Things again because it shows just how high you can climb just to lose it all in a second. These girls in the book know how to work their to the top, by lying, flirting and picking all the right friends, but their bad girl nature is really offset when you see the fragile girl underneath when she loses everything in the blink of an eye. The amazing thing though is that they don't settle for anything less than what they deserve and it shows their strength.

15. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2010 to finally read?

Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead. I've been waiting for this book for about two years and it didn't disappoint.

I know it was a bit repetitive like Cleo's but these are the books that really stood out to me and I loved them a lot so I hope, if you have not had the joy of reading them yet, that they give you a great start for 2011. If you have read them, hopefully you agree with just how awesome they were and maybe, for the fun of it, you just might read them again!

Happy (belated) New Year! :D