Cover Crush (7): Infinite Sky

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

I'm in love with the cover for Infinite Sky by C.J. Flood!

Iris Dancy’s free-spirited mum has left for Tunisia, her dad’s rarely sober and her brother’s determined to fight anyone with a pair of fists.  

When a family of travellers move into the overgrown paddock overnight, her dad looks set to finally lose it. Gypsies are parasites he says, but Iris is intrigued. As her dad plans to evict the travelling family, Iris makes friends with their teenage son. Trick Deran is a bare knuckle boxer who says he’s done with fighting, but is he telling the truth?  

When tools go missing from the shed, the travellers are the first suspects. Iris’s brother, Sam, warns her to stay away from Trick; he’s dangerous, but Iris can no longer blindly follow her brother’s advice. He’s got secrets of his own, and she’s not sure he can be trusted himself.  

Infinite Sky is a family story about betrayal and loyalty, and love.

I think that this is actually the British cover for the book and the U.S. cover hasn't been released yet, or that I know of.  Anyways, this sounds like a great story and has a great cover to go along with it.  I love the blue that the cover designer chose as well as the contrasting white and black that stands out against the background.  I'm also completely in love the two different typography that was chosen.  The cursive  title looks really nice from far away, until you get closer and realize that it's actually barbed-wire, which seems to tie into the story since the book is set on a farm.  I'm also a big fan of just plain sans serif fonts so  I really like the font for the author's name.  I also really like the the birds and the crops because it seems to explain the setting from the beginning.  I hope that the U.S. cover turns out somewhat similar!! 

What do you think of the cover?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

2012 End of the Year Book Survey

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR!  Whoa, 2012 just flew by in the blink of an eye.  It was a pretty bad year when considering the dedication to this blog.  I had like a 2 month hiatus?  3 months?  I also only read 60 books this year :(  I don't know if it'll get any easier, especially with graduation rolling around and then moving on to college.  All in one year.  2013 might just fly by even faster.  Anyhoo, let's get on with the annual survey started over at The Perpetual Page Turner!

1.  Best Book You Read In 2012?
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver.  It's practically a given.  That series in general is just an absolute favorite.  Runner ups include The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, The Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith, and Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson.  Oh!  And Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare, too.  January (when I read it) just seemed like a life time ago...

2.  Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.  Yep, sue me.  I was so excited because the movie looked great (I still haven't seen it) and the book sounded super intriguing, but I just didn't like it as much.  It just wasn't for me.  

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2012? 

The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer!  I haven't read a middle grade book in about a thousand years, so I was kind of like iffy about reading it since I got it just because I was able to get it signed by Chris Colfer himself.  BUT IT WAS REALLY COOL!  It was such a cool twist on all the fairy tales that we grow up reading about!

4. Book you recommended to people most in 2012?

I think it was The Fault in our Stars because I actually gave that one as a present to one of my friends... And then told the rest of my friends to read it.  

5. Best series you discovered in 2012?

Definitely The Grisha series by Leigh Bardugo (the first book is Shadow & Bone).  It was a super interesting first book so I definitely can't wait to see what will happen next!  The Lunar Chronicles by Marisa Meyer (the first book is Cinder) was also a really cool series that I started and I can't wait to read what will happen next in that series as well :)

6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2012?

I think that this was the year when I read my first John Green book, so John Green is a new favorite author for sure.  I also really liked Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard, so she's a new author that I'm really looking forward to reading another book from.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

I'm kind of like all of the place when it comes to genres so I can't really say that there was a book that was out of my comfort zone or was a new genre for me.  

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2012?

CLOCKWORK PRINCE!!! That love triangle just had me going through the book.  It was also super intriguing as well... But seeing what's going to happen next with Will, Jem, and Tess??  I was on the edge of my seat/bed/sofa/desk the whole entire time.  GO WILL! 

9. Book You Read In 2012 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year:

Second Chance Summer is a definite yes.  Does Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door count since I re-read them this year?

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2012?

There had to be two.  And it had to be these two.  Just look at them!!  I love the bright colors in the cover for The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour and the mood that the cover for Fever by Lauren DeStefano sets with all the props and the model is really cool.

11. Most memorable character in 2012? 

Craig from It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini was a pretty cool character.  He was pretty funny and I loved reading his story about his time at the hospital.  

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2012?

I always described this book more of a "young adult picture book" because it pretty much is all pictures.  You could go through it in like 10 minutes.  Anyways, it's Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and I just loved it a lot and I wished that I could steal it from the library and never give it back.  It was just a really interesting concept and the whole story came through the pictures and very few words.  So, in a way, it was beautiful.

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2012? 

Second Chance Summer was a GREAT book and it actually kind of made me cry in the end.  It was mostly the whole situation with the father that really had an impact on me because it's always hard losing someone, especially when it's someone who's so close to you.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read? 

I guess Lies by Michael Grant would have to be the book because I keep waiting for them to come out in paperback so all of my books in the series would look consistent.  IT WAS AMAZING!  In terms of action and that stuff.  I need to get the next one...

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2012? 

I have a few that I seem to have added on Goodreads so here they are:

"You can build a future out of nothing.  A scrap, a flicker.  The desire to go forward, slowly, one foot at a time."
--Lauren Oliver, Pandemonium

"Love is wild and when it is cut returns again, stronger whether you want it to or not."
--Jessica Anthony, Chopsticks

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2012? 

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare was the longest book at 535 pages while The Perks of Being a Wallflower was the shortest at 213 pages.

17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!

CLOCKWORK PRINCE!  I'm so glad that I had a friend who read it before I did so I could go to her during school and just rant about what happened.  SO MUCH HAPPENED!  And then I texted another one of my friends after I was done with the book to tell her to read it so that I can rant to her about it.  She did read it... Like several weeks after -_- But at least I got to talk to her about it :)

18. Favorite Relationship From A Book You Read In 2012 (be it romantic, friendship, etc).

Of course Hazel and Gus from The Fault in Our Stars were pretty darn cute.  Evie and Lend from Endlessly by Kiersten White (IT WAS THE FINAL BOOK!) were adorable as well.  Lillia, Kat, and Mary from Burn for Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian were a pretty cool trio, even though they weren't really friends, but it's the bonding over revenge that counts ;)

19. Favorite Book You Read in 2012 From An Author You Read Previously:

Definitely Second Chance Summer if we're talking about standalone titles. 

20. Best Book You Read That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:

My friends don't really ever recommend books to me, but one friend sort of indirectly recommended The Fault in Our Stars to me because she constantly talked about it and was always reading it, so I guess I read that one based solely on a recommendation.

If you've completed the survey, leave a link below & I'll check it out!

Cleo :)

*Covers from goodreads.com

Merry Christmas!

I hope you and your families have a Merry Christmas!

&

That you receive many awesome bookish presents!
Or just regular presents if you prefer :)

Cleo

Review: Sound

Title: Sound
Author: Shelley Workinger
Date Released: November 1st, 2012
Pages: 218
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Clio Kaid's had one crazy summer.

After learning she was one of a hundred teens who were genetically modified before birth, she and the others departed for "camp" at a classified military site.

Besides discovering her own special ability, uncovering a conspiracy, and capturing a killer, she's also forged new friendships, found love, and managed to lose them both.

With no answers and the end of summer closing in, Clio's terrified of going home more lost than when she arrived.

Will she finally find everything she's been looking for?

Find out in this exciting conclusion to the Solid trilogy.

Review:
Sound continues several weeks after the end of Settling, in which A LOT of stuff happened.  The protagonist, Clio, is still at the camp that she was put in for a couple weeks, but eventually became a whole summer camp, and now they have extended it to become a whole year thing in order to fully develop and analyze the powers that the special kids like Clio seem to have.

Even though everything seems fine since Clio and her gang of friends have been able to get rid of two threats, evil is still lurking in the background when a major coincidence unsettles Clio.  Not only does Clio have to deal with this new possible threat, but she also has to deal with the friendships she lost during the course of Settling.

The final novel in the trilogy was a fantastic ending because it still maintained the mystery and suspense that all the previous novels had and had a rather cute ending to tie it all up.  I will say that I felt that this one did not have as much action as the previous ones and was mostly based around conversations over the coincidence and possible theories or it was Clio trying to patch things up with her friends and reestablish the friendships/relationships with the people she cared about.  The climax of the novel felt rather short, too and I wish that the book could have been a little bit longer.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading Sound and seeing how everything would play out in the end for Clio and her friends, as well as what will happen to the camp.  The ending was super adorable with all of them making plans to stay in touch, especially since they're practically all of the world with the addition of Angus who is from Australia.  If you're looking for a book that involves suspense and people with superpowers, which is surprisingly not all that common in the young adult genre, then definitely try the Solid trilogy!

Cover Review:
I like how the cover has a consistent color that pops out against the black background.  However, I'm not totally sure as to what the main picture is on the center of the cover.  It looks like people against some sort of light thing, but it's hard to tell and looks a bit abstract.

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy received from author for review.

It's Not the End of the World Giveaway

Obviously, the whole Mayan end-of-the-world prediction thing definitely did not happen if you're reading this.

So, in honor of the world not ending, I've decided that it would be great to celebrate it with a GIVEAWAY!!

If you're new here, then you'll know that there has only ever been ONE giveaway.  Just one.  And that was over a year ago.  I'm not the richest kid in the world, but I also happen to be the stingiest.  So, giveaways just don't happen that often.

However, I felt the need to have at least one before the end of the year.

So, this giveaway is going to be Dystopian/Apocalyptic themed in honor of the apocalyptic event that was not going to happen from the very beginning.

This is also the very belated blogoversary giveaway that never happened (Sorry!).

One winner can choose from one of the following books that are my absolute favorite dystopian/apocalyptic stories.  This one is international since I'm going to try out the Book Depository, so yay for international followers!  Also, it ends on January 4th, 2013!

• Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
• Legend by Marie Lu
• Delirium or Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
• The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
• Wither or Fever by Lauren DeStefano
• Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
• Gone (or any other book in the series) by Michael Grant
• Divergent or Insurgent by Veronica Roth
• Across the Universe or A Million Suns by Beth Revis
• The Hunger Games (or any other book in the series) by Suzanne Collins
• Uglies (or any other book in the series) by Scott Westerfeld

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cleo :)

Review: Fever

Title: Fever
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Date Released: February 21st, 2012
Pages: 341
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion, but danger is never far behind.

Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago - surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness.

The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous - and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion...by any means necessary.

In the sequel to Lauren DeStefano’s harrowing Wither, Rhine must decide if freedom is worth the price - now that she has more to lose than ever.

Review:
Rhine can never seem to escape from being caged in and oppressed.  In the second installment of the Chemical Garden trilogy, Rhine is immediately caught after escaping the house of her husband, Linden, and father-in-law, Vaughn, and kept in a carnival full of girls being forced into prostitution.  It's almost like being back with Vaughn and Linden, except without the luxuries of a comfortable bed and servants to cater to your every need.  From there, the story is filled tension and questions; will Vaughn find her and bring her back to the mansion?  Will she ever find her brother?  Will Rhine and Gabriel ever be able to find safety in such a dangerous world?  All these questions run through your mind until the very end.

Fever was a great follow-up to Wither and continued on with the intensity and intrigue I found in the first book.  The originality of the novel is always a plus and I feel like the science aspect was really able to come out more in this novel, especially towards the end.

I always liked Rhine because of her strength to keep going forward, despite the challenges that lie ahead.  It is a dangerous world in this series especially since it is full of people who take advantage of girls her age and even younger.  Even though Rhine knows of these dangers, she still tries her hardest to accomplish her goal.  In this case, it's finding her twin brother.  Gabriel is such a sweetie and is always looking out for Rhine and Maddie, a new character that comes along in the novel.  The one character that did confuse me in the novel, however, was Maddie.  She's a child that Rhine and Gabriel sort of adopt (but not really) and she's a malformed.  Yet, she's incredibly smart, being able to spot a place to stay or a place to hide, even though she doesn't talk.  It's amazing, but perplexing at the same time.

One thing that was lacking in Fever was the like huge revolution/action part.  There was intensity since Rhine, Gabriel, and Maddie were on one huge adventure, going from one place to another.  Another huge spoilery thing happens about half way through the book, but that uprise that happens in most dystopian novels just didn't happen.  It was kind of like in Crossed by Allie Condie, the second novel in a dystopian trilogy.  I guess it's just a dystopian thing where the big thing that happens is played out in the last novel.  I guess we'll see soon.  However, in Fever I feel like I learned a lot more about the world that Rhine lives in as more things come together.

Overall, Fever was a great sequel to Wither, although there could have been the big bang.  The characters were amazing, the plot was compelling, and, as before, the writing was absolutely wonderful.  I definitely can't wait until Sever comes out in 2013 to find out how this will all play out.  I'm hoping that the whole "ticking human time-bomb" thing is cured by the end of the series, but we'll never know until it comes out!

Cover Review:
I love the cover, just as how I love the one for Wither.  The glittery dress and the circus props strewn around the cover mean a lot once you read the novel.  They're definitely not just randomly placed there for no reason other than to look pretty.

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crush (6): This Is What Happy Looks Like

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

Today, I have a major crush on the cover for This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith!

If fate sent you an email, would you answer? 

When teenage movie star Graham Larkin accidentally sends small town girl Ellie O'Neill an email about his pet pig, the two seventeen-year-olds strike up a witty and unforgettable correspondence, discussing everything under the sun, except for their names or backgrounds.  

Then Graham finds out that Ellie's Maine hometown is the perfect location for his latest film, and he decides to take their relationship from online to in-person. But can a star as famous as Graham really start a relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie want to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs?

This is an adorable sounding book with an equally adorable cover!  It definitely seems like a romantic novel because of the couple holding hands on a boat.  There's no doubt about that.  I love the pop of yellow in the sun rays and "happy" that contrasts with the black and white of everything else.  I also think it's cute that they drew in some sun rays around the couple.  The cartoonish font for the title also adds to the adorable cover and really pops out.  This cover is almost as cute as the cover of Smith's previous novel The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight!  Look for this adorable cover on shelves on April 2nd of next year!

What do you think of the cover?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

Review: The Lost Prince

Title: The Lost Prince
Author: Julie Kagawa
Date Released: October 23rd, 2012
Pages: 379
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Don’t look at Them. Never let Them know you can see Them.

That is Ethan Chase’s unbreakable rule. Until the fey he avoids at all costs—including his reputation—begin to disappear, and Ethan is attacked. Now he must change the rules to protect his family. To save a girl he never thought he’d dare to fall for.

Ethan thought he had protected himself from his older sister’s world—the land of Faery. His previous time in the Iron Realm left him with nothing but fear and disgust for the world Meghan Chase has made her home, a land of myth and talking cats, of magic and seductive enemies. But when destiny comes for Ethan, there is no escape from a danger long, long forgotten.

This novel is one of Julie’s books that will have you demanding for the second one as soon as you finish your read.

Review:
Ethan Chase is definitely not that little innocent boy who we first meant The Iron King.  He has several piercings, some incredible kali skills, and a major bad boy record.  However, deep down inside, he's still the sweet kid that he once was.  It's just been years of annoyance by the fey that caused him to become a bitter and angry teenager.

When Ethan moves to a new school, after being expelled from his previous one, he encounters a half-breed, Tod, who pulls him and a girl named Kenzie into the world of fey which he tried to avoid for so long.  From there, his world becomes completely changed when he meets his nephew, Kieran, and has to embark on a journey to save the people he comes to care about.

After reading The Iron Prophecy, the novella following The Iron Knight, I couldn't wait until The Lost Prince came out.  This was definitely written in the spirit of the other Iron Fey novels.  There's a lot of fast paced action and adventure and, in general, I just love reading about this particular world of fairies.  Seeing it from a negative point of view adds a perspective that is different from the Meghan and Ash's view which made it twice as interesting.

Ethan in general was just such an interesting character... He turned into a complete rebel from the little innocent boy that we used to know him as.  Both him and Kieran together kind of reminded me of the one and only dynamic duo, Puck and Ash, which I think Puck even stated himself at one point in the novel.  Ethan's (obvious) love interest, Kenzie, was a cool female character to add into the mix of teenage boys.  Sometimes, she acted just a little too clingy and strong (she pulled the "I want to stay with you because we've gotten this far" multiple times when Ethan told her she should go home).

I can't say that I completely fell in love with The Lost Prince though, as I had with the previous books in the series.  To me, I felt like something was lacking.  Maybe it was because I love the action and adventure, it seemed to jump around a little too much from place to place.

The Lost Prince was a fantastic start to the new spin-off series.  From the ending, I could definitely tell that there was something else going on that would definitely carry on into the next book, The Traitor Son, so I'll be on the lookout for that when it hits shelves.  If you haven't read The Iron Fey series, then I definitely suggest that you do because they are all out so you won't have to wait for anymore to come out!

Cover Review:
I wasn't too sure about the whole shirtless situation going on on the cover because it is a little awkward when your mom sees it and you have to explain why you're reading a book with a shirtless boy on the cover.  However, I like how they kept certain design elements such as the swirly designs and the design of the title.  I really like the forest background, too.

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crush (5): Golden

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

I'm have a major crush on the cover for Golden by Jessi Kirby!

Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost may be a distant relative of Robert Frost, but she has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a mystery in her lap—one that might be the key to uncovering the truth behind a town tragedy, she decides to take a chance.

Golden's cover is definitely gorgeous.  All the yellows and gold colors really brings out the lightness of the cover and ties in with the title.  The yellow design going across the bottom is really cool and adds to what could have been just a face with some words on a cover as most contemporary novels are.  The burst of sunlight also really adds to the cover as well.  The sans serif font that they used for the cover gives the cover a contemporary feel as well, and is one of the things that attracted me to the cover because of the bold statement that it makes.  Overall, I have a HUGE crush on this cover and cannot wait until this comes out so I can have its prettiness in my hands!

What do you think of the cover?

Cleo :)

*Cover from goodreads.com

Review: Beautiful Days

Title: Beautiful Days
Author: Anna Godbersen
Date Released: September 20th, 2011
Pages: 368
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
For the bright young things of 1929, the beautiful days seem endless, filled with romance and heartbreak, adventure and intrigue, friendship and rivalry.

After a month in New York, Cordelia Grey and Letty Larkspur are small-town girls no longer. They spend their afternoons with Astrid Donal at the Greys' lush Long Island estate and their nights in Manhattan's bustling metropolis. But Letty's not content to be a mere socialite. She is ready at last to chase her Broadway dreams--no matter the cost.

Cordelia is still reeling from the death of her father at the hands of Thom Hale, the man she thought she loved. Now she is set to honor Darius Grey's legacy . . . and take her revenge.

Promised to Cordelia's half brother, Astrid is caught up in a world of dazzling jewels and glittering nights--and the sparkle is blinding. Charlie Grey is a gangster playing a dangerous game; and for Astrid, Cordelia, and Letty, the stakes could be deadly.

From the "New York Times" bestselling author of "The Luxe" comes the second book in an epic series set in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age.

Review:
Beautiful Days picks up a month after the events of Bright Young Things.  Cordelia, Letty, and Astrid have all moved on to other things, such as lounging by the pool.  But, they've also moved onto much more serious roles.  Cordelia is busy with planning to open up a speakeasy, while Letty is trying to launch her career.  Meanwhile, Astrid is finally engaged to Cordelia's brother, Charlie, but being linked to a Grey, especially one of such power, means danger.

This sequel was a great followup to Bright Young Things.  We get to see life after Cordelia and Letty are settled into their new lives in the ever glamorous New York City and how their relationships with other people continue to develop or break at any moment.  I'll admit that it does go at a slow pace at times, but then it picks up and builds to towards the climatic event in the end.

The characters are fantastic and have changed so much by the end of the novel.  Letty definitely becomes stronger, Cordelia becomes more responsible, while Astrid finally realizes that you should always listen to what people tell you to do, especially if they know what they're talking about.  In terms of love interests and boyfriends, some were just plain jerks while others were ones to definitely admire.  Max, for instance, is this mysterious and broody pilot that I, for one, cannot help but swoon over.  On the other hand, Grady was cool...  But then he wasn't anymore.  And Charlie is just Charlie.  He's a brother and a fiance so he has this protective instinct about him.

In general, what I love about Anna Godbersen's novels is the historical time frame in which she writes her novels in.  The 20's is just such as glamorous time in the American history, and to read about it in such an entertaining novel just makes it all the more better.

I would definitely recommend this to people who like a light historical fiction read.  It's not heavily historical, but it has many references to the 20's, such as the speakeasies and bootlegging businesses.  The story itself is just really intriguing and had me hooked from page 1 to page 368.  I cannot wait until I can get my hands on The Lucky Ones, which is out as of 3 days ago, to see what will happen in the final installment!  There are a lot of loose ends that will hopefully be tied up in The Lucky Ones.

Cover Review:
Love the cover!  It's absolutely gorgeous from the title's font to "Cordelia" lying on the lounge chair.  I love the rich purple colors contrasting with the light pink of the dress.

Cleo :)

*Description & cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy purchased.

Cover Crush (4): Eleanor & Park

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

Recently, I can't get over the cover for Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell!

"Bono met his wife in high school," Park says.

"So did Jerry Lee Lewis," Eleanor answers.

"I’m not kidding," he says.

"You should be," she says, "we’re sixteen."

"What about Romeo and Juliet?"

"Shallow, confused, then dead."

''I love you," Park says.

"Wherefore art thou," Eleanor answers.

"I’m not kidding," he says.

"You should be." 

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under.

Not only does this book sound completely adorable, but also the cover is insanely cute!  I absolutely love the simplicity of the cover as well as  how the headphones are linked together and form a "&" to complete the title.  I think it's also cool how "eleanor" is red because her main feature is red and "park" is blue because his sweater's blue.  It really makes it stand out :)  The cartoon theme is adorable and is what originally drew me into the book, because you know, I tend to judge a book by its cover.

What do you think of the cover?

Cleo :)

What's Next? You Choose!

                                                                                     
Lately, I've had an influx of books coming in, mainly because it was my birthday.  Because of that, I've been having a hard time choosing between which book to read after I finish The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa!

I've been super indecisive about what I want to read next, so I thought that I would let you guys decide. All of the books sound really great so it's been kind of hard for me to decide which one I would tackle next.You can just click in the poll below to decide what I'm going to read next!

Which book should I read next?
	Fever by Lauren Destefano
	Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia Margaret Stohl
	Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
pollcode.com free polls

Thanks for voting if you did & happy reading!

Cleo :)
                                                                         

Happy Thanksiving!!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you guys have lots of fun with your families & eat lots of delicious food! (Especially pumpkin pie because my family decided to deprive me of that this year...).

There's a ton of things to be thankful for this year, especially since it's been a crazy year with trying to apply for colleges and all that fun stuff.  

I'm thankful for:

my family,

my friends,

YOU GUYS!

my books,

my laptop (for not giving up on me... yet),

the amazing opportunities I've had this year,

and a lot more that I can't think of right at this moment.

How could my family deprive me of this
yummy goodness??

Hope you guys have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Cleo :)

Be Back... Soon?

Obviously this hiatus happened a little over a month ago...

BUT I'LL TRY TO BE BACK SOON!

This school year has been pretty crazy.

It's my Senior year, and what I thought was supposed to be an easy year

actually applied to second semester, when all the college applications

have been submitted -_-

Plus, I decided to take three AP classes, all of which are REALLY hard

and hardly what they were like last year when I took three AP's.

IT'S JUST A BUNCH OF CRAZINESS!

Hopefully I'll be back; maybe around winter break?

& hopefully you haven't given up on this blog either.

Maybe I'll finally have that blogoversary giveaway...

And maybe a "welcome back after a 3000000000 month hiatus" giveaway...

And I kind of want to change up things around here a little bit...

We'll see :)

Hope to see you guys around the blog again & happy reading!

Cleo :)

Happy 2nd Blogoversary, Booklopedia!

Today is Booklopedia's 2nd birthday! It's been two really awesome years so far even though there have been times when I've gotten busy and stopped writing up posts, but I always miss getting to write about my opinion and then putting them on the World Wide Web for you guys to read, so I guess that's a plus :)

I know that the best part about blogoversary's is the epic giveaway.  Last year I gave away a signed copy of Supernaturally by Kiersten White.  As you can tell, this celebratory post does not have a giveaway!  But I'm working on that!  I've decided to let you guys choose between these two options and you can comment below with the choice that you have chosen.  I'll give you guys a week from today (until 8/14) to choose which type of a giveaway you would rather have.

1. An option of one book from a list of chosen books from the Book Depository (since I guess that one could be international).
2. A signed copy of a book from an event that I will hopefully get to go to sometime in the near future (although there aren't any that I know of right now and this would NOT be international and would just be for the US).

So, obviously choice number one would be more efficient, convenient and be available to all of you who read Booklopedia.  But, if you would rather want a signed copy then go ahead and let me know in the comments section below!  

Thanks guys if you're still keeping up with Booklopedia!  Every comment I get keeps me going and wishing that I were at my laptop writing up a post when I'm too busy to.

Cleo :)

Cover Crush (3): Let the Sky Fall

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

Today, I'm in love with the cover for Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger!

Vane Weston should have died in the category five tornado that killed his parents. Instead, he woke up in a pile of rubble with no memories of his past—except one: a beautiful, dark-haired girl standing in the winds. She's swept through his dreams ever since, and he clings to the hope that she's real. 

Audra is real, but she isn't human. She's a sylph, an air elemental who can walk on the wind, translate its alluring songs, even twist it into a weapon. She's also a guardian—Vane’s guardian—and has sworn an oath to protect him at all costs.  

When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra has just days to help Vane unlock his memories. And as the storm winds gather, they start to realize the greatest danger might not be the warriors coming to destroy them, but the forbidden romance growing between them.  

Set amongst the desert airstreams of Coachella Valley in California, LET THE SKY FALL is about two teenagers broken by their pasts, divided by their futures, and bound by love.

One thing that I absolutely love about the cover is the two figures in the air... It's just so romantic and relates to the book since Audra can "walk on the wind."  I also really like the color that they chose because it has that tornado feel, like there was dust kicked up all over the place after a tornado came through.  The simple sans serif font that they used really doesn't overpower the cover, but still makes a strong statement so that you'd be able to notice it.  I've also been a fan of simple fonts lately, so other people may not like the simpleness of it as much as I do, but I think it's still cool enough that it doesn't like really distract you from anything else on the cover.  I also like how it's centered in the middle, too.

What do you think about the cover?

Cleo :)

While I've Been MIA For the Past 2 Weeks, I've Been

1.  Trying to get through these three summer reading books for school.  I still have two more to go  through... And one of them's Shakespeare :(  Luckily, I have my trusty Cinnamoroll to get me through them :D

2.  Reading It's Kind of a Funny Story.  I really like it, but because of my summer reading books, I've been reading it for the past 2 weeks (which is a REALLY LONG time).

3.  At Yearbook Camp.  Last week, I spent the week in Malibu at Yearbook Camp, which was nice and all, but the walking was dreadful and the dorms were scary >.<

4.  Freaking out about getting my driver's license.  Which I passed!  But it was still scary.  And I've only driven by myself once, which was only to a friends house 5 blocks away.

5.  At a signing to meet the one and only, Chris Colfer!  This was the coolest thing ever!  Even though we just said Hi and How are you? because the line was crazy long and he came an hour late AND he had to be at the airport in like 3 hours.  It was crazy, but COOL!

That's basically all that's happened.  And while this was all happening, I was freaking out about how I had not posted anything and how I failed the 30 Day Divergent Challenge because I only got to the 22nd or 23rd post and then completely stopped.  It's funny how it seems so easy when you look at it, and how it gets harder and harder to keep up with it.  Note to self, never do a challenge like this ever again because I will fail (I was seriously contemplating over whether or not to do The Hunger Games Challenge... But I guess I'm not going to now.)

Expect to see a couple reviews for books like Second Chance Summer and Monument 14 to come out within at least this week (hopefully) as well as a Cover Crush tomorrow and maybe a Waiting on Wednesday!

Cleo :)

Cover Crush (2): Clockwork Princess

Cover Crush is a new feature here at Booklopedia to highlight the covers that I'm currently absolutely in love with.  I know that there are multiple memes or features out there that feature covers, but I thought that it would be cool if Booklopedia had their own feature and that it should be about something that I love about books: their covers.

Today, I have a MAJOR crush on the cover for Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare!

In Clockwork Princess, Tessa and her companions travel all over the world as they race to stop the clockwork army before it’s too late. As Jem’s health worsens alarmingly and his friends search desperately for a cure, can Tessa choose between the two boys she loves—even if it means never seeing the other one again?

When I saw this cover, I absolutely fell in love!! The background is a sort of sad, gray color, but the light coming off of the book really adds a splash of color to the gray background.  I also LOVE the dress that Tessa is wearing...  It's gorgeous and has me wishing that I lived in Victorian London!!  The model is absolutely gorgeous, too (she's actually kind of making me feel a little bit ugly right now...).  Another thing I love about the cover is how well it's going to fit on my shelf with the other Infernal Devices novels!!  Eeek!  I'll have a completed collection of the books :D

What do you think of the cover for the final book in the Infernal Devices trilogy?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

Day 22: Your Favorite Thing About the Entire Series

Definitely the whole factions concept!!  That's what I originally fell in love with.  I thought it was such a cool thing to be divided into different factions, even though it can be extremely difficult when going through the initiation process, like for Dauntless!  If I even tried, I would probably be dead the moment they told us that we had to jump off of the train...  Also, the fact that it's a dystopian novel is another favorite thing the series.

Cleo :)

Day 20 & 21: Favorite/Least Favorite Faction

Day 20: Favorite Faction

Oooo This one is super hard because each faction sort of has its own flaw.  I'd have to go with the Amity faction, though.  Maybe their whole view on how to keep the peace and the process they use to keep the peace isn't exactly ideal, but I like how they deal with nature and believe in peace.  They also seem bright and cheerful all the time, like me! :D  Amity is probably one of the most close to normal factions that there is out there, so for that, it's one of my favorite.

Day 21: Least Favorite Faction

Erudite!  Duh!!  Sure, it's cool that you're all smart and like to discover new things, but when knowledge becomes greed, it is not cool!  Not cool at all.  

Cleo :)

Day 19: A Character You Are Most Like

I think the character that I can think of that's similar to me would have to be Johanna since she tries to keep the peace, and I would like to think that I keep the peace... Or at least try to.  I could never be anything like any of the Dauntless people.  Oh!  I could probably be like Caleb, too... Or at least the pre-Insurgent Caleb :)  I like being knowledgeable, but I'm not greedy for information like most Erudite are, so Caleb is definitely a character that I'm most like, too.

Cleo :)

Days 15, 16, 17 & 18

Over the past few days I've been kind of busy and I haven't really been at home long enough to turn on my laptop and type up the challenges :/  So the last four days have been compacted into one post for the meantime, although it kind of defeats the purpose of the challenge... But at least I'm trying my hardest to keep up with it!  I honestly thought that this would be the easiest thing ever, but it turns out that you never really know what's going to happen every day ^_^

Day 15: A Pairing You Didn't Get

Hmmm... This is kind of hard because all of them pretty much make sense... So I'm going to cheat and take a pass on this challenge...

Day 16: A Book/Series You Would Recommend to a Fellow Fan

Anything dystopian with lots  of action would be a good recommendation.  The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and Legend by Marie Lu are two great books that are similar to Divergent.  Delirium by Lauren Oliver could work, too, if you like romance :)

Day 17: A Character You Hate that Everyone Loves

Okay, this one is pretty hard too because Veronica Roth makes sure that you love the characters that you're supposed to love and hate the ones that you're supposed to hate.  If I really had to choose, then in Insurgent, and in Insurgent only, it would have to be Tris.  She was kind of annoying in Insurgent to tell the truth, but she got better by the end :D

Day 18: A Character You Love that Everyone Hates

Again... A hard one!!  But I guess that's why they call it a challenge!  I'm not sure if she's really hated by most people, but I kind of like Tori.  Sure, she got a bit crazy when she was finally able to confront Jeanine, but that's because she took away her brother.  When you loose a loved one, it's pretty justified, especially if you're Dauntless.  Besides, that she's pretty cool with keeping Tris's secret and just being an awesome Dauntless person.

Cleo :)

Day 14: A Song That Reminds You of the Series

I chose This Isn't Everything You Are by Snow Patrol because it reminds me of how Tris and Four, and even some of the other characters, felt that they didn't belong in their faction, but they still stayed strong about it until they had to make their final decision.  While the different "stories" that are told in the song don't really pertain to Divergent or Insurgent, the overall meaning of the song kind of does.  

Some Nights by fun. is also another song that comes to mind kind of because you could interpret it as going out to war, and Tris is doing just doing that in Insurgent.

What song reminds you of the Divergent series so far?

Cleo :)

Days 12 & 13: Favorite Moment in Divergent & Insurgent

I've decided, in order to eliminate doing a whole bunch of posts for the 30 Day Divergent Challenge, I'll do certain challenges in pairs if they go hand in hand, like this one, and then they'll be posted on the latter day :D  I figured this might be less annoying if I'm blowing up your news feed with the daily challenges.

Anyways, my most favorite moment in Divergent has got to be the Ferris wheel scene.  I don't really remember what happened, but I do remember just being completely mesmerized by the scene and thinking that it was totally awesome.

In Insurgent, the bridge scene was pretty intense and one that I can remember well considering my apparent short term memory when it comes to thinking of favorite moments/scenes.

All together, I gotta say that the good moments between Tris and Four were my favorite, too, because Four is just so sweet around Tris *sigh*

Cleo :)

Review: Where It Began

Title: Where It Began
Author: Ann Redisch Stampler
Date Released: March 6th, 2012
Pages: 384
Rating: 3 out of 5

Description:

Sometimes the end is just the beginning.

Gabby Gardiner wakes up in a hospital bed looking like a cautionary ad for drunk driving—and without a single memory of the accident that landed her there. But what she can recall, in frank and sardonic detail, is the year leading up to the crash.

As Gabby describes her transformation from Invisible Girl to Trendy Girl Who Dates Billy Nash (aka Most Desirable Boy Ever), she is left wondering: Why is Billy suddenly distancing himself from her? What do her classmates know that Gabby does not? Who exactly was in the car that night? And why has Gabby been left to take the fall?

As she peels back the layers of her life, Gabby begins to realize that her climb up the status ladder has been as intoxicating as it has been morally complex... and that nothing about her life is what she has imagined it to be.

Review:

Where It Began is basically like a cautionary tale for underage drinking and sketchy boyfriends.  The lesson?  Don't drink and definitely do not date wildly popular and insanely rich guys.  This was Gabby Gardiner's undoing and what wound her up in a hospital waking up totally confused and having absolutely no memory of what happened the night of the car crash that changed her life forever.

Gabby is a sort of rich kid.  She's privileged enough to go to a preppy private school, get a makeover done that will contribute to her life changing car accident, and live in one of the three B's - Bel Air, Brentwood, and Beverly Hills.  However, being a sort of rich kid comes with problems, too.  Her dad's a drunk and her mom's a shopaholic who is pretty much a very superficial person, like Jenna's mom in the TV show awkward. if you've ever seen that show.  Gabby has also been an outcast most of her years at Winston, until she gets her life changing transformation, landing her the most popular guy at school, Billy Nash.

Ann Stampler's debut was an interesting novel.  The beginning was a jumble of thoughts, flipping between the present and the past, which she calls Gabriella Gardiner Presents Scenes from Teen Life in the Three B's.  Eventually she goes home and things start to get... sketchy.  Billy is pretty much MIA and won't talk to her when she finally goes back to school, and she's confused by why everyone pities her even though she's pretty sure she's to blame for the accident.  The beginning of  the novel didn't exactly get me pumped about the novel, the middle got a bit interesting with all the mystery surrounding the pity and Billy, but the ending was what really got me, although a bit too late.  It just captivated me by how twisted and wrong some people are.

In terms of characters, Billy Nash was obviously a jerk.  He's one of those characters that you're supposed to hate, deeply, because he's rich and self-centered.  Gabby was kind of cool, and kind of not.  She was different in that she was artsy and didn't have the money and power that would get her into an Ivy League, like Billy.  However, she still had this sort of fake personality in several instances that I just couldn't stand.

Overall, Where It Began didn't exactly stand out to me.  I loved the conclusion and how everything unraveled in the end, but I can't say that the beginning grabbed my attention and I couldn't really connect or fall in love with the characters.  I will admit thought that it was pretty interesting reading about the rich part of LA.  This novel was Ann Stampler's debut, so I might give her sophomore novel a try.  Another thing about Where It Began.  I would recommend it if you like contemporary novels, but without the cutesy romance.  Personally, I think I'm still finding what I like and dislike in contemporary novels, and ones that deal with issues like these are not my favorites.

Cover Review:
I think the cover is what really drew me into the book.  I loved its simplicity and relaxing vibe with the rainbow reflection from taking the picture on the model's face, kind of like this is an actual photograph.  The simple font also goes with the contemporary genre theme and also stands out with its bold blue color.  I gotta say that I really like this cover!

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy borrowed from local library.