Revel In The Amazement of These Covers!

Three AMAZING covers that have been spotted around the blogosphere recently are for... Supernaturally by Kristen White, Vanish by Sophie Jordan and Lost in Time by Melissa de la Cruz!!!

Aren't they all beautiful and gorgeous?? 

I've read Paranormalcy, and LOVED it.  The cover is absolutely lovely with the brown background theme... It actually kind of reminds be of autumn, but it's a very pretty cover :)

I actually haven't read Sophie Jordan's first book, Firelight, yet, but I really want to since I've heard so many good things about it, and the cover for that is pretty as well!  I really like the silverish/purple theme that they went for. 

I also love Melissa de la Cruz's Blue Blood series, so I really can't wait for the arrival of Lost in Time in October of this year!  This cover still has that recurring theme like the other first five covers.  And it has that little city silhouette at the bottom!   And it's Egypt!!!  I actually find it a little bit plain, probably because the famous buildings in Egypt are the Sphinx, the Pyramids, etc... But it's still nice :D

Any comments?  Do you like them?  Not like them?  But the most important question of all is: Can you wait until they're released?????

Cleo :)

Review: Across the Universe

Title: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Date Released: January 11th, 2011
Pages: 398
Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:
A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

Review:
I have four words for you: This was amazingly awesome!  When I first heard about, I knew I had to get it and I was so glad that I did :D 

So, I really, really, realllllly, loved the whole idea of the book.  A spaceship +  an almost murder + secrets + lies???  Yes please!  Across the Universe was a fairly fast paced novel, that really kept me fascinated and intrigued.  The whole plot was obvioulsy really well thought out, since it was full of twists and turns.  However, I thought that some of it might have been a tad bit predictable, but Beth Revis really keeps you thinking about who could possibly be the murderer.

Amy and Elder were super duper awesome main characters.  They make a really cute couple too :)  Elder was really sweet and he tried his best to make Amy comfortable in this new surrounding.  It was really cute and made me feel all mushy inside because I think that all boys should learn from Elder :D Who agrees with me?

The whole world ship that Beth Revis created was fascinating and very imaginative.  It was large and seemed fairly complex, but it was basic, with three levels.  It fit a whole field for growing food and poultry, and probably around 3000 people!  Maybe even more!  The illustration in the back of the cover (the hardcover copy) really helped get a visual image in your head of the layout. 

Overall, this is definitely by far one of the coolest books I've read this year!  The intensity and secrets made this a real page turner.  Beth Revis wrote a really great debut, and if there's a sequel- and I really hope that there is- then I'm sooo buying it! 

Cover Review:
I really love this cover!  I love the use of the universe for a majority of the cover, as well as the two faces that are so close to touching each other.  However, when I first saw this cover a couple months ago, I thought the two faces were two blobs because I think that they shaded them in a little too dark so you can't really see their features , but other than that, this is a super duper awesome cover!

Cleo :)

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

Follow Friday

Question of the week:

Share your current fav television show! Tell us a bit about it...

Best question ever!!  I think that I might actually go on, and on, and on about this... so if you just want my favorite shows (yes, I have a lot of current favorite TV shows) then here goes my list... and I'll explain why along with it:

1. Supernatural:  OMG!  Have you seen Dean Winchester???  He's to die for... And the show is pretty good, too, especially if you like scary stuff because almost every single episode deals with some sort of creature that goes bump in the night.  Although, for a while it got a little boring because they were dealing with Sam Winchester, Dean's brother, and they were trying to cure him... But I still watched it anyways :)
2. Pretty Little Liars:  It's a little cheesy sometimes, but I like the drama and finding out what 'A' sent them this time.  I also just really want to know who 'A' is....
3. Glee:  Who doesn't watch this show??  Maybe a lot of people, but I really like the music and all the high school drama that goes on in the show.
4. The Vampire Diaries:  It just keeps getting better and better with each episode!
5. Bones:  I love watching Bones!  What I love about it is the beginning where they find the dead body, even though it might be gruesome, I actually find it interesting.  When they solve the case is also always the best thing about this show, too.  You have got to love Dr. Brennan as well and how she takes things so seriously and never really understands jokes and stuff like that :)

Yep, I watch all of these shows every week, although The Vampire Diaries and Bones are on the same day, I watch Bones every Friday since it's on Hulu the next day. 

I'm sorry that there hasn't been any posting at all this week, except for one review.  I even skipped the Cover Crazy post this week!  And I love doing Cover Crazy since I'm, well... Crazy about covers!  I pinky promise with a cherry on top that I'll do at least one post this weekend but there's been a lot of homework and I have a project due next week.  But I'll try my hardest to sneak in some time!

Hope you guys have a grrrreat weekend!!!!!!

Cleo :)

Review: Logic of Demons - The Quest for Nadine's Soul

Title: Logic of Demons - The Quest for Nadine's Soul
Author: H.A. Goodman
Date Released: July 13, 2010
Pages: 262
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Description: What would you do if the love of your life was murdered by a deranged killer? Would you become a vigilante and seek retribution? And would this revenge affect those you care for in the afterlife? LOGIC OF DEMONS The Quest for Nadine's Soul takes you on a journey inside the psyches of men and women forced to deal with the spiritual consequences of their decisions. Through the lives of a demon, two Angels, and a mysterious teenage girl, a plethora of politically and socially relevant issues ranging from the roots of genocide and sex trafficking to child conscription and religious fundamentalism are addressed in this fantasy thriller. Life as well as the afterlife converge in this novel to explain certain peculiarities of the human condition. Whether you are God fearing individual or an atheist, LOGIC OF DEMONS The Quest for Nadine's Soul addresses moral and theological issues of interest for people of all backgrounds.

Review:
Mr. Goodman requested me to read this book a while ago but I didn't have the time so I apologize for the delay. But once I picked up this book it captured my attention instantly. Goodman addresses controversial topics of good and evil along with religion in this book, and it sucks you in. It really makes you think what your perspective is on the world: what's right and what's wrong, what YOU should believe in. It proves to you how maybe good and evil isn't always in black and white, and how the right thing to do isn't always clear, but you find a way. The complicating settings and concepts make your mind turn, and I loved that. Devin's adventure in the afterlife is thrilling and shows you the darkness in our world, while at the same time showing what hope there also is out there. I gave the book a 4.5 because I think if it had more substance it could've been all the much better, plus the wording in places was a little funky, but that may just be me. The concept is amazing, the story enthralling, and it really is inspiring. Definitely check it out.

Cover Review: The cover is of Devin with a pained expression and flames in the background. I think the model on the cover is a good impression of Devin's character, but i think theres a lot more concepts of artwork that also could be put into the cover. However i do like it :)

keep reading folks!
Marmar<3

Follow Friday (23)

This week's awesome question:

If you are a fan of Science Fiction what is your favorite book? If you haven't read Science Fiction before...any inkling to? Anything catch your eye?

Yes!  Actually, sort of... It depends.  Like if it's out of space weird, then nooo...  But if it's fun, like (correct me if I'm wrong about any of these books) The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins or the Pendragon series by DJ McHale (which I think might be middle grade... but it was awesome anyways).  The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld was pretty awesome, too!  I'm also reading Delirium by Lauren Oliver right now, and it's quickly becoming one of my favorites.  Another one of my favorites is Across the Universe by Beth Revis.  Those are all relatively new... And I'm sure that I have other science fiction favorites :)

Now I'm off to go get ready to watch Vampire Diaries!!!!!

Cleo :)

Cover Crazy (13)

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 Possession by Elana Johnson!

Here's why I love it:

• I really love the simplicity.  The one object in the middle of the cover really catches your eye.
• It's really cool how the butterfly in the ice cube (or at least I think it's an ice cube...) on the cover is really symbolic of the story, even though I haven't read it yet. (Read the description to see why)  You actually don't even have to read the description.  Just look at the title, it explains it all.
• I really like the color palate that the cover artist chose.  The green and the blue are really pretty colors and really pop out against the white background.

I totally can't wait until June for Possession's release... It sounds (and looks!) like a really good book!

Do you guys like this cover?  What cover are you going crazy over this week?

Cleo :)

Review: The Ivy

Title: The Ivy
Author: Lauren Kunze & Rina Onur (Collaborator)
Date Released: August 31st, 2010
Pages: 310
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Congratulations! You have been admitted to the most prestigious university in the world. Now what are you going to do?

Callie Andrews may not have money or connections or the right clothes, and she may have way too many complications in her love life, what with

Gregory
the guy she loves to hate ...

Evan
the guy she'd love to forget ...

Clint
the guy she'd love to love ...

and Matt
the guy she really should love ...

all vying for her attention.

But she has three fantastic roommates (best friends or her worst nightmare?) and a wholesome California-girl reputation (oops) and brains and beauty and big, big dreams.


Will it be enough to help her survive freshman year at Harvard?

Review:
Callie Andrews has arrived at Harvard from California *applause*.  She has three roommates, all with different personalities, and a whole bunch of guys that she's met (and crushing on).  But then there's also her *ahem* ex-boyfriend.  Now she just has to survive college while juggling school work, roommates, and four different guys.  It's no big deal, right?

The Ivy was so addicting!  While I was reading this, I was supposed to be studying for finals... But I couldn't help myself :)  What really kept my eyes glued to this book was all the backstabbing and secrets.  All of the drama really made The Ivy super captivating. 

I thought it was super cool how there was such a difference in personality between all four roommates.  Callie was a little more calmer, and not really like the stereotypical blonde from California (hint hint: Elle Woods from "Legally Blonde").  Callie's other roommates, Mimi, Vanessa, and Dana were total opposites.  Mimi was the rich international student from France who was pretty crazy and wild.  Vanessa was the rich New York socialite, who wasn't as crazy and wild, but was more concerned with being popular and gaining admittance into the clubs of Harvard.  On the other hand, Dana is the total opposite of Vanessa and Mimi.  She's the type of girl who would be caught studying all the time and was raised pretty religious, so she could care less about what her roommates really care about (social-wise). 

Don't even get me started on the guys in this book.  All of them were pretty cool, but some of them could be total jerks.  Like Gregory.  All of the guys, like the girls, had different personalities, too.  Gregory was the rich kid who could be a jerk at times, and Matt was the totally sweet one that anyone would want to be their boyfriend.  Clint was an upperclassman, so he should be totally off limits, and he was sweet, too, but not as understanding.  And there's Evan.  He's not really in the book as much, but he came off as a jerk even though he sounded pretty nice.  Obviously, all the characters in The Ivy were diverse.  They're not hard to forget either.  The characters also weren't confusing because they were all so different.

Overall, The Ivy is a pretty good book.  Although, I will warn you to not get your hopes up if you think it's all about Harvard (that's what I originally thought).  It's more about the social aspect of going there (if any of it is true... Apparently the authors won't say how much of it is true?? :/ ).  There is some drinking, getting drunk, partying, and more stuff like that.  So, if you're not really into books like that, then I wouldn't really suggest it, but this was a page turner for me because of all the secrets and backstabbing and not to mention, the question of who Callie would end up with by the end of the book :) 

This left on a pretty huge cliffhanger so I'll definitely be looking forward to the sequel, Secrets! 

Cover Review:
I love the cover!  I don't know how to explain it, but the design in the background kind of has this old feel to it.  Not old like in a bad way, but it reminds me of old and prestigious colleges, like Harvard!  The red is very eye-catching and so is the title. 

A Question:
One thing that I really want to know about this book: Does all of this stuff really go on in Harvard? I just watched "The Social Network" and it kind of seems to be that way. There was one scene in the movie and I think it was at one of those club party's, and the guys and girls were drinking and stuff and it just totally reminded me of The Ivy. My dad really wants me to go to Harvard (I think in a way it's sort of weird since it's such a prestigious college... And I see why. But still.), so now I'm pretty sure that my mom's second guessing the choice (she watched the movie with me).

Cleo :)

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

Review: Solid

Title: Solid
Author: Shelley Workinger
Date Released: July 9th, 2010
Pages: 222
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Eighteen years ago, a rogue Army doctor secretly experimented with a chromosomal drug on unknowing pregnant women. When he was killed not long after the children were born, any knowledge and evidence seemed to die with him - except for the living, breathing, human products of his work.

Almost two decades later, the newly self-proclaimed "open-book" military unearths the truth about the experiment, bringing Clio Kaid and the other affected teens to a state-of-the-art, isolated campus where they soon discover that C9x did indeed alter their chromosomes, its mutations presenting as super-human abilities. The military kids, who come from across the nation and all walks of life, come into their own as lighter-than-air 'athletes'; 'indies' as solid as stone walls; teens who can make themselves invisible and others who can blind with their brilliance.

While exploring her own special ability, forging new friendships and embarking on first love, Clio also stumbles onto information indicating that the military may not have been entirely forthcoming with them and that all may not be as it seems...

Review:
This book was really cool!  It was about an 18 year-old girl named Calliope Kaid (but prefers to go by Clio instead) who discovers that she was genetically altered unknowingly when still in her mother's womb by an Army doctor.  She later finds out, when at a camp/army base with other kids just like her, that the chromosomes that were altered gave her superpowers.  How cool is that?? 

The book starts off just a little slow, but I was fine with it because it wasn't moving at a snail's pace.  Not a whole lot happens, but the beginning is mainly like an introduction to life at this super awesome campus that Clio is staying at.  However, slowly, Clio and her friends, Jack, Bliss, Miranda, and Garrett, start to become a little suspicious of the things going on.  All these suspicions finally lead up to the totally shocking ending.  It really sped up the book and got me hooked and wanting to find out where everything was heading to. 

Other than that, this was a GREAT book.  I liked everything else about it from the characters to the plot.  The characters were super duper awesome!  They all had a variety of personalities like Bliss and Miranda.  They're nothing alike!  Miranda seemed to fit the popular girl stereotype with her blonde hair and good looks.  Bliss was friendly and really down to earth.  The main character, Clio was definitely cool as well.  I really loved how she has a really great and solid relationship with her mom.  The guys, Jack and Garrett were pretty cool as well. 

Solid is a really quick read, too, that only took me several days to read*.  The whole idea of genetically-altered-at-birth superhumans is totally awesome!  I always love a good book with people who have superpowers because I always wish that I could be just like them (the superpower that I'd love to have is to be able to fly).

I'll definitely be looking forward to Settling, the second book in this series, to learn more about Clio and her friends.  The third book is called Sound.  I can't wait until they come out!  Solid was a really great start to this series and I can't wait to see what will happen next! 

*Keep in mind that I'm not the fastest reader in the world :)

Cover Review:
The cover is really cool!  It's not exactly the typical cover that I normally like, but I really like how there's a chromosome on it, since the story basically revolves around it.

Cleo :)

*Description from Amazon.com
**Review copy received from author for review.  Thank you Shelley Workinger!

Random Bits & Pieces

Guess what I'm reading next???  THE SUMMONING by Kelley Armstrong!  Woo hoo!!  I've started it and have gotten half way through... It's pretty addicting so far :)  It was actually a tie between XVI, The Summoning, and Harry Potter...  But then some of you guys put a few of the books as your votes so they were kind of like a tie breaker :) 

Thanks a lot if you voted!!! You guys really chose a great book :D

I know I've probably said this a lot... But I'm really trying to write reviews!  I think the problem for the lack of reviews is 1) school (of course hahaha) and 2) I've been reading sooooooo many books lately, that I have a million of reviews to do at once :/  I think that after I finish my reading pile, I'm going to stop reading for a while and just finish up all the reviews that I need to be working on. 

In the meantime, enjoy some awesome music from Snow Patrol.



Weren't they awesome?  Wasn't the music video totally awesome even though they probably broke like a hundred traffic laws?  Hahaha.  I love Gary Lightbody's voice...

Anyways... Have a great and awesome week!!!  And I pinky promise at least one review this week.  If not you can get your pitchfork's out hahaha :D

Cleo :)

Cover Crazy (12)

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 going crazy over the cover for Across the Universe by Beth Revis!

Here's why I like it:

• I really how they used the galaxy for the background, as well as the different colors. 
• I think it's great how they didn't just use black with little stars in the background because that's what you would usually associate with space.  Instead, the cover artist went with like a sunset color theme which really highlights the two faces in the cover. 
• The thing that really captures my eye are the two faces, although I wished that they could've made it a little lighter because when I first saw this cover I thought they were two blobs :|

Do you guys like this cover?  Which cover are you going crazy over this week??

Cleo :)

Don't Forget...

To vote for what I should read next!  I've got 5 so far, but I think I'm going to need just a little more :)  Just click here and it should take you to the post.  All you have to do is comment!

Cleo :)

Follow Friday (22)

This week's question:

What is the book you are currently 'pushing'? (Pushing mean trying to get people to read it)

Um, I don't really know.  I don't really "push" my friends into reading a book.  Actually, I've told Baylee to some books like The Iron King and Gone a couple times because those are among some of the books that I absolutely love.  But that's really it :)

Sorry for totally being a slacker on posts and reviews :(  This week I got a lot of homework and stuff and couldn't really find the time to squeeze in some reviews :/ I apologize!  But I'll totally try my hardest to get some posts in this weekend!

Hope you guys have a great weekend!

Cleo :)

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 :)