Review: Clarity

Title: Clarity
Author: Kim Harrington
Date Released: March 1st, 2011
Pages: 242
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?

This paranormal murder mystery will have teens reading on the edge of their seats.

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother - who has supernatural gifts of his own - becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?

Review:
Clarity was a pretty short book, but Kim Harrington was able to jam a lot of information and keep everything short and to the point. 

Clarity was very much a mystery because Clare, the main character, has to solve the murder of an innocent girl... Using her awesome power: Being able to see things when touching an object.

I loved the whole mystery aspect and tying it in with psychic powers to help solve the mystery, which probably made it a whole lot easier to solve the murder.  But then there were the minor setbacks, like her ex-boyfriend, Justin, and the detective's totally gorgeous son, Gabriel. 

Clare was awesome.  She was stubborn, which kind of made her and the book funny, and wasn't all that annoying as some characters in the YA genre can be when they're kind of chasing after a boy.  She also had the voice of a teenager.  I loved her brother, Perry.  I liked his name and I how he was like the overprotective brother, always there to look out for his little sister, even though he was a player, which I couldn't really see because he seemed like a really nice guy. 

Towards the end, it got really suspenseful and I was really in for a thrill as Clare and her little team got closer to solving who the murderer was.  It was pretty shocking and a little unexpected.  I definitely did not see it coming.

I really liked Clarity and it was definitely really unique!  I liked the whole idea of a mystery with a paranormal twist.  It was really cool :)  I'll definitely be looking forward to Perception when it comes out!

Cover Review:
I really like this cover.  It has this calmness surrounding it, and reminded me of the ocean because of the birds in the background and the blue at the bottom, which was what pretty much reminded me of the ocean.  Even though it's a pretty eye-catching cover with it's soft colors, it doesn't really like it would be the cover for a mystery novel.

Cleo :)

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

Mini Challenge: The Lucky Number 7

Today's mini challenge is hosted by Jessi at The Elliott Review!

I really like today's challenge because it's really unique.  I have to go to the 7th page of the book that I'm currently reading, then find the 7th word on the page, then find a picture that describes the word.  Interesting, right?  I don't think that I've ever had a challenge like this one before!

Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

7th word on the 7th page:

HAND

Randomly selected picture:

I really like this hand picture.  I thought it was cool :D

Cleo :)

Mini Challenge: Top 5 Books of 2012

Over at Princess Bookie, Cindy is doing Contest Craze again!  And to prepare for that, she and other bloggers are hosting mini challenges :)

Today's mini challenge is to list the top 5 books that you are looking forward to being released in 2012!

All of these are in random order.

1. Insurgent by Veronica Roth
    Release Date: May 2012

 
2. Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
    Release Date: March 6th, 2012

3. Everneath by Brodi Ashton

    Release Date: January 3rd, 2012

4. A Million Suns by Beth Revis

    Release Date: January 10th, 2012

5. Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

    Release Date: January 24th, 2012

And I can't believe that the cover for Insurgent came out!  It's definitely really awesome and I'm glad that they didn't change its style from Divergent because I like all of my book covers matching. 

Cleo :)

I haven't really done my research yet on all of the non-series books that are coming out next year, so that's why most of these are just another book coming out in a series.  But these are awesome series!!

Review: Waterfall

Title: Waterfall
Author: Lisa T. Bergren
Date Released: February 1st, 2011
Pages: 352
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Gabriella has never spent a summer in Italy like this one. Remaining means giving up all she’s known and loved… and leaving means forfeiting what she’s come to know…and love itself.   Most American teenagers want a vacation in Italy, but the Bentarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives with their parents, famed Etruscan scholars, among the romantic hills. Stuck among the rubble of medieval castles in rural Tuscany on yet another hot, dusty archeological site, Gabi and Lia are bored out of their minds… until Gabi places her hand atop a handprint in an ancient tomb and finds herself in fourteenth-century Italy. And worse yet, in the middle of a fierce battle between knights of two opposing forces.            

And thus does she come to be rescued by the knight-prince Marcello Falassi, who takes her back to his father’s castle—a castle Gabi has seen in ruins in another life. Suddenly Gabi’s summer in Italy is much, much more interesting. But what do you do when your knight in shining armor lives, literally, in a different world?

Review:
Waterfall was pretty cool!  I liked the whole time travel concept, and instead of going into the future, they're going deep into the history of Italy.  I haven't read a whole lot of books that deal with this, but I always find it fascinating when I do because usually you're just concentrating on a specific era, rather than everything.

I really liked Gabi's character, and her strong personality.  One thing I found a little bit unclear is how Gabi is fluent in Italian.  It was kind of like, "Whoa... How does she know that much Italian, and all those old words??"  That part just didn't really make sense in the book.  But when considering the dialogue, I thought it was cool how Bergren really brought in the old English mixed in with modern English to really distinct the two periods.

Marcello was pretty cool.  He seemed like a very chivalrous shining knight in armor and I really liked him.  Although, I'm not so sure that I would be able to get passed his longish hair (it is my pet peeve when it's on guys :/ ). 

Another thing that was excellent was the plot.  It really sucked me in, especially towards the end where all the action starts taking the place.  The middle actually dragged on a bit, but it focused more on the romantic tension between Gabi and her Italian knight in shining armor, Marcello.  Bergren really twists it up in the end, making it very suspenseful.  The whole romance aspect was actually pretty clever because you know that Gabi and Marcello have to end up together, but how, since they're from totally different time periods?

Bergren's writing was also very smooth, for lack of a better word.  It adds to a calm-ish vibe that made it really relaxing, even when sometimes you were on edge because of something really astonishing that happens.  Her writing really flowed, too.

Overall, I really liked Waterfall.  It was thoroughly entertaining and after reading so many good things about it, I was glad that I was finally able to read it :)  It's also really great how all of the books in the series have already come out this year, so I won't have to wait a year for the next one!  It's definitely a really cool historical fiction with a little bit of science fiction added to it :D

Cover Review:
I really like this cover.  I love the effects in the middle, and how there's the castle in the background and who I would presume to be Gabi, in the middle.  It has this very calming affect overall.

Cleo :)

Follow Friday

This week's question:

It's that pesky magic book fairy again! She has another wish: What imaginary book world would you like to make a reality?

Does Anna's world in Anna in the French Kiss count??  Because I would totally kill for her life... But if not, I'll have to say the imaginary world of Divergent.  Weird choice right?  I'd probably become a factionless person though because I SUCK at making decisions, unless they said that I'd be in a certain faction, then I would not be factionless :)  But I loved the world that Veronica Roth created, and I would so totally want to live in it, no matter how corrupt it is.

Thanks for following if you did!  And I'll be sure to check out your blog if you leave a link.

Cleo :)

Waiting on Wednesday (27)

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme, which is brought to you by Jill at Breaking the Spine! This meme is where you can post about what book(s) you're really look forward to.

This week, I absolutely can't wait for... 

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

Taylor's family might not be the closest-knit – everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled – but for the most part, they get along fine. Then they get news that changes everything: Her father has pancreatic cancer, and it's stage four – meaning that there is basically nothing to be done. Her parents decide that the family will spend his last months together at their old summerhouse in the Pocono Mountains.

Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven't actually gone anywhere. Her former summer best friend is suddenly around, as is her first boyfriend. . . and he's much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.

As the summer progresses, the Edwards become more of a family, and closer than they've ever been before. But all of them very aware that they're battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance – with family, with friends, and with love.

I absolutely ADORED Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson and was so excited when I found out that she was writing another book :D  Second Chance Summer sounds really good!  If you haven't read Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, I totally suggest that you do! 

What are you waiting for this week?

Cleo :)

Review: Anna and the French Kiss

Title: Anna and the French Kiss
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Date Released: December 2nd, 2010
Pages: 372
Rating: 5 out of 5

Description:
Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?


Review:
I freaking love this book, and even though I finished it several days ago... I'M STILL THINKING ABOUT IT!  This has got to be one of the cutest and heartwarming books that I've read this year!  And I seriously wished that I hadn't finished it in 2 days :(

Romance was basically everything in this book.  And I loved it.  It was the type of romance that made your heart go all crazy and made you say (mentally, of course), "Awww" like every 5 seconds. 

Anna and the French Kiss was also seriously funny, making it entertaining throughout the whole entire novel.  I have my sister, who's currently reading it, coming to me every time she picks up the books saying, "THIS IS SO FUNNY!" 

What I LOVE about Anna and the French Kiss was Etienne St. Clair.  He seriously makes my heart melt... And is like the most perfect, drool-worthy, ideal boyfriend for anyone.  I mean like, he is American/English/French.  No wonder why he had a girlfriend and two girls vying for his attention...  I really liked Anna because she was really funny and had some flaws and you feel like you got to know her really well.  Actually, all of the characters were very well written and had their own solid personalities. 

Basically, anyone in need of a romantic and funny novel should look up Anna and the French Kiss because it is SERIOULSY (and I do mean SERIOUSLY) amazing.  It will make your heart thump, make you laugh, make you think about it even after you finished reading it, and make you fall in love with all of the characters (especially St. Clair).  It's really addicting, the writing was great, and now I definitely can't wait until Lola and the Boy Next Door comes out to see if it'll be just as great as Anna and the French Kiss!

Cover Review:
This cover is really cute!  I love the little Eiffel Tower in the background, because it's not Paris without the Eiffel Tower, right?  I also think that it's really cute how Anna's smiling to the boy next to her, although it would've been cool to see St. Clair's face... But Stephanie Perkins described him pretty well, so I'll just imagine a really cute head somewhere on the cover looking right back at Anna :D

Cleo :)

*Description and picture from goodreads.com
**Review copy borrowed from a library.

Craving Some Contemporary

Does anyone have any good contemporary books that they've recently read and really liked? 

Ever since I've read Anna and the French Kiss, I've just been craving some really good contemporary novels!!  My sister loves them, and I was looking at my shelf trying to find something for her, when I realized that I only have like 4 contemporary novels... out of like 60 or 70 books.  4!!!  And yeah... I've been craving contemporary novels too :D

Also, isn't it sad that I've never read a Sarah Dessen book?  I did the 100 Most Popular YA Books, and I haven't read any of them.  Sad sad sad :(  What's even sadder is that my sister has two of them, Just Listen and Lock & Key.  And I've never bothered to borrow them.  What is wrong with me??

Recommend me some good contemporaries and I'll check them out!

Cleo :)

Who Finds That Widget A Tad Annoying?

When you go onto Booklopedia, and have your volume blasted all the way up, do you guys ever find the countdown widget for Silence annoying?  It's definitely gorgeous and I love how it's so animated and cool, but it always makes that ocean sound that gets kind of annoying, and if you have your volume all the way up, it just totally freaks you out when it's blasting out of your speakers.  I want to keep it but I'll totally get rid of it if it's getting on your nerves or almost causing you to almost have a heart attack!

Just comment below if you don't like widgets that have sounds that you can't turn off, then I definitely won't put them on anymore, no matter how beautiful they may be!  Or, if you know a way to turn the sound off, that would be totally cool too :)

Cleo :)

Top 100 Most Popular YA Books

I've been seeing this all over the place so I thought, Why not just do it?  It seems like an interesting way to see how many popular YA Books I've read :)  ALSO!!  I kind of saw it/stole it from iLive, iLaugh, iLove Books!  Books/series that I've read are in the color purple!

1. Alex Finn – Beastly
2. Alice Sebold – The Lovely Bones
3. Ally Carter – Gallagher Girls (1, 2, 3, 4)
4. Ally Condie – Matched
5. Alyson Noel – The Immortals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
6. Anastasia Hopcus – Shadow Hills
7. Angie Sage – Septimus Heap (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
8. Ann Brashares – The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (1, 2, 3, 4)
9. Anna Godbersen – Luxe (1, 2, 3, 4)
10. Anthony Horowitz – Alex Rider (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
11. Aprilynne Pike – Wings (1, 2, 3)
12. Becca Fitzpatrick – Hush, Hush (1, 2)
13. Brandon Mull – Fablehaven (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
14. Brian Selznick – The Invention of Hugo Cabret
15. Cassandra Clare – The Mortal Instruments (1, 2, 3, 4)
16. Carrie Jones – Need (1, 2, 3)
17. Carrie Ryan – The Forest of Hands and Teeth (1, 2, 3, 4)
18. Christopher Paolini – Inheritance (1, 2, 3, 4)
19. Cinda Williams Chima – The Heir Chronicles (1, 2, 3)
20. Colleen Houck – Tigers Saga (1, 2)
21. Cornelia Funke – Inkheart (1, 2, 3) 
22. Ellen Hopkins – Impulse
23. Eoin Colfer – Artemis Fowl (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
24. Faraaz Kazi – Truly, Madly, Deeply
25. Frank Beddor – The Looking Glass Wars (1, 2, 3)
26. Gabrielle Zevin – Elsewhere
27. Gail Carson Levine – Fairest
28. Holly Black – Tithe (1, 2, 3)
29. J.K. Rowling – Harry Potter (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
30. James Dashner – The Maze Runner (1, 2)
31. James Patterson – Maximum Ride (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
32. Jay Asher – Thirteen Reasons Why
33. Jeanne DuPrau – Books of Ember (1, 2, 3, 4)
34. Jeff Kinney – Diary of a Wimpy Kid (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
35. John Boyne – The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
36. John Green – An Abundance of Katherines
37. John Green – Looking for Alaska
38. John Green – Paper Towns
39. Jonathan Stroud – Bartimaeus (1, 2, 3, 4)
40. Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl – Caster Chronicles (1, 2)
41. Kelley Armstrong – Darkest Powers (1, 2, 3)
42. Kristin Cashore – The Seven Kingdoms (1, 2)
43. Lauren Kate – Fallen (1, 2, 3)
44. Lemony Snicket – Series of Unfortunate Events (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
45. Libba Bray – Gemma Doyle (1, 2, 3)
46. Lisa McMann – Dream Catcher (1, 2, 3)
47. Louise Rennison – Confessions of Georgia Nicolson (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
48. M.T. Anderson – Feed
49. Maggie Stiefvater – The Wolves of Mercy Falls (1, 2, 3)
50. Margaret Peterson Haddix – Shadow Children (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
51. Maria V. Snyder – Study (1, 2, 3)
52. Markus Zusak – The Book Thief
53. Markus Zusak – I am the Messenger
54. Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
55. Mary Ting – Crossroads
56. Maureen Johnson – Little Blue Envelope (1, 2)
57. Meg Cabot – All-American Girl (1, 2)
58. Meg Cabot – The Mediator (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
59. Meg Cabot – The Princess Diaries (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
60. Meg Rosoff – How I Live Now
61. Megan McCafferty – Jessica Darling (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
62. Megan Whalen Turner – The Queen’s Thief (1, 2, 3, 4)
63. Melina Marchetta – On the Jellicoe Road
64. Melissa de la Cruz – Blue Bloods (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
65. Melissa Marr – Wicked Lovely (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
66. Michael Grant – Gone (1, 2, 3, 4)
67. Nancy Farmer – The House of the Scorpion
68. Neal Shusterman – Unwind
69. Neil Gaiman – Coraline
70. Neil Gaiman – Stardust
71. Neil Gaiman – The Graveyard Book
72. P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast – House of Night (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
73. Philip Pullman – His Dark Materials (1, 2, 3)
74. Rachel Caine – The Morganville Vampires (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
75. Rachel Cohn & David Levithan – Nick; Norah’s Infinite Playlist
76. Richelle Mead – Vampire Academy (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
77. Rick Riordan – Percy Jackson and the Olympians (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
78. Rom LcO’Feer – Somewhere carnal over 40 winks
79. S.L. Naeole – Grace (1, 2, 3, 4)
80. Sabrina Bryan & Julia DeVillers – Princess of Gossip
81. Sarah Dessen – Along for the Ride
82. Sarah Dessen – Lock and Key
83. Sarah Dessen – The Truth about Forever
84. Sara Shepard – Pretty Little Liars (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
85. Scott Westerfeld – Leviathan (1, 2) (I OWN BOTH!)
86. Scott Westerfeld – Uglies (1, 2, 3)
87. Shannon Hale – Books of a Thousand Days
88. Shannon Hale – Princess Academy
89. Shannon Hale – The Books of Bayern (1, 2, 3, 4)
90. Sherman Alexie & Ellen Forney – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
91. Simone Elkeles – Perfect Chemistry (1, 2, 3)
92. Stephanie Meyer – The Host
93. Stephanie Meyer – Twilight Saga (1, 2, 3, 4)
94. Sue Monk Kidd – The Secret Life of Bees
95. Susan Beth Pfeffer – Last Survivors (1, 2, 3)
96. Suzanne Collins – Hunger Games (1, 2, 3)
97. Suzanne Collins – Underland Chronicles (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
98. Terry Pratchett – Tiffany Aching (1, 2, 3, 4)
99. Tonya Hurley – Ghost Girl (1, 2, 3)
100. Wendelin Van Draanen – Flipped

Well, it looks like I've read 36 books/series out of 100, including the series that I haven't finished :/ Not what I was hoping for but I guess now I have more books to add to my wishlist!!  I know that most of these are books that I've been meaning to read because I've heard so many awesome things about them.  Hopefully I'll get around to them eventually!  Maybe I'll make it a goal for next year to read at least several more :D

If you guys have done this, feel free to share!!! I'll definitely check it out! 

Cleo :)

Waiting on Wednesday (26)

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly meme, which is brought to you by Jill at Breaking the Spine! This meme is where you can post about what book(s) you're really look forward to.

This week, I absolutely can't wait for... 

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins!

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket -- a gifted inventor -- steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

I just finished Anna and the French Kiss last week and it was pretty awesome!  It's probably now one of my favorites and I'm regretting borrowing it from the library because I sooo want to keep it!!  I'm sure that Lola and the Boy Next Door will be just as awesome!  If you can't wait for it either... Be sure to get it on September 29th!! I know I definitely will!

What are you guys waiting for this week?

Cleo :)