Starstruck: Cassandra Clare

When I found out that Cassandra Clare was going to be at The Grove in Los Angeles, I HAD to go.  After missing her when she was in San Diego, I made sure that I got to see her the next time she came around.

I can't say that this event was a huge success because 1) There were a TON of people.  Probably because Lily Collins was there, and the book is turning into a movie 2) I had to wait outside, because either way, if I waited inside I wouldn't have been able to see her Q&A session since there were a ton of bookshelves in the way and 3) I didn't get a picture with her, or of her, because the event was super controlled.  So, I was a little bummed, but it was still pretty fun because I brought one of my friends with me and we just roamed around The Grove looking for food :)

I will say though that I had a super starstruck moment.  Cassandra Clare asked me what my favorite character was when she was signing my book and I was all like "Favorite character?" like I didn't understand her.  Then I finally got to my senses and told her that it's too hard to choose and she agreed with me.  It was pretty embarrassing though.

Me & my friend in front of the tour poster.

I'm hoping that when she's back for the L.A. Times Festival of Books, I'll be able to get a picture with her.  It'll probably be the same turn out since this event is much more open to the public (not to mention it's free), but I will keep trying until I do!

Cleo :)

Waiting on Wednesday (46): Isla and the Happily Ever After

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly feature, 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...

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

From the glittering streets of Manhattan to the moonlit rooftops of Paris, falling in love is easy for hopeless dreamer Isla and introspective artist Josh. But as they begin their senior year in France, Isla and Josh are quickly forced to confront the heartbreaking reality that happily-ever-afters aren’t always forever. 

Their romantic journey is skillfully intertwined with those of beloved couples Anna and Étienne and Lola and Cricket, whose paths are destined to collide in a sweeping finale certain to please fans old and new.

I love, love, LOVE Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door.  They quickly made Stephanie Perkins one of my favorite authors because they're funny and the boys just make me wish that I could be Anna or Lola.  So, obviously I'm super duper excited for Isla and the Happily Ever After.  Now that the cover has finally been revealed, I thought it was only reasonable to make it this weeks Waiting on Wednesday :)  Look for this on shelves on September 17th!

What are you waiting for today?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

Review: Falling in Love with English Boys

Title: Falling in Love with English Boys
Author: Melissa Jensen
Date Released: December 23rd, 2010
Pages: 293
Rating: 3 out of 5

Description:
Sixteen-year-old Catherine Vernon has been stranded in London for the summer-no friends, no ex-boyfriend Adam the Scum (good riddance!), and absolutely nothing to do but blog about her misery to her friends back home. Desperate for something-anything-to do in London while her (s)mother's off researching boring historical things, Cat starts reading the 1815 diary of Katherine Percival her mom gives her-and finds the similarities between their lives to be oddly close. But where Katherine has the whirls of the society, the parties and the gossip over who is engaged to who, Cat's only got some really excellent English chocolate. Then she meets William Percival-the uber-hot descendant of Katherine-and things start looking up . . .

Review:
I picked up Falling in Love with English Boys because I was in search of a contemporary romance based in England or France, or just any romantic place in the world really, and my school library happened to have just received it.  So, I was excited to delve into it and into the romantic lives of Catherine and Katherine, both separated by two centuries but both had their romantic troubles.

Pretty much, Catherine (aka Cat) has been sent off to London with her mother, when she would rather be back home or in France in search of Orlando Bloom.  During her stay, her mother, who is doing research at the British Museum, gives Cat a journal written by the daughter, Katherine Percival, of Cat's mom's research subject.  From there, readers not only learn about Cat, but the other Kat as well.

The whole entire book is written between alternating blog entries and diary entries.  Essentially, we learn about their love lives.  Cat currently lacks one since she broke up with "Adam the Scum" and was hoping that being somewhere else other than England would help her get one back, while Katherine is starting to go into the courting process and believes that she has found the perfect husband in a poet, but is that the one who's really been sending her all the poems?  This all created a lot of interest in the book because, of course, I needed to find out who Katherine would end up with and what would happen between Cat and William.

I will say that I found both stories rather okay.  Cat as a character was a bit annoying.  She was more on the whiny side, always talking about how it wasn't fun in England.  In my opinion, she just wasn't really embracing the experience.  But, she opened up when she met William because who can resist a hot, wealthy British college student?  She also jumped to conclusions way to quickly.  Katherine wasn't as annoying as Cat, but she was almost there. Her story was interesting, but it didn't hold my attention.  It did get a lot more interesting though when the mystery poems started arriving.

Overall, Falling in Love with English Boys was able to satiate my need for a contemporary romance.  The suspense in who Katherine would end up with, as well as the budding romance between Cat and William just really kept me going.  However, I wasn't the biggest fan of the protagonists.  I just didn't find them particularly likable.  If you are looking for a romance novel though, then look no further!

Cover Review:
I like how they brought in elements of England, with the double decker bus and Big Ben.  I think the whole image of the girl with her foot up and the guy adds a cute touch to the cover.  The font that they used for the title adds a contemporary cuteness to it as well.  If you look at the back cover, it has Katherine doing the exact same thing which also adds to the overall cuteness factor of the cover.

Cleo :)

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

A Book Truth (3)

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Where do you like to read?

Personally, my bed is my reading space.  

I can lie down on it, sit on it, prop up a pillow for comfort, 

or curl up with my dog and read on it.  

It's a very versatile reading place.

Cover Crush (9): Since You Asked

Cover Crush is a feature here at Booklopedia that features covers that I currently have a crush on. I know that there are multiple features out in the blogging world that feature covers, but I thought that it would be nice for Booklopedia to feature something, especially something that I absolutely love about covers, even though they always say, "You should never judge a book by its cover."

Today, I really like the cover for Since You Asked by Maurene Goo!

No, no one asked, but Holly Kim will tell you what she thinks anyway.

Fifteen-year-old Holly Kim is the copy editor for her high school's newspaper. When she accidentally submits an article that rips everyone to shreds, she gets her own column and rants her way through the school year. Can she survive homecoming, mean-girl cliques, jocks, secret admirers, Valentine's Day, and other high school embarrassments, all while struggling to balance her family's traditional Korean values?

In this hilariously funny debut, SINCE YOU ASKED... takes a fresh look at trying to fit in without conforming to what's considered "normal" in high school, and managing parental expectations without losing one's individuality (or being driven insane).

The one thing that attracted me to the cover was the bright pink that just pops out.  I also love the font for the title and its colorfulness, from the light blue to the bright pink and the neon green.  What adds even more character to the cover is the spunk that the model displays on the cover.  Haha I love her facial expression!! It gives the cover, and the overall story, a spunky attitude that I'm sure will make it a fun read.  It's also about a Korean American teenager, so I think it'd be cool to see how much I can relate to her being half Korean :)

What do you think of the cover for Since You Asked?

Cleo :)

*Description from here and cover from goodreads.com

Review: Unravel Me

Title: Unravel Me
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Date Released: February 5, 2013
Pages: 461
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Description:
tick
tick
tick
tick
tick

it's almost

time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life.

Review:
I did read Shatter Me; I just never got around to writing up a review for it. In short, I liked it.  On the other hand,  I loved Unravel Me.  It had much more intensity and more things were coming together.  I felt that the first book was too much of an introduction to the Juliette's world, even though it is the first book and that makes sense for the first book in a series, I just felt that there was something lacking in Shatter Me; it just didn't draw me into Juliette's world.  But Unravel Me had it all.

Juliette has now found refuge with Adam at Omega Point - a place where people like her live; people with powers that maybe lethal or helpful.  However, Warner is still on the look out for her and Castle is ready to do whatever it takes to protect his people, even it means trying to go against the huge army of The Reestablishment.

The intensity of Unravel Me was raised up a thousand notches.  I loved all the twist and turns, when plans didn't work out and when victories were made.  Mafi was able to make the story super intriguing, adding major surprises along with fight scenes and intense encounters that definitely kept me reading.

One thing that I wasn't the biggest fan of in Shatter Me and for a bit of Unravel Me was Juliette.  She seemed like a nice person who was just scared.  But sometimes, she does mope around a lot as if she is the only person going through the situation that she's going through when in reality, the people around her have it worse as well.  Kenji, one of my favorite, funny characters, was the one who sort of gave her the wake-up call that she needed to change her attitude.  She got progressively better throughout Unravel Me, and I hope that in the next book she'll have a different attitude that's less mopey.  And maybe a little more decisive because...

UGH!  The love triangle!  Don't even get me started on that.  Unravel Me had me torn between who Juliette should be with - Adam or Warner?  That is the question.  One of the biggest surprises was Warner's change in character, which I guess anyone could see coming, but still, it was a pretty deep change.  He became vulnerable and weaker in Unravel Me in comparison to the cruel man he was in Shatter Me.  But Adam... Adam is still the kind man he was in Shatter Me, always taking care of Juliette and his little brother.  He doesn't have a single mean streak, unless it comes to Warner.

Overall, Unravel Me was a great follow up to Shatter Me.  Mafi's writing is wonderful and the words just flow out and almost seem like poetry.  Through her writing, you really understand the strong emotions that Juliette's feeling.  Unravel Me was also a lot more of a roller coaster ride with more character development in Juliette.  The love triangle was also escalated to the next level with the twists and turns that Mafi kept adding into the story.  I loved this one and definitely cannot wait until the last one comes out next year!

Cover Review:
I will admit that I was kind of bummed that they changed the cover concept.  But, now I realize that I actually like this one A LOT more.  Sure it doesn't fit my Shatter Me copy, but I love the intricate detail coming from the eye and the overall light blue color scheme mixed with a bit of pink.  It really catches your eye, even though the eye is a bit creepy.

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com
**Review copy won in a giveaway hosted by Pitch Dark.

Review: Just One Day

Title: Just One Day
Author: Gayle Forman
Date Released: January 8th, 2013
Pages: 368
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay.

When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

Just One Day is the first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!

Review:
Just One Day is a sort of romance novel, but it goes a bit deeper than that which sets it apart from other young adult romance/contemporary novels.  It also isn't fully about a romantic relationship, but also covers the life of Allyson as she tries to recover after the aftermath of something rather traumatic.  Essentially, the story doesn't cover one day, but a whole year.  However, it's the one "whirlwind" day that Allyson spends with Willem in Paris that is the focal point of the story.

The relationship between Allyson and Willem sort of seemed like a "love at first sight" type of deal; Allyson catches the eye of Willem and then the next day when they formally meet on a train, he whisks her off to Paris so that she can explore the city.  They both form this bond where they like each other.  It's obvious, but Allyson tries to suppress it because she did just meet this stranger who seems to have a lot of random lady friends in Paris.  However, their feelings for each other all come out by the end of the day.

I really liked Just One Day; it was more than just romance, going into the depression that Allyson seems to face after that one day.  But of course, the romance was what really got me into reading the book and finding out what exactly happened to Willem and why he didn't come back really kept me going because, while Allyson's situation was really sad, it was a bit much after a while until she has that reawakening and decides to find him.

The ending ended on a total cliffhanger and left me WANTING the next book.  The edition I had nicely left a little snippet of the next book, which is from Willem's point of view, but of course, it just simply isn't the same as reading a whole book.

Overall, Just One Day was the perfect romance combined with a more contemporary approach.  It wasn't the light and bubbly Anna and the French Kiss, but was a bit darker and depressing once you realized Allyson's transformation after the day with Willem.  I definitely can't wait for Just One Year which comes out this October to see what happens between Willem and Allyson!

Cover Review:
I'm not a HUGE fan of this cover, but I do like it and it does reflect the book pretty well.  You can see the European architecture reflected in the window and the busy cafe behind Allyson.  So it does fit the book, however I find it just a bit plain.  However, I do like the sort of pastel colors of the cover.  Overall, it's a nice cover, but it just doesn't really stand out that much.

Cleo :)

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

A Book Truth (2)

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Cover Discovery: Just One Year

Today, I was going through my Facebook newsfeed and spotted this cover that was revealed on USA Today:

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Whaat??  You don't even know how excited I am for Just One Year!  

I haven't exactly reviewed Just One Day yet, but I will say that it was a pretty good book.

It had the right setting (what's more romantic than Paris?  It might be a bit overplayed now, but still.)

It had the right mysterious boy (who happened to be Dutch)

And it had a great, bittersweet story.

Oh, it also had some romance, and being a sucker for romance, I really liked it :)

USA Today also posted an excerpt of Just One Year; so, if you're interested in it, then you can read it here.

Look for this cover on shelves in October of this year!

Cleo :)

Waiting on Wednesday (45): Towering

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly feature, 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...

Towering by Alex Flinn

At first, I merely saw his face, his hands on the window ledge. Then, his whole body as he swung himself through the window. Only I could not see what he swung on.
Until, one day, I told my dream self to look down. And it was then that I saw. He had climbed on a rope. I knew without asking that the rope had been one of my own tying.

Rachel is trapped in a tower, held hostage by a woman she’s always called Mama. Her golden hair is growing rapidly, and to pass the time, she watches the snow fall and sings songs from her childhood, hoping someone, anyone, will hear her. 

Wyatt needs time to reflect or, better yet, forget about what happened to his best friend, Tyler. That’s why he’s been shipped off to the Adirondacks in the dead of winter to live with the oldest lady in town. Either that, or no one he knows ever wants to see him again.

Dani disappeared seventeen years ago without a trace, but she left behind a journal that’s never been read, not even by her overbearing mother…until now. 

A #1 New York Times bestselling author, Alex Flinn knows her fairy tales, and Towering is her most mind-bending interpretation yet. Dark and mysterious, this reimagining of Rapunzel will have readers on the edge of their seats wondering where Alex will take them next!

I cannot wait for Towering!  I've always really liked Alex Flinn's modern re-tellings of fairy tales that we've grown up listening to and reading about.  This one sounds super cool though because this time it's Rapunzel's turn to get her modern twist!

What are you waiting for today?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

Cover Crush (8): The Chaos of Stars

Cover Crush is a feature here at Booklopedia that features covers that I currently have a crush on. I know that there are multiple features out in the blogging world that feature covers, but I thought that it would be nice for Booklopedia to feature something, especially something that I absolutely love about covers, even though they always say, "You should never judge a book by its cover."

Today, I'm absolutely infatuated with the cover The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White!

Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up. 

Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal. 

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all. 

The thing that really caught my eye was the intricate gold detail on this cover.  It definitely has that sort of Egyptian feel.  The galaxy background really contrasts with the gold details on the cover to make them stand out to anyone who sees it.  The little tendrils coming off of the letters in the title and author's name add a cool touch to the cover as well.  The one thing about this cover though is that I find it rather similar to the cover for For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund.  Nevertheless, the cover is really beautiful, especially with all the gold detailing.

What do you think about this cover?

Cleo :)

*Description and cover from goodreads.com

A Book Truth (1)

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Happy Valentine's Day!

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This was just too     cute to not share :)

I hope you have a Happy Valentine's Day filled 

with candy and all that yummy goodness!

Even if you're single like me.

*High Five*

Cleo :)

Reading Slump Cures?

Have you noticed the lack of posts since the beginning of the New Year?

You can blame it on my bad case of a reading slump.

The case?

I have been on the same book for the past month.

It's 517 pages.

I'm barely in the 100's.

This is not good.

So, for any of you who have gone through a reading slump, 

do you have any magical cures that will 

get me over mine?

Other than that, Happy Valentine's Day!

Cleo :)

TRUTH!

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Bring it on, 2013!

From weheartit.com

Goodbye 2012 

&

Hello 2013!

In the upcoming year, I hope to:

blog more

read more

meet more authors

&

have more fun!

2012 was a pretty sucky year in terms of blogging.

2013 is going to be a big year of changes,

whether they're positive or negative, 

I won't know until they happen.

But, hopefully it'll mean more time for reading and blogging,

which I didn't have enough time for this year.

Hope you all have a wonderful new year!

Cleo :)

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.