Saturday, September 29, 2012

"Generation Dead" - Book Review




Synopsis:

Phoebe Kendall is just your typical Goth girl with a crush. He’s strong and silent…and dead.
All over the country, a strange phenomenon is occurring. Some teenagers who die aren't staying dead. But when they come back to life, they are no longer the same. Feared and misunderstood, they are doing their best to blend into a society that doesn’t want them.
The administration at Oakvale High attempts to be more welcoming of the “differently biotic." But the students don’t want to take classes or eat in the cafeteria next to someone who isn’t breathing. And there are no laws that exist to protect the “living impaired” from the people who want them to disappear—for good.
When Phoebe falls for Tommy Williams, the leader of the dead kids, no one can believe it; not her best friend, Margi, and especially not her neighbor, Adam, the star of the football team. Adam has feelings for Phoebe that run much deeper than just friendship; he would do anything for her. But what if protecting Tommy is the one thing that would make her happy?




My review:
When I first spotted this book on a shelf at the bookstore I wasn't really sure about it. It was on one of the furthest shelves in the back with the rest of the mainstream YA novels that have similar plots and over-used cliches. Every time I went back to the bookstore there it was...just sitting on the shelf as if to say "Will you buy me today Noel?" So one day when I went to pick up a book that had just come out I decided I'd give it a chance because I was really in the mood for something about Zombies...don't ask me why.

I don't really know where to begin about this book. I really liked Pheobe, she was a relate-able character and I loved how nice she was to everyone and accepting of the 'zombies', or in the book what is considered politically correct; differently biotic. It was really suspenseful and at the beginning of the book I developed  my own theories of who I think the mysterious zombie killers were though I won't say a word!
Out of most of the undead, vampire, zombie books I've got to say that this book really is unique in its concept. I really liked the idea of all of the zombies not being the same and that they had emotions, and thoughts while society thought they didn't.

Daniel Waters was so good about making us feel for the zombies that I was rooting for them throughout the book while people in their town thought they were signs of the end of the world or monsters. Sometimes I'd get so engrossed in the book I'd have to remind myself that zombies don't exist haha. But on the news during the summer they did a zombie special, which was so ironic considering it was the day I started reading the book. Apparently there were too incidents of people eating random people's faces (I know really gross, and I won't go into detail) but it has convinced people that they think zombies are out there. Stores and hospitals are now preparing each other for a zombie apocalypse...I don't really even know what to say.
But if the zombies from Daniel Water's book were to live in our world I'd want to give them all a big hug because they're so lovable. The one thing I didn't like about this book though was the fact that the author had broken my heart at one point in the book. I'm excited for the next book in the series because I'm dying to know if my theory is correct. This book really reminds me of the writing style of (The ghost and the goth) mixed with the Maze runner. I'm not sure why but it does. And isn't the cover just beautiful? :)



HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

"Hush Hush" - Book Review





Synopsis:

A SACRED OATH
A FALLEN ANGEL
A FORBIDDEN LOVE


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

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

For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.
 
 

My review:
A couple of years ago my sisters had bought this book from a store and wouldn't stop raving about how amazing it was for weeks. We would be in the car driving to school when they'd practically plead and beg me to read it as soon as possible. At the time I never followed my sisters' book recommendations because one bad recommendation had led me to a book I absolutely could not stand. (I won't mention any book titles...)
Forward to three years later and I'm standing in the grocery store's book aisle while my mom browses the vitamins and I'm trying to decide which books I want to buy. I hadn't bought any books in a while but I didn't want to splurge my monthly savings in one go. They had a sale going on for Hush Hush since the final installment to the saga would be coming out in July and it was only five bucks. I heard my sisters' voices pounding in my head shouting "you better buy that book noel, you better get it now!" so yeah... I listened to the voices, they told me to get it.

This book was alright. I'll admit I'm not ecstatically impressed with it but it wasn't boring to read at all. I really liked the chemistry between Patch and Nora from their fateful moment in Biology. The plot was really well thought out, props to the author for the intricate web of the story, and I loved following the mystery. I was constantly guessing who I thought the ...shall we say criminal?... was and who I thought was behind the whole thing. It was the beginning of summer and I was in desperate need for a good summer opening book. I hadn't read a suspenseful book like this in a long time. The ending greatly reminded me of the Kissed by an Angel series (that I only managed to read up to number three of, oh dear I seriously have to catch up on that series) which I really loved so I am definitely going to be reading the other books whenever I get the chance to.

I called my sisters the day I started reading Hush Hush and told them about the great deal I had gotten on it and the moment I heard their voices in my head urging me to buy it. Apparently I had been mistaken and they were quick to let me know what an idiotic idea that had been considering that they have the first three books on their own bookshelves and said I had wasted my money by buying a second copy. But it wasn't a waste, I totally recommend this book!



 
HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Sunday, September 23, 2012

My Novel Update!

Hey everyone!

So I've got some pretty cool news. Lately, I've been working a lot on my novel as a way to unwind and de-stress from all of the stuff going on in school because this semester's been pretty rough. However, because of that it's paying off! The book is almost done!


Word Count Totals:

  • Chapter 1: 5,320 words
  • Chapter 2: 3,695 words
  • Chapter 3: 5,439 words
  • Chapter 4: 3,614 words
  • Chapter 5: 6,674 words
  • Chapter 6: 6,407 words
  • Chapter 7: 7,046 words
  • Chapter 8: 2,242 words
  • Chapter 9: 4,917 words
  • Chapter 10: 6,311 words
  • Chapter 11:7,355 words
  • Chapter 12: 4,704 words
  • Chapter 13: 2,760 words
  • Chapter 14: 4,078 words
  • Chapter 15: 3,491 words
Total Word Count Thus Far: 74,052 words!





Gosh, I'm really excited :) I remember when I posted about how excited I was about 30,000 words haha. It's all starting to come together and I'm really anxious to finish writing the ending. I'm thinking their may be 30,000 words left to write though I'm still not sure yet, it all really depends on how things work out.



HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Sunday, September 16, 2012

In My Mailbox - Summer Book Haul!

 

Hey everyone!

Once again it's time for an 'In My Mailbox'. In My Mailbox is a book blogging Internet meme started by Kristi over at The Story Siren. In My Mailbox is a meme where you talk about books you receive in your mailbox, giveaways, books you bought at stores, borrowed from the library and etc!
Now that summer's officially over and autumn is breezing in I wanted to do a summer haul of all of the books I got over the summer. Since I hadn't blogged over the summer the books accumulated to a great big pile and now take up a couple of shelves on my bookshelf. However, a few of the books I did get over the summer ended up being donated to the library or given to friends and family so they won't be showing up in this haul. (But their reviews will be posted up very soon!)

So without further ado, here are the books I got over the summer;


It may be a bit hard to see all of the titles because this was the closest I could get to include all of the books in the picture.

(In order from top to bottom, starting from the left)

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
For years I was dying to see the movies and while at Target one day I stumbled across this gem and decided I'd give the book series a shot since the Hobbit will be coming out to theaters on my birthday this year!
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1) by Rick Riordan
I've been dying to read this book series for the longest time and my sister got it and let me borrow it (thanks sis!)
Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck
I wanted to read this book after reading Elodie's review of it on her blog! :)
Magic of the Moonlight (Full Moon, #2) by Ellen Schrieber
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter
Something Wiccan This Way Comes (Rhiannon Godfrey, #2) by Traci E. Hall
Her Wiccan Wiccan Ways (Rhiannon Godfrey, #1) by Traci E. Hall
Daughters of the Moon by Lynne Ewing
Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test, #2) by Aimee Carter
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong
Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Fated by Alyson Noel
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (#2) by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (#1) by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (#7) by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (#6) by J.K. Rowling
I had the last two Harry Potter books already and only read the sixth one and half of the seventh and never finished it. I've always loved Harry Potter but have only read a few of the books that I borrowed from the library, but about a month ago I felt the urge to reread the series and relive the magic of my favorite book series EVER. Hopefully that will happen next month in time for Halloween! :)
 
 

That's the book haul for what's in my mailbox. There were a lot of other books I had gotten that didn't get the chance to show up in this haul but I did get the chance to read them and the reviews will be up soon!


HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Thursday, September 13, 2012

"Once in a full Moon" - Book Review

 
Synopsis:
Beware of a kiss under the full moon. It will change your life forever.

Celeste Parker is used to hearing scary stories about werewolves--Legend's Run is famous for them. She's used to everything in the small town until Brandon Maddox moves to Legend's Run and Celeste finds herself immediately drawn to the handsome new student. But when, after an unnerving visit with a psychic, she encounters a pack of wolves and gorgeous, enigmatic Brandon, she must discover whether his transformation is more than legend or just a trick of the shadows in the moonlight.

Her best friends may never forgive her if she gives up her perfect boyfriend, Nash, for Brandon, who's from the wrong side of town. But she can't deny her attraction or the strong pull he has on her. Brandon may be Celeste's hero, or he may be the most dangerous creature she could encounter in the woods of Legend's Run.

Psychic predictions, generations-old secrets, a town divided, and the possibility of falling in love with a hot and heroic werewolf are the perfect formula for what happens . . . once in a full moon.
 
 

My Review:

I don't even know where to begin with how much I love this book. But first and foremost I made sure that I wasn't being biased by how much I like Ellen Schreiber as an author. When I began to read Once in A full moon I cleared my mind so that I could remain unbiased while I read the werewolf tale. It easily became one of my favorite books along with the Vampire Kisses series. I just love Ellen's writing and story-telling style and couldn't help but fall in love with this series as well.
Ellen really has a gift for making irresistible guys, I immediately fell in love with Brandon Maddox just as I had with Alexander Sterling from the VK series. Many people have said that the story was overly cliche and cheesy but I don't really disagree, however that isn't a bad thing. At least not in my opinion, I'm a sucker for cheesy, sappy cliche books. :) Bite me.

When reading this book I noticed a pattern in Schreiber's writing style. She tends to make social conflicts within the towns that she creates in her novels. The east and west siders don't get along, being on different sides of the tracks and social scale. But it makes the book all the more interesting. I loved the immediate chemistry between Celeste and Brandon, you could tell that they were perfect for each other from the get go. I could literally not put this book down when I read it, shutting out the rest of the world. It had been blowing crazy winds around here (if you guys hadn't heard we got about 6 tornadoes out here in Colorado :S yeah...yikes but thankfully no one got hurt) but the day before the tornadoes and floods happened, I was planted outside in the gusting wind just reading along. I didn't even bother going inside because I was just too immersed into the howling good book.

What I like about Ellen's paranormal stories is that she sticks to the very basics of the creatures and doesn't alter the paranormal beings. Don't get me wrong there are a lot of paranormal books that I love that have had the author switch up the creature's characteristics. But I really love how Ellen made the werewolves purely werewolf as in transitioning at the full moon, turned by a wolf bite, lethal 'allergy' to silver and the eternal bond of a mate who accepts them in their true form.
The book cut off at one of Ellen's infamous cliff-hangers making me thirst for more. I am dying to run to the bookstore to get the sequel to the Full Moon series, Magic of the moonlight to find out what happens to Celeste and Brandon's budding romance. Once in full moon is MTV's Teen Wolf meets the magnificent story telling of Ellen Schreiber to create a story that will really knock your werewolf socks off.


HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Friday, September 7, 2012

Guess who's back?!

Hey everyone!


I know, I know, I know. I've been gone for an eternity and a few months and I'm really sorry. Things have just been hectic and I didn't get to start blogging again when I wanted to because more chaos ensued. However, now I'll try to blog more actively because I've read a lot of books over the summer that I get to share with you all!

A lot of new things have also happened. :) I got my license! Haha after almost a year of practicing how to drive I can now officially drive on my own, though I'm not doing much of that because college just started for the semester. It's kind of so-so this semester, I have some stickler teachers that drive me nuts and have to make a scene of every little thing. However, I do have a nice new teacher and he's pretty mellowed out so it helps even things out in the long run. My novel is coming together! :D There are only about four more chapters left to write! I tried to write as often as I could but I was vacationing with my sisters this summer so it was hard to write their surprise novel while they were always around haha. But don't worry, I didn't blow the surprise. :)



How have you guys been? I've truly missed you all! I hope you all had an amazing summer, please leave comments below letting me know how you spent the last three months; swimming with dolphins? Interning at a new job? Celebrating at a wedding?


P.S. Have any of you guys heard of the new Disney cartoon Gravity Falls? It's a cartoon but my younger sister was watching it and I immediately fell in love. It's full of humor and really cute, Mabel's pretty awesome.


 
 
HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

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