A little update-de-doodlie-doo

Hey everyone!


So as you may well know I finished writing my novel (see post here) and am currently in the process of editing the crap out of it. Editing is no easy feat, I have friends reading the book and editing it for me (they are remaining neutral though, so they won't sugar coat anything for the sake of my feelings) and then I'll edit and revise some more until I feel like the book is chiseled, fixed, and polished to it's best.
I put a lot of work into this book, and for a very good personal reason. The original idea of writing Soul What?! came around when I really missed my sisters and the fact that I no longer could see them every day. They're my biggest critics and for as long as I remember they've listened to me tell them story idea after story idea and read chapters and writing to them to no end. For once I wanted to finish a story, and I did (but only the writing is complete) and they don't have a clue about it. This project has been about two years in the making, from brainstorm to written word, and the anticipation of them finally being able to read the book whenever it's published and ready to read is killing me. It's almost like an ache that's eating away at me, but it's the force that's driving me forward and telling me not to give up. So I'm going to continue to edit and work at this until Soul What?! is a real book they can hold in their hands.
The characters are almost like real people to me, I've spent so many hours and weekends pouring over my laptop, putting eye drops in my eyes, and scribbling scenes in class or whenever a scene idea came to mind at the most random of times. But it was all worth it. I know  it will be.
If my sisters like the book then I will be happy and feel like I accomplished something great. It wouldn't really matter if no one else in the world ever read the book, (I'm not trying to sound like a jerk and dismiss the world) I mean yeah I would really love it if people experienced the story too, but I would be content if my sisters are happy with it.
The editing process is about 1/8th done, there's still a lot to do. It's slow but steady but I'll get to the finish line soon enough.

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

"Crimson Frost" - Book Review

 

 

Synopsis:

For a moment, a face flashed before my eyes—the most hideous face I’d ever seen. No matter how hard I tried to forget what had happened, I saw him everywhere I went. It was Loki—the evil god that I’d helped set free against my will.

I should have known that my first official date with Logan Quinn was destined to end in disaster. If we’d gotten into a swordfight, or been ambushed by Reapers, I’d have been more prepared. But getting arrested mid-sip at the local coffee hangout? I didn’t see that one coming.

I’ve been accused of purposely helping the Reapers free Loki from his prison—and the person leading the charge against me is Linus Quinn, Logan’s dad. The worst part is that pretty much everyone at Mythos Academy thinks I’m guilty. If I’m going to get out of this mess alive, I’ll have to do it myself…

 

 

My Review:

 

OH MY GOSH. I can't even figure out the right words to say just how awesome this fourth book in the Mythos Academy series was. I fear I'm going to sound redundant with this review by saying what I seem to say in every Mythos Academy series book review. Jennifer Estep has outdone herself. Every single book in the series is better than the last and has you wanting more. Crimson Frost was brilliantly written and Estep put so much thought into the intricate webbing of the plot. WOW.

The action was as intense as ever and I was constantly on my toes, enjoying the thrill the entire read. I really like Gwen as a character, she's starting to seem more like a friend than a literary character in my one of my favorite novel series. She's a strong heroine that any teenage girl could look up to. I'm not a teenager anymore but I kind of look up to her, as odd as that may sound. I love the budding relationship between Logan and Gwen, throughout all the battles and drama that goes on in their world they still manage to strengthen their bond.

There were a number of new characters introduced in Crimson Frost, and Alexei has grown on me. I won't give away any spoilers but I really liked him and the awkward "relationship" that he and Gwen had. Crimson Frost was filled with a lot of jaw dropping moments with twists and turns in the plot. So many unexpected things were thrown at the reader that were so shocking and mind-blowing. Bravo Jennifer Estep. I haven't read any of her other books aside from the Mythos Academy series but her writing style is becoming a favorite of mine.

The cliff-hanger at the end of Crimson Frost is probably the best of the series. I am dying to get my hands on Midnight Frost when it comes out in August. All I can say is if you guys haven't started reading the Mythos Academy series, you're missing out.

 

 

 

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Wordless Wednesday

Hey everyone!

I've decided that I want to have more frequent posts on my blog, instead of just the usual reviews, hauls and interviews. A lot of blogs that I've seen (not just book blogs) have Wordless Wednesdays where they just post a picture and don't say anything. I think it's a wonderful idea, though I don't know who the original idea belongs to so I can't give credit. If you know who came up with the idea let me know and I'll cite them. :) My Wordless Wednesdays will be book-related of course, given that my blog is The Literary Forest. So without further ado here is the wordless image of the week;

(Source)

 

 

 

 

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

"You Are So Cursed!" - Book Review

Synopsis:

High school's a dog-eat-dog world, but Vickie Marotti has an edge. Scorned by the jocks and cheerleaders? Misunderstood by the uptight vice principal? No problem. Not when you're an adept street magician, hexing bullies who dare harass you or your outcast friends!
But then cute and popular upperclassman Gio Carson recognizes the truth: Vick's no more a witch than she is class president. Her dark curses are nothing more than smoke and mirrors. Will he tell the world, or will it be their little secret? Vick is about to learn a valuable lesson: that real magic lies in knowing your true friends.

 

 

My Review:

It's been a long time since I've read a book under 300 pages, let alone less than 200. I read You Are So Cursed! in a day, and it was beyond refreshing to read something short and lighthearted without having to think too much. You Are So Cursed! was really cute, albeit cliche and corny, but I loved it nonetheless. I'm a pretty big cheese ball, so maybe that's why.
Though this book is intended for a younger audience (around 13 and up) I think it has some important lessons and morals to teach people. Like how wrong it is to judge someone by the way they look (Never judge a book by it's cover), or how you should never ditch your friends over a guy/girl you'd potentially date, or trying to be someone your not in order to impress someone.
The relationship between Gio and Vick was really cute. Vick was a tough, smart-mouthed girl with something always up her sleeve (no pun intended...or maybe it was), and Gio is this adorable dorky guy. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick read to make you smile, roll your eyes while smiling, and laugh. I would definitely like to read the next book in the series by Naomi Nash I Am So Jinxed! to read more about Gio and Vick's relationship.

 

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

Snow Day! - In My Mailbox

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!


So if you haven't already guessed from the title, today is a snow day. We've gotten almost a foot of snow and little glittery flakes are still falling down from the sky as I type, even though the sun's out. I've been so outrageously busy with college this semester because I'm getting ready to transfer to another school, and haven't had very much time to blog lately. I wanted to apologize for my seemingly inconsistent posts and extended, frequent absences. But since we got a snow day today I finally have free time to blog and post this book haul I've been meaning to post up for a couple of weeks. Without further ado;

These are books that I've gotten within the past month from book stores, my sister, and lovely Amazon.

(In order from top to bottom)

 

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

(My 4th grade teacher read Hatchet to us and I fell in love, wanting to relive the adventure I bought it off of Amazon.)

You are so cursed! by Naomi Nash

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Firelight by Sophie Jordan

Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2) by Richelle Mead

Between the lines by Jodie Picoult & Samantha Van Leer

 

This was a really great haul, some of these books are some that I've wanted to read for a very long time.

 

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

"Crescendo" - Book Review

 

Synopsis:

Nora Grey's life is still far from perfect. Surviving an attempt on her life wasn't pleasant, but at least she got a guardian angel out of it. A mysterious, magnetic, gorgeous guardian angel. But despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever (if that's possible) and what's worse, he seems to be spending time with Nora's archenemy, Marcie Millar.

Nora would have hardly noticed Scott Parnell, an old family friend who has moved back to town, if Patch hadn't been acting so distant. Even with Scott's totally infuriating attitude, Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feelings that he is hiding something.

If that weren't enough, Nora is haunted by images of her murdered father, and comes to question whether her Nephilim bloodline has anything to do with his death. Desperate to figure out what happened, she puts herself in increasingly dangerous situations to get the answer. But maybe some things are better left buried, because the truth could destroy everything - and everyone - she trusts.

 

My Review:

 

To be completely and utterly honest this book was ...alright to me. I'm not a die-hard fan of this book series but don't get me wrong it's not terrible. This book was a lot better than the first, in my opinion, but there were some parts near the beginning that just dragged on and the momentum of the story seemed lost.

However, near the third-quarter point of the book things picked up and there was some action to keep my interest piqued. Fitzpatrick did a good job with the intense action scenes and had me freaking out alongside Nora, which was pretty cool.

Fitzpatrick definitely sprinkled a lot of jaw-dropping moments in this book, and made my eyes widen in shock several times.

The newest addition to the Hush Hush character line-up, Scott Parnell, isn't half-bad. I liked his seemingly-obnoxious attitude and his sarcastic debonair. I really liked the relationship between Scott and Nora, for the most part, because he brought out Nora's tough side and she could remain cool and in control when she was around him. Now after reading Crescendo I might be swaying a bit towards team Scott, before you throw your tomatoes remember I said might. Maybe after I read the next two books I might change my mind...maybe. We'll just have to see what happens.

 

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)

"Dark Frost" - Book Review

 

 

Synopsis:

I've seen so many freaky things since I started attending Mythos Academy last fall. I know I'm supposed to be a fearless warrior, but most of the time, I feel like I'm just waiting for the next Bad, Bad Thing to happen. Like someone trying to kill me again. Everyone at Mythos Academy knows me as Gwen Frost, the Gypsy girl who uses her psychometry magic to find lost objects and who just may be dating Logan Quinn, the hottest guy in school. But I'm also the girl the Reapers of Chaos want dead in the worst way. The Reapers are the baddest of the bad, the people who murdered my mom. So why do they have it in for me? It turns out my mom hid a powerful artifact called the Helheim Dagger before she died. Now, the Reapers will do anything to get it back. They think I know where the dagger is hidden, but this is one thing I can't use my magic to find. All I do know is that the Reapers are coming for me and I'm in for the fight of my life.

My Review:

Usually when you read book series that consist of a ton of books the story seems to drag on and on or get duller and duller with every new segment of the series. But that is certainly not the case for the third installment of the Mythos Academy series Dark Frost. Jennifer did such an amazing job at this book and had me on my toes for a majority of the story. Gwen no longer seems like just a character but a real person that I can connect with, and I love it.
Dark Frost was equal parts funny, romantic, witty, and super action-packed. I feel like every time I read the next book in the series I think to myself "This is my favorite book in the series!" and only repeat the process when I read the next book.
I love Estep's humor and the characters she's created within the world of Mythos academy are so lovable, every time I pick up the book it's like I'm greeting old friends.
Very few times have I read a book that left me so happy and elated when I finished reading it. But even though Dark Frost had a super steep cliffhanger I was grinning from ear-to-ear when I closed the book shut. Mythos Academy has easily become one of my favorite book series EVER. I'm super excited for the next installment to the series to continue the story of Gwen, irresistible Logan, and her friends. Even though I'm anticipating what's going to happen next because of the intensity of what happened in Dark Frost I think I'm going to wait a while before I read Crimson Frost to let everything sink in, including my whacked-out emotions that seem to be flying all over the place.
Congratulations Jennifer Estep, if I wasn't hooked before I certainly am now.

HAPPY READING EVERYONE! :)