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My name is Rose. I’m doing this exciting book blog with my super awesome sister Bonnie. We both live in Dallas Texas and we read a ton of books. Seriously a ton of books and we always have lively discussions of the books we’ve read. Thus came about the idea of sharing our reviews with y’all. So sit back an enjoy and if you have any comments please feel to share. |
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Welcome to our blog!
2011
03.13
03.13
Sweet Evil Book Review
2012
04.23
04.23
Goodreads Summary: What if there were teens whose lives depended on being bad influences? This is life for sons and daughters of fallen angels in Sweet Evil.
Tenderhearted Southern girl, Anna Whitt, was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage, and her will-power is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.
A cross-country trip to meet her father forces Anna to face the reality that hope and love are not options for her kind. When she confronts her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?
Publication Date: May 1, 2012
Rose’s Review: OUTSTANDING!! This book is one of my favorites so far this year. Brilliant angel and demons story with fantastic characters. This isn’t your run of the mill good girl meets bad guy story and oh by the way we’re Nephilim. There was so much more depth to Anna and especially Kaidan. I really like Kaidan, not because of his uber-hotness, but because there was that underlying goodness in him. It was also refreshing to have a character like Jay who’s a great and loyal friend to Anna and wasn’t a love interest for her. It was refreshing to see a guy was there as a true friend and not as a third side to a love triangle. Defiantly look for this book and grab it off the shelf! It’s that good.
The Selection Book Review
2012
03.10
03.10
The Selection by Kiera Cass
Goodreads Summary: For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in the palace and compete for the heart of the gorgeous Prince Maxon.
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn’t want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she’s made for herself- and realizes that the life she’s always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined
Rose’s Review
I really liked this book. First of all, this cover is like ‘Bam!’. Yes it’s a clear example of the ‘lets smack a girl in a gorgeous dress on the cover’ gimmick. But, if I was to go to my local Barnes and Noble and line up the ‘girls in pretty dress’ covers, this one is like hands down my favorite. I want this dress.
America, yeah I’m not keen on the names in this book, is a likable character. She’s a bit on the overdrama side when it come to the boyfriend department and she gushes about the dresses, the palace, etc. It’s all that teenage nuance, so to read that an author was able to capture that is surprising and yeah believable. However, I found that the other girls in the selection were a bit clichéd. There’s the mean girl, the super sweet friend, the mousy girl, you know. The guys in the book were appealing enough. I couldn’t really get Aspen (another name I didn’t like…) and I found myself more interested in reading more about Maxon.
Overall the story was good but not brilliant and I could see those very slight hints of Hunger Games. Is it ‘like’ Hunger Games? Um…No not even in the same ballpark, but I still…I enjoyed the book. The ending leaves me with just enough enthusiasm to read more.
Look for this one…
Release Date: April 21, 2012
Win an Advance Copy of Pandemonium (Delirium #2)
2012
01.28
01.28
After coming home from my adventures at ALA Mid Winter I realized that I had one extra copy of Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. Can you say ‘Giveaway!!’
Yes, one lucky winner will get this lovely ARC. Didn’t get it at ALA, win it here. Didn’t make it to ALA, win it here.
Contest Information:
- Contest is open to the US only.
- Entrants must be 13 years of age or older
- The winner will be announced on this blog when the contest is over
- The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to reply or a new winner will be chosen
- To enter, fill out the form below
- One more thing…Please feel free to make a comment on this blog, just don’t put your email address in the comment.
Good Luck!!
A Million Suns Review
2012
01.28
01.28
Goodreads Summary: Godspeed was fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos.
It’s been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. And everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed. But there may just be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He’s finally free to enact his vision – no more Phydus, no more lies.
But when Elder discovers shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a puzzle that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier, unable to fight the romance that’s growing between them and the chaos that threatens to tear them apart.
In book two of the Across the Universe trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Beth Revis mesmerizes us again with a brilliantly crafted mystery filled with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all builds to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship.
Rose’s Review:
Oh Wow! This book is A-MA-ZING. Like Across the Universe this book totally had me and I was reading thru the night to finish. The author has a way of making the reader feel like he/she is onboard the Godspeed and you feel that closed in feeling. You feel that struggle Elder has with all the troubles that come with being the leader. You also feel what Amy goes thru with being an outsider and threaten by Luthor. This book had Sci-Fi, mystery, sweet romance…there really is that roller coaster of a ride of emotions and it is well written. I felt like this book had a more bigger mystery and larger twists than AtU. Seriously large twists! There were moments when I was reading and I quite literly gasped. The ending had me screaming ‘OH COME ON!’. That’s how you end the middle book of a trilogy.
I whole heartedly recommend this book to others. It’s an amesome read, a true page turner!!
Clockwork Prince Review
2012
01.28
01.28
Goodreads Summary: In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will; the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.
Rose’s Review
This book was hands down my number one favorite book of the year. Yes, this book snuck in there December 2011 and blew me away. You Cassandra Clare readers, yeah you know you Shadowhunter lovers…Go out and read this book. I’m a fan of the Mortal Instruments series but I have got to admit that I’m a bigger fan of the Immortal Devices series. Between last year’s Clockwork Angel and the recent Clockwork Prince, Cassandra takes her Shadowhunter world to a new level. You have the fabulous Victorian London setting but you also get a glimpse of the future families mentioned in the Mortal Instruments.
One of my favorite love triangles in YA history is the one between Will, Tessa, and Jem. It’s right up there in terms of character depth and heartbreaking choices. Not only is Tessa torn between Will and Jem. Will is torn in his strong loyalty and brotherly love for Jem as well as his strong feelings toward Tessa. Clockwork Prince gives more depth to Will and shows the budding romance between Jem and Tessa. There’s a fair share of steamy scenes as well as unexpected twists.
Although I wasn’t an all out crazy fan of Cassandra’s Mortal Instruments. I mean…I’m really growing tired of the Jace and Clary soap opera and I’m finding myself wanting to read more about Simon. With the Infernal Devices I get fantastic and lovable characters such as Will and I get that steampunk-ish vibe with the clockworks. There’s that mystery to Tessa and of course there’s more of a heaping of Magnus Bane. Seriously I was loving me some more Magnus after reading this book.
I highly recommend the Immortal Devices series. Go out and start with Clockwork Angel and then to Clockwork Prince. Then you’ll be stuck with me as I try to invent a time machine so that I can zip over to December 2012 and pick up Clockwork Princess. I’ll buy that damn DeLorean, put that Flux Capacitor in the backseat, find the 1.21 gigawatts, and put that bad boy pass 88 mph! I want Clockwork Princess now!! **whew**
This book is an A+. I’ve already passed it on to Bonnie to read.
Rose’s Top 10 Books Read in 2011
2011
12.31
12.31
- Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare –Irristable Shadowhunters, a sinister plot, and you throw in one amazing love triangle set in Victorian London. What a divine combination! Hands down my number one book of the year. I’m still formulating my review so expect it soon.
- Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater – Such an incredible setting, amazing characters, and flesh-eating horses jumping out the sea. Dangerous Flesh-Eating horses people! Who, but Maggie Stiefvater can come up with that!
- Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding –This book was like rediscovering how cool ‘Firefly’ is. If you like the crew of Serenity then…1.Go out. 2.Immediately find this book. 3. Read it. Like right now…
- Nevermore by Kelly Creagh –I was pleasantly surprised how much I like this book. Goth guy and the cheerleader. What a couple! Throw in a bit of paranormal and Edgar Allen Poe and Viola! I can’t wait to read more!
- Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins – Ooh La La! Romance, Paris, great characters, and Etienne St. Clair…whew…I’m going to sit here and hyperventilate.
- Unearthly by Cynthia Hand –Angels! We read this book earlier this year and still I have it as one of my favorites. I’ve read quite a number of books and still this book still stands out. Book 2 comes out next month and I can’t wait.
- Divergent by Veronica Roth –Everything in this book was a hit out of the park for me…character building, twists, smoldering romance, action, family, and it’s a dystopian. Aces! It’s all aces, people!!
- Legend by Marie Lu –Captivating, sweep you off your feet action, swoony romance, butt-kicking heroine to match an equally awesome hero. I highly recommend this book.
- The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross–Mix up ‘X-Men’ with ‘League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ with great characters. This is one of my favorite Steampunk book this year. Love it!
- Attachments by Rainbow Rowell –Yes, this is not a YA book but it’s still a sweet,
witty, and charming book. It’s about an IT guy, who’s job includes reading employee emails for un-business like chatter, unexpectedly falls for a girl who’s email he’s secretly reading. Check it out…I was pleasantly surprised to find this jem of a book outside the YA section of my local Barnes and Noble. This book left with a smile.
Variant Book Review
2011
12.27
12.27
Goodreads Summary:Benson Fisher thought that a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life. He was wrong. Now he’s trapped in a school that’s surrounded by a razor-wire fence. A school where video cameras monitor his every move. Where there are no adults. Where the kids have split into groups in order to survive. Where breaking the rules equals death. But when Benson stumbles upon the school’s real secret, he realizes that playing by the rules could spell a fate worse than death, and that escape—his only real hope for survival—may be impossible.
Rose’s Review
This book is just ok to me. The ‘Hey, we’re kids and we’re trapped inside this school surrounded by walls and evil people are watching us…’ has been done before. In fact I can probably name a tv show, a comic book and a YA book that has a similar premise. What makes them different is that there is some sort of twist like ‘hey I have superpowers and everyone here at this mysterious school has superpowers too’…this book didn’t have that ‘thing’ that made it unique or as attention-grabbing as others. Yeah it had a surprise in it but once that bubble had pop, this book wasn’t as interesting. Oh well. I’m giving this book a C+. Bonnie, you can skip this one…
Graffiti Moon Book Review
2011
12.04
12.04
Book Summary: “Let me make it in time. Let me meet Shadow. The guy who paints in the dark. Paints birds trapped on brick walls and people lost in ghost forests. Paints guys with grass growing from their hearts and girls with buzzing lawn mowers.”
It’s the end of Year 12. Lucy’s looking for Shadow, the graffiti artist everyone talks about.
His work is all over the city, but he is nowhere.
Ed, the last guy she wants to see at the moment, says he knows where to find him. He takes Lucy on an all-night search to places where Shadow’s thoughts about heartbreak and escape echo around the city walls.
But the one thing Lucy can’t see is the one thing that’s right before her eyes.
Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley
What a find! Thanks to Netgalley, I had it on my reader on my recent trip. I was fully engrossed by this book that a five hour car ride felt like 30 minutes. That’s how I know I’ve found a great book. The book’s summary pretty much has the plot all spelled out so there’s no big shockers. The author created such memorable and believable characters. The descriptions of the art and the inner selves of the lead characters Ed and Lucy were really true and compelling. I really understood them and I loved their witty comments and their introspective thoughts. I love it when an author can really pull off that dual POV in a book.
This was really a great find and I would recommend it. Yeah, it won’t blow you away and have you ‘pondering’ long after the book is closed, but it was very entertaining and refreshing to read. I’m giving this an B+.
Geek Girl Book Review
2011
12.04
12.04
Book Summary: “Think I can turn that boy bad?” 17-year-old Jen turns her life upside down when, out of boredom, she makes a bet that she can turn school geek Trevor into someone like her. Instead, the goth girl finds herself sucked into his world of sci-fi movies, charity work, and even-ugh!-bowling. To truly belong with him-and with her new foster family-she must first come to terms with her violent past.
Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett
I liked this book. It was sweet and not too complicated. I wish there was more story leading up to the bet because the book literally starts with “Think I could turn that boy bad?”. You didn’t get a sense of what Jen really was like before she started on the “Changing Trevor” bet. I will say that the plot wasn’t entirely original and mind-blowing, but the way things were developed including Jen’s and Trevor’s relationship was charming. Their characters were well written out and interesting enough for me to care about. Trevor especially was very likable. I especially liked his references to my favorite sci-fi topics like Star Wars, X-Files, Battlestar, etc. I really got a kick out of reading those snippets.
Although the characters were great I really like that they were written with flaws, especially Trevor. Who in my opinion was a slight unbelievable in how long he can carry a grudge.
I thought the author did a great job capturing that pitter-patter of the heart and those moments of ‘oh my’ when you first start to fall for someone. Those passages in the book really had me smiling and sighing.
Geek Girl is a great read for readers in the mood something not too heavy in plot but with a fluffly feel good kind of feel. I would recommend it as something to fill in the gaps of reading too many YAs dealing with zombies, dystopia, paranormal, and serious topic contemporaries. I’m giving this book a B+.
This book was provided by Netgalley for review.
Flawless Book Review
2011
12.01
12.01
I didn’t like this book. I really wanted to because I love the story of Cyrano de Bergerac. This book had a bit of a good message with the main character Sarah having an upbeat attitude about having a big nose but I just felt that Sarah was a bit inconsistent.
Enter Rock who is this smoldering hot guy who just transferred to Sarah’s school and catches the attention of not only Sarah but her best friend Kristen. Kristen is that stereotypical dumb blonde with the looks who ends up hooking up with Rock. Sarah is there to provide the ‘smarts’ for Kristen via email and facebook. If Rock was this smart intelligent guy wouldn’t he notice that Kristen in person and online Kristen are not the same? Oh wait he’s not really paying attention to that detail because he’s too busy making out with Kristen. What a guy.
Ok this is the point that was a bit disappointing to me. When this other guy, Jay, who’s had this crush on Sarah for awhile but is too shy to do anything about it was able to point out to Sarah that she purposely puts up a wall to others, except Rock. Jay seemed like a good guy and genuinely wanted a chance with Sarah. But apparently only totally hot guys like Rock only exist and all others are invisible because Jay is dismissed and disappears from the book. Yeah I get that Sarah and Rock share the same interests, I just didn’t see any chemistry there. The way Sarah dismisses what Jay points out and continues only with the ‘good looking’ guy, um, is that the moral of this story? Is it a bit of a double standard for what Sarah wants others to treat her and her big nose and how she treats others especially guys who are not in the ‘total knockouts’ column?
Overall I didn’t care too much for this book. Sorry but it’s a D- for me.