Welcome To My Blog

Welcome to my blog! I invite you to enter into the splendiferous world of the library where I will share my knowledge and love of books I have read, as well as send out praise to the authors of these treasures. Most of the books reviewed on my site will be Teen or YA Sci-Fi/Fantasy, though every now and then I'll throw in an adult book just to shake things up.



Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday

So for my Waiting on Wednesday this week I have no cover art.  Sorry! It's not available yet!  But it should be coming any day now!


The book is Working Stiff, the first book in Rachel Caine's new series, The Revivalist!  I am UBER EXCITED to read this book!


From GoodReads:A brand new adventure from the award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling Rachel Caine, author of the Morganville Vampires and Weather Warden series ... 
Bryn Davis is new on the job as a funeral director, but even she knows that once you’re dead, you ought to stay that way. But Fairview Mortuary has a hidden backroom business: reviving the dead for profit, at extortionate rates. 
Finding out may cost Bryn more than her life ... it may just take away her death, too. 

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Wish by Alexandra Bullen


From GoodReads: For broken-hearted Olivia Larsen, nothing can change the fact that her twin sister, Violet, is gone... until a mysterious, beautiful gown arrives on her doorstep. The dress doesn't just look magical; it is magical. It has the power to grant her one wish, and the only thing Olivia wants is her sister back.With Violet again by her side, both girls get a second chance at life. And as the sisters soon discover, they have two more dresses-and two more wishes left. But magic can't solve everything, and Olivia is forced to confront her ghosts to learn how to laugh, love, and live again.In a breathtaking debut from Alexandra Bullen, WISH asks the question: If you could have anything, what would you wish for?

I really enjoyed this book, even though it made me cry a few times.  (Those of you who know me know that I HATE to cry! lol)  I really connected with the characters, enjoyed the storyline, and found the way Alexandra Bullen described the scenery, scenes, emotions, and characters very easy to visualize and fall in love with.  I can't wait to read more from this author! Check out Wish if you haven't already! You won't be disappointed!!

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer


From GoodReads: Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is the most ingenious criminal mastermind in history. With two trusty sidekicks in tow, he hatches a cunning plot to divest the fairyfolk of their pot of gold. Of course, he isn't foolish enough to believe in all that "gold at the end of the rainbow" nonsense. Rather, he knows that the only way to separate the little people from their stash is to kidnap one of them and wait for the ransom to arrive. But when the time comes to put his plan into action, he doesn't count on the appearance of the extrasmall, pointy-eared Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon (Lower Elements Police Reconnaisance) Unit--and her senior officer, Commander Root, a man (sorry, elf) who will stop at nothing to get her back.

So I was really excited to get this book.  My hubby and my boss said it was AMAZING.  Sadly, I was disappointed with it.  I really didn't like Artemis that much.  I don't know if I will continue this series or not.  I am hoping that, if I do read the next book, it will get better than this one was.  I thought the book was really slow, pretty predictable, and sadly, nothing like the description of "Die Hard with Faeries".

In My Mailbox


So in my mailbox this week I got books from both of my libraries!  They aren't really ones that I was anticipating, but they look good none the less!  I also got one book from NetGalley that I have been DYING to read!





Sunday, January 16, 2011

In My Mailbox

So this week for In My Mailbox I am a little short on material.  Due to nasty winter weather (which I LOVE! Yay Snow!) I couldn't get to Fort Dodge to get any new books and neither of my libraries received any that I am waiting on.  So I decided to pick up a series that I haven't read, but my Director, Denise, and my hubby both think I should read.  So I am starting Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer.  

Stylish Blogger Award

This week has been really long and grueling for me, but just when I thought nothing good could come of it I got this!

This was given to me Ottilie Weber a fellow blogger, who herself was given this award TWICE!  Check out her page! http://ottilieweber.blogspot.com/  Thank you so much to Ottilie! She really made my week!


There are 4 duties to perform to receive this award:
1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Award 10 recently discovered great bloggers (I'm taking this as recently discovered by myself, not brand-new blogs per say)
4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!


So, a random 7 things about myself

1) I am a total Star Wars freak.
2) I cover all my books with the same plastic covering as I do the books in my library to keep them in good condition.
3) I have never seen an ocean.
4) When I was a little kid I wanted to name my first daughter Poptart Butterfly Peace.
5) I usually carry one book on me at all times, one in my car at all times, and just generally can't stand to not have one when I have a free second or a long wait.
6) I play the alto saxophone.
7) I have a 12 year old dog named Poodle who is half chihuahua and half terrier


The blogs I've chosen to award! Go Check them out!!

1)
Babbling Flow

2)http://www.booklabyrinth.blogspot.com
3)For What It's Worth
4) 
Frenzy of Noise
5)
My Overstuffed Bookshelf
6)
Overflowing Shelf

7)Pirate Penguin's Reads
8)
Reading or Breathing
9)
The Thoughts of a Book Junky
10)
The Diary of a Bookworm


Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Firelight by Sophie Jordan

From GoodReads: A hidden truth. Mortal enemies. Doomed love. Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. But she longs for freedom to make her own choices. When she breaks the most sacred tenet among her kind, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki—a descendant of dragons whose greatest defense is her secret ability to shift into human form.
Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. The only bright light is Will. Gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: He and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slowly slipping away—if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy.
Mythical powers and breathtaking romance ignite in this story of a girl who defies all expectations and whose love crosses an ancient divide.

I got sucked into this book almost immediately.  The storyline was pretty original, bringing new explanation to dragons.  I could have used a little more action in it, but all-in-all I quite enjoyed it.  Unfortunately, being the first book in a series, I was left hanging on a lot of unanswered questions.  However, it only makes me want the next book even more.  Hats off to Sophie Jordan, she really hit this one out of the park.

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

From GoodReads: This debut, the first novel in a trilogy, is achingly romantic, terrifying, and filled with blistering action.
When seventeen-year-old Ellie starts seeing reapers - monstrous creatures who devour humans and send their souls to Hell - she finds herself on the front lines of a supernatural war between archangels and the Fallen and faced with the possible destruction of her soul.
A mysterious boy named Will reveals she is the reincarnation of an ancient warrior, the only one capable of wielding swords of angelfire to fight the reapers, and he is an immortal sworn to protect her in battle. Now that Ellie's powers have been awakened, a powerful reaper called Bastian has come forward to challenge her. He has employed a fierce assassin to eliminate her - an assassin who has already killed her once.
While balancing her dwindling social life and reaper-hunting duties, she and Will discover Bastian is searching for a dormant creature believed to be a true soul reaper. Bastian plans to use this weapon to ignite the End of Days and to destroy Ellie's soul, ending her rebirth cycle forever. Now, she must face an army of Bastian's most frightening reapers, prevent the soul reaper from consuming her soul, and uncover the secrets of her past lives - including truths that may be too frightening to remember.

Okay, so I SERIOUSLY LOVED this book!  It was action-packed from start to finish and always kept me guessing.  The characters were amazingly written and I just can't get over all the brilliance in this book.  THe scenes were always exciting and really drew me in.  I can't begin to say enough good things about Angelfire.  If you haven't read it yet, GO GET IT! This is a BRILLIANT debut by Courtney Allison Moulton.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Deadly Little Games by Laurie Faria Stolarz


From GoodReads: Camelia and Ben have discovered a powerful bond: They both possess the power of psychometry, the ability to sense things through touch. For Ben, the gift is a frightening liability. When he senses a strong threat or betrayal, he risks losing control and hurting people. Camelia's gift is more mysterious. When she works with clay, her hands sculpt messages her mind doesn't yet comprehend.
Before either teen has a chance to fully grasp these abilities, an unresolved family tragedy resurfaces in Camelia's life, irrevocably changing everything she cares about...

Once again, Laurie hit a homerun.  I ADORED this book!  Deadly Little Games has all the mystery and pyschological warfare of the previous books, leaving me guessing as to who the bad guy was.  As usual, I never knew for sure who it was until the final reveal.  Hats off to Laurie Faria Stolarz, another great book!

Vixen by Jillian Larkin


From GoodReads: Jazz . . . Booze . . . Boys . . . It’s a dangerous combination.
 Every girl wants what she can’t have. Seventeen-year-old Gloria Carmody wants the flapper lifestyle—and the bobbed hair, cigarettes, and music-filled nights that go with it. Now that she’s engaged to Sebastian Grey, scion of one of Chicago’s most powerful families, Gloria’s party days are over before they’ve even begun . . . or are they?
 Clara Knowles, Gloria’s goody-two-shoes cousin, has arrived to make sure the high-society wedding comes off without a hitch—but Clara isn’t as lily-white as she appears. Seems she has some dirty little secrets of her own that she’ll do anything to keep hidden. . . . 
 Lorraine Dyer, Gloria’s social-climbing best friend, is tired of living in Gloria’s shadow. When Lorraine’s envy spills over into desperate spite, no one is safe. And someone’s going to be very sorry. . . . 
 From debut author Jillian Larkin, VIXEN is the first novel in the sexy, dangerous, and ridiculously romantic new series set in the Roaring Twenties . . . when anything goes.

Even though this book is not sci-fi/fantasy like I normally read, I highly enjoyed it!  The era was really brought to life for me in the way Jillian described every scene, the language, and the characters.  There was just enough mystery and action to keep me guessing.  I can't wait for the next book in this series.  

Bloody Valentine by Melissa De La Cruz


From GoodReads: Vampires have powers beyond human comprehension: strength that defies logic, speed that cannot be captured on film, the ability to shapeshift and more. But in matters of the heart, no one, not even the strikingly beautiful and outrageously wealthy Blue Bloods, has total control. In Bloody Valentine, bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz offers readers a new story about the love lives of their favorite vamps - the passion and heartache, the hope and devastation, the lust and longing. Combined with all the glitz, glamour, and mystery fans have come to expect, this is sure to be another huge hit in the Blue Bloods series. Also, witness the bonding of Jack and Schuyler.

I really like these little novellas that Melissa De La Cruz keeps putting out for this series.  In this one we get to meet a character that is in Melissa's new upcoming series, get to see how Oliver is handling Schuyler leaving, and get to see Jake and Schuyler get bonded!  It was great!  I love how Melissa can pack so much information into these tiny little books.  I can't wait to see what she's going to do next!

Monday, January 3, 2011

Awakened by P.C. and Kristin Cast


From GoodReads:At the start of Awakened, the pulse-pounding eighth installment of the bestselling House of Night series, Zoey has returned, mostly whole, from the Otherworld to her rightful place as High Priestess at the House of Night. Her friends are just glad to have her back, but after losing her human consort, Heath, will Zoey - or her relationship with her super-hot Warrior, Stark - ever be the same? Stevie Rae is drawn even closer to Rephaim, the Raven Mocker with whom she shares a mysterious and powerful Imprint, but he is a dangerous secret that isolates her from her school, her red fledglings, and even her best friends. When the dark threat of Neferet - who is coming closer and closer to achieving her twisted goal of immortality - and Kalona returns, what will it take to keep the House of Night from being lost forever, and what will one desperate girl do to keep her heart from being irreparably broken?


I have to start out by saying that still wish that they would have ended the series with Hunted.  I liked the way it ended and could have been satisfied with them stopping then.  I have read the books past number 5, but I have just felt that they lacked something that the first five books had.  I started to get annoyed with some of the characters, one in particular I was seriously praying they would just kill him already!! 
I started reading Awakened, expecting not to catch my attention like those before it.  Happily I can say that, where in the last two books took me two weeks each to read, I finished this one in just a mere 24 hours.
It wasn't really that the book was so great that I couldn't put it down, but it was starting to pique my interests a little.  I can't say that Awakened is a must read, but I do believe that the authors may be getting there second wind.   I do, however, look forward to their next book.  It'll be an amazing book if the Casts get their mojo going again.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

In My Mailbox



So I know I've been really slacking on my posts lately, I apologize.  I have been in what I call a 'reading rut' and am having an insanely hard time finding books that I want to read.  
However, this may be the week for reading!  I received several books at the library and one for Christmas! So hopefully I will be a reading fool this week!!!!  Here's what I got!





Matched by Ally Condie


From GoodReads: Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.
The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

I am only 50 pages in to this book and I am putting it down.  So far I have found it to be extremely boring and it has failed to pique my interest.  I know this one has gotten a look of great reviews, but for me, it missed the mark by a long shot.  I see no reason for this to be compared to the Hunger Games.

The Gift by James Patterson


From GoodReads: When Whit & Wisty were imprisoned by the wicked forces of the totalitarian regime known as the New Order, they were barely able to escape with their lives. Now part of a hidden community of teens like themselves, Whit and Wisty have established themselves as leaders of the Resistance, willing to sacrifice anything to save kids kidnapped and brutally imprisoned by the New Order.
But the One has other plans in store for them: He needs Wisty, for she is "The One Who Has the Gift." While trying to figure out what that means, Whit and Wisty's suspenseful adventures through Overworld and Shadowland lead to a jaw-dropping climax and conclusion: the highly-anticipated fulfillment of the heart-pounding opening prologue of book one... The Execution of the Allgoods.

All-in-all I didn't really enjoy this book.  I really have nothing more to say about it then this:

James Patterson, in y opinion, is highly over-rated, over-paid, and irritating.