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.



Thursday, September 30, 2010

Waiting on Wednesday

So I am AGAIN late with my Waiting On Wednesday post! Ugh! Its been a horrible week, please forgive me!  So without further ado-
River Marked (Mercedes Thompson, #6)

From GoodReads: Car mechanic Mercy Thompson has always known there was something different about her, and not just the way she can make a VW engine sit up and beg. Mercy is a shapeshifter, a talent she inherited from her long-gone father. She’s never known any others of her kind. Until now.

An evil is stirring in the depths of the Columbia River—one that her father’s people may know something about. And to have any hope of surviving, Mercy and her mate, the Alpha werewolf Adam, will need their help…

All I can say about this one is, I LOVE MERCY!!!! Patricia Briggs has two series that I adore, Alpha and Omega and Mercy Thompson.  Right now I am DYING as I wait for a new book for Ms. Briggs!  So here I am counting the days to January 25th!!

The Eternal Ones by Kristin Miller

From GoodReads: What if love refused to die?

Haven Moore can’t control her visions of a past with a boy called Ethan, and a life in New York that ended in fiery tragedy. In our present, she designs beautiful dresses for her classmates with her best friend Beau. Dressmaking keeps her sane, since she lives with her widowed and heartbroken mother in her tyrannical grandmother’s house in Snope City, a tiny town in Tennessee. Then an impossible group of coincidences conspire to force her to flee to New York, to discover who she is, and who she was.
In New York, Haven meets Iain Morrow and is swept into an epic love affair that feels both deeply fated and terribly dangerous. Iain is suspected of murdering a rock star and Haven wonders, could he have murdered her in a past life? She visits the Ouroboros Society and discovers a murky world of reincarnation that stretches across millennia. Haven must discover the secrets hidden in her past lives, and loves¸ before all is lost and the cycle begins again.

So this book too me a lot longer to get into than I would have liked, but it was WELL worth it! This book had a little something of everything, some action, a little adventure, some heartbreak, and a lot of romance.  I found the characters to be written beautifully, the whole world brought to life in such vivid colors.  I hope Kristin Miller has plans to turn this book into a series, I am really looking forward to reading more about Haven, Iain, and Beau!

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Waiting on Wednesday

My (again late) Waiting on Wednesday post! Defiance by Lili St. Crow, the fourth book in the Strange Angels series! 
From GoodReads: Now that sixteen-year-old Dru's worst fears have come true and Sergej has kidnapped her best friend Graves, she'll have to go on a suicidal rescue mission to bring him back in one piece.

That is, if she can put all of Christophe's training to good use, defeat her mother's traitor, Anna, once and for all, and manage to survive another day . . .

I am UBER excited for this book! Lili St. Crow is the MASTER at leaving us hanging at the end of the book.  I have cursed her name at the end of all three books so far, hating that I had to wait for the next book.  She has brought the characters to life in such a way that you feel as though you know them.  She has made you a part of Dru's world to the point where your heart races with every action-packed scene.  The wait until April very well may kill me. If you haven't checked out this series, then you live under a rock! GET TO THE LIBRARY NOW AND GET THE FIRST THREE BOOKS!!!

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

From GoodReads: Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.
As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

I have to start out by saying that this book, while not entirely original in it's story, was really enjoyable.  I liked the characters, the visualization of the surounding, and most of all, the little twists and turns that the author threw in.  I did find the plot a little bit like many other teen and YA books right now,  however, I find that Rachel put her own spin on it enough to make it different enough that I still wanted to read it.  I look forward to book two in the Hex Hall series and reccommend you give this book a read, it's worth the time!!

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Siren by Tricia Rayburn

From GoodReads: Seventeen-year-old Vanessa Sands is afraid of everything—the dark, heights, the ocean—but her fearless older sister, Justine, has always been there to coach her through every challenge. That is, until Justine goes cliff-diving one night near the family’s vacation house in Maine, and her lifeless body washes up on shore the next day.

Though her parents hope that they’ll be able to find closure back in Boston, Vanessa can’t help feeling that her sister’s death wasn’t an accident. After discovering that Justine was keeping a lot of secrets, Vanessa returns to Winter Harbor, hoping that Justine’s boyfriend might know more. But Caleb has been missing since Justine’s death.
Soon, it’s not just Vanessa who’s afraid. All of Winter Harbor is abuzz with anxiety when another body washes ashore, and panic sets in when the small town becomes host to a string of fatal, water-related accidents in which all the victims are found, horrifically, grinning from ear to ear.
Vanessa turns to Caleb’s brother, Simon, for help, and begins to find herself drawn to him. As the pair try to understand the sudden rash of creepy drownings, Vanessa uncovers a secret that threatens her new romance—and will change her life forever.
A seductive paranormal romance full of unexpected twists, Siren is certain to make a big summer splash.

I was really excited to get this book, it had been high on my TBR list.  However, I was left disappointed.  I thought that it dragged on and left me forcing myself to finish it.  It just seemed that everything was lacking in some way.  Emotional scenes made me feel nothing, action scenes didn't peak my excitement, and the ending didn't surprise me at all.  I wish I had at least one thing that I could say that I really liked about this book, but the only thing that I can honestly say is that I doubt I will read the rest of this series when it comes out.

My Soul To Keep by Rachel Vincent

From GoodReads: WHEN KAYLEE CAVANAUGH SCREAMS, SOMEONE DIES

AND KAYLEE IS ABOUT TO SCREAM HER HEAD OFF...
Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them.
Until something does.
Demon’s breath. No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really can kill you. Somehow, the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source and protect their friends—one of whom is already hooked.
And when the epidemic hits too close to home, Kaylee will have to risk everything to save those she loves.

This is the third book in the Soul Screamers series and, in my opinion, is the best one of the series thus far.  Though I enjoyed the first two books, I found that this one had more of everything, more action, more suspense, more emotion, and more twists.  I wish I could tell you more about this book, but I feel that to elaborate more would give too much away.  I will end with this... I CAN'T WAIT TO READ THE REST OF THIS SERIES!!!!!

In My Mailbox

So this week's In My Mailbox is brought to you buy The Fort Dodge Public Library! lol As you know, I am a librarian at two libraries.  Unfortunately, both libraries are small town libraries with EXTREMELY limited budgets. So to "try before I buy" books for these libraries, I go to a nearby bigger city and get new releases from their library.  The Fort Dodge Public Library has been lucky enough to have several foundations that fundraise and purchase books for them, giving them an OVERWHELMING book collection.  This week in particular, I SCORED, getting not one, not two, but ELEVEN newly released books from my TBR list!  By the time I post this weeks WoW on Sunday, some may have already been read and reviewed, but I am going to list them here anyway!


So needless to say, this week will be spent with a book in my hands every spare moment I get!!