2013 Reading Challenges

Happy new year everyone! 

 

I love the fresh start of the new year so I thought I'd do a blog post on all the challenges I want to take part in this year.

 

Last year was pretty rubbish in terms of challenges for me. So instead of focusing on that, here's what I'm hoping to complete in 2013!

 

This challenge is basically to read more books than you did in 2012. Initially I wanted to read 100 books, but I did surpass that with 114, even with a huge reading slump in the middle of the year.

I hope I'll be able to do the 'Out of Breath' level by reading about 10 more books (124 hopefully).

If you'd like to sign up to this challenge, you can click on the image above and it will take you straight to the sign up page.

 

 

 

This one is pretty self-explanatory. I've been signing up to this one since I began blogging so I wanted to sign up this year too. All you have to do is read 100 books in a year.

If you want to sign up to this one, click on the image and it will take you straight to the sign up page.

 

 

This is one that I usually have a big problem with, hence why I'm signing up for it. I get distracted by so many new books that I forget about sequels coming out to books that I really enjoyed.

So, this year I want to read as many sequels as I possibly can. 

If you'd like to sign up for this one, click on the image and it will take you straight to the sign up page. 

 

 

 

This is definitely my most-read genre so I wanted to find a good challenge including it. This one challenges you to include a whole list of paranormal creatures, not just vampires and werewolves, but mermaids, dragons and aliens to name just a few.

If you want to check it out, just click on the image above.

 

 

 

I picked this challenge because it's really creative. The categories include 'something you'd find in your kitchen' in the title like 'The Knife of Never Letting Go'. It sounds like such great fun.

To check out the rest of the categories (there are 6), click the image above and it will take you to the sign up page. 

 

 

 

I've found that I hadn't read no way near enough ebooks off of my to be read list last year. Hopefully this challenge will help me read a few more.

I'm going to lower my expectations this year a little and try to complete the CD level and read 10 ebooks.

Click the image above to go to the sign up page.

 

 

 

This one is also pretty self explanatory - I love finding new authors.

For this one I'm going to go for 25 new authors and see how it goes. Make sure to check this challenge out - just click on the image. 

 

 

I love getting book recommendations from people so this challenge is perfect. 

I'm going to try for Level 1 this year - 5 books from the blogger recommendation list. I think I'll be able to read more than that though.

 

Seriously, my TBR pile is getting out of hand and with so many brilliant books still coming out every year, I need to focus a little more on the ones I already have.

For this challenge, I'm going for the 'A Friendly Hug' level by trying to read 11-20 books that I already own.

 

In My Mailbox #39

In My Mailbox is a weekly post hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren where bloggers can discuss the books we got in the mail this week.

 

This week I got:

 

Books #2,3,4 and 5 of the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger. 

 

 

 

And Darkness Falls by Cate Tiernan.

 

 

Happy reading!

Feature and Follow #6

Hi guys!

 

Welcome to Feature and Follow Friday. Join in the with feature and follow blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. Make sure to check out their blogs by using the links or by clicking on the #FF image.

 

This week the question is:

What book do you think everyone should read? If you could gift the entire population with one book?

There are quite a few books that I want to mention just because they're amazing books. But I think I'm going to say The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. For those of you who have read it, you'll know that not only is it a brilliant piece of writing, but it has so many messages hidden within it. I think everyone can benefit from this book if they allow themselves to. 

 

Happy reading!

Review: Jane by April Lindner

Title: Jane

Author: April Lindner

Publisher: Poppy

Publication date: September 5th 2011

Format: Paperback - 365 pages

Genre: Romance

 

 

 

Forced to drop out of an esteemed East Coast college after the sudden deaths of her parents, Jane Moore takes a nanny job at Thornfield Park, the estate of Nico Rathburn, a world-famous rock star on the brink of a huge comeback. Practical and independent, Jane reluctantly becomes entranced by her magnetic and brooding employer and finds herself in the midst of a forbidden romance.

But there's a mystery at Thornfield, and Jane's much-envied relationship with Nico is soon tested by an agonising secret from his past. Torn between her feelings for Nico and his fateful secret, Jane must decide: Does being true to herself mean giving up on true love?

My thoughts:

 

This is the first kind of re-telling of a classic that I've had a go at reading. I was a little apprehensive about it since Jane Eyre is what it is - I don't think anything could ever live up to it. I did enjoy how the story was adapted to a modern telling though.

 

The biggest problem I had with this book was trying to get into the story. I found it hard to pay any interest in the character's lives when the story dragged so much from the beginning. It was only quite a good chunk past the half way point that I started to get really into the story. Jane was unnecessarily boring at the start of the book until her character started to change and become stronger - once she did though it became a really refreshing read. By the end of the book she came out of her shell to a huge extent.

 

I have to say I was actually most worried about Nico's character. I wasn't sure about the way he would be portrayed when I first started reading - I was anxious to see if he turned out to be a good character. Nico definitely didn't disappoint me. I thought he was great the whole way through the book - he was moody but still came across as a strong character. I think having him as a rock star provided perfect settings for the story.

 

Another problem I had with this read though, was how closely it followed the original Jane Eyre story. There were times where the dialogue was almost the same just in a more modern tone - I was hoping the book would have just elements of the Jane Eyre story. For example, the element of Jane falling in love with her employer and maybe the employer's personality. Everything else I was hoping would be different to give it a unique edge. At the end of the day, if I want to read Jane Eyre I'm going to pick up the classic not this book. I strongly feel if this read didn't follow the story down to a T it would be so much better - it would have that edge to it. This way it doesn't really stand on it's own.

 

Overall I thought this was just an average read. I enjoyed Nico's character and how the story has been adapted to a modern telling but as a story on it's own, it was a little underwhelming.

 

My rating: 5/10

 

 Jane Lindner:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

Review: Silence

Title: Silence

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Series: Hush, Hush #3

Publisher: Simon and Schuster 

Publication date: October 2011

Format: Hardcover - 448 pages

Genre: YA - Paranormal

 

 

The noise between Patch and Nora is gone. They've overcome the secrets riddled in Patch's dark past, bridged two irreconcilable worlds and faced heart-wrenching tests of betrayal, loyalty and trust - all for a love that will transcend the boundary between heaven and earth. Armed with nothing but their absolute faith one another, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they've worked for - and their love - forever.

My thoughts:

To put it really simply I thought this read was fantastic.

I could honestly leave this review at that and have said all I needed to. I couldn't really fault this book for the life of me since it doesn't have any single thing wrong with it in my opinion. I will, however, risk sounding like a complete fangirl by telling you all the things I really loved about it.

What I think most people enjoy about these books are the characters, especially Nora and Patch. Patch is just as much of a mystery to me in every book as he was in this one. In every book in this series so far there has been something about Patch that has kept me guessing for some reason or another in every read.  He really does know how to keep his secrets and the book is so much better because of it. I love the fact that I second guess everyone in this series - I never know who is to blame for anything bad that happens purely because Fitzpatrick keeps me guessing all the time - to no end. Everybody is suspicious of everybody else for some reason or another - even Nora of Patch.

It's just so easy to connect to all of the characters in these books that you start to feel everything they are. Nora's confusion played a big part in Silence, for the first half of the book I was desperately wanting Nora to find out all the answers for herself and when she did I felt the same relief she did. You simply can't have that kind of experience reading a book unless the author is a fantastic writer. The fact that, for me, this happened with a number of characters in this story is a testament to how great of a writer Becca Fitzpatrick really is - she doesn't miss a single detail in her books.

Aside from the characters the plot had to be the best one so far. The second book in the series Crescendo, ended on a really dramatic note - obviously after an ending like that I wanted to pick this one up as soon as possible. It really didn't die down at all from that point. Every moment of the book was either emotionally all over the place (in a good way), suspenseful to the point of me wanting to skip chapters in my rush to find out what happens and so exciting! I really couldn't put it down.

For those of you that haven't picked up this series please do because you will not regret it.

My rating:  10/10

 

 

Becca Fitzpatrick:

Goodreads | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Website

 

Hush, Hush series:

1. Hush, Hush
2. Crescendo
3. Silence
4. Finale

Review: Sweet Venom

Title: Sweet Venom

Author: Tera Lynn Childs

Series: Medusa Girls #1

Publisher: Templar

Publication date: September 4th 2012

Format: Paperback - 384 pages

Genre: YA - Paranormal/Mythology

 

 

GRACE is new in town. It's scary, starting over, but it get's scarier when a girl who looks just like her rocks up to fight it.

GRETCHEN is fed up of fighting monsters, especially on school nights. Getting rid of a minotaur is easy, but she never expected to run into her double in the process.

GREER is perfection personified. But her world is knocked off its immaculate axis when two identical girls appear on her doorstep and claim they're all demon-hunting sisters.

My thoughts:

My biggest worry about books like this is whether or not I'll connect to all of the characters involved because there are quite a few. Even if all three sisters (Grace, Gretchen and Greer) are just as important as each other, it's hard to not favour one over the other and connect with all of them when only two have been introduced from the very beginning. 

Gretchen is the first of the triplets to make an appearance in the story and I liked her right off the bat. She's a tough cookie and has no problem letting everybody know it. Above all I really enjoyed her relationship with Nick - I found it really funny at times and found myself rooting for the man since he put himself up for failure more than a dozen times at least. I also thought that the way Gretchen's personality was balanced out by Grace's was really refreshing - it was incredibly nice to read about the two of them together because they complemented each other so well. 

I loved Grace just as much as Gretchen. I liked how much depth she has underneath her happy-go-lucky exterior and how she interacts with friends and family. She's the most loveable out of the three sisters and as such, sometimes she was the best person to read about. Her brother Thane was really intriguing - he's only involved a few times in the story but all the same, he's so mysterious that I can't help but really want to know what significance he is in the next book.

Greer was where the problem was for me. She makes her first appearance about halfway through the whole book and it didn't really sit well with me. She took too much of a back seat in the story for me to have related to her in any way and she ended up getting on my nerves. It felt like someone interrupting two people in the middle of a conversation in a way - even if I was waiting for her to come into the story, it didn't feel right when she did because it was so late on. Especially with her personality. If she came into the story at the beginning, there would have been more time for me to glean some kind of idea about her past and attitudes towards different things but there wasn't so she just came across as snobby. 

The plot was quite fun to read. I love anything to do with mythology for a start, so that aspect of the book was great to read about - all the different creatures and abilities were great. I did think it seemed like an introduction to the series and that it doesn't really stand on its own as a book. It was all about the triplets finding each other first.

Overall I thought this was a good read full of great world building and secrets yet to be revealed. I thought Greer could have been better as a character but all in all I would definitely recommend this read to anyone who is a fan of YA and mythology. 

My rating: 7/10

Tera Lynn Childs:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook

Medusa Girls series:

1. Sweet Venom
2. Sweet Shadows
3. Sweet Legacy

Review: White Horse by Alex Adams

Title: White Horse

Author: Alex Adams

Series: White Horse #1

Publisher: Atria/Emily Bestler Books

Publication date: April 2012

Format: ebook (NetGalley)

Genre: Horror - Post Apocalyptic

 

 

THE WORLD HAS ENDED, BUT HER JOURNEY HAS JUST BEGUN.

Thirty-year-old Zoe leads an ordinary life until the end of the world arrives. She is cleaning cages and floors at Pope Pharmaceuticals when the president of the United States announces that human beings are no longer a viable species. When Zoe realises that everyone she loves is disappearing, she starts running. Scared and alone in a shockingly changed world, she embarks on a remarkable journey of survival and redemption. Along the way, Zoe comes to see that humans are defined not by their genetic code, but rather by their actions and choices. White Horse offers hope for a broken world, where love can lead to the most unexpected places.

My thoughts:

My first thought about this read was that it really did pleasantly surprise me - in the spine tingly, horrifying way. It was definitely more towards the creepy side than I expected which made it that much better since I love a good scary read.

 

What I loved most about this book was how intense it was. I loved how I couldn't stop reading and I got little adrenaline rushes at moments where characters were trying to beat the odds. It was an incredibly suspenseful read which had me on the edge of my seat -  always a good thing.

 

The plot was great. It was realistic to an extent too which gave the story a little more depth. The settings of the book and the apocalypse was explained in detail which was great. There's so many zombie-like novels where the settings just start off with loads of zombies and there's no given reason for it - it just happened. This one gives a lot of backstory throughout the whole book which gave a lot of a sense of how desperate the world got at some points.

 

The chapters are split between what happens to the main character in the past (before the apocalypse) and what's happening in the present. It's what gives the plot some backstory which I already said is a good thing but sometimes it got a little frustrating. It made for a lot of suspense when a character is about to die or something just as extreme and then the chapter jumps right back into the past again. It was great in that sense, it made me want to read on to find out what happens as soon as possible. But sometimes, it confused me, especially at the beginning, Something would be mentioned in the present in a way that I thought I should have known about it already - I thought, at times, that I had missed out on something important. Said event would only be explained about three quarters of the way through the book which I didn't really like. 

 

The characters were great. The main character, Zoe, was really relatable. I thought she was written perfectly - she was flawed and she knew it, she was strong and yet had her vulnerable moments and she had these great loveable moments in the story that made me root for her the entire book. I thought the other characters in the book weren't so great though. They were introduced too late in my opinion. It takes a little bit of time to get to know a character, so when the others were introduced halfway through, I pretty much didn't really care what happened to them.

 

The writing was good. I didn't love it, it wasn't the most amazing book ever that blew my mind but it was a good read. I liked how the author made the book to be so intense and full of desperation but I was confused by the writing sometimes. I had those moments where I had to go back and read over a couple of paragraphs because something about them made me feel that it wasn't worded right. Other than that though, it was good.

 

Overall, I like this read and I want to find out what happens next. For those of you who are a fan of creepy novels or zombies, I recommend it. It has an edge to it that I really liked.

 

My rating: 7/10

 

Alex Adams:

Goodreads | Website | Facebook | Twitter

 

In My Mailbox #38

In My Mailbox is a weekly post hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren where bloggers can discuss the books we got in the mail this week.

 

This week I got:

 

 

 

 

The day I turned 16, my boyfriend-to-be died. I brought him back to life. Then things got a little weird...

Molly Bartolucci wants to blend in, date hottie Rick and keep her zombie-raising abilities on the down-low. Then the god Anubis chooses her to become a reaper—and she accidentally undoes the work of another reaper, Rath. Within days, she's shipped off to the Nekyia Academy, an elite boarding school that trains the best necromancers in the world. And her personal reaping tutor? Rath. 

Life at Nekyia has its plusses. Molly has her own personal ghoul, for one. Rick follows her there out of the blue, for another...except, there's something a little off about him. When students at the academy start to die and Rath disappears, Molly starts to wonder if anything is as it seems. Only one thing is certain—-Molly's got an undeadly knack for finding trouble....

Review: All the Broken Pieces

Title: All the Broken Pieces

Author: Cindi Madsen

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Publication date: December 11th 2012

Format: e-galley

Genre: YA - Contemporary 

 Goodreads

 

What if your life wasn’t your own?

Liv comes out of a coma with no memory of her past and two distinct, warring voices inside her head. Nothing, not even her reflection, seems familiar. As she stumbles through her junior year, the voices get louder, insisting she please the popular group while simultaneously despising them. But when Liv starts hanging around with Spencer, whose own mysterious past also has him on the fringe, life feels complete for the first time in, well, as long as she can remember.

Liv knows the details of the car accident that put her in the coma, but as the voices invade her dreams, and her dreams start feeling like memories, she and Spencer seek out answers. Yet the deeper they dig, the less things make sense. Can Liv rebuild the pieces of her broken past, when it means questioning not just who she is, but what she is?

My thoughts:

I started this read not really knowing what to expect and what I did find was that it was a little bit disappointing to be honest.

The characters always make or break any book for me. The characters of All the Broken Pieces were seriously lacking depth in my opinion. I couldn't connect with any of them so I didn't really care what happened to them or if they were going to get their happy ending. It also made everything that happened so anticlimactic. There were quite a few surprises here and there but I literally found myself not caring, just because the characters didn't mean anything to me. 

The plot was definitely intriguing. I did find myself seriously getting completely sucked under with the plot. I did guess what happened halfway through the book which was annoying but it was still a great plot twist. It was probably the only thing that kept me reading.

I was also really devastated about the ending. It was so dissatisfying that I thought I'd missed a couple of chapters out of the read. It seemed really abrupt to me and in some ways wrong. It might be just me, but what happens in this book is pretty creepy and I'm sure everybody would agree, but that wasn't my problem. It was the fact that everybody seemed to just forget about it and move on straight away in the story. I didn't like it. 

Cindi Madsen's writing was pretty exceptional. I thought she had a great urgency to her writing at moments where I was racing through the read. It built up quite a bit of suspense in my mind until the big reveal of the huge secret involved. The only problem was, I had already figured it out a long time before it all came unraveled. 

All in all, I was disappointed with this one but it did have its moments. I thought it was a gripping read but I couldn't get my head round the characters and the ending.

 

My rating: 5/10

 

Cindi Madsen:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook 

 

Review: V is for Virgin

Title: V is for Virgin

Author: Kelley Oram

Publisher: Bluefields

Publication date: December 11th 2012

Format: ebook 

Genre: YA - Contemporary 

 

 

When Val Jensen gets dumped for her decision to stay a virgin until marriage, the nasty breakup goes viral on YouTube, making her the latest internet sensation. 

After days of ridicule from her peers, Val starts a school-wide campaign to rally support for her cause. She meant to make a statement, but she never dreamed the entire nation would get caught up in the controversy. 

As if becoming nationally recognised as “Virgin Val” isn’t enough, Val’s already hectic life starts to spin wildly out of control when bad boy Kyle Hamilton, lead singer for the hit rock band Tralse, decides to take her abstinence as a personal challenge.

How can a girl stay true to herself when this year’s Sexiest Man Alive is doing everything in his power to win her over?

My thoughts:

I have to say, this was quite a pleasant read. I started off thinking it would just be an average one but it did surprise me in how much I was rooting for the characters. 

I thought that the characters were the best thing about this read. Val was a really great, strong-willed character who eventually learned to stand up for what she believed in, sometimes no matter what the cost. There was always some obstacle in her way (when isn't there?) and she managed to get over all of them in some way or another. I loved the fact that she always stuck to her cause and never wavered at the end of it.

Val tried to spread the word of her 'V is for Virgin' campaign and 'A is for Abstinence'. This book was about being pressured into having sex and being ashamed to call yourself a virgin - it was about choices and standing up for them no matter what anybody tries to make you believe. At the heart of it, I 100% agreed with everything this book was about. At times I found myself so worried that Val would go against her own promise - that would have made me so mad - but she didn't and I was glad. 

 

The supporting characters were great too. I loved Cara at the beginning but not so much towards the end. I found her to be really selfish and sort of full of herself. I think I was supposed to eventually feel that way considering how the story ends but I didn't like her all the same. I loved Kyle all the way through though. He tested Val in all the right ways and how he ended the story was amazingly sweet.

 

My big problem with this read has to be the ending. Throughout the read everything was moving relatively slowly and I was fine with it. Towards the ending though and the epilogue, it felt like someone was pushing the fast forward button and keeping it there. It wasn't just that a few years had passed, but that loads of things happen in a few pages which wasn't the case in the rest of the book. It felt so rushed to me to the point of not liking it at all. 

 

Overall this was an enjoyable read with great, charming characters. I do recommend it as a quick read for people who are fans of this genre. 

 

My rating: 7/10

 

 

Kelley Oram:

Goodreads | Blog | Twitter | Facebook

 

 

 

 

Book Tour & Giveaway: The Scourge

 

 Title: The Scourge

Author: A.G Henley

Goodreads | Amazon

Kismet Book Touring

Seventeen-year-old Groundling, Fennel, is Sightless. She’s never been able to see her lush forest home, but she knows its secrets. She knows how the shadows shift when she passes under a canopy of trees. She knows how to hide in the cool, damp caves when the Scourge comes. She knows how devious and arrogant the Groundlings’ tree-dwelling neighbors, the Lofties, can be.

And she’s always known this day would come—the day she faces the Scourge alone.

The Sightless, like Fenn, are mysteriously protected from the Scourge, the gruesome creatures roaming the forests, reeking of festering flesh and consuming anything—and anyone—living. A Sightless Groundling must brave the Scourge and bring fresh water to the people of the forest. Today, that task becomes Fenn’s.

Fenn will have a Lofty Keeper, Peree, as her companion. Everyone knows the Lofties wouldn’t hesitate to shoot an arrow through the back of an unsuspecting Groundling like Fenn, but Peree seems different. A boy with warm, rough hands who smells like summer, he is surprisingly kind and thoughtful. Although Fenn knows his people are treacherous, she finds herself wanting to trust him.

As their forest community teeters on the brink of war, Fenn and Peree must learn to work together to survive the Scourge and ensure their people’s survival. But when Fenn uncovers a secret that shatters her truths, she’s forced to decide who and what to protect—her people, her growing love for Peree, or the elusive dream of lasting peace in the forest.

 

My thoughts:

I can honestly say that this read pleasantly surprised me. I found it to be a really nice, sweet read that was mostly character based but for some action with plenty of zombies.

What I loved most by far, was the characters. They were incredibly loveable and relatable. I fell in love with Fennel the moment I started reading. I also fell in love with Peree from the second he became involved in Fenn's story. The characters are incredibly transparent in a really refreshing way. The moment a thought came to any of them they just came out with it - it did make the read slightly predictable but it wasn't in a discouraging way. 

 

I thought it took a little while to get going in terms of the plot but once it did I found it hard to stop reading. The plot wasn't altogether amazing but since I loved the characters I found myself rooting for them the entire way regardless of what they were doing.

 

The ending for me was quite a bit rushed. It felt really out of place in some parts - it could have done with a lot more detail in the last chapter or so.

 

To be honest, I actually don't have anything more to say. This book isn't brilliantly written and it could do with a lot of work in terms of predictability and the ending, but the characters  were so wonderful to read about - really well-rounded and full of depth.

 

I think anybody who is a fan of dystopian reads should give this one a go - it gave me a nice surprise since I couldn't stop reading.

 

My rating: 7/10 

 

About the author:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

 

 

A.G. Henley is the author of the young adult novel, THE SCOURGE. She is also a clinical psychologist, which means people either tell her their life stories on airplanes, or avoid her at parties when they’ve had too much to drink. Neither of which she minds. When she’s not writing fiction or shrinking heads, she can be found herding her children and their scruffy dog, Guapo, to various activities while trying to remember whatever she’s inevitably forgotten to tell her husband. She lives in Denver, Colorado. Learn more at www.aghenley.com

 

  

So on to the giveaway!

 

30 daily winners can win an eCopy of The Scourge! You can enter with the Rafflecopter widget below:

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 

Book Lover's Giveaway Hop

 

Yep, it's that time of year again. I'm glad to say I'm taking part in this giveaway hop for the second time.

This giveaway hop is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and Chapter by Chapter.

 

As I did before, I'm offering up one book of choice worth up to £10 from the Book Depository.

This contest is open to anybody the book depository ships to - you can find the list of countries here. You can enter with the Rafflecopter widget below.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Review: Crescendo

Title: Crescendo

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Series: Hush Hush #2

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Publication date: October 2010

Format: Hardcover - 432 pages

Genre: YA - Paranormal

 

 

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 angel. But, despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever and, even worse, he's started spending time with Nora's arch-enemy, 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 wth Scott's totally infuriating attitude Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feeling that he's hiding something.

Haunted by images of her murdered father, and questioning whether her Nephilim bloodline has anything to do with his death, Nora puts herself in increasingly dangerous situations as she searches for answers. But maybe some things are better left buried, because the truth could destroy everything - and everyone - she trusts.

My thoughts:

This is another book that I'm kicking myself for not reading sooner. I read the first in the series, Hush Hush, when it came out but I left this one till ages after. I just recently bought the last book, Finale, so I wanted to get caught up since I loved Hush Hush so much. 

As always, there was a little bit of apprehension starting the second book of a series. Especially one where I loved the first book. I was a little anxious as to whether I would like all the old characters in the same way as I did before and if I would like the new characters at all. Safe to say I loved all the characters just the same so this book in no way disappointed me.

I think the only problem I had with this book (get it over and done with first) was that there were moments where I thought nothing was happening and my attention started to slip a little. It was moments where characters were supposed to be figuring each other out and moving the plot forward. I suppose I just felt it didn't move fast enough at times - but that could also be me just wanting to find out what happens as soon as possible.

Something I enjoyed more than I did in Hush, Hush was the writing. I think Fitzpatrick did a fabulous job in this one purely because of how the plot turned out without me guessing any of it. Where she wanted Patch to be suspected, i suspected him.  It was such a relief to get towards the end and have no idea what was going to happen.

Speaking of which, the ending was something else entirely. I'm so glad I have the next book waiting in my cupboard because that was a real shocker and completely unexpected.

My rating: 8/10

Becca Fitzpatrick:

Goodreads | Website | Facebook | Twitter

Review: Tales of Terror from the Black Ship

Title: Tales of Terror from the Black Ship

Author: Chris Priestley

Publisher: Bloomsbury 

Publication date: 07/03/2011

Format: Paperback - 272 pages

Genre: YA - Horror

 

 

Two sick children wait alone for a doctor one storm-lashed night. But instead a sailor knocks on their door seeking shelter.

Telling gruesome and creepy seafaring tales, he helps them while away the dark hours. Before the night is through Ethan and Cathy will learn the secret of the Black Ship and many more terrible truths.

My thoughts:

I love me a good horror story and this book had more than its fair few.

This book has a few creepy tales within the actual main plot. A sailor turns up at an inn while a storm rages outside and spends the time telling the two children, Ethan and Cathy, a collection of tales from his seafaring days. 

I will say that I did start to get bored of the little stories being told. It seemed quite repetitive at times and I found myself wanting to skip a few chapters. As a whole the stories genuinely creeped me the hell out but when it's story after story with little or no introduction between them, it becomes redundant. 

I loved, loved, loved the overall plot that didn't include the scary stories told by the sailor. What happened was so unexpected that I had to sit and think about the book for five minutes after finishing it. It was so shocking and downright horrifying - I'm still not over it. I thought I knew what was coming but Priestley took it to a whole new level and then some. 

What I loved most about this book was definitely the writing. I really enjoyed how Priestley kept this bleak and edgy atmosphere throughout the whole read even when nothing was happening at that given moment. 

Overall, this was a really creepy read that I finished in just two hours. I really recommend it for fans of horror if only to get a feel of this author's writing. 

My rating: 7/10

Chris Priestley:

Goodreads | Website 

Teaser Tuesday #45

 

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week I'm reading Jane by April Lindner.

'Nothing so glamorous,' I said, and immediately realised the truth I was hiding was even stranger than the fictions that the sisters had invented for me. For a moment, I wished I could share my story, if only because I knew it would amuse them.

page 284

Review: The Thin Executioner

Title: The Thin Executioner

Author: Darren Shan

Publisher: UK - HarperCollins | US -  Little Brown

Publication date: UK - 30 September 2010 | US - 08/03/2011

Format: Paperback - 410 pages

Genre: YA - Horror

 

 

 Jebel Rum's biggest weakness…is weakness.

As the son of Um Wadi's executioner, he's expected to try out for his father's job - except that he's too skinny to wield the heavy axe. A laughing stock in his home town, Jebel embarks on a perilous quest to the lair of a mysterious god. It is a dark, brutal, terrifying journey.

But to Jebel Rum, the risk is worth it...

My thoughts:

I am a huge fan of Darren Shan's books and this was no exception even if I did feel like it didn't live up to his other work.

It was definitely not what I was expecting from Shan. I was actually pleasantly surprised when I finished in since it was more about the characters and the plot (as it usually is) but with less emphasis on the horror side than usual. It did fit with the story in this case. I thought that the characters in this read just carried me through the whole book.

There was definitely still a whole load of horror and gore involved. I love how Shan never shies away from including the little details that are lacking in most horror reads. The level of hardship in the settings of this book really adds to the story. At times I felt there was no hope for anybody. That everybody was just going to end up dead because of their ignorance and the rest of the several towns involved would suffer for it - it was definitely a page turner. 

Like I said before, I thought the characters were really well written. My favourite characters definitely have to be Master Bush and Master Blair. The only reason is because they thoroughly creeped me out to the extreme! Every time they cropped up in the story I would immediately start flicking through pages as fast  as I could just to find out what they were going to do. They are the kind of characters that you would avoid to the ends of the earth if they existed in real life...

 

 The big problem I had with this book was its predictability. It's something I cannot stand at all in any way and in any book. I enjoyed the read but throughout the whole thing I was wishing I couldn't just guess what was going to happen. It makes everything seem so anticlimactic in the end. I knew how the book was going to end by the middle of the read, therefore, when it eventually came to it, I was dreading reading the end because I already knew what I was going to read to a big extent. 

 

All in all, I did enjoy the read and do recommend it to fans of this genre and definitely to Darren Shan fans.

 

My rating: 7/10

 

Darren Shan:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

In My Mailbox #37

In My Mailbox is a weekly post hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren where bloggers can discuss the books we got in the mail this week.

 

This week I got:

 

Crewel by Gennifer Albin

 

Incapable. Awkward. Artless.

That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: she wants to fail.

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen as a Spinster is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to embroider the very fabric of life. But if controlling what people eat, where they live and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and wove a moment at testing, and they’re coming for her—tonight.

Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her Dad’s stupid jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because once you become a Spinster, there’s no turning back.

 

Happy reading!

Series Spotlight: Need #4

Title: Endure

Author: Carrie Jones

Publisher: Bloomsbury (UK | US)

Publication date: UK - 10/05/2012 

Format: Paperback - 288 pages 

Genre: YA - Paranormal

 

 

There was a time, not long ago, when all Zara wanted was to have Nick back. Rescuing him from Valhalla should have made all her problems disappear. He's Bedford's greatest warrior, not  to mention Zara's true soulmate. Except Nick isn't the person he used to be. And neither is Zara. She's a pixie queen. Astley's queen.

Zara has a plan to stop all the evil pixies that are ravaging her town, and her ideas are not the same as Nick's or Astley's. One thing they can all agree on though: war is here. And not everyone will survive. Zara's gravest choice is yet to come.

My thoughts:

I was really apprehensive before reading this one since I wasn't a big fan of the second or third in the series. It was sort of the last chance to get me enthusiastic about the whole pixie taking over the world idea.

I have to say it was definitely a big improvement to Captivate and Entice. I had a big problem relating to or caring for any of the characters in the second and third book. This one was different though. Zara especially seemed so much more mature and decisive which I found a really great relief. Nick was less obnoxious and Astley behaved realistically for the most part. It wasn't to the level as I found it to be in the first book, Need, but it was getting there. 

What I didn't like, that I actually didn't have a problem with in the other books, was the fact that Zara was so easy to sway in terms of who she wanted to be with. It was decided in an instant and I found that really annoying. I'm not a fan of the really unrealistic 'soulmate' idea so that really bugged me. I won't say anymore in case there are those of you who don't know who she ends up with but it was pretty obvious to be fair.

The plot was so much better in terms of how it was paced and what happened when. It was similar to everything else that had happened in previous books - it was almost like reading the same book over and over again. There was a lot less predictability and a lot more intensity which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Overall this series was pretty much average for me. I do recommend it for people who are big fans of pixies, fey and the like. It was definitely full of mythology - plus, there was loads and loads of glitter!

My rating: 7/10

My rating of the whole series: 5/10

Carrie Jones:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

Books in the series:

1. Need
2. Captivate
3. Entice
4. Endure

Trailer Reveal: Opal

 

Opal - The third book in the Lux series.

 

Available in both print and digital version on December 18, 2012

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

 

Official Trailer:

 

 

 

 

 Check out Jennifer L. Armentrout on the following sites:

Facebook

Twitter

Official Website 

Teaser Tuesday #44

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week I'm reading Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs.

Oooh, this is so juicy. It's not like Thane hasn't dated before - he's just really particular - and it's not like he couldn't have almost any girl he wanted.

Page 259

Series Spotlight: Need #3

Title: Entice

Author: Carrie Jones

Publisher: Bloomsbury (UK | US)

Publication date: UK - 04/01/2011 | US - December 2011

Format: Paperback - 272 pages 

Genre: YA - Paranormal

 

Zara and Nick are soul mates, meant to be together for ever. But that's not quite how things have worked out. For starters, Nick has gone. He has been taken to the mythical place for warriors known as Valhalla. Zara and her friends might be able to get him back , it's just not going to be easy. Meanwhile a group of evil pixies is devastating Bedford, with more teens going missing every day. An all-out war seems imminent, and the good guys need all the warriors they can find. But even if Zara and her friends do discover the route to Valhalla, there's that other small problem: Zara's been pixie kissed. When she finds Nick, will he even want to go with her? Especially since she hasn't turned into just any pixie…She's Astley's queen.

My thoughts:

 After just finishing this the first thought that came to mind was that it disappointed me. I had hoped after enjoying the first book in the series and not the second so much that it would improve. I have to say, the first book seems like it's part of a different series altogether, even by a completely different author.

 

Mostly, what I didn't like in the second book of the Need series, Captivate, I had the same problems with in this one, especially the characters. I've already mentioned that I didn't like the way the characters seemed to drastically change for no apparent reason apart from it being the second book. It made me completely unfeeling towards them if anything (bad or good) happened to them. I couldn't root for one character or another so it made the read pointless in a way. If you don't care for any of the characters then what is the point in reading a book?

 

I did think the plot was better than both the first and the second book. It had a lot more substance, more to gain if all goes to plan and definitely more to lose if things didn't turn out the way they were supposed to. There was a lot more suspense involved which made the book that much more intense. I did think that far too much happened too quickly at moments. One big event would occur and then another in the next page - partner that with not really caring about what happens to any of the characters led to said events being anticlimactic. 

 

What I most liked about this read was that it was incredibly focused on one thing, making it incredibly fast paced. It all revolved on the characters rescuing someone they care deeply about and everything else was put aside for the moment. The end of the book all came down to whether they achieved this or not - it got pretty exciting towards the end. I did like the end too - it was really different and it was described in this really magical and captivating way. I thoroughly enjoyed the end of the book. 

 

My rating: 6/10

 

Carrie Jones:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

Books in the series:

1. Need
2. Captivate
3. Entice
4. Endure