Thursday, June 20, 2013

Book review: The Bane by Keary Taylor

The Bane (Eden, #1)

NOTE: I received the eARC from Netgalley.

When I was about 7% into the book, I wrote this in my review notebook:

"Wow! I didn't expect this one to pull me in as completely as it did! It so much reminds me of Maria V. Snyder's writing style and the main character, Eve, reminds me so much of Avry!"

Well, after this wonderful beginning, things got a bit sloppy. I really enjoyed the story - it was entertaining, exciting and had its unique elements. It had action and very good world building. The writing style was pretty nice too, although it could do with some editing.

The characters however... I was disappointed by them. How unrealistic they acted at times. it really bothered me.

Please read full review here.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Waiting on Wednesday #54

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Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blog post by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights releases we're eagerly awaiting.

My pick this week is:


Title: The Truth About You & Me
Series: none
Author: Amanda Grace
Release date: September 8th, 2013 by Flux

Summary:

Smart girls aren't supposed to do stupid things.Madelyn Hawkins is super smart. At sixteen, she's so gifted that she can attend college through a special program at her high school. On her first day, she meets Bennet. He's cute, funny, and kind. He understands Madelyn and what she's endured - and missed out on - in order to excel academically and please her parents. Now, for the first time in her life, she's falling in love.
There's only one problem. Bennet is Madelyn's college professor, and he thinks she's eighteen - because she hasn't told him the truth.
The story of their forbidden romance is told in letters that Madelyn writes to Bennet - both a heart-searing ode to their ill-fated love and an apology.
 Why I want to read it:

I'm curious about it. I mean, the cover is cute, and the story seems promising. The only thing that is the unknown variable here is whether I would like the writing style... if it's really a bunch of letters... we'll see I guess. It's not like I haven't read a diary-type books before...

So how about you? What amazing book are you waiting on this week?  

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Guest Post by Eleanor Wood: Why I LOVE Twins so MUCH!!!

Hello my dearest readers,

Today is a day I am dedicating to the blog tour of Gemini Rising by author Eleanor Wood. Which is why, Eleanor has been amazing to write this guest post for all of us to read! Please, enjoy! :)



Do you know what I think the most annoying thing about being a twin must be? It’s nothing to do with mistaken identity or joint birthday presents. No, the answer is: people like me, who are fascinated by twins and their amazingness. Seriously, it must be very annoying.

But I can’t help it. I do think twins are amazing. There’s nothing else in the world quite like identical twins – so much so that, to a thicky like me who barely passed GCSE Science, they seem almost magical.

Sorana, the heroine of Gemini Rising, feels similarly when Elyse and Melanie (identical twins) join her year at school – they are not only beautiful but unimaginably cool. Of course, they are also full of hidden dark magic and secrets.

As my teen years took place in the 90s, my sister and I grew up with Sweet Valley High, the Olsen twins back when they were cute little kids, and programmes like Sister Sister (identical twins are separated at birth and then accidentally meet as teenagers – hilarity ensues!), as well as Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Buffy. Somehow all of these seem to have melded in my mind to form one set of supercool, supernatural twins.

In my early teenage years, there were twins in my class at school. They were blonde, beautiful and definitely cool. I didn’t know them well, but you couldn’t fail to notice them in the classrooms and corridors.

Another set of twins I know spent their own teenage years perfecting a fake ‘psychic twin’ act, just to freak people out. The idea of being able to do this practically made me die of envy.

By nature, I am definitely a fan. I could talk all day long about my favourite bands/books/films. If I like something, I have to keep it/obsess over it/stick it on the wall. If I like an outfit, I wear it for days/weeks/months on end. Every time I go to the hairdresser, I take a picture of Cat Power. I am an enthusiast about the things I love, and I want to share them with everyone in the world until they tell me to shut up.

So, that’s why I wrote a story about twins. Not because of those scary girls The Shining or some crazy ancient myth – but because I’ve always kind of wished I could be one.

Eleanor (Ellie) can be found here:



Twitter: @eleanor_wood



Pinterest inspiration board:  http://pinterest.com/helloecw/gemini-rising/
 

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Book Review: And "With All My Soul" too!!!

With All My Soul (Soul Screamers, #7)
Well, taking in account that I was very disappointed by the previous installment, I didn't have very high hopes for this one. I even decided to wait it out, and pick it when I was sure I was ready for it. But guess what? All that preparation was futile. It didn't really prepare me for what I got.

With All My Soul exceeded whatever high expectations I might've had! It was brilliant, it was mysterious. It was nicely written, nicely thought out. Nicely done overall. Or no, wait. Nicely isn't a strong enough word to summarize my laughter, my tears, my expectations, my hopes for this one. Oh no.

Let me say that Rachel Vincent has once again..... (full review here)

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Book review: Cindi Madsen has rocked my boat again!

Act Like You Love Me (Accidentally in Love, #2)

NOTE: Thanks to Entangled for letting me read this amazing book!

The only other book I've read by Cindi Madsen is All The Broken Pieces. It was so good, that I just had to request to read this one too. To tell you the truth, I'm glad I did, because it definitely didn't disappoint.

Act Like You Love Me is a very light read, full of romance, memories and realistic characters. It had me laughing and crying. There were places I felt extremely overjoyed, and scenes that literally made my heart clench. In other words, it was amazing.

Full review here.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Book review: Ever (or never?) by Jessa Russo

Ever (Ever, #1)

NOTE: I received the eARC from Netgalley.

Well, where should I start? This is one of those times when I don't know what to say. Well, I do but.. I... umm...gosh. It's hard to write a negative review, but *sigh* I gotta do it anyway.

So here goes...

In this book we meet Ever, this absolutely gorgeous girl, who has no idea how beautiful she is. Too cliche, but you know. Anyway, she's lost her best friend (Frankie) just last year, but he stayed on as a ghost, who almost never speaks. Well, most of the time he's brooding, and in the beginning I had no idea he was a ghost. I thought I was not getting the story right. Well anyway. So Ever's always been in love with him. How totally tragic, right? Well, if it weren't so cliche, a.k.a the impossible love, and if it weren't so badly written I might've actually liked it.

Then the picture enters Toby. To read full review, click here.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Some awesome rules, if you want to disappear...

The Rules for Disappearing
My review of this book is a courtesy to Netgalley.

I've always loved books/movies with stories about the witness protection program. I don't really know why, they just intrigue me. All the needs to change one's identity, getting to start over... new life, new place, that sort of thing.

That's why I really enjoyed TRFD. Although I could feel the numbness spreading as I read fake-name Meg's account of her life, I was still pretty intrigued by the whole process of up and just getting a whole new identity. As if your life before never was. Fascinating, isn't it?

So in general, I should say that this was a light, fast-paced read that, for a while, snuck me into the mind of our heroine, a.k.a. the girl with many names but just two faces. It was a truly captivating story, that held my attention from beginning to end.

Full review is available here.