tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33225273885123575032024-03-13T19:59:22.330-04:00**LC's Adventures in Libraryland** A YA Book BlogA blog dedicated to reading, reviewing and promoting YA Books!Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.comBlogger268125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-34886183639217495572015-01-05T20:03:00.002-05:002015-01-12T13:04:53.485-05:00It's a Blog Makeover GIVEAWAY!! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhDQ_ykfB714Saza_lE4Kw-bLGD7TQO2xjDMnbS9eqfyup7-KYd5KD92iRCsHcY0I4ug-MH_i0b3iHPcmIG5BZR-BQ7ReTBc1rbhBsEw7TjxF3wU585L1fxyMH5K935qwzX1QRP-iMhRU/s1600/Giveaway+Banner.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhDQ_ykfB714Saza_lE4Kw-bLGD7TQO2xjDMnbS9eqfyup7-KYd5KD92iRCsHcY0I4ug-MH_i0b3iHPcmIG5BZR-BQ7ReTBc1rbhBsEw7TjxF3wU585L1fxyMH5K935qwzX1QRP-iMhRU/s1600/Giveaway+Banner.png" height="368" width="640" /></a></div><br />
Hello everyone and Happy New Year! I am super excited to get this year started off with a "bang," and thanks to my good book-blogging friend Audra over at <b><a href="http://www.auggietalk.com/2015/01/lea-christine-and-auggie-talks-blog.html" target="_blank">Auggie Talk</a></b>, we are both hosting an awesome Blog Makeover Giveaway with some sweet new designs from yours truly!<br />
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So, as some of you may know, I have been working very hard over the past year to start my own design business-- the result is now Lea Christine Designs, a web and graphic design studio that offers full custom designs for Blogger and WordPress, AND includes totally original vector graphics as well!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjxhWCMmfJpuDnU0T4g6xKSY3_Azm_NfEQuBBNEjGDb-woi0uvnMWlvHdjHnuGJn3ko_QyBOrDqLKiJRfI7oex1ubvnRNaRspKS8C_FQB9Civz28O3Y6FrO5htmYs9c_XGwXrLVGtbZk/s1600/Sketching.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjxhWCMmfJpuDnU0T4g6xKSY3_Azm_NfEQuBBNEjGDb-woi0uvnMWlvHdjHnuGJn3ko_QyBOrDqLKiJRfI7oex1ubvnRNaRspKS8C_FQB9Civz28O3Y6FrO5htmYs9c_XGwXrLVGtbZk/s1600/Sketching.png" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>Design is something I absolutely <i>love </i>doing. Creating a design for someone-- to make their blog or website reflect their own creative and unique personality-- that is my passion! After all, your site is your online home. It should look and feel welcoming to both yourself and your readers, and it should show off everything that makes you a great, individual, awesome person!<br />
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With that being said, Audra from Auggie Talk and I chatted about hosting a giveaway where I can create some beautiful and unique new design looks for you as well-- to find out more, read below and fill out that Rafflecopter form at the bottom! I would love to work with you on a brand-new design for your site this year!<br />
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Xoxo,<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmb2sbo2LJ1qYZZl9lQh39W6hLURRF451Da7NrT-jGpOsxLa3ZjCyKC4wLfSfsC65xapymhzXyP0OLj6fJtXTscsvai18IlQ-mE8Day9xtoym40duvZqYHEc9tsTjnmuQUbOgcLAZimEo/s1600/Lea+sig.png" width="100" /></div><br />
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</span></b> <b><span style="color: #fe547b; font-size: x-large;">~About Lea Christine Designs~</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj__mBbUJX8758MHSQXEJO4bAsAMdqlsbiECtdQlaUxWjnav3trgmoNbBsWpcx_Q8XuwjPuuWHx_3zXn00FpoD__cDFEemaX4MAnUA5sdDCe6J5LeDIxGIvM4EhANDIg6DtBQ9wJTpVLUg/s1600/Profile+Sidebar.png" width="150" /></div><br />
Lea Christine Designs is a web and graphic design studio that specializes in fully-custom vector graphics for both Blogger and WordPress sites. I am the designer behind the scenes, whipping up awesome new designs to fit every client's unique style and personality! Whether it's drawing by hand and creating totally one-of-a-kind graphics, or rolling up my sleeves to get into coding, my goal is to bring your creative visions to life!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #f39233; font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></b> <b><span style="color: #f39233; font-size: x-large;">~Didn't You Used to Blog?~</span></b></div><br />
Yes, I sure did-- and I <i>really </i>miss my book blog a ton, and am STILL hopeful to start blogging again in the future! (I'm really not fibbing, I have some new books I'm planning to review in the VERY near future!)<br />
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But how did I get into design you may ask? Well that's an interesting question, because 3 years ago I definitely didn't know that this is what I'd be doing. In fact, I went to school to become a librarian and spent a few years working on this very much-loved book blog called "LC's Adventures in Libraryland." Like many people, I started blogging having absolutely no clue what I was doing. But little by little, I built up a following, and started experimenting with the design of my blog. The problem was, all of those Blogger templates were such a snooze, and none of the graphics I could find on iStock or the web looked like "me"-- and plus I didn't want to pay for stock images. So I decided to make my own-- people seemed to like what I was doing on my own site, asked me to help them with theirs, and that's pretty much how I started designing!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #01c5c4; font-size: x-large;">~Lea Christine Designs Today~</span></b></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpVQ0zY44Rw2T3Ms3wGKARefB_CzXwGlWv6ql0Q6cpiq9VEMYOHUPz4xk2G6n0EZ798-nszaxuji5j2NZ7dRq56q4WWz0GBWy_KGkF8nKID1aP1Y7tq72vtsHl3R8BHHqvgEkxzs_8caI/s1600/LCD+GRAB+BUTTON+vector.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpVQ0zY44Rw2T3Ms3wGKARefB_CzXwGlWv6ql0Q6cpiq9VEMYOHUPz4xk2G6n0EZ798-nszaxuji5j2NZ7dRq56q4WWz0GBWy_KGkF8nKID1aP1Y7tq72vtsHl3R8BHHqvgEkxzs_8caI/s1600/LCD+GRAB+BUTTON+vector.png" height="320" width="258" /></a></div>A little over two years a later, and I am doing web and graphic design full-time. It's a challenging but very worthwhile business, where I learn something new everyday, and have had the opportunity to design over 40 fully-custom designs for some amazing clients (Audra being one of them!) I know how important it is to have your own "space" on the web that reflects YOU and who you are, and that is probably the number one thing I aim for when designing. If you've been thinking of getting a makeover for your site, or just need a few extras to jazz up your blog, please feel free to stop over to my design shop at <b><a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank">Lea Christine Designs</a></b> and see what I can offer you :)<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #b8de6f; font-size: x-large;"><b>~My Web Designs~</b></span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Here are just a few examples of some of my favorite web designs!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4UbSHSsB7ud9uxCAXLZFHP_6hukX4zZC82UD21yOWLgzGM2bHyp24WEInQzG7IeukUwAwH5IBlOgbTm3DX7IZxWieXkwiSAY41OwkmYHUDt2qhoIgaeTLKIeB0dg3BEn5nWQG6KQruNI/s1600/bookishdiversion2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4UbSHSsB7ud9uxCAXLZFHP_6hukX4zZC82UD21yOWLgzGM2bHyp24WEInQzG7IeukUwAwH5IBlOgbTm3DX7IZxWieXkwiSAY41OwkmYHUDt2qhoIgaeTLKIeB0dg3BEn5nWQG6KQruNI/s1600/bookishdiversion2.png" height="200" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOntGApxaeD2EcU5MlUpsAari9pKOgqscSSqcozNadnp91VYmyo-4xf09M_eSThz_k52A1dBvcsEWsNiInlwNFaV01agtx-uduQtICyuqWvCtoE9-d5fUguzj64e-iyu7JU71iS92pmv8/s1600/jensparanormal2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOntGApxaeD2EcU5MlUpsAari9pKOgqscSSqcozNadnp91VYmyo-4xf09M_eSThz_k52A1dBvcsEWsNiInlwNFaV01agtx-uduQtICyuqWvCtoE9-d5fUguzj64e-iyu7JU71iS92pmv8/s1600/jensparanormal2.png" height="200" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVmkfkbw7YWIi5dbWAx273wveXjAhk0vqYspIvKULl4k9iSQxsDXZVR88Bkropen-QRibPmjejtiT5uUkxVGtV6v27rmvRT4fz_PP-wdOjxUeidKRskO3HS09JQr8E_UDaF1cv7aaUhYA/s1600/Judith+Choice+Reads2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVmkfkbw7YWIi5dbWAx273wveXjAhk0vqYspIvKULl4k9iSQxsDXZVR88Bkropen-QRibPmjejtiT5uUkxVGtV6v27rmvRT4fz_PP-wdOjxUeidKRskO3HS09JQr8E_UDaF1cv7aaUhYA/s1600/Judith+Choice+Reads2.png" height="200" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #fe547b; font-size: x-large;"><b>~My Graphics~</b></span></div><br />
All of the graphics I make are 100% custom and made-from-scratch-- I listen to exactly what you say explaining what you want your graphics to look like, sit down with a pencil and paper, and sketch out those graphics before making them digital. This ensures that only YOU will have those graphics (no stock images!) and they look just the way you envisioned.<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6T8wC6-QHoYaewBJbdYIB_6NiZkNtfQcEts9-eaigeOFPoysRbHFcOw0sk16lV9tpPlgJFG-gqgjHyrgkqjZ9Zsvuc-Beys7_emBhTIMuAhjizVQnGK5Oyq9f7QxrpEgKXAeoCpLuOsU/s1600/Dragon.png" width="320" /></td> <td><br />
<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjew92qRaRafWzrtWa_doXd6wofg6ui5-yevV4HoZh53x5DN__Pl5Pumnryrt7glDEsuxp_W8qL9INoEbHwOnsnwqV59xgVAIezXOiDXM0L9fKvab9U5SPyHouztQN5mmTyDSFrWTaUKM8/s1600/Girl+Chat+Books.png" width="320" /></td> </tr>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutankvixPOIpES6mJrAQ_1dZqOQvuclUzM6SKLERoQAplpgZAU1AGYLqZCFQo81MYNelL3YGYzf-2I81YU5Ew00qIHW1_K_XpNdsuXD6QQj-o842VbaDDRGjAHH0F8Nh6jilW6bM_wBo/s1600/Girl+Reading+Sketch.png" height="320" width="320" /></td> <td><br />
<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Ql3FJmkvbDVtlvLBsqIZIbOz3RoJtRQGIEg2j-1O1EOzWTp0M9TPD6rbIiBb9zkEQDkuQYaRJ8D9HplWpMaxA1wXqKlz8e8BHN8E7psRKgExVPaSHiL3pTxb9QGTy8uk1sHMQ8gm8K8/s1600/Girl+Witch.png" height="320" width="320" /></td> </tr>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3s7XnEdU25vIdbkXWeFJVGrFJz0z-6J8WTNp14JiLtlJ52amWsgIw-skQ3z1p7MIDLYFnD_667VlcpTXUFTwXWVpc8EM5KAsPabzK0SMNLEWJ7Et-Pp-NSF9BTJPRk8FKEsD2OB7szWM/s1600/Yorkie+Dog.png" height="320" width="320" /></td> <td><br />
<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84LOBlxzuI6JBvLLbJFl3aj2hBiUIIPz36b4Q0cyos80f3lSTz_p_xt8wcXpH_ogiqmmW2xbxqB1ILZ5bS_rgTj6jIhYMjDtwQQp_JEOtqRATTmQ1Rx6bTlRlQlF296JnAL2IDiwZkzE/s1600/Watercolor+Vector+Collection+Button.png" height="320" width="320" /></td> </tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f39233; font-size: x-large;"><b>~Come Visit Me!~</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">If you've been thinking about maybe getting a new design for your site-- or even if you could just use a few extras like a new drop-down menu or Facebook cover to make your online home look a bit more snazzy-- I'd absolutely LOVE to chat with you!! Below you will find links to all the ways you can reach me ♥</div><br />
<center><div class="social-media"><a class="facebook" href="https://www.facebook.com/LeaChristineDesigns" target="_blank"></a><a class="bloglovin" href="https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/13318073" target="_blank"></a><a class="twitter" href="https://twitter.com/LeaCDesigns" target="_blank"></a><a class="pinterest" href="https://www.pinterest.com/leachristine15/" target="_blank"></a><a class="instagram" href="https://www.instagram.com/leachristinedesigns/" target="_blank"></a><a class="email" href="mailto:lea@leachristinedesigns.com"></a><br />
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<span style="color: #01c5c4; font-size: x-large;"><b>~The Giveaway!~</b></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #f39233;">First Place</span></b><br />
(1) Custom Blog Header** and matching Blog Background ($105 value)<br />
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<b><span style="color: #f39233;">Second & Third Place:</span></b><br />
YOUR CHOICE of (4) Custom Social Media Buttons<br />
OR<br />
(1) Custom Rating System ($45 value)<br />
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**Please note, custom header does not include vector illustration.<br />
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<div align="center" style="padding: 5px;"><img src="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Giveaway-Button.png" title="Lea Christine Designs Giveaway" alt="Lea Christine Designs Giveaway" /></div><pre style="background: none; border: none; padding: 0;"><textarea style="background:#f0f0f0;border: solid 1px #cccccc; color: #777777; font-size:100%; height: 50px; margin:auto; text-align: left; padding: 7px 0 2px 5px; display: block; width: 90%;"><div align="center"><a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/its-a-blog-makeover-giveaway/" title="Lea Christine Designs Giveaway"><img src="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Giveaway-Button.png" alt="Lea Christine Designs Giveaway" style="border:none;" /></a></div></textarea></pre><b><span style="color: #fe547b; font-size: x-large;"><i>GOOD LUCK!!!</i></span></b><br />
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="1ce9c1a924" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1ce9c1a924/" id="rcwidget_qx2etzb8" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js"></script><br />
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</div>Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-90190357750929623462014-06-11T14:43:00.000-04:002014-09-14T19:54:00.396-04:00What Happened to LC's Adventures?!?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Gk46dLr-odEOVgUbKApLpK_6h6cfJ_O4FVf77oBEyQY7J3fendpt7oAERRJ0tYPJ13lWjqiZOEFBChomibiGpkwfNZ3B7W0W7XYZxZCWegO1siRf5vlEErF-9b70mfGnMJ7Q2L85FY8/s1600/3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Gk46dLr-odEOVgUbKApLpK_6h6cfJ_O4FVf77oBEyQY7J3fendpt7oAERRJ0tYPJ13lWjqiZOEFBChomibiGpkwfNZ3B7W0W7XYZxZCWegO1siRf5vlEErF-9b70mfGnMJ7Q2L85FY8/s1600/3.png" /></a></div>Holy cow, it has been almost a YEAR since I have written a post on <i>LC's Adventures in Libraryland</i>, and it's been OVER a year since I last posted a book review, which absolutely boggles my mind. Time. Is.<i> Flying!</i><br />
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</i> So in the past couple of weeks, I've received a couple of emails/messages from people asking if I'm, you know, <i>still alive</i>. And the answer to that is yes! Yes, I'm still alive and kicking.<br />
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But is my blog??<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLbmISPKErIF0UN5ygQ5PqTgzUuCpiAIpmXxAakhd8HUhSy0dcRcfZDQ3wbHiOScFaNmGpnl5KXCqx2yD6m6Lkl_ywgTNyk0y8xxpoRxfVDZidvdfKFgCVTbsGCK_dtlPAkORRu8Q9ypo/s1600/6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLbmISPKErIF0UN5ygQ5PqTgzUuCpiAIpmXxAakhd8HUhSy0dcRcfZDQ3wbHiOScFaNmGpnl5KXCqx2yD6m6Lkl_ywgTNyk0y8xxpoRxfVDZidvdfKFgCVTbsGCK_dtlPAkORRu8Q9ypo/s1600/6.png" height="101" width="320" /></a></div>Well, that's a more tricky question. So here's the deal in case anyone has been wondering what's up. Last April I (**finally**) got a full-time job working at a law firm (NOT as a law librarian unfortunately, as some of you may know I went to school for library science and did work in libraries for awhile). At the same time, I also really wanted to dedicate myself to getting my <b><a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank">web design business</a></b> up and running, and I also made a commitment to start going to the gym on a regular basis. So with all those things going on at once, needless to say, I just ran out of hours in the day to sit down and read and review my books. And yes, this made me truly very sad :(<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh020BaldX_L9wKPdxHs9ImibNr6yLBI8_jKMVTZt5jrLLbWN6_A0sVc9Ur9t29WyWnJZeORAvL-m5TbRidXVXcMI1BdYB-mqcM3V0gniEQFk6aTWbYS6V6BObXd4nPNepngsewUci70U0/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh020BaldX_L9wKPdxHs9ImibNr6yLBI8_jKMVTZt5jrLLbWN6_A0sVc9Ur9t29WyWnJZeORAvL-m5TbRidXVXcMI1BdYB-mqcM3V0gniEQFk6aTWbYS6V6BObXd4nPNepngsewUci70U0/s1600/5.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>While I never wrote any official notice that <i>LC's Adventures</i> was calling it quits, I also couldn't commit to a regular posting schedule, and the more infrequent my posts got, the less I felt connected to the book blogging community that I so dearly loved. I didn't want to make any permanent decision to close down shop entirely, hoping that one day in the distant future I'd be able to get back into it, so I just sort of abandoned my poor blog in order to work on designing other blogs, while working full-time, busting my rear at the gym, and trying to maintain some semblance of a social life. (As you can see in the picture to the left, the upside to all this was that I got pretty good at doing squats! :)<br />
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BUT! This site has been on my mind ever since last year. I never forgot about it, and every now and then I look back with a sigh of remembrance, thinking about how much I loved reviewing, blogging, vlogging, taking part in book memes, meeting new bloggers, new authors, the thrill of getting new ARCs in the mail... having to leave all that behind was a total bummer.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6wQWF3EwZsb4NtMDWHJPQ2hb5q9oW-kTvIt-xAikDvckCvdyRUjKkmxlp0nifc_7895ntWWz9ZTGbBiGtZ7J0cBYcYkdZrdRFm2uOXpXTXCwA06_rBACSdO0WOd4g_Qzl3TTRfZbJ1mQ/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6wQWF3EwZsb4NtMDWHJPQ2hb5q9oW-kTvIt-xAikDvckCvdyRUjKkmxlp0nifc_7895ntWWz9ZTGbBiGtZ7J0cBYcYkdZrdRFm2uOXpXTXCwA06_rBACSdO0WOd4g_Qzl3TTRfZbJ1mQ/s1600/2.jpg" height="400" width="190" /></a></div>Then, a few weeks ago I took a trip down memory lane by going to my local Teen Book Festival in Rochester, NY to meet Michelle Madow, author of the Transcend Time Saga and Secret Diamond Sisters series-- and that's when I was like, OK, <i>I freakin miss this!!</i> That along with the occasional follower asking me "where the heck are you??" has really made me start brainstorming how I can get back into blogging again, and what I might be able to do to incorporate my blog design business into<i> LC's Adventures</i> more since that's also a major part of my life now. It will be tough to figure out how I'll do it all, but I'm up for the challenge because I miss all you guys like crazy!!<br />
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So, while I really need some time to think about where my blog is going and how I can manage my time so that I can devote myself to regular posts and reviews again, I did want to leave an update now so that you all know that no, I am NOT closing down <i>LC's Adventures</i> and yes I do absolutely plan on getting things back up and running better than ever at some point in the future-- I am **hoping** by later this year! That will include new reviews, new meme posts, new YouTube vlogs, and more posts having to do with tips and tricks for blog design, some design freebies, and maybe even some Book Blog Makeover giveaways!!<br />
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I hope that you will stay tuned, and until then as always-- Happy Reading!!<br />
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<img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/LCSignature_zps89639325.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo LCSignature_zps89639325.jpg" width="180px"/>Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-50510294888880168402013-06-17T19:31:00.001-04:002013-06-17T19:31:24.938-04:00Book Blog Makeover! J&M's Book Diaries<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-IWBtsfC3UKm0Lum9WHnfj8o2mrxgpAXHM6cBVDONXN1zf1Qx-1Z7E4oO2S9IDq-SvfD1v9z4eGDLxe6zKuOgKPPooNa1KByslceWaBlG6SF3U0i5yW_Witp5jBOSNRQKVAsrVCy3ip4/s1600/GRAB+BUTTON2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-IWBtsfC3UKm0Lum9WHnfj8o2mrxgpAXHM6cBVDONXN1zf1Qx-1Z7E4oO2S9IDq-SvfD1v9z4eGDLxe6zKuOgKPPooNa1KByslceWaBlG6SF3U0i5yW_Witp5jBOSNRQKVAsrVCy3ip4/s1600/GRAB+BUTTON2.png" /></a></div>
Hello lovely book bloggers! So it has been a super long time since I have posted on my blog, but I wanted to show you the latest <b><span style="color: #f30059;">M</span><span style="color: #3d0daf;">A</span><span style="color: #f59b00;">K</span><span style="color: #62f500;">E</span><span style="color: #f30059;">O</span><span style="color: #008ff5;">V</span><span style="color: magenta;">E</span><span style="color: #3d0daf;">R</span></b> I did for two awesome book chicks, Jenny and Malisa, over at <b><a href="http://jmbookdiaries.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">J&M's Book Diaries</a></b>.<br />
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Jenny and Malisa are fairly new to the book blogging world, but they knew that they wanted a custom design for their site to make it stand out from the rest. Like so many new bloggers, they were using one of the Blogger templates- it was pretty, but generic and a bit boring! So they got in touch with me about a new design- one that featured a custom vector illustration of the two of them, reading and chatting over coffee. They also love the color coral, so I made sure to include a pretty peachy coral color in their final design.<br />
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~The Custom Vector Illustration~</i></b></span></div>
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<b>Designed and Drawn by me! ;)</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBWbak2KagfexCaLdRMDw2sIBbZdKK1TddBeB5sI-7tAnKFBDgAShCaaF5kS2OmHBlfwJ0ICYWuB6Ar7tIG8R7S9ng-iNvp-J_noPxLtcB-R-slm8yRbIh2CH-6zH7-n_iLPG33FhPSg0/s1600/FINAL+DRAFT.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBWbak2KagfexCaLdRMDw2sIBbZdKK1TddBeB5sI-7tAnKFBDgAShCaaF5kS2OmHBlfwJ0ICYWuB6Ar7tIG8R7S9ng-iNvp-J_noPxLtcB-R-slm8yRbIh2CH-6zH7-n_iLPG33FhPSg0/s640/FINAL+DRAFT.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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One of the things that I kept in mind when designing Jenny and Malisa's blog was that they really wanted a modern and more minimalist style- nothing too busy or over the top. So I definitely kept things nice and simple in their template, sticking with a soft gray background with "pops" of color. This modern and simplified look makes it so that the main focus of their design is the custom illustration and the content on their page.<br />
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Because they ordered my <b><span style="color: magenta;">Deluxe Makeover Package</span></b>, they also got a choice of 4 custom upgrades, so they chose to add on custom post dividers, sidebar titles, post signature and social media buttons, which were all included. See below for the before and after pics of J&M's Book Diaries!<br />
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Before~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNUYs6az06NQ3WHtV5_WLMgEvGyd8-_OsF3X-jvYSsPvERzQwugwgolEX_GCSX1FGDSaabIIQf2Jhj9HXMBT7m5JnwQ7rrKO1NblhG2Hsbxt7jPkTDGPwoNdVVe20D9ZaYaetW6ALZ-Bs/s1600/JM-+OLD+design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNUYs6az06NQ3WHtV5_WLMgEvGyd8-_OsF3X-jvYSsPvERzQwugwgolEX_GCSX1FGDSaabIIQf2Jhj9HXMBT7m5JnwQ7rrKO1NblhG2Hsbxt7jPkTDGPwoNdVVe20D9ZaYaetW6ALZ-Bs/s640/JM-+OLD+design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: magenta; font-size: x-large;"><i>~After!~</i></span></b></div>
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<a href="http://jmbookdiaries.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht4FhgpkLeEHKi9dltFwyl75I3Ax5Abga_8uJ8grcpZkRXI_YiX94PEu-rCeQJZ6EaV0EZtCK5JnHbt23LkUy6BOoz2Hd_DSIL5GpjvmoJ5ZToe685arv2HokbF7sCKEcWAhz-QwSQnwQ/s640/JM+NEW+Design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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With this simple and modern look, Jenny and Malisa can now be sure that their blog is unique and makes an impression on their readers. I hope you'll stop over and visit these two fabulous book bloggers and show some love by following their new site! Just click on the <span style="color: lime;"><b>NEW DESIGN</b></span> image above to hop on over ;)<br />
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;"><b><i>~Grab a Button!~</i></b></span></div>
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<img alt="J&M Book Diaries" src="http://i1297.photobucket.com/albums/ag30/Jmbookdiaries/JM%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON2_zps1d5218be.png" title="J&M Book Diaries" /></div>
<pre style="background: #f0f0f0; border: solid 1px #cccccc; color: #777777; display: block; font-size: 90%; height: 50px; margin: auto; overflow: auto; padding: 10px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 200px;"><div align="center"><a href="http://jmbookdiaries.blogspot.com/" title="J&M Book Diaries"><img src="http://i1297.photobucket.com/albums/ag30/Jmbookdiaries/JM%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON2_zps1d5218be.png" alt="J&M Book Diaries" style="border:none;" /></a></div></pre>
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<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-1287014999894043312013-03-19T12:23:00.003-04:002013-03-19T12:30:32.705-04:00Book Review: The Iron daughter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWNhyphenhyphen7IhAp7ZuUxtWpIyCMWYgZ-cXBnXli2v39PU5QklEiqpOPZQYrhmUtjp6nTLMLVQqj3Iwc8rSsp8vXQg63fZrIREaa9Ia5zfM6SGmNbMx1Lb0EHtUW-OkWKyuLs14TsHipVol_Ff4/s1600/The+Iron+Daughter+Julie+Kagawa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWNhyphenhyphen7IhAp7ZuUxtWpIyCMWYgZ-cXBnXli2v39PU5QklEiqpOPZQYrhmUtjp6nTLMLVQqj3Iwc8rSsp8vXQg63fZrIREaa9Ia5zfM6SGmNbMx1Lb0EHtUW-OkWKyuLs14TsHipVol_Ff4/s320/The+Iron+Daughter+Julie+Kagawa.jpg" width="206" /></a></div><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Author: </span></b>Julie Kagawa<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Series:</span></b> The Iron Fey #2 <br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Publisher:</b> </span>Harlequin Teen <br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Release Date:</span></b> August 1, 2010 <br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Pages:</span></b> 359 <br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</span></b> 2 days <br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Source: </span></b>The library :) <br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0373210132/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0373210132&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo Amazonbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" width="80" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003U89RRQ/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003U89RRQ&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo AmazonKindlebutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" width="80" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7747064-the-iron-daughter" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo goodreadsbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" width="80" /></a><br />
<blockquote><b><span style="color: #351c75;">Summary:</span></b> Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey— ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her.<br />
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Worse, Meghan's own fey powers have been cut off. She's stuck in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can't help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.</blockquote><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Take:</i></b></span></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><i>"I couldn't be normal and ignorant ever again, knowing what was out there. Faery was a part of me now. As long as I lived, I would always be watching for hidden doors and figures from the corner of my eyes. And for a certain dark prince who could never be mine..." ~p.125-6</i></div><br />
Gah! I don't know why it took me so long to get to the second book in this series-- because from the moment I picked up <i>The Iron Daughter</i>, I was reminded of why I love these books so much. The Iron Fey series is just one of those stories that sucks you into another world and makes it so that you never want to leave. The faery world that Julie Kagawa creates, I mean what can I say? It's freaking magical!<br />
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So honestly, it had been so long since I read <i><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2011/09/book-review-iron-king.html" target="_blank">The Iron King</a></i>, that I didn't even remember what had been going on. But <i>The Iron Daughter</i> does a really good job of not only picking up with things where they left off, but also explaining bits of what had already happened, so I didn't feel totally lost. Basically, after defeating the first Iron King in book one, Meghan has to go back to the Winter (Unseelie) Court to fulfill a promise she had made (and if you know anything about the world of feary, you can never break a promise!) While at the Winter Court, the Scepter of the Seasons is stolen from Queen Mab, which controls the Winter and Summer seasons, and her oldest son Sage is brutally murdered. Mab assumes this is the Summer Court's fault, and now Winter and Summer are at war. Added to this, Meghan finds out that the Iron realm, which is slowly killing the entire faery world, is still very much in existence and growing stronger... now she has to get back the Scepter of the Seasons and stop Virus, the new leader of Iron from destroying the Nevernever.<br />
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Whew! Yeah a lot was going on in this book! It was super intense but I absolutely loved following the story, especially since there were so many new and amazing characters like Leanisidhe, and old characters that came back like Grimalken the Caithe Sidhe (faery cat). Seriously, the characters in this series are really what make it so awesome to read-- they are all so fleshed-out and interesting, and so many of them are really quirky and just a lot of fun to read about. So besides the awesome story, the characters just make these books even better!<br />
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<i>Then</i> we have the whole development of the love triangle between Meghan, Ash and Puck. And honestly, for as much as I usually can't stand YA love triangles this one is being done right so far. It's believable, and it's not too overdone. I actually liked reading about Meghan's confusion over whether Ash truly has feelings for her or is just tricking her to get her back to the Winter Court. And I have to say, I also really like Puck, and how he has feelings for Meghan and she sort of does too, but she isn't sure whether to go with him or the forbidden Winter Prince. I'll be very interested to see where things go with Meghan and these two guys!<br />
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My ONE problem with this book-- and it's a bit of a spoiler, so if you haven't read this far yet, you might want to skip here-- my one problem, or question, was near the end when Ash is talking with Mab, Queen of the Winter/Unseelie court, and he says the following:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i>"I swear an oath," he whispered, "never to see her [Meghan] again, never to speak to her again, to sever all relationships with her, and return to the Winter Court."</i> ~p. 352</div><br />
Now, in context, Ash is responding to Mab when she asks him what he has to do next if he wants to be able to stay in the Nevernever. HOWEVER-- I thought when I read this that he was ACTUALLY taking an oath and promising all those things... And couldn't Mab and the rest of her court <i>also </i>have interpreted his words that way? Aren't words like the number one thing that holds power in the realm of faery?!? So how was Ash able to say this statement-- which can SO easily be interpreted in two different ways-- and still get to make a choice whether to go or stay?? Unless this potentially is going to come into play again later on in the series, I kind of feel like this is a huge plot slip. But I don't know, I guess I'll have to see what happens with that!!<br />
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So overall, <i>The Iron Daughter</i> was a great sequel to <i><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2011/09/book-review-iron-king.html" target="_blank">The Iron King</a></i>. Also, it didn't suffer from "second book syndrome" at all-- the plot was paced well and I never lost interest in what was going on. When I chose to pick up on this series again, I had really been in the mood for a good paranormal story and this one absolutely satisfied my YA-paranormal craving. If you are looking for an amazing story with great characters and beautiful writing, I would highly suggest getting into this series, it really is just as wonderful as everyone says it is!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #351c75;">~Cover Talk~</span></b></div><br />
The covers for the Iron series are gorgeous, hands down. And put them all together, and they are absolutely stunning! I really like this cover, the model used for Meghan is beautiful, I love all the scroll-work details, the font used for the title, the icy blue shades-- this is one of those books that I can literally just sit and admire for the outside look alone! I *only* wish that they came in hardcover, because that would be amazing!!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Rating: </i></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/5star-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="4 star photo 5star-1.png" border="0" height="53" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/5star-1.png" width="200" /></a></div><blockquote>Another amazing book in the Iron Fey series! With a story you can't put down and interesting characters that you won't be able to forget, The Iron Daughter was a great sequel. I can't wait to read the next book and see what happens with Meghan, Ash, Puck, and everyone else in the Nevernever!</blockquote></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>Find it!</i></b></span></div><br />
<center><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0373210132/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0373210132&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo Amazonbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003U89RRQ/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003U89RRQ&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo AmazonKindlebutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7747064-the-iron-daughter" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo goodreadsbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" /></a></center><br />
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-10850339474410425742013-03-08T11:10:00.000-05:002013-03-08T11:52:01.353-05:00Book Review: Ashes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXve5hFzWMK7_fbdE3PlC1vGL9-WYfBmw0ivEsqFMMQn6QU3o-AFog9tT9ukbMZbCeMDl4QRozshnbV3NY52M_pKrJVU56CvoF-Po44XYy_KbzQKDVBuyaCF6ALiaaQT5XGYdGENcbSq8/s1600/Ashes+by+Ilsa+Bick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXve5hFzWMK7_fbdE3PlC1vGL9-WYfBmw0ivEsqFMMQn6QU3o-AFog9tT9ukbMZbCeMDl4QRozshnbV3NY52M_pKrJVU56CvoF-Po44XYy_KbzQKDVBuyaCF6ALiaaQT5XGYdGENcbSq8/s320/Ashes+by+Ilsa+Bick.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Author:</span></b> Ilsa Bick<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Series: </span></b>Ashes Trilogy #1<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Publisher:</span></b> Egmont USA<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Release Date: </span></b>September 6, 2011<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Pages: </span></b>465<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</span></b> 3 days<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Source:</span></b> Won in Zombie Craze Giveaway 2012 from the <a href="http://www.bookish-brunette.com/" target="_blank">Bookish Brunette</a>! :)<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1606843850/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1606843850&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo Amazonbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004J4X9TC/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004J4X9TC&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo AmazonKindlebutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9975679-ashes" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo goodreadsbutton.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" /></a>
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Summary:</span></b> <i>It could happen tomorrow...</i><br />
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An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the sky, destroying every electronic device, wiping out every computerized system, and killing billions.<br />
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Alex hiked into the woods to say good-bye to her dead parents and her personal demons. Now desperate to find out what happened after the pulse crushes her to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom—a young soldier—and Ellie, a girl whose grandfather was killed by the EMP.<br />
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For this improvised family and the others who are spared, it’s now a question of who can be trusted and who is no longer human.
Author Ilsa J. Bick crafts a terrifying and thrilling post-apocalyptic novel about a world that could become ours at any moment, where those left standing must learn what it means not just to survive, but to live amidst the devastation.</blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Take:</i></b></span></div>
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<i>"So far this book is AWESOME-- just don't read it and eat at the same time."
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<span style="text-align: center;">(my first Goodreads update)</span></div>
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So, have you ever come across a book and your first reaction to it is: "UGH! No WAY am I ever reading that one!" But then... something about it intrigues you, and you sorta can't stop thinking about it, so eventually you're just like, "OK, what the hell, I'll give it a shot."<br />
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Yeah, that was me with <i>Ashes</i>. The cover quite frankly scared the living daylights out of me, but for some reason, I was still interested in it-- then I won it in a giveaway, so at that point it was like, well now I have to read it-- and I'm really glad that I did. <span style="text-align: center;">I mean, where do I EVEN begin?? This book was gory, intense, horrific, and FREAKING SWEET. It gave me chills, it grossed me out, and it had me on the edge of my seat for pretty much the entire time I was reading it!</span><br />
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A brief synopsis: Alex is in the woods when it happens-- the "Zap"-- the shock that sends everyone into a terrifying Post-apocalyptic world where teens Alex's age start to go crazy... and cannibalistic. But Alex is no stranger to near-death experiences and fighting to survive, because with a giant brain tumor slowly eating away at her, Alex has always felt like it's only a matter of time before the silent "monster" defeats her... but while so many others are either dead or <i>eating </i>the dead, the Zap has actually given Alex the superhuman ability to sense, or more specifically smell, when danger is around or when people's emotions change. Most importantly, she can tell the difference between who's still human and who has changed and gone berserk...<br />
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Alright so first of all, Alex was <i>such</i> a kick-ass main character. Strong, independent, and armed with an arsenal of survival skills and a dry sense of humor, she was one of those characters who you just LOVE to read about. I could relate to her, I became invested in her story, and so I was pretty much hanging on every word. Not to mention the fact that the girl has a brain tumor that is slowly killing her, and yet she doesn't have any major self-pity or cynicism to make her unlikable. She goes through some of the most horrific and painful experiences and yet there is no whining from her-- this was a YA character who I completely respected and was thrilled to be reading about!<br />
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Ellie and Tom, the two main supporting characters who Alex meets in the woods, were equally as intriguing. For example, when Alex first meets 8-year Ellie on the mountain, I couldn't <i>stand </i>her. She was a whiny little brat who caused about 50 million problems for Alex and was ungrateful that Alex saved her life a bunch of times. However, around chapter 12, Ellie decides to stop being a major pain in the rear and then she actually becomes a very endearing character. And Tom worked well as far as a love interest goes because his interactions with Alex were so interesting, and because the romance that builds between them was very gradual and not forced.<br />
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My only *one* caveat with <i>Ashes </i>was that I felt the story <i>slightly</i> lost its momentum in the latter part of the book. For the first part of the story, I got so deeply involved with the three main characters, and how they interacted together-- Ellie, Tom and Alex were interesting themselves, <i>and</i> I was loving seeing how their relationships played out. PLUS the first part of the story was <i>so freaking scary</i> and suspenseful, and I loved that feeling like just around the next page could be something else truly horrific. But then... the plot takes a turn, and Alex, Ellie and Tom get split up-- Alex winds up in a small town called Rule, where she becomes stuck in their strict society and religious fanaticism, and at this point I kind of felt like the plot lost some of its original intensity. It's not that the story got to be boring, but I did somewhat lose interest in it and I wasn't as invested in the new characters. However, then there was the MAJOR cliffhanger at the end-- OMG the ending!!<br />
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So even though <i>Ashes</i> was not even a book I had originally planned on reading, I am so glad that I made the decision to give it a shot-- it was an action-packed thriller filled with heart-stopping scenes, horrific and gory descriptions that gave me the chills, and complex characters that I couldn't help but become attached to. Not to mention, the writing was amazing. This one definitely stands way out from a lot of other YA, and if you love a great story, great characters, and aren't too squeamish, I would absolutely recommend that you give this one a chance as well!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">~Cover Talk~</span></b></div>
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Let's not beat around the bush-- this cover scares the living bejeezus out of me. In fact, the cover art on this book is so insanely creeptastic and disturbing that I had to take the book jacket off the book while I was reading it just so I wouldn't have nightmares. No, I'm not joking. But let me also say that it was BECAUSE of the fright-level of the cover art that I eventually came around to reading this one-- it's just one of those images that you can't really forget once you've seen it.<br />
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I'm also a huge fan because it appeals not just to girls or YA-lovers-- don't get me wrong, I love covers with the pretty models in pretty dresses, but those books are really being put in a box and are limited in their appeal to a wider reading audience. The cover of <i>Ashes</i> however is awesome because it is not only extremely eye-catching; it crosses over to many different reader groups.<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>Find it!
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Rating:</i></b></span></div>
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Don't let the cover fool you-- <i>Ashes</i> was more than just a horror story. It had interesting and complex characters, awesome writing, and tons of plot turns to keep you guessing what will happen next. This is one book that will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat!</div>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-50041760637129735392013-02-12T16:27:00.001-05:002013-02-13T10:42:34.135-05:00Book Review: Monstrous Beauty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_BMyUc4dDJ-Tl7soI-7BbWozt_FhyDrztwJRy7ql5cNJumjewFY8F7lrwQeNnfvl4vyk01IAa5t1zKvvkzrvxyrXDsbFxsvOVjuedFAD2H05RyJ0k9MI8Zw961sssxD_efJaYrEd1BTg/s1600/Monstrous+Beauty+by+Elizabeth+Fama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_BMyUc4dDJ-Tl7soI-7BbWozt_FhyDrztwJRy7ql5cNJumjewFY8F7lrwQeNnfvl4vyk01IAa5t1zKvvkzrvxyrXDsbFxsvOVjuedFAD2H05RyJ0k9MI8Zw961sssxD_efJaYrEd1BTg/s320/Monstrous+Beauty+by+Elizabeth+Fama.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Author:</b></span> Elizabeth Fama<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Publisher: </b></span>Farrar, Straus and Giroux<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Release Date: </b></span>September 4, 2012<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Pages:</b></span> 295<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Read it in: </b></span>3 days<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Source: </b></span>ARC from the Publisher<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Summary: </b></span>Fierce, seductive mermaid Syrenka falls in love with Ezra, a young naturalist. When she abandons her life underwater for a chance at happiness on land, she is unaware that this decision comes with horrific and deadly consequences...
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Almost one hundred forty years later, seventeen-year-old Hester meets a mysterious stranger named Ezra and feels overwhelmingly, inexplicably drawn to him. For generations, love has resulted in death for the women in her family. Is it an undiagnosed genetic defect . . . or a curse? With Ezra’s help, Hester investigates her family’s strange, sad history. The answers she seeks are waiting in the graveyard, the crypt, and at the bottom of the ocean—but powerful forces will do anything to keep her from uncovering her connection to Syrenka and to the tragedy of so long ago.</blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Take:</i></b></span></div>
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OK, so where do I even begin with this book... because I seriously LOVED IT!!! It's been awhile since I've read a book where I felt totally captivated, where I was basically hanging on every word, and the more I read the more obsessed and involved I became with the story and characters... But <i>Monstrous Beauty</i> single-handedly was able to wipe from memory many of my horrible experiences I've had lately with several YA books, and has restored my faith in the genre as a whole.<br />
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YEAH. It was <i>THAT</i> good.<br />
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So characterization is always a *big* thing for me in any book, and that's typically my main focus-- if I like the characters, I will most likely become invested in your story. On the other hand, if your characters are paper cut-out fake stereotypes who I can't take seriously, I really don't care how great your story is, I'm not going to become invested in it. And for me, the true sign of good characterization is when the characters come across as <i>real people</i>. When I can imagine them as my friend or enemy, when I can relate to how they're thinking or feeling, and when they talk and behave in a believable way, that's when I know the author really took the time to develop the characters in his/her story. And in <i>Monstrous Beauty</i>, I definitely felt like I could get into the heads of each character and understand where they were coming from.<br />
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So the main character Hester Goodwin was awesome and I loved her. Not only did she come across as an actual, real person (which was very refreshing given the surprising difficulty to find realistic characters in many YA books), she was also a history-loving nerd so I immediately felt like I could connect with her. She could be confident and stand up for herself, she swore when she was pissed off, she could be awkward and self-conscious like any normal girl around her crush, she could be vulnerable without coming across as pathetically desperate-- I understood her character and connected with her. That *one thing* right there made me feel invested in the story being told.<br />
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Then we have Ezra, the 19th century spirit who Hester becomes drawn to-- I loved him too! Ezra had the delightfully cute quirkiness of a Tim Burton character-- awkward yet intelligent, sweet and sensitive, Ezra is the kind of guy every bookworm girl dreams of meeting. He was also another example of fantastic characterization-- for example, we know that Ezra was a scientist/naturalist in his lifetime who studied oceanic life and mythical creatures. Therefore, when we see things through Ezra's eyes, things are acutely detailed and scientific-- that's how he thinks, so that's how we see the world from his perspective. The fact that Fama actually took the time to give her characters <i>unique perspective</i>s so that we could tell whose point of view we were reading from set this book apart from many others-- it seems so simple, yet it's been awhile since I've seen unique POV's!<br />
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And another thing I HAVE to point out-- THANK YOU Elizabeth Fama for not being like so many other YA authors and treating sex like it's the Black Plague or something!!! You know how in some books the authors' main characters can't even *think* about sex, because it would be the <i>end of the world?</i> I 'm so sick of watered-down, G-rated adolescent characters who are totally out of touch with reality. But not Hester-- like<i> any</i> teenage girl, sex is a very real and important thing to her and it isn't treated like some dirty, taboo thing in this book. Seriously, thank you! Because guess what YA authors? Guy and girl teens think about sex quite a bit, so stop making up characters who basically think and act like eunuchs or something, and who wouldn't ever *dare* thinking of doing anything more than making out. And yes, this book does include some rather mature content-- like sex, swearing, rape, murder, etc.-- but they're all written in with the assumption that teens are half-way intelligent and can handle these things, and don't need to be spoon-fed Disney-sweet characters and plots. Let me give a standing ovation to this book just for that!<br />
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I was also a huge fan of the world-building in<i> Monstrous Beauty</i>. Since the story switches back and forth from modern times to 1872, it was crucial that things were set up for both time periods. The dialogue and character interaction were both spot-on-- when the story switched back to 1872, the characters actually spoke and behaved like they were from the 19th century-- and it came across very natural, not forced or cheesy. The author clearly did her research to make sure that her readers would feel as though they were going back in time. The descriptive language was also wonderful, and you could see each scene playing out through Fama's words. I think that a truly good writer makes you feel as though you aren't reading, but actually observing/experiencing things as they happen, and Fama was definitely able to do this for me! Finally, I loved how the story and setting had a slightly dark and Gothic feel to it-- the sea, the gloom of the New England coast, the creepy supernatural elements in it-- all of these things really set the tone for the story and made it irresistibly readable.<br />
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So lovely readers and bloggers, if it has been awhile since you've read a book where you were so eager to devour the words on each page that you couldn't read fast enough, this is the book for you. I was totally captivated by this story and its characters and <i>could not</i> put it down. Especially if you love historic settings, dark and creepy stories, and realistic characters, I hope you will bump <i>Monstrous Beauty</i> up on your reading lists, because I really think you will enjoy it just as much as I did!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">~Cover Talk~</span></b></div>
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So there are actually two covers I want to look at and compare-- the first one is from the ARC, which is the version I have, and the second is the final cover chosen for the published edition:<br />
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</td><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaKfOl9AEjsZOK5bhy2_Y_TBcaWiOZ1Xls4BT6drsfyzUPghezDFiWxgL3U7cd3YNK6Z23I4Y0CWr8fTojcColdDF2H7vYFHMYhB_xq48IP6JK0ZZLVKMIfVOuO1_io_07g2d8gf9N5ls/s1600/monstrous+beauty+elizabeth+fama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaKfOl9AEjsZOK5bhy2_Y_TBcaWiOZ1Xls4BT6drsfyzUPghezDFiWxgL3U7cd3YNK6Z23I4Y0CWr8fTojcColdDF2H7vYFHMYhB_xq48IP6JK0ZZLVKMIfVOuO1_io_07g2d8gf9N5ls/s320/monstrous+beauty+elizabeth+fama.jpg" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
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OK, so to the left we have the ARC cover version-- this is the one that I have. Honestly, of the two, I like the original cover art the best. Yes, I know, there are tons of YA covers with gorgeous girls on the front but I just think this one is so elegant and eye-catching. It isn't as colorful, but I sort of like that the colors are more drab and muted, because the story's setting is dark and gloomy too.<br />
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Don't get me wrong-- the published edition cover is also beautiful! I love the bright blue-green colors in Syrenka's tail fin, and it also does the story justice by coming across as being dark and mysterious. However, between the two, I personally prefer the ARC edition-- which cover is your favorite?? :)<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>Interested? Hear an Audio-clip from Monstrous Beauty Here!</i></b></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Rating:</i></b></span></div>
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<img alt=" photo 5star-1.png" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/5star-1.png" width="200" /></div>
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<b>Amazing characters and a supernatural story that takes place across two centuries made this an absolute must-read-- I could NOT put it down! Creepy, mysterious, romantic, suspenseful-- all of these things describe </b><b><i>Monstrous Beauty. </i>I</b><b>t was unique and completely unlike other YA, you will NOT be disappointed!</b></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">Check It Out!</span></b></i></span></div>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-12612421303297845872013-02-05T15:53:00.000-05:002013-02-06T13:24:23.553-05:00Book Review: Tiger's Curse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Author:</span></b> Colleen Houck<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Series: </span></b>The Tiger Saga #1<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Publisher:</span></b> Sterling<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Release Date:</span></b> January 11, 2011<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Pages:</span></b> 403<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</span></b> 4 days<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Source:</span></b> Gift from Chantel @<a href="http://chantel-law.blogspot.co.uk/"> Little Miss Bookworm</a> :)<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1402784031/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1402784031&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" width="50" /></a>
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<br />
<blockquote>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Summary: </span></b>Passion. Fate. Loyalty.
<br />
<br />
Would you risk it all to change your destiny?
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<br />
The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever.
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<br />
Tiger’s Curse is the exciting first volume in an epic fantasy-romance that will leave you breathless and yearning for more.</blockquote>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><i><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;">LC's Take:</span></i></b></div>
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What would you do if someone offered you an all-expenses-paid trip to India with a mysterious white tiger who also happens to be a handsome Indian prince? Eighteen-year old Kelsey Hayes is faced with just this offer after spending 2 weeks working as a hired hand at a local circus one summer-- and her life will never be the same.<br />
<br />
I had pretty much been *dying* to read this book for ages, and after reading review after raving review, I FINALLY picked it up off the shelves. I was so positively sure that I was going to absolutely love this book, that by the end, I would be in raptures and stumbling over myself trying to say enough good things about it.<br />
<br />
I don't know what the hell happened.<br />
<br />
<i>I KNOW</i>, and I <u>hate</u> saying this, but I have to be honest. There were some things I liked about<i> Tiger's Curse</i>, but they were all completely overshadowed by some of <u><b>the worst characterization</b></u> I've ever encountered in a book. OK, here we go...<br />
<br />
So first, let me talk a little about Kelsey Hayes, the main character. At the beginning, I actually liked her. Laid-back, down-to-earth, and slightly quirky, she was a fun character to follow in the story.<br />
<br />
But then things started to go down hill--<i> rapidly</i>.<br />
<br />
I noticed about a hundred pages in that Kelsey's way of talking and thinking could be *extremely* juvenile at times-- juvenile and annoying. I don't know if anyone else thought the same thing, but as I made my way through this book, I just didn't feel like I was reading from an 18-year old's perspective. Some of the expressions she uses (my FAVE was when she exclaimed, "You wily scoundrel!" when Kishan tries to kiss her), the way she addresses people ("oh hey there Mister!" <-- seriously? Is your main character from The Little Rascals?), and just her whole way of thinking seemed more like that of an immature little kid than an adult...<br />
<br />
Things only went from bad to worse when Ren the Prince stepped into the picture. If Kelsey was slightly childish and annoying to begin with, it was <i>nothing</i> compared to the monster train-wreck she turns into in the last half of the book. The immaturity levels reached astronomical proportions. How you ask? Here are a few examples:<br />
<br />
1.) She pouted and threw tiny tantrums when she was displeased about pretty much <i>anything</i>-- and rather than be an adult and communicate with Ren about how conflicted she was feeling, she turned into a cold and standoffish biotch. Then, when the poor guy asks her what's wrong, she says "nothing" (in that way where it's obviously <i>something</i>) and goes right back to being Ice Queen Supreme. Clearly, this is an<i> awesome </i>way to treat people.<br />
<br />
2.) She had the * exceedingly* annoying defense mechanism of needing to make sarcastic quips <i>every 5 second</i>s, and the more defensive she got, the less likely it became for her to be serious or mature at crucial points in the story. I mean, the girl almost <i>dies</i> and the first thing she does upon waking up is crack a few dumb jokes-- well I'm sorry, but I don't want to read about a main character who acts like she's constantly auditioning at a comedy club (and failing miserably, I might add)-- I want her to have a grown-up, serious side too! It was just<i> too much</i>. There is no way in hell this chick was 18-- maybe 12? Maybe.... even that's pushing it.<br />
<br />
3.) I just love how Kelsey was absolutely shocked and appalled when she sees Ren the Tiger-version and his brother hunt for food. She <i>does</i> realize that "hunting" involves killing something right?? And that tigers have a tendency towards being carnivores? And that tasty meat often comes from cute animals? I mean the girl had to actually <i>sing herself to sleep</i> to get over it-- no, I'm not making this up, she sings herself to sleep ("happy songs" from <i>The Wizard of Oz</i>) because the tigers killed an antelope. Then she has nightmares about it. <u>And she's </u><u style="font-style: italic;">eighteen</u> -_-<br />
<br />
4.) Kelsey just LOVES to continually tell us about her little "love-plant" for Ren-- because you know, normal people talk like this. By the end I wanted to take some pesticide spray and a blow torch to Kelsey's freaking love-plant and incinerate the damn thing into the ground...<br />
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5.) "<i>Only socially deprived wierdos talk to tigers in their free time every day</i>." ~Quote by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6605945-katlyn" target="_blank">Katlyn</a> on Goodreads. I couldn't have said it better haha :D<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcVHHiqQ77KEJJFbXVr0usybuPcP6kBG-tLUpm4JUBtCGc3CtQDD0h5b89koPL_Dzw6BJ_mpC4BH23089NwqaO4kFjAELb9JZpbV8S9wQHguO09ufIMGEF5Enld_p_TnocqTNCSUhpEA/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcVHHiqQ77KEJJFbXVr0usybuPcP6kBG-tLUpm4JUBtCGc3CtQDD0h5b89koPL_Dzw6BJ_mpC4BH23089NwqaO4kFjAELb9JZpbV8S9wQHguO09ufIMGEF5Enld_p_TnocqTNCSUhpEA/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
(I won't even get into the fact that she was <i>dumb as a brick</i> and could barely tie her own shoes without Ren holding her hand, or how she nearly gets herself killed near Kishindha because she goes to grab a pretty sparkly diamond out of the water, moments after she and Ren <i>nearly died</i> because <u>DUH</u> the prophesy TOLD you not to believe your eyes and that things weren't as they seemed! She's like freaking Abu the monkey in Aladdin, literally <i>that</i> is who she reminded me of! **slaps forehead in total frustration**)<br />
<br />
But I think that out of all the things that bothered me about Kelsey, the VERY WORST was the fact that she made such a snap judgement about Ren-- <i>without even giving him the chance to prove that he was a good guy</i>-- and then proceeded to treat him like total crap for the rest of the book. All because of her own stinking insecurity that "she wasn't good enough for him." Like seriously, give me a freaking break-- Kelsey, you were to put it bluntly, one of THE most immature characters I have ever read about, and you need to go find yourself a therapist. <u>Pronto</u>.<br />
<br />
Let's just say that by the end of this book, I had never wanted to punch a main character in the face quite so badly as Kelsey "Boo-Hoo I'll Never Be Good Enough So I'll Just Act Like a Bitch 24/7" Hayes. <br />
<br />
While we're talking about How to Make Your Characters As Unlikable as Possible 101, let's take a look at Ren. Overall, the guy wasn't too bad when you stand back and see him over the course of the book-- but I still couldn't stand him. And the thing is, he wouldn't have been such an unlikable character if the author hadn't <i>set him up</i> to be totally unlikable. Here are just a few of the phrases used to describe Ren's actions in the book:<br />
<br />
-Laughed "acerbically"<br />
-Smiled "mockingly" and "malevolently"<br />
-grinned "maliciously"<br />
-scoffed and smirked<br />
-was "annoyingly happy"<br />
<br />
Now you tell me-- would <i>you</i> like a character whose behavior is described that way?? The guy is annoying even when he's happy for crying out loud, and I'm supposed to be falling in <i>love </i>with him?!? There's only two explanations for this kind of character portrayal:<br />
<br />
1.) Ren is a douche, in which case I can't stand him and hope he jumps off a cliff, or<br />
<br />
2.) Ren is actually a good guy and all of this is Kelsey's perception of him, in which case Kelsey is *psycho cray cray* and I hope <i>she</i> jumps off a cliff.<br />
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In either case, I'm really not rooting for your characters.<br />
<br />
I also felt like the pacing of the plot was slightly off. Overall, I thought that the story itself was pretty good-- I loved the Indian setting and the adventurous element it had going on-- but there was just a <i>lot</i> of superfluous description that got in the way for me. For example, when Kelsey gets on the plane to go to India, I thought we were never going to hear the end of all the luxurious details of the plane's interior and the food they ate. Don't get me wrong, I think that adding vivid description to your story is wonderful and sets the backdrop for all the action, but I also think there is a way to describe a scene while still leaving something up to the reader's imagination! I don't give a crap about what color hair ribbon Kelsey ties in her hair every day-- and by the by, how many 18-year-olds do you know who tie ribbons at the end of their braids? Or carry their blanket around like they're Linus from Charlie Brown? JUST SAYING.<br />
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Besides plot pacing being off, many parts of the plot made ZERO SENSE. Tell me, how many foster parents do you know, who seem to be fairly sensible and *sane* let their foster-daughter go off on a trip to INDIA with a strange older man and a tiger, after meeting said man ONE TIME?? This is basically how things played out: <br />
<br />
1.) Kelsey works 2 weeks as a hired hand at a circus (WHICH she got from some super-shady work placement company)<br />
<br />
2.) Kelsey reads Shakespeare to the tiger at said circus (Hmm, yeah that's completely normal) and then a strange Indian man shows up and tells Kelsey she is PERFECT for taking care of the tiger, if she can only GO TO INDIA to put tiger in a nature reserve (RED FLAGS GOING OFF HERE) But no, no, Kelsey and her guardians think this all totally legit...<br />
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3.) Kelsey's parents <i>AGREE TO LET HER GO TO INDIA</i> with strange older man after meeting him once, and within a WEEK Kelsey has all her documentation, passports, vaccines, etc. taken care of and is on a plane to India to take care of a rare white tiger species because 2 weeks of sweeping up crap at a circus has turned her into a total animal GENIUS.<br />
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**Insert dumb-founded expression HERE 0_o**<br />
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As far as the romance goes, well it was about as dysfunctional as they come. It was like watching two cars heading for a straight-on collision, and not being able to do anything about it. I've already described Kelsey's emotional constipation and total lack of ability to do anything remotely mature, but I also didn't like how possessive Ren got of Kelsey as the story went on. Protective tiger-- awesome, Possessive love interest-- HELL to the NO. Not a fan. I was also pretty annoyed at the good ol' YA ploy of presenting the main character as Ms. I'm-Totally-Average-But-Every-Guy-Who-Sees-Me-Falls-Inexplicably-Yet-Madly-In-Love-With-Me, because it's been done <u>SO</u> many times. In fact, it's gotten to be about as cliche as being Disney-Princess-Perfect. Which brings me to...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">** My Brief Bookish Rant**</span></b></div>
<br />
Yeah so after all that, you're probably wondering what the heck else I have to rant about. (Do not underestimate my ranting skills *<i>whahahaha!</i>*) So here is my totally random gripe-- and trust me, this is random-- that I have to get off my shoulders. And I'm not trying to pick on this book specifically, it's more of a general trend that I see again and again in YA books-- and my slightly annoyed question is this:<br />
<i><br /></i>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><i>WHY</i> do authors always make a<i> POINT</i> of telling us that their main female characters never or seldom wear makeup? </b></div>
<br />
I know, I know, this is <i>such </i>a dumb thing to rant about, but for *some reason* it bothers me. I mean, is there something bad about wearing makeup or doing your hair on a regular basis? Do they think that makeup makes their protagonist seem stupid or fake? Do they assume that readers won't relate to a character who wears makeup because... I don't know, people who read don't wear makeup? Like <i>why </i>does it even need to be mentioned? It's like they expect me the reader to go, "Ohh, she doesn't wear makeup! Well I can respect her a <i>lot</i> more now!" And then on the other side of things, the "mean girl" or the bitchy back-stabber is often described as wearing makeup or being super tan or having the latest fashions. <i>WHY??</i> Is it a given that if a girl cares about her appearance she must be less of a person? If the main character is a frumpy Plain-Jane who's never worn heels and who thinks at best she's "average," am I supposed to like her more? <i>What exactly</i> are you trying to convey to me the reader when you tell me that your main character doesn't wear makeup? I just don't see what the heck this has to do with the characterization of someone, and personally I couldn't care less whether the main character wears makeup or not, so <i><u>stop</u></i> bringing it up like it's a determining factor in whether or not I'll relate to/like/respect that character more!<br />
<br />
(I will mention that Kelsey does get dolled up a few times in the book, but what irked me was her complete inability to see herself as being attractive, no matter what. This is <i>not</i> a good character trait. It is immature and I CAN'T STAND characters that constantly use self-pity and self-deprecation to excuse themselves from acting grown-up. <i>STOP IT RIGHT NOW!!</i>)<br />
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OK, rant over. I feel much better now!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">~Final Thoughts~</span></b></div>
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<i>Tiger's Curse</i> is one of those books that I think appeals to a large group of people because it has a lot of great things going on-- romance, adventure, travel, mystery, an ancient curse-- I mean, what's not to love about that? BUT-- and this is a big but-- none of them, in my opinion, were executed well. The romance devolved into two spoiled teenagers acting like juvenile brats, the adventure and mystery were bogged down by way too much description, and honestly, by the end I was so fed up with the main characters that I really couldn't care less about where the story was going-- I just wanted it to end so I didn't have to constantly fight the temptation to throw the book out the window of a 50-story building.<br />
<br />
So my final word with this one is- proceed with caution. While I can see the appeal for many readers, if you are like me and can't stand pointless drama, immature dialogue, and characters who act much younger than their years, you might want to think twice before picking this one up. On the other hand, the ratings overall for <i>Tiger's Curse</i> are extremely good, so this may very well be a case of me just personally not liking it. Read what other people had to say about this book, you might end up loving it-- I, unfortunately, was not one of those people.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">~Cover Talk~</span></b></div>
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After all that, the cover for <i>Tiger's Curse</i> is still probably one of my favorite YA book covers of all time. I have the paperback version of this book, but it is still amazing. Besides that ice-blue eyed tiger that captures your attention right away, the details are beautiful-- the Indian decoration at the top is in raised silver, along with the title, and the entire thing is on a gorgeous metallic paper. Also, the inside cover opens up with flaps in front and back to show a map of Kelsey's travels. The design work for this book is, in my opinion, PERFECT-- if only the story inside had done it justice.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Rating:</i></b></span></div>
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<b>A book that potentially had a lot going for it, but was dragged down by excessive details and some of the most immature and annoying characters I have ever read about. I hate to say this, but there is definitely a reason why <i>Tiger's Curse</i> is not for everyone. If you like your characters to have intelligence and any level of maturity, proceed with caution...</b></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">Check it out!</span></b></i></span></div>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-1127741119372065352013-01-28T10:35:00.000-05:002013-01-28T10:52:58.465-05:00Book Review: The Raven Boys<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyRWbvhne-SGYEmdWTp6dRNdz8NS98No1xqysOaRQOI7-W74l3sZEbaFof6E6iOpe4DvXgxAlWqHsin1O2J3WjwQnR6NAW9niNK1STKzAXqZa3Ss0SSvUMyPwTzD6Z2LAF0c_I8vx1uIE/s1600/the+raven+boys+maggie+stiefvater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyRWbvhne-SGYEmdWTp6dRNdz8NS98No1xqysOaRQOI7-W74l3sZEbaFof6E6iOpe4DvXgxAlWqHsin1O2J3WjwQnR6NAW9niNK1STKzAXqZa3Ss0SSvUMyPwTzD6Z2LAF0c_I8vx1uIE/s320/the+raven+boys+maggie+stiefvater.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Author:</b></span> Maggie Stiefvater<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Series: </b></span>Raven Cycle #1<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Publisher:</b></span> Scholastic Press<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Release Date:</b></span> September 18, 2012<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Pages: </b></span>409<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Read it in:</b></span> 3 days<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Source: </b></span>ARC from the publisher<br />
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<blockquote>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Summary:</b></span> It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.<br />
<br />
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.<br />
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His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.<br />
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But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.<br />
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For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">LC's Take:</span></b></i></span></div>
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<strong style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><em>"There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark's Eve, Blue. Either you're his true love...or you killed him."</em> </strong></div>
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With a darkly prophetic tag line like that, I knew pretty much right away that I had to read <i>The Raven Boy</i>s. I've never read a book by Maggie Stiefvater before, but I can definitively say that I was not disappointed! With its diverse cast of characters and supernatural mystery and adventure, <i>The Raven Boys</i> was a really awesome and unique story that stood out from a lot of other YA...<br />
<br />
Blue Sargent lives in a family of clairvoyants-- her mother is a psychic, along with the other women who live at her house. Blue doesn't have the gift of clairvoyancy, but she does have the ability to give energy to people and places, making supernatural occurrences much more likely when she is around. When Blue meets Gansey, one of the "the raven boys" from the elite Aglionby Academy, she is pulled into the supernatural rather unexpectedly, as they search for the legendary lost Glendower, an ancient Welsh king who is said to be hidden along a powerful ley line in Blue's town of Henrietta-- and can be re-awakened by whoever finds him.<br />
<br />
So the thing that I loved most about this book was how much depth and complexity Maggie gives to her characters-- they aren't just there to add filler to the story; they have histories, they have inner conflict, and they have imperfections that make them seem real. It was this kind of in-depth character analysis that made me feel invested in the story, because the people I was reading about were easy to picture and relate to. Gansey, born to a life of privilege, worries that he'll never do anything meaningful in his life and is passionately driven in his quest to find Glendower. Ronan, who appears so dark and cold-hearted at first, turns out to have a very kind heart and strong sense of justice. Adam, who has a very troubled home life, struggles with overcoming his miserable life circumstances. Told from multiple points of view, Maggie lets the reader into the minds of her characters and you feel as though you really know them...<br />
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<i>Except</i>-- and here was the *one* thing that bugged me about this book-- I never felt like I got to know Blue Sargent as a character. This really surprised me, because I felt so connected with all the other characters in the book, even the minor ones-- but Blue, who is the main character, seemed very vague to me. Besides the fact that she has a special energy about her that can increase the force of supernatural occurrences (and the fact that she has an absolutely horrible sense of fashion and dresses like an 80-year old cat lady), I never felt like I was able to get a grasp on her personality. She was just... <i>there</i>. It was as though I could see things happening around Blue but she herself was very underdeveloped as a character, and I found this to be really strange, considering how vividly all the other characters were portrayed.<br />
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Besides Blue being a somewhat underdeveloped main character, I thought that everything else in <i>The Raven Boys</i> was very well done, so don't let that throw you off. The story and the pacing of the plot were done just right, and kept me anxiously turning the pages. Throughout the book, you can tell that there is something very strange going on, but you aren't given enough information to be able to fit all the pieces together right away. I loved this kind of suspense and build up, where as I read I learned a little bit more about all the characters and how they were connected and what was going on. And the supernatural in this book was made even better by Maggie's haunting and beautiful writing style-- everything flowed and made this book very easy to read.<br />
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So overall, I think that <i>The Raven Boys</i> stood out as a unique take on the supernatural genre, and I would highly recommend it if you are looking for something different. The end left me wondering what will happen next, and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing where this series goes!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b> <span style="color: #351c75;">~Cover Talk~ </span></b></div>
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I am insanely in love with this cover-- I know it is really simple, but I think that is what makes it stand out from other YA book covers. And I only have the ARC edition, but they still splurged on the cover art-- The painted image of the raven is gorgeous, and both the title and Maggie's name are in raised lettering. The entire thing is on a shimmery paper, and what I really love most about the cover art for this book is that it doesn't appeal to only one group of readers-- it doesn't scream "YA!!" and it isn't directed only at girls by featuring a model in a fancy dress. I think that this is the kind of book cover that is eye-catching without trying too hard-- it's simple and beautiful, and a little dark and creepy at the same time. What's not to like? ;)<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>LC's Rating:</i></b></span></div>
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<img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/5star-1.png" width="180" /></center>
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<b>A unique and intelligent take on the supernatural,<i> The Raven Boys</i> was a story full of mystery and adventure. Vivid descriptions, deep character portrayals, and a well-paced plot kept me glued to the pages-- definitely a TBR add! </b></div>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-91910653669721170112013-01-23T20:42:00.003-05:002013-01-23T20:51:08.886-05:00New Blog Design! Librarian Mouse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1d88gSfaFTok4f7tRzeuN8MrxOT-7PqCdjoKs40KTzDlojGdebklueRUrzlrekskAXbhsLVLhMgSQk0ONmUw8urXzEY-PNB_uPIphdjpWSvcAoVW14yXbeULcZ6ZdUnpwsNOGr9ZILY/s1600/GRAB+BUTTON.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1d88gSfaFTok4f7tRzeuN8MrxOT-7PqCdjoKs40KTzDlojGdebklueRUrzlrekskAXbhsLVLhMgSQk0ONmUw8urXzEY-PNB_uPIphdjpWSvcAoVW14yXbeULcZ6ZdUnpwsNOGr9ZILY/s320/GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hi guys! So as some of you might know, I have been doing web design for other book bloggers since early last year. It has been so much fun getting to create new looks for you guys-- ones that fit your own personal and unique styles and personalities! Today I would like to show you the latest <b><span style="color: #f70029;">Book</span> <span style="color: #7200d6;">Blog</span> <span style="color: #0080d6;">Makeover</span></b> that I did for a wonderful blogger named Alaiel....<br />
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Alaiel is the author behind <a href="http://www.librarianmouse.com/" target="_blank"><b>Librarian Mouse</b></a>, a blog I'm sure many of you are familiar with. Alaiel booked a design with me because she was looking for a change-- her old design was super cute and very well done, but she had had it for awhile and wanted a totally new look. So...<br />
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Keeping with Alaiel's favorite colors of <b><span style="color: #351c75;">purple</span></b> and <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">red</span></b>, I got to work on a totally custom-drawn vector design of a girl reading (who looks similar to one of Alaiel's fave manga characters) relaxing in a chaise lounge, with bookshelves behind her, and *of course!* a little librarian mouse with glasses ;)<br />
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<b>All of my vector graphics in the designs I create start out as pencil sketches on paper-- here is the before and after of Alaiel's main drawing:</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhgNeI1uHZtXIz8KovVvkme8N1g-UVtxtgD-skUnigvx9elarcHIhpEFHAs-6yp9vMFerEn5eGk4g8PwWu-KW7oCl459BF6FX3RcQRhzGECAjQAp9WjLs-AlfCppUUNcxwHovhlWwuwI/s1600/Alaiel+Project.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXhgNeI1uHZtXIz8KovVvkme8N1g-UVtxtgD-skUnigvx9elarcHIhpEFHAs-6yp9vMFerEn5eGk4g8PwWu-KW7oCl459BF6FX3RcQRhzGECAjQAp9WjLs-AlfCppUUNcxwHovhlWwuwI/s400/Alaiel+Project.png" width="358" /></a></div>
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After I have all the graphics drawn, I incorporate them into a <b>unique header</b> with a <b>matching grab button</b> (which is one of the things included in my Makeover Packages). Alaiel also ordered some extras, like <b>custom social media buttons with hover effects</b>, a <b>drop-down menu</b>, <b>custom sidebar titles</b>, <b>custom post signature</b>, AND I have to mention this because it's the first time I've ever done it-- she wanted to order <b>custom blog headers</b> that could be switched out for the holidays-- pretty awesome, right?! I will show the Halloween Librarian Mouse header below, but <u>FIRST</u>.... onto the before and after shots!!<br />
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Old Design~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkinfkAXuHv4xEHj9rphPYDDsOYAMMfK2dfhMxAr6aOly2kthm7hCSKMedDcGsVs1oM1L4IBMQAjHdwsM7-A2-DO5gw_cp9VREKdChqbpEVcuDpe7nRQFlKua1phkR-17b0RtZ0qirgo/s1600/Alaiel+OLD+design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkinfkAXuHv4xEHj9rphPYDDsOYAMMfK2dfhMxAr6aOly2kthm7hCSKMedDcGsVs1oM1L4IBMQAjHdwsM7-A2-DO5gw_cp9VREKdChqbpEVcuDpe7nRQFlKua1phkR-17b0RtZ0qirgo/s640/Alaiel+OLD+design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~New Design!~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi6WBg4EqeX8XKTxq4rUAxYxyMXXqe7vmSzTPVKieqfHFLhf2Bd-eloSn3rZAQEHyGa6InFhaHOKXqVXQq34ismUt0C3lBFylELol4NHWpNldjrsAGjfKSO0NLOvmc5tMUNLNGD8nKoxA/s1600/Alaiel+NEW+design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi6WBg4EqeX8XKTxq4rUAxYxyMXXqe7vmSzTPVKieqfHFLhf2Bd-eloSn3rZAQEHyGa6InFhaHOKXqVXQq34ismUt0C3lBFylELol4NHWpNldjrsAGjfKSO0NLOvmc5tMUNLNGD8nKoxA/s640/Alaiel+NEW+design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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So as you can see, this was a <u>MAJOR</u> change! Old design? Way cute, and I liked many things in it-- knowing that Alaiel really loved her old mouse, I made sure that he made a reappearance in her new look :) (You can find him in her sidebar titles...)<br />
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<b>Along with the Makeover Package, her are some other features:</b></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><b><i>~Custom Social Media with Hover Effect~</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d;"><b>(mouse over and they change color)</b></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5569316-alaiel-kreuz" target="_blank"><img alt="GOODREADS" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GR_zpsd962bb89.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GRhover_zpse8ca3584.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GR_zpsd962bb89.png" width="30" /></a>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/alaiel.kreuz" target="_blank"><img alt="FB" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/FB_zpsf10163ce.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/FBhover_zpsa1ee83b9.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/FB_zpsf10163ce.png" width="30" /></a>
<a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Sontrei" target="_blank"><img alt="TWITTER" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/Twitter_zpscdfbb38f.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/TwitterHover_zps783ed7f9.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/Twitter_zpscdfbb38f.png" width="30" /></a>
<a href="http://pinterest.com/alaielkreuz/" target="_blank"><img alt="PINTEREST" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/Pinterest_zpseb19a178.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/Pinteresthover_zpsca8206f2.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/Pinterest_zpseb19a178.png" width="30" /></a>
<a href="https://plus.google.com/b/113284954762101960242/113284954762101960242/posts" target="_blank"><img alt="GOOGLE PLUS" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GooglePlus_zpsd3fc98e3.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GooglePlushover_zps04560df1.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GooglePlus_zpsd3fc98e3.png" width="30" /></a>
<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/librarianmouse/UtKo" target="_blank"><img alt="RSS" onmouseout="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/RSS_zps69c0223f.png';" onmouseover="this.src='http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/RSShover_zpsb204600d.png';" src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/RSS_zps69c0223f.png" width="30" /></a>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><b><i>~Custom Post Signature~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-hnDWAFdb5-TJMPAGtb92yhJNmt9by_g_4HeQn6MPu6cE4_cRR3QgSzGE-SvwgeTFMq0l7bpT2aAjVy-bbrFPaUftIZUtbLQmH6FEr9x3TTATNtIDFjPdp_92SWYPbn8FRTodIDXjPoA/s1600/POST+SIG.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-hnDWAFdb5-TJMPAGtb92yhJNmt9by_g_4HeQn6MPu6cE4_cRR3QgSzGE-SvwgeTFMq0l7bpT2aAjVy-bbrFPaUftIZUtbLQmH6FEr9x3TTATNtIDFjPdp_92SWYPbn8FRTodIDXjPoA/s320/POST+SIG.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><b><i>~Custom Sidebar Titles~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi39e3kScHOajhRP0uT0bA_ztVb_S7NOM06KaNuGVnmgUEEEYq97la-C4_iqnK6_6HND3VnRhRRFcGoD0BwK2XNYEGsBpA1dgMu0wrvbGzA7guDTuXLDwvdT33sN6yZPI7CghtToOvlHhw/s1600/Current+Giveaways.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi39e3kScHOajhRP0uT0bA_ztVb_S7NOM06KaNuGVnmgUEEEYq97la-C4_iqnK6_6HND3VnRhRRFcGoD0BwK2XNYEGsBpA1dgMu0wrvbGzA7guDTuXLDwvdT33sN6yZPI7CghtToOvlHhw/s1600/Current+Giveaways.png" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><i>~Custom "About Me" Section~</i></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF2FNXpjJZDELzs8HNcwZ4DRd0ZGBV21TT-zervcL-uviDK8MkWP7Hd3WJPd8G-F-dDPM1JfFfLj5PKI74Qlp1GAtziExURQD1fdSO9nLvKiPjHJaIcFy5LjYa8tZFJtBXQ1lMi0xVLx4/s1600/About+Me+Section.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF2FNXpjJZDELzs8HNcwZ4DRd0ZGBV21TT-zervcL-uviDK8MkWP7Hd3WJPd8G-F-dDPM1JfFfLj5PKI74Qlp1GAtziExURQD1fdSO9nLvKiPjHJaIcFy5LjYa8tZFJtBXQ1lMi0xVLx4/s400/About+Me+Section.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;"><b>AND THE HALLOWEEN HEADER!!</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d;"><b>(*eep!* the mouse has little fangs! ^_^)</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqF8J06-Ttm68spQGxCnDmvQg-9LS9d4ieye0R2FhXAqsxuMQbKSmomKF8TM4oKIO5ma0Hz7zjm32M9yxFh4tr_8W3eBGi5iiblPlJ_eYahJSDu8WsUD-5DA3r9WIlhGsR6zr7TArKnc/s1600/HEADER-HALLOWEEN.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqF8J06-Ttm68spQGxCnDmvQg-9LS9d4ieye0R2FhXAqsxuMQbKSmomKF8TM4oKIO5ma0Hz7zjm32M9yxFh4tr_8W3eBGi5iiblPlJ_eYahJSDu8WsUD-5DA3r9WIlhGsR6zr7TArKnc/s640/HEADER-HALLOWEEN.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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I hope you guys will stop on over to <b><a href="http://www.librarianmouse.com/2013/01/librarian-mouse-has-new-look.html" target="_blank">Alaiel's blog</a></b> and let her know what you think of her brand-new look-- ESPECIALLY since she's having an AWESOME GIVEAWAY in celebration! <b><a href="http://www.librarianmouse.com/2013/01/librarian-mouse-has-new-look.html" target="_blank">Check it out here</a></b>, and also be sure to grab a Librarian Mouse button while you're at it :)<br />
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<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.librarianmouse.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON_zps8e0936f6.png" width="200" /></a> </div>
<div align="center">
<form>
<textarea cols="20" rows="6"><a href="http://www.librarianmouse.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1255.photobucket.com/albums/hh627/AlaielKreuz/Alaiel%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON_zps8e0936f6.png" width="200" /></a></textarea></form>
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*****
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-62993942072726184532013-01-16T10:42:00.003-05:002013-01-17T12:23:59.614-05:00Book Review: A Million Suns<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg00Q6DB4mETiBr_ZTLFyFJQPAX4nEz4sHVLhhSboB3Bf46VeCwI9HFDA2vQb9hm730lHGawQFf9N0Hqk6lg9zdOrkjcVSsJmPEY9d3QhDQIg-Q23KyyCtjyf72d4BHj3bK4-MOcPlYOa4/s1600/a+million+suns+beth+revis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg00Q6DB4mETiBr_ZTLFyFJQPAX4nEz4sHVLhhSboB3Bf46VeCwI9HFDA2vQb9hm730lHGawQFf9N0Hqk6lg9zdOrkjcVSsJmPEY9d3QhDQIg-Q23KyyCtjyf72d4BHj3bK4-MOcPlYOa4/s320/a+million+suns+beth+revis.jpg" style="border: solid #423D42 5px; padding: 0px;" width="206" /></a></div>
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Author</span></b>: Beth Revis<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Series: </span></b>Across the Universe #2<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Publisher:</span></b> Razorbill<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Release Date:</span></b> January 10, 2012<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Pages:</span></b> 386<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Source:</span></b> Gift from Evie @ <a href="http://evie-bookish.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Bookish</a> :)<br />
<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</span></b> 3 days<br />
<table>
<tbody>
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595145370/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1595145370" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" width="60" /></a></td>
<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ERIS80/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005ERIS80" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" width="60" /></a>
</td>
<td><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10345927-a-million-suns" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" width="60" /></a>
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<b><span style="color: #351c75;">Summary:</span></b> It’s been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. Everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship <i>Godspeed</i>.
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But there may be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to act on his vision—no more Phydus, no more lies.
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But when Elder learns shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on <i>Godspeed</i>. They must work together to unlock a mystery that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier. Their success—or failure—will determine the fate of the 2,298 passengers aboard <i>Godspeed</i>. But with each step, the journey becomes more perilous, the ship more chaotic, and the love between them more impossible to fight.
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>~LC's Take~</i></b></span></div>
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Ever since I finished <i>Across the Universe</i>, I knew that I would be reading the sequel-- the unique setting in the emptiness of space, the mystery and suspense that kept me turning the pages, the tension build-up with the characters, and Beth Revis' awesome and humorous style of writing-- all of these things had my totally hooked! In <i>A Million Suns</i>, we have the continuation of Amy and Elder's story aboard the spaceship <i>Godspeed</i>, destined for some far-off planet called Centauri-Earth that is supposed to be habitable for humans.<br />
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So my general impression of this second book was definitely a good one, but because I tend to over-analyze everything, there are a couple things I have to rant about *a little* because they sort of annoyed me. First, the good things:<br />
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One of the GREATEST aspects of this book-- and this series so far-- is Beth's amazing ability to throw her readers for a complete loop, again and again. There were so many mind-blowing twists and surprises in <i>A Million Suns</i>, as we learn some of the darker secrets of <i>Godspeed</i>, and what the heck is going on with its mission... there was a definite sense of foreboding and impending doom throughout this book-- clearly, <i>Godspeed</i> is not going to last forever and it's only a matter of time before the energy and other resources on the ship run out, leaving thousands of people stranded in space. This really increased the intensity level of the plot and had me anxious to see how things would turn out.<br />
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And yes, the SECRETS we learn in this one?? OMG, totally had me freaking out!! Just when you're getting over the last plot twist, something else even <i>bigger</i> is revealed, and you're right back to furiously turning the pages to see where all this is headed-- Beth, you are a GENIUS at keeping the reader on the edge of their seat! :)<br />
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I also really loved the tension and conflict going on between Elder and Amy, and the very good question that Amy poses- if she had a choice between Elder and other guys, would she still choose Elder? Or does she only have feelings for him because he's the only other person like her on the ship? I thought this added a really interesting dimension to their relationship, and I'm looking forward to seeing where things go with them in the last installment.<br />
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So onto a couple things that bugged me (WARNING: Some *mild* ranting ahead)...<br />
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The main thing was how old-fashioned the society on the Feeder level was, given the fact that they're all on a spaceship in 2300-whatever-it-is. Because seriously, there's one part where Elder and Amy go into the city and I felt like we were stepping back into the 1800's-- <i>Why</i> are there guys using hacksaws to manually butcher cows with flies buzzing around and people hand-spinning clothe like ye olde folke from ye dayes of yore? I mean jeez, this is the 24th century, they do have sanitation measures, no? Laser cutters, automated robot weavers, <i>something??</i> I just didn't understand why there is this super-modern ship with futuristic technology headed to the outer limits of space, and then an archaic society that still has farmers and peasants and guys butchering meat in the market-- yes, these people still have basic needs and they need to be kept busy on the ship and I know that Eldest was trying to keep a big secret from them all, but wouldn't it make more sense if they were doing experiments or monitoring space stuff or trying to communicate with alien lifeforms... haha I don't know, something<i> futuristic??</i> Just my opinion there, we'll leave it at that.<br />
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Also-- and maybe this is just me-- but didn't anyone on <i>Godspeed</i> think that maybe, just <i>mayybeee</i>, everyone was going to go ape-shit and rebel against the Eldest leader once they were taken off Phydus, the mind-controlling drug? You'd think they might have done some gradual experimentation with that first to see what the effects would be before just pulling the plug, especially on a flipping spaceship where there's nowhere to turn for help if things get out of hand. Along the same line, it sort of blew my mind that there was hardly anyone aboard the ship who knew what was going on, or how to run the ship, or what to do if <i>Godspeed </i>ever landed. Everyone was pretty much clueless, bumbling along not knowing what to do, and this came across as a bit unrealistic to me.<br />
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I know, I know, I can be over-critical of certain details in books, but overall I really did enjoy <i>A Million Suns</i>. There were so many layers to it-- the mission, the internal politics aboard the ship, the mystery Amy is trying to figure out, the troubled romance between her and Elder-- all of these things kept me reading, and there was never a dull moment. Add to this Beth's unique and engaging writing style, and a story filled with mystery and suspense, and you have the recipe for a great series. I would absolutely recommend these books to any sci-fi fan, or any reader looking for something that is intensely action-packed and completely different from anything they've read before!<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>~Cover Talk~</i></b></span></div>
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<u>LOVE.</u> Absolute and total love with this cover. Honestly, it breaks my heart to see the new covers for this series, because both this one and the cover for <i>Across the Univers</i>e are absolutely breath-taking, and the new ones, in my opinion, are completely "meh." I do understand the reasoning behind repackaging this series-- the new covers definitely will broaden their appeal to a larger audience because they don't scream "YA" like the old ones, but as a huge YA fan, I'm biased towards the gorgeous old versions. This one in particular is so beautiful-- the picture of Elder and Amy holding hands, looking out of <i>Godspeed </i>into the galaxies beyond-- it catches my eye every time I see it! I wish Penguin would at least release a version of <i>Shades of Earth</i> in the original cover style...<br />
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<b>Which cover versions do you like better??</b></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>~About the Author~</i></span></b></span></div>
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Based on my personal experience, Beth Revis is freaking awesome-- and hilarious. I had the opportunity to chat with her in a live author chat online back in May, and she seriously cracked me up. Here is a little more about this amazing author!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8LYXMHL17fzXGYyM-iXK4LvjkI8c_J0UxAyW5AlonP_ongxiA2dpowJcp1tVwTHLv-Rc5xzatiNaX4MDb18bYapH48tXX1SPyTveMdGPHdUAkU_dizpvaXhfJ4SU-WTT2tL2azZMxMkY/s1600/beth+revis+author.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8LYXMHL17fzXGYyM-iXK4LvjkI8c_J0UxAyW5AlonP_ongxiA2dpowJcp1tVwTHLv-Rc5xzatiNaX4MDb18bYapH48tXX1SPyTveMdGPHdUAkU_dizpvaXhfJ4SU-WTT2tL2azZMxMkY/s320/beth+revis+author.jpg" style="border: solid #423D42 5px; padding: 0px;" width="400" /></a></div>
Beth Revis wrote her first books as a student in classrooms, when the professors did not hold her interest and she jotted down stories instead of taking notes.
Beth writes science fiction and fantasy novels for teens. Her debut novel, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, was published by Razorbill/Penguin in Spring 2011. <br />
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You can check out more about Beth on her <b><a href="http://www.bethrevis.com/" target="_blank">OFFICIAL WEBSITE</a></b>, or on her <b><a href="http://bethrevis.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BLOG</a></b> on writing! <br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">~Fan Site!~ </span></b></i></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.bethrevis.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnQ5Lo-5YSIohZqydmzXeTWjc7nKqZJttdtyhVqLfJhZBwQw88-4483kCcCQGu-2f3-l39NPNc2peHCq00FTs-n4UwEoWqKAVk78RwEP0sozf3mi20bKR60DHhcVOcG9OVmiUnScK3u8E/s320/Across+the+universe+website.bmp" style="border: solid #423D42 5px; padding: 0px;" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>If you are a fan of the Across the Universe series, you're going to want to check out this <a href="http://acrosstheuniversebook.com/" target="_blank">awesome fan site</a> that has an interactive version of Godspeed, and added info about the series! </b></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>~LC's Rating~</i></b></span></div>
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<b>Another frexing awesome book in Beth's <i>Across the Universe</i> series. If you are looking for a story with a unique and otherworldly setting, mystery, suspense, and great characters, I would highly recommend adding these ones to your TBR List ASAP! :) </b></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">~Get It!~
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<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595145370/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1595145370" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" width="60" /></a></td>
<td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ERIS80/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005ERIS80" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" width="60" /></a>
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<td><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10345927-a-million-suns" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" width="60" /></a>
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-11680192592038543172013-01-15T13:08:00.003-05:002013-01-15T13:17:24.570-05:00Teaser Tuesday<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;">Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of </span><a href="http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/" style="background-color: white; color: magenta; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-decoration: initial;" target="_blank">Should Be Reading.</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;"> Anyone can play along! Just do the following:</span><br />
<ul style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; color: #351c75; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Grab your current read and open to a random page</li>
<li style="border: none; color: #351c75; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page</li>
<li style="border: none; color: #351c75; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!</b> (<i>make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!</i>)</li>
<li style="border: none; color: #351c75; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Share the <b>title & author</b>, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!</li>
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*****</div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;">This week I am reading <i>The Raven Boys </i></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="line-height: 22px;">by Maggie Stiefvater, which is a supernatural story about a girl named Blue and her family of clairvoyants who can speak to the dead-- I only just started this one today, but already I am super intrigued and the writing is awesome! Here is my teaser from this book:</span></span></span><br />
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<blockquote>
"Neeve glanced over her shoulder, either because there were more spirits coming or because they're weren't-- Blue couldn't tell. By the time she looked back, Gansey had vanished entirely. Already Blue felt warmth returning to her skin, but something behind her lungs felt icy A dangerous, sucking sadness seemed to be opening up inside her: grief or regret.
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'There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark's Eve, Blue. Either you're his true love,' Neeve said, 'or you killed him.'"</blockquote>
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What are you guys reading this week?! Leave me your links in the comments below!<br />
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<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-72042236609822755812013-01-13T18:05:00.001-05:002013-01-13T18:09:00.966-05:00January Book Haul, Publisher's Edition!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Well I am <i>still</i> getting all caught up with my book hauls, so this week's haul is featuring books that I have received from authors, publishers, and one very awesome and special book-blogger friend named EVIE!! Evie from Bookish and I were able to meet up this past summer and she was nice enough to gift me some awesome books that I am definitely looking forward to reading! </b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #ff2167;"><i>~January Book Haul- Publishers Edition!!~</i></span></span></b></div>
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<b>Feel free to watch the video below and see the awesome goodies I have added to my TBR list!</b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #ff2167;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Links~ </span></i></span></b></div>
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<b>The Torn Wing by Kiki Hamilton <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1470131439/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1470131439" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0093H5YFW/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0093H5YFW" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11313669-the-torn-wing" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Passion Blue by Victoria Strauss <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0761462309/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0761462309" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007TX6IRA/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007TX6IRA" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14843862-passion-blue" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Sanctum by Sarah Fine <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1612184421/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1612184421" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007KOR0Z2/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007KOR0Z2" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13482750-sanctum" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>I Am Number Four by Pitticus Lore <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061969559/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061969559" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003SE75ZS/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003SE75ZS" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7747374-i-am-number-four" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>The Power of Six by Pitticus Lore <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061974579/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061974579" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004PYDNI8/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004PYDNI8" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8659601-the-power-of-six" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>The Rise of Nine by Pitticus Lore <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061974587/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061974587" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007ED707W/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007ED707W" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12971616-the-rise-of-nine" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Posession by Elana Johnson <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1442421266/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1442421266" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004A90BZ6/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004A90BZ6" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8337087-possession" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Willful Impropriety by Various Authors <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0762444304/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0762444304" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006TUPXFW/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B006TUPXFW" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13478084-willful-impropriety" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1402262272/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1402262272" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005WJJMQW/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005WJJMQW" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9888775-catching-jordan" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Yesterday by C.K. Kelly Martin <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375866507/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0375866507" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007QPHNSY/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007QPHNSY" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13360458-yesterday" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>Through To You by Emily Hainsworth <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/006209419X/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=006209419X" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007HB8FCU/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007HB8FCU" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10512887-through-to-you" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b>The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812993292/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0812993292" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0074D3CAQ/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0074D3CAQ" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13227454-the-unlikely-pilgrimage-of-harold-fry" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<span style="color: #6d44d4; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Please leave me links to your book hauls below so I can stop by and check them out!</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><b><span style="color: #28ff85;">❤</span><span style="color: #28d5ff;">❤</span><span style="color: #ffa628;">❤</span><span style="color: #ff28bc;">Happy Reading Everyone!</span><span style="color: #28ff85;">❤</span><span style="color: #28d5ff;">❤</span><span style="color: #ffa628;">❤</span></b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><b><span style="color: #ffa628;"><br /></span></b></i></span></div>
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Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-8311041206953130012013-01-11T16:54:00.004-05:002013-01-11T16:54:54.171-05:00Book Blog Makeover! Nette's Bookshelf Reviews<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirL5e10IZgHEL7Mj7dQdadk1a90WomGFJR9amgGucsalIF8Se3B3nd_kuq3OYARQovBCK4qMMm2myrA7pu94tFpr-3BLQf4GsUveEGLp9Grs-AG-5syzM_I-tYYfdG7jCV4gYLZ2xdbTc/s1600/GRAB+BUTTON2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirL5e10IZgHEL7Mj7dQdadk1a90WomGFJR9amgGucsalIF8Se3B3nd_kuq3OYARQovBCK4qMMm2myrA7pu94tFpr-3BLQf4GsUveEGLp9Grs-AG-5syzM_I-tYYfdG7jCV4gYLZ2xdbTc/s200/GRAB+BUTTON2.png" width="197" /></a></div>
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Hello lovely book bloggers! Today I wanted to show you the latest <b><span style="color: #f30059;">M</span><span style="color: #3d0daf;">A</span><span style="color: #f59b00;">K</span><span style="color: #62f500;">E</span><span style="color: #f30059;">O</span><span style="color: #008ff5;">V</span><span style="color: magenta;">E</span><span style="color: #3d0daf;">R</span></b> I did for an awesome book blogger named Nette over at <b><a href="http://nettesbookshelf.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Nette's Bookshelf Reviews</a></b>!</div>
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Nette was looking for a new look on her blog, even though the one she had was cute, it wasn't all that unique. She wanted to stick to the purple color scheme she already had, but she asked me to draw her a girl reading in silhouette. Silhouettes are always a lot of fun to draw! We agreed on a color scheme of purples and pinks with some gray mixed in as well. </div>
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Nette's layout needed to have that "seamless" feel to it, and I knew that I wanted to create a header with a cut-out effect. She also ordered some custom social media buttons, a custom menu bar, and custom sidebar titles for her blog widgets. I also went ahead and tried a NEW mouse-hover effect that I've never done before-- so when you hover over her menu bar, the pages glow, and when you hover over the social media buttons they change color...</div>
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Alright, so here are the final results of Nette's all-new Book Blog Makeover!</div>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Before~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBk7oMohLqNjW_IYhkDH74KHhbqTYmeGOpvEWskVLHJpAnydkX_mMvv4ps9m0tirr0fRyj-lNFktroC6qUk23BHL3Aivp8u6CWnajb5-wL_8d2302QBaRVZVugDk28ULuwYwqBSadWbxk/s1600/NETTE+OLD+DESIGN.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBk7oMohLqNjW_IYhkDH74KHhbqTYmeGOpvEWskVLHJpAnydkX_mMvv4ps9m0tirr0fRyj-lNFktroC6qUk23BHL3Aivp8u6CWnajb5-wL_8d2302QBaRVZVugDk28ULuwYwqBSadWbxk/s640/NETTE+OLD+DESIGN.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~After!~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBSS30k1ftqVFKeObbPjc08waHXYdw8Ritpd5-aUU_JncMnyY0RHJ-XH0wV6Y6Q6tgrD_Zu3obpI1UGtmMxMcNhhmrq3KhR7iSwru5ybGvObA2UgskYv9NAuQB5dqdBS3wD543GhKHME/s1600/NETTE+NEW+DESIGN.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBSS30k1ftqVFKeObbPjc08waHXYdw8Ritpd5-aUU_JncMnyY0RHJ-XH0wV6Y6Q6tgrD_Zu3obpI1UGtmMxMcNhhmrq3KhR7iSwru5ybGvObA2UgskYv9NAuQB5dqdBS3wD543GhKHME/s640/NETTE+NEW+DESIGN.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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So you can see that the colors didn't change too much, but they are just slightly muted to give it a softer feel. I'm also really pleased with how the cut-out header turned out, and of course the new hover effect looks super cool :) What do you guys think?? </div>
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I hope you will stop on over to visit <b><a href="http://nettesbookshelf.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Nette's Bookshelf Reviews</a></b> and be sure to follow her! You can grab her button below as well!</div>
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<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
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Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-48808145846321671312013-01-02T19:45:00.001-05:002013-01-02T19:47:07.856-05:002013 Book Haul- New Year's Edition!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Oh yes, I am back! So this is not only my <u>first</u> book haul of 2013, it's also my first book haul in like 4 months! Please forgive me for being such a <i>major slacker</i> on the blog lately, but it is one of my New Year's Resolutions to get back onto a more regular schedule with my postings, memes, vlogs, etc. So let's get going!!</b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #ff2167;"><i>~Book Haul- New Years Edition!!~</i></span></span></b></div>
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<b>Alright, so as this is my first book haul in a long time, and also because I'm just getting back into the whole reading/reviewing groove, my list this week is pretty short. But anyways, these are the four books that I am planning on starting the New Year off with-- let me know in the comments what you plan on reading first!!</b><br />
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<b><span style="color: #ff2167;"><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Links~ </span></i></span></b></div>
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<b>A Million Suns by Beth Revis <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595145370/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1595145370" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ERIS80/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005ERIS80" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10345927-a-million-suns" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div>
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<b>The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0545424925/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0545424925" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0096T5P7O/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0096T5P7O" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13449693-the-raven-boys" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div>
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<b>Defiance by C.J. Redwine <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062117181/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0062117181" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007HB7Y2W/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007HB7Y2W" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11410430-defiance" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div>
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<b>Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1402784031/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=lcsadvinlib-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1402784031" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9284655-tiger-s-curse" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<span style="color: #6d44d4; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Please leave me links to your book hauls below so I can stop by and check them out!</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><b><span style="color: #28ff85;">❤</span><span style="color: #28d5ff;">❤</span><span style="color: #ffa628;">❤</span><span style="color: #ff28bc;">Happy Reading Everyone!</span><span style="color: #28ff85;">❤</span><span style="color: #28d5ff;">❤</span><span style="color: #ffa628;">❤</span></b></i></span></div>
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Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-41025982884656682802012-12-05T18:13:00.000-05:002012-12-18T20:16:51.251-05:00Book Review: Rapture<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFyyotvQ4CwI2J4kvxAGdn83g5QZcsW2JcwqHSwKEpkWxlfjev0EFDDMWQD372gbjNdrhU6GAKpHK6HnD1vbvR-pILkwnsb-xhoLzt1LDU-0RENiA9K5NfWqPukFubqT3-5WSV9tuSX0/s1600/Rapture+Lauren+Kate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFyyotvQ4CwI2J4kvxAGdn83g5QZcsW2JcwqHSwKEpkWxlfjev0EFDDMWQD372gbjNdrhU6GAKpHK6HnD1vbvR-pILkwnsb-xhoLzt1LDU-0RENiA9K5NfWqPukFubqT3-5WSV9tuSX0/s320/Rapture+Lauren+Kate.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Author:</b></span> Lauren Kate<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Series:</b></span> Fallen #4 <br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Publisher:</b></span> Delacorte Press<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Release Date:</b></span> June 12, 2012<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Pages:</b></span> 448<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Source:</b></span> The library<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Read it in:</b></span> 3 days <br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Summary:</b></span> <span id="freeText17456936875628041963">The sky is dark with wings....<br /><br />Like
sand through an hourglass, time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To
stop Lucifer from erasing the past, they must find the place where the
angels fell to earth.<br /><br />Dark forces are after them, and Daniel
doesn’t know if he can do this — live only to lose Luce again and again.
Yet together they face an epic battle that will end with lifeless
bodies...and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are
destroyed.<br /><br />And suddenly Luce knows what must happen. For she was
meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has
always and only been about her — and the love she cast aside. The choice
she makes now is the only one that truly matters.<br /><br />In the fight for Luce, who will win?<br /><br /><i>Rapture</i> is the astonishing conclusion to the <i>Fallen</i> series. Heaven can’t wait any longer.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><i><b><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span>LC's Take:</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">The epic conclusion to the <i>Fallen</i> series by Lauren Kate. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">And by epic, I mean the following:</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">1.) </span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Totally ridiculous</span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">2.) </span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Painfully cliche</span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">3.) </span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">LOL hilarious for all the wrong reasons</span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">4.) Convoluted beyond all human reasoning</span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">5.) Inexplicably addicting in a *slightly* unsettling yet delightful kind of way</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Yep, it's been a looooooong time coming for this one guys. <i>Fallen</i> was the first book I ever read and reviewed on <i>LC's Adventures in Libraryland</i> so you might say I have a bit of a soft spot for it-- but that doesn't mean I won't respectfully rip it to shreds where needs be. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">OK, so let's just get right into it. Now, after three ranting reviews for the previous 3 books where I gripe at length about this series, a lot of you are probably wondering why the heck I even bothered with the last one. Well, my relationship with <i>Fallen</i> is complicated. I love it and hate it at the same time. The main characters are beyond aggravating, the dialogue is so cheesy you have to wonder what planet they're from where people <i>actually</i> talk like that, the romance is completely dysfunctional, and I lost track of the plot about 800 pages ago. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">So. My reasons for reading this book? </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">A.) Figure out what the flying fig newton all of this has been leading up to </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">B.) See if Luce becomes less of a brain-dead idiot and Daniel becomes less of an ass-hat, and </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">C.) Find out if the entire series could be redeemed by some miracle in the last installment. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">~Brief Summary~</span></b></span></div>
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">I'm going to try and not give away any spoilers for those of you who are just dying to read this series or haven't finished it yet, but here is the gist of things: Luce and Daniel have been falling in love, over and over again in every lifetime, for thousands of years. Daniel is a fallen angel and Luce is just a normal girl-- except for the fact that in every lifetime she ends up bursting into flames the minute Daniel and she kiss. Bummer, right? So in the last book, Luce went back in time through a bunch of her past lives to figure out why she and Daniel are cursed and try to fix things. Along the way, she met this little gargoyle named "Bill" who was shady as f*** and who turned out to be the devil in disguise [Note: This really wasn't that big of a surprise-- it was actually pretty predictable-- so I don't feel bad about giving that much away]. And now good ol' Lucifer has plans to basically wipe out the last 7,000 years of human history because Luce didn't destroy her soul at the end of Book 3. (Why does the Father-of-All-Evil have it out against Luce and Daniel? Beats the crap out of me-- none of this was explained until about the last half of the final book...) So, in <i>Rapture</i>, Luce, Daniel, and their other angel friends have NINE DAYS to find out where the original Fall of angels took place when God threw them out of Heaven, effectively stopping Lucifer from carrying out his diabolical plans to destroy life as we know it. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Confused yet? Join the club. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963" style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b>~Three Things I Liked (sort of)~ </b></span></span></div>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><br /></span>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">So first off, I have to say, there were aspects to <i>Rapture</i> that pleasantly surprised me; even <i>impressed</i> me in how well they were done--you know, compared to the craptastic first three books. So let's start off with the positives:</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">1.)</span></b></span> The descriptive language was good. Like, <i>really</i> good. For all the ick I find in these books, I have to hand it to LK, she is pretty talented when it comes to providing readers with rich, vivid descriptions of the scenes playing out-- and <i>Rapture</i> more than any other book in this series is a testament to her ability to do this. Kudos on the scene-setting Lauren, it really was beautiful.</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">2.)</span></b></span> There was FINALLY a sense of urgency in the plot that was completely missing from the last three books. <i>Fallen, Torment</i>, and <i>Passion</i> were not only painfully slow but they seemed to be going absolutely nowhere. By the end of the third book, I was so flipping confused I had a headache. But <i>Rapture</i> managed to capture my attention because it had a direction-- <i>things happened and things were explained</i>. Was it a water-tight plot? Not so much, but thank the Good Lord Almighty, there was at least <i>action</i>!</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">3.) </span></b></span>I can't rave <i>too</i> much about this because it was only a slight improvement, but both Daniel and Luce were *marginally* more likable in this book than in any of the previous ones. What I could NOT stand about these books was the totally unbelievable and dysfunctional relationship between Luce, the desperately-clingy and dumb-as-a-rock female character, and Daniel, the chauvinistic jerk-wad who constantly belittles and pushes her around. This was ever-so-minutely improved in this book, BUT I still have plenty to say about how sucky the two of them are overall, so stay tuned. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">OK so those are the good things about <i>Rapture</i>-- three things that resulted in my three-star rating. Now onto the fun part!</span> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">~Ten Things That Sucked~</span></b></span></div>
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So what didn't I like about <i>Rapture</i>? I've already elaborated at length about the many aspects of this series that made me want to knock my head against a wall-- repeatedly-- so I'll spare you and say that if you're really that interested, go check out my past three reviews. But more specific to <i>this</i> book and how the entire series wrapped up, here are my thoughts on the parts that seriously blew:<br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">1.)</span></b></span> According to this story, Luce and Daniel's love is <i>the</i> most epic, mind-blowing, knock-your-socks-off love ever to exist. The very beginning of good and evil all originated because of their love. The fate of Earth and all human history basically comes down to them. BUT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD <i>WHY???</i> I <i>still</i> have no idea. <i>WHY</i> is the love between Luce and Daniel so stinking profound that everyone and everything hangs in the balance because of it, and legions of angels are willing to fight and die over it? There is absolutely NOTHING exceptional about either Luce or Daniel-- they are in fact pretty darned boring-- and their relationship is beyond mundane. In the <i>entire length</i> of this series, not ONCE have I found anything remotely grand or real about Luce and Daniel's "love." Not once did I go, "Aww they're so cute!" or "Shucks, I hope I find someone that dreamy someday." On the contrary, they're both hopelessly self-absorbed and their relationship is at the best of times awkward, bland and generic, and at the worst of times abusive, dysfunctional, and in dire need of Dr. Phil. </span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><br /></span>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">2.)</span></b></span> Luce was the same pathetically useless, boring, and wimpy lump of oatmeal that she has been throughout the whole series-- I could see where LK was trying for some character development in this last book where Luce finally gained a backbone-- but honestly it just didn't happen. There were parts in this book where Luce was <i>so</i> freaking pathetic that I wanted to slap her across the face and scream, "<i>What is WRONG with you?!</i>" Here are some examples that nearly sent me up in flames of rage:</span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><b>SCENE #1:</b> Luce and
Daniel are going after one of the ancient relics they need to find out
the location of the Fall from Heaven, and Luce has to swim under water
to get to it because it's in a sunken cathedral. Well Daniel can't go
into the cathedral because it's sacred ground and he's a fallen angel,
so he stands guard outside of it to make sure Luce is OK. But THEN he
swims away and just leaves her there. <i>Sh-yeah! LEAVES HER THERE UNDER WATER IN A FLIPPING CATHEDRAL TO DROWN. </i>So Luce-- the girl Daniel supposedly would risk Heaven and Earth for-- <i>nearly dies</i>
because Ass-hat Daniel abandons her. And when she makes it back up to
the surface and tries to ask where the heck he went, this is how it goes
down:</span> </span><br />
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<blockquote>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"What happened to you?" [Luce] cried. "I almost--"</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"Luce," he [Daniel] warned. "shhh."</span> <br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"> ~p.91</span></blockquote>
Whoa, whoa, hold the phone. <span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Are you <i>freaking kidding me?</i> The girl is trying to find out why her boyfriend almost let her drown and he's telling her to "shhhh"?!? </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">I'm pretty sure that makes him the biggest butt-face known to man, but of course, Luce being Luce, she let's it slide and doesn't seem to be at all miffed by the fact that Daniel abandoned her underwater to fend for herself and almost <i>die</i>. No biggie right? </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><b>SCENE #2:</b> Near the end of the book, Cam (who happens to be one of the only likable characters in this series) goes to talk to Luce and sort of smooth over their rocky past. All Luce can do is practically have a brain aneurysm because she's freaked that Daniel is going to see another guy talking to her. <i>Heaven flipping forbid. </i></span><br />
<blockquote>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"She wanted to leave. What if Daniel looked over and saw her in this dim cave with Cam? They were arguing, but Daniel wouldn't be able to tell that from a distance. What did they look like, she and Cam?"</span> ~p.319<br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"> </span></blockquote>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Now, let me make this clear-- there was <i>nothing</i> shady going on between Luce and Cam, this was a totally platonic conversation they're having-- and Luce is scared to death that her psycho-jealous angel bf is going to flip a crap if he sees her with Cam. There's something majorly wrong with this, no? </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><b>SCENE #3:</b> This was my favorite-- I was reading this and just wanted to set the book down and start a slow-clap for Luce after this:</span><br />
<blockquote>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"Now, tell me who you are." [Daniel speaking]</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"Well... I'm Lucinda Price. I'm the girl you fell in love with."</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Daniel's violet eyes filled with tears. He whispered: "More."</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">"Isn't that enough?"</span> ~p.327 </blockquote>
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">Really Luce? Really? <i>Isn't that enough?</i> Why are you such a pathetic loser? How is it that after this entire time you still have about as much self-confidence and identity as a ball of lint? The fact is that up to the last few pages of this series, Lucinda Price is still <u>absolutely nothing</u> without a guy to fawn over, and she sees herself as having no value beyond what that guy thinks of her. It's just sad. And makes me want to wring her neck to be quite honest. "Isn't that enough..." GAWD!!</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">3.)</span></b></span> While we're on the subject of how cray-cray Luce and Daniel's "relationship" is, another thing that really bothered me was the fact that there was absolutely no true feeling or passion between them. <i>Nada</i>. Which is nuts, considering that one of the books was titled <i>"PASSION"</i> and their love for each other is supposedly off the charts. But no-- the heat-factor was somewhere between tepid and 1950's-style frigid. There is one point where Luce is embarrassed to tears just standing in front of Daniel in her underwear. What the crap?! This is the guy you've been madly in love with over and over again for thousands of years, who you're willing to lose everything for, and very well might, you potentially have nine days left to be together-- and you don't do <i>anything</i>. I'm pretty sure that any normal human being with blood pumping through their veins in the same situation would be getting it on like bunny rabbits, but the only thing we get out of Luce and Daniel are a few totally lame kisses that were about as sexy as a lima bean casserole and dialogue that was so awkward, <i>I</i> felt embarrassed for them. Their relationship was completely artificial and I was not once convinced that they truly loved one another. End of story.</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">4.)</span></b></span> There is pretty much no continuity in the writing, or the plot, or the characters. In <i>anything</i>. Seriously. Go back to <i>Fallen</i> where we started out in a reform school in rural Georgia, and I have no idea how we got from Point A to Point B. It's like they aren't even in the same series. Yes Luce and Daniel were slight improvements in this book, but they acted nothing like they have throughout the rest of the books. This makes me think that the author really had no idea where the story was going so she had to fudge everything as she went. Maybe that's a jerky thing of me to say, but that's just how it came across. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">5.)</span></b></span> LK killed off one of the only likable and semi-intelligent characters in the book. I won't say who, but dude really?! Couldn't you have killed off Luce instead lol.... <i>just kidding</i>. Kind of. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">6.)</span></b></span> The ASPARTAME.... in diet soda..... was created by GOD..... and it has magical properties to HEAL ANGELS. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">I-- my God, I have no words. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">I swear I'm not making this up.</span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">7.)</span></b></span> When you get right down to it, the plot still made absolute ZERO sense. Lucifer, the Creator of Evil, is planning to re-create the Original Fall, so that he can effectively wipe out 7,000 years of human history, and it all boils down to the love between Luce and Daniel. OK, um... <i>what??</i> How, why, and what the hell does this have to do with anything? I'm sorry but <i>I</i></span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><i>. Just. Didn't. Get. It</i>. I mean at times I thought I was catching on, but to be perfectly honest with you, I could not explain the course of action and how it unfolded or <i>why</i> it unfolded the way it did to save my life, probably because it was <i>EFFING CONFUSING AS HELL</i>. And <i>nothing</i> was ever clearly explained. The whole thing about a "key angel" tipping the scales between Heaven and Hell, the reasoning behind Luce and Daniel's "romance" and how it set everything in motion, just everything was so convoluted and off-the-wall nuts. I don't know, maybe I'm just a total idiot, so please, if you are a semi-intelligent person who actually understood what the hell was going on from Book 1 to Book 4, please leave me a point-by-point explanation in the comments-- I would greatly appreciate it. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">8.)</span></b></span> I cannot tell you how many times the other supporting characters talk about Luce as though she's freaking </span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span class="st">Daenerys </span></span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span class="st"><span class="st">Targaryen</span></span> on steroids. And I, of course, just couldn't help but shake my head and laugh, because they're all like, "Oh Luce, you are <i>such</i> a strong person! So tough, so brave!" And I'm thinking, did you <i>see</i> Luce in the last three books? Are we talking about the same person?? Are you guys drunk? She's a total idiot! There is absolutely <i>nothing</i> about her that is strong or brave and if I ever came to be as pathetically attached to an a-hole boyfriend as she is, I would probably go jump off a cliff. Luce brave, yeah <i>OK</i> Lauren, nice try. It doesn't matter how many times you have your cast singing praises about Luce being Wonder Woman, you can't take a totally bland and unexceptional character who has "Mary Sue" written all over her and try to make her sound like a Mensa-acing Navy Seal just by having everyone else say that she is. Her actions were not smart or brave, just clueless and sad. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">9.)</span></b></span> The dialogue. Holy crap, it was <i>painful</i>. Like, I don't know how the book went through to publishing with some of this hockey dialogue. Cheesy is the understatement of the century, it was just that bad. Half the time the (teenage) characters talk like they're straight out of 1842 and the other half is soppy back-and-forths between Luce and Daniel that were so stinking awkward I was <i>cringing</i>. The villain dialogue was equally hilarious, and while it provided me with a few laughs, it did nothing for the rest of the story. </span><br />
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><br /></span>
<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">10.)</span></b></span> OMG the ending. It was so unbelievable cheesy and sooooo lame and anticlimactic, I don't even know where to begin. But here was what I loved most about it-- remember how I said that the plot was insanely confusing and I had no idea how LK was going to wrap things up? Well get this, because I have to admit it was totally brilliant: GOD Himself comes onto the scene and yells, "<i>ENOUGH!</i>" and all major action stops, and then we get about 25 more pages to quietly explain away any other major complications. I swear to you, I am not making this up, THAT is how the whole series and all its conflicts and convoluted loose ends were neatly tied. Well played, LK, well played. That was quite the crafty move to wrap up this humdinger of a series. </span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">So, final verdict? Well, believe it or not after all this ranting, it actually wasn't as bad as it could've been. I'm glad I finished the books and got to see where
everything ended up, even though I still have no idea how or why anything happened the way it did. There were parts to this book and the series overall that were good, but in the end it just didn't deliver. Entertaining, yes. Good writing with good story and interesting characters, hell to the freaking no.</span></span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">**Final note-- and THIS IS <u>HIGHLY</u> IMPORTANT!! Also, highly immature and inappropriate. You have been warned. I need to throw out a big thanks to <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/36307-skb" target="_blank">SKB</a> on Goodreads, who is a total girl genius, for her invaluable tip on reading these books-- and I'm going to pass her secret on to you guys so that you can enjoy them infinitely more as well, </span></span><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">because it is flipping brilliant</span></span> and I love you: Every time you read the word "wings" in this series, replace it with "balls." I promise you, it will have you rolling on the ground in tears laughing. </span></span><br />
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963"><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">You're welcome :)</span> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><span id="freeText17456936875628041963">~Cover Talk~</span></b></span></div>
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<span id="freeText17456936875628041963">I definitely love the final cover in this series. It's dark and ominous, but very beautiful at the same time. I love how the softness of Luce's dress stands out against the jagged rocks, and even though the colors are mainly gray and black, it still catches your eye. I think it also goes back to the super dramatic and Gothic cover of the first book-- <i>Fallen's</i> cover will still remain my absolute favorite. I only wish I could take the actual story inside as seriously as I do these gorgeous book covers! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span id="freeText17456936875628041963" style="font-size: large;">LC's Rating: </span></b></i></span></div>
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<blockquote>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Its been a long and bumpy road with the <i>Fallen</i> series, but <i>Rapture</i> managed to pull it off and end things on a fairly positive note. Yes, there were nearly a dozen things that really annoyed me, but overall <i>Rapture</i> made for a good ending to an otherwise very confusing and frustrating series.</b></div>
</blockquote>
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Yes, I am sure that a few of you have been wondering that :)<br />
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Well, a lot of crazy things have been going on in my life lately, and as much as I have wanted to keep up with reading, reviewing, blogging, and designing, and without going into all the gory details, it just hasn't been possible for the past couple of months. Bummer, I know.<br />
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<u>BUT!</u> Good news is-- I DO plan on getting back onto a semi-regular blogging schedule, complete with new reviews, new memes, new blog designs, and of course new V-LOGS too!! WooHoo! :D<br />
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...And today I wanted to kick things off with a brand new <span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">D</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">S</span><span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">I</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">G</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">N</span><b> </b>that I have been hard at work on with a wonderful book blogger who goes by the name of Alice Belikova from <b><a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Rotten Apple Reviews</a></b>. So Alice has a really sweet book blog, and while she had a rotten apple theme going on to begin with, she really wanted to take things in a whole new direction-- <u>with a Snow White theme!</u><br />
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So of course when I heard this, I rolled up my sleeves and was like, "YES!! Let's do this!!" Here are some of the things Alice really wanted in a blog makeover:<br />
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1.) It had to be light and fun, but also a little more soft and elegant than her current design.<br />
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2.) Sticking with the whole "rotten apple" theme, she wanted her version of Snow White to be shown right after biting into the poison apple, and there had to be books incorporated into the header as well (so that visitors could easily tell it was a book blog of course!)<br />
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3.) She wanted traditional Snow White colors of <b><span style="color: #0b5394;">blue</span></b>, <b><span style="color: #e06666;">red</span></b>, and <b><span style="color: #f1c232;">yellow</span></b> but she wanted the color scheme to be softer and more muted-- basically a little easier on the eyes.<br />
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4.) Layout was very important! Rotten Apple Reviews had A LOT going on in the old layout, so new organization into a neat, easily readable format was key.<br />
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SO! With all that, I went to work on a brand new blog design for Rotten Apple Reviews-- starting with the header, I sketched out a version of Snow White and incorporated her into a "cut-out" type style. You may have seen how I do this in previous design posts, but here is a screenshot of me working on Alice's new header:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw1RoE0PdXcm_CJ2M17FcN3NYL-S-uvGvBSEzQWROiJ1ei5qq5y3lzxjZgILcpelTIENMVldKkGM5Y445M8zj9g3lES4kFThnRYTxscCFcmhnbuahvtaQe-s0LPqv1qvzM21izHVSb4fE/s1600/Alice+DRAFT+in+GIMP.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw1RoE0PdXcm_CJ2M17FcN3NYL-S-uvGvBSEzQWROiJ1ei5qq5y3lzxjZgILcpelTIENMVldKkGM5Y445M8zj9g3lES4kFThnRYTxscCFcmhnbuahvtaQe-s0LPqv1qvzM21izHVSb4fE/s640/Alice+DRAFT+in+GIMP.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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Alice also ordered a few extras, such as Custom Post Signature, Custom Rating System, and Basic Post Dividers. Here are the before and after pics of the Rotten Apple Reviews Makeover!!<br />
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Before~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTV-UpSLSiG8XiMh_MMnjVkmvtTiWcsfrJgRoaVpenbadwFZ3nEl4MAU9TL_oDoePzSCdSme6721r85YrJNz0P3cokMwNVhM0ygDl-HtD2bhn1ZcXqH_1j_HZIJTq7XHB8M_Gz-768anI/s1600/Lamecia+OLD+Design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTV-UpSLSiG8XiMh_MMnjVkmvtTiWcsfrJgRoaVpenbadwFZ3nEl4MAU9TL_oDoePzSCdSme6721r85YrJNz0P3cokMwNVhM0ygDl-HtD2bhn1ZcXqH_1j_HZIJTq7XHB8M_Gz-768anI/s640/Lamecia+OLD+Design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~After!~</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwVruanPdS_I467vPVbTsFjl0SAWzyDZT9YHzIFe9GJiR_Vz2rnX3Fsm77fscCSKjh51jXPU37JT4AJChtDkrbTgePzxbHpsO66X_y845OdyH_GzPE04xvW0nsnZEJkR6shD5M7MgCc14/s640/Lamecia+NEW+design.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, we really toned down the colors to make it softer and more elegant, and if you go to <b><a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">the live blog</a></b>, you can see all the apple-themed details we added in. I am SO happy with how the design turned out, and the layout is now much easier to follow as well!<br />
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<a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFGgfMHVibuSwlvic79exK3cAMG2HyzrTAEHXkmdpasn1S1SG_odk-PkI-yk5T_ZZxSsDjM7cDXbewakPFsD4NSyMdcnz6iirorjJdXeLS19Dx3XmYqVe-cjlePYhVSV1bF2EtELB4etM/s320/reached+ally+condie.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<blockquote>
<----- I REALLY hope you will stop on over to Alice's blog at <b><a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Rotten Apple Reviews</a></b> by clicking on the NEW DESIGN IMAGE ABOVE or by clicking on her blog link-- ESPECIALLY since she is having an awesome GIVEWAY in celebration of her new look!! Yep, Alice will be giving away <b>ONE (1) SIGNED COPY</b> of Reached (Matched #3) by Ally Condie! Sweet deal right?!</blockquote>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Grab a Button!~ </i></b></span></div>
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And while you're add it, be sure to grab one of Alice's new blog buttons as well for your collections-- find the grab code below!
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<a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1320.photobucket.com/albums/u534/Alicebelikova/Lamecia%20Blog%20Design/GrabButton.png" width="200" /></a> </div>
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<textarea cols="20" rows="6"><a href="http://rottenapplereads.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1320.photobucket.com/albums/u534/Alicebelikova/Lamecia%20Blog%20Design/GrabButton.png" width="200"/></a></textarea></form>
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*****
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-90751188334720285512012-09-27T16:04:00.000-04:002012-09-27T16:26:21.041-04:00New Book Blog Design! Mostly YA Book Obsessed<br />
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<img src="http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a611/nereydagonzalez1003/Nereyda%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON_zps971dde1f.png" width="220" />
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<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/LCDesignsGRABBUTTON-1.png" width="200" /></a>
...Aaaand it is <span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">D</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">S</span><span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">I</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">G</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">N</span><b> </b>time again my lovely book bloggers! Despite being M.I.A. for the past few weeks, I have been trying to stay on top of my busy blog design schedule, and I am SO flipping excited to show you guys the latest completed design I did for Nereyda at her blog <b><a href="http://www.mostlyyabookobsessed.com/" target="_blank">Mostly YA Book Obsessed</a></b>!
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Nereyda is actually the first person I've had who came to me just wanting a new custom header and grab button-- usually people want an entire blog makeover, but Nereyda had actually just had her site re-designed and only wanted to have a brand-new header/button combo to make her blog really stand out.<br />
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Well as you guys probably know by now, my specialty is creating <b><span style="color: #ff306b;">custom-drawn</span></b>, <b><span style="color: #00abda;">one-of-a-kind vector illustrations</span></b>. I use these in all my custom graphic headers, buttons, and meme badges and they are ALL <b><span style="color: #ffa107;">made to order</span></b>, created exactly to your specifications :) Nereyda wanted to have a girl with pink hair as the focus of her blog header-- similar to the one she had been using in her Blogger profile (which unfortunately I don't have to show you) and then she also wanted her to be wearing a tiara and dress and there would be a stack of books somewhere too...<br />
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SO here is the final result of Nereyda's all-new header and grab button! I am SO so so incredibly happy with how it turned out, and am a **little** jealous that I can't have this be my blog header haha :D Let me know what you guys think in the comments below!<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Header~ </span></b></i></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.mostlyyabookobsessed.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsXoeaxfWo1eQuJBCDAqLV0dn7K8zjcGBK47a8R69XPisE5Klrrn96iQ-DZb2xcc67q09h_3hFovufZ3JONQpd2CoNMr41E1E6bgCy30hruXFKWa43R2QiSQlylAkT33Wh5GVAXYU7ZiY/s640/Header3.png" width="640" /></a>
<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></b></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Grab Button~ </span></b></i></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.mostlyyabookobsessed.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a611/nereydagonzalez1003/Nereyda%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON_zps971dde1f.png" width="220" /></a> </div>
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<textarea cols="20" rows="6"><a href="http://www.mostlyyabookobsessed.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a611/nereydagonzalez1003/Nereyda%20Blog%20Design/GRABBUTTON_zps971dde1f.png" width="200"/></a></textarea></form>
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">What It Looks Like on Her Blog!</span></b></i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwE_LCsKpFPdN5MkhgbYCs8Bo2nocDrXkhlySvQISGM1uxsy83XgpZhYFpnA86p_pnR4HNBuFfAdXq7TrUozhhccA01k4dvyltqwzhI2BrZ4caFYrQwsB8ifbSMWVVDtF42AUOhyphenhypheniqbhk/s1600/nereyda+new+design.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwE_LCsKpFPdN5MkhgbYCs8Bo2nocDrXkhlySvQISGM1uxsy83XgpZhYFpnA86p_pnR4HNBuFfAdXq7TrUozhhccA01k4dvyltqwzhI2BrZ4caFYrQwsB8ifbSMWVVDtF42AUOhyphenhypheniqbhk/s640/nereyda+new+design.bmp" width="640" /></a></div>
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<blockquote>
AND GUESS WHAT?! Nereyda is hosting an awesome <span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>GIVEAWAY</b></span></span> on her blog right now in celebration of her new blog design! Be sure to stop on over by <b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.mostlyyabookobsessed.com/2012/09/blog-makeover-and-giveaway.html" target="_blank">CLICKING HERE</a></span></b> to enter! :) </blockquote>
*****</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />
Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-87183956187459804702012-09-26T15:42:00.002-04:002012-09-26T15:42:26.901-04:00Book Blog Makeover! I'm a Book Shark<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/LCDesignsGRABBUTTON-1.png" /></a>Hello everyone!! So today I have an all-new <span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">M</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">A</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">K</span><span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">O</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">V</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">R</span><b> </b>to show you guys-- one that was a long time in the making due to my crazy schedule and some technical difficulties, but nonetheless it still turned out pretty awesome! Today's blog design was done for Mickey from <i><a href="http://www.imabookshark.com/" target="_blank"><b>I'm a Book Shark</b></a>...</i><br />
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So Mickey's old blog design was definitely cute, but she really wanted it to be updated and re-vamped. She loved the colors in her old design (teal and purple) and she also still liked the girl character in her header, but overall the whole thing just needed a little bit of love and some tweaks to make it fresh and new :) We both worked together on a design that had some similarities to her old one, but would still have a totally new and updated look for her site-- see the results of Mickey's Book Blog Makoever below!<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: large;"><b><i>Before**</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVM1FHGh8upfOF4KzjbxiHDRUJFbacTkqi5zCZmAMaPONCydD7CrxomuxVVT9mg1h8u3NjR-ux7Jhn8N_abMRMCPz5x54zYW3BUOA_AKAZjMOe7N0gybCbNt_S-kqi03eLtWpbbbiJdgk/s1600/MICKEY+OLD+DESIGN.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVM1FHGh8upfOF4KzjbxiHDRUJFbacTkqi5zCZmAMaPONCydD7CrxomuxVVT9mg1h8u3NjR-ux7Jhn8N_abMRMCPz5x54zYW3BUOA_AKAZjMOe7N0gybCbNt_S-kqi03eLtWpbbbiJdgk/s640/MICKEY+OLD+DESIGN.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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**NOTE: Unfortunately, I totally forgot to take a screen shot of Mickey's old design before I installed the new one (**slaps forehead**), which I always do so that I can show you guys the before and after pics-- clearly the above picture isn't Mickey's actual site, but the template is the same as the one she had before, so you get the idea of what it looked like :)<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>After!</i></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz62AmYeMNRfFLB0MgYuoksFssQ0NbLwJOPZ5UlV9KSPgdJEvXK9R02C4u8sFTeltEmw2j127KoaYXey-mi4yVMA_sx_xOKcAsCw31P_fGm1abBiXwjKtZQOU3eJkxZvLW8oyvvYIraNA/s1600/MICKEY+NEW+DESIGN.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz62AmYeMNRfFLB0MgYuoksFssQ0NbLwJOPZ5UlV9KSPgdJEvXK9R02C4u8sFTeltEmw2j127KoaYXey-mi4yVMA_sx_xOKcAsCw31P_fGm1abBiXwjKtZQOU3eJkxZvLW8oyvvYIraNA/s640/MICKEY+NEW+DESIGN.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, we kept a lot of similar elements in Mickey's new design-- she really wanted her site to still be familiar and recognizable to her followers, so we didn't go too crazy with changing things. However, I did draw her a brand-new vector girl reading a book and listening to her music, and a stack of books that matched the design's color theme. I also wanted to sort of "lighten up" the whole look, so I added the lavender and white striped background. The finished look was similar enough to the old one that you can still tell it's Mickey's blog, but there are also plenty of fresh new updates as well!<br />
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I am super happy with how Mickey's makeover turned out! What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments below, and also be sure to stop on over to <a href="http://www.imabookshark.com/" target="_blank"><b>I'm A Book Shark</b></a> to say hey to Mickey and let her know what you think of the new design!<br />
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<span style="color: #df01a5; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Grab a Button!~</i></b></span></div>
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<center>
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<a href="http://www.imabookshark.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1256.photobucket.com/albums/ii481/imabookshark/Mickey%20Blog%20Design/8328b72e.png" /></a> </div>
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<textarea cols="20" rows="6"><a href="http://www.imabookshark.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1256.photobucket.com/albums/ii481/imabookshark/Mickey%20Blog%20Design/8328b72e.png"/></a></textarea></form>
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*****</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div>
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />
Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-86580479957280872912012-09-18T16:57:00.002-04:002012-09-18T18:02:26.900-04:00Update!Hello everyone!<br />
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So, clearly I have sucked at blogging lately. Not that I was ever on a regular posting schedule to begin with, but I do try to post at least 3 times a week, with at least 1 book review in the mix as well. So I just wanted to write a brief update on why I have been M.I.A. for the past few weeks and to let you know that I haven't disappeared completely! Basically September is an extremely busy month for me at the library (for those who don't know, I'm a librarian) and I've been running around like crazy lately. It seems that at the end of each day, despite my best efforts, I look something like this:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE1Ctv99U38LnAjwt6hqX5e6rrOTuCXcj0mPqd4TsQjH4b093sqU3l9C7kp2yRNxJ0LOgZateYSsrpA_5ufejS1Mh0LpWjTkcWuo2B9PwkfbA6mAnT1sG5mSXbbGXYMdkKjYb-OI47cJo/s1600/Sleepy-kitty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE1Ctv99U38LnAjwt6hqX5e6rrOTuCXcj0mPqd4TsQjH4b093sqU3l9C7kp2yRNxJ0LOgZateYSsrpA_5ufejS1Mh0LpWjTkcWuo2B9PwkfbA6mAnT1sG5mSXbbGXYMdkKjYb-OI47cJo/s400/Sleepy-kitty.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Add in some fun personal drama, a weird but temporary living situation, job hunting, and well-- it just hasn't been very easy to post like I used to.<br />
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With that being said, I do plan on getting the ball rolling again with my blog, because I feel bad for slacking. I know it's a pretty big downer when you visit someone's blog and they haven't posted in nearly a month, so I'm going to try to get things going again as soon as the September crazies are over. I have a HUGE list of books I'm dying to start in on, and also two blog tours coming up in November. Plus I'm still working (sporadically) on my book blog designs, so I will have a few new makeovers to show soon as well.<br />
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Love all you guys and I hope to talk to you soon!!<br />
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-10660637038516471702012-09-06T20:56:00.000-04:002012-09-06T20:56:23.168-04:00Cover Reveal! Through These Wicked NightsHello to all my lovely readers! Today I am so excited to be giving you the cover reveal for the latest book out by my good friend and fellow blogger, <span style="color: #5f04b4;"><b>Pixie Lynn Whitfield</b></span>. If you haven't checked out her blog yet, be sure to find the link below!<br />
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<i>Through These Wicked Nights</i> is the second book in Pixie's action-packed Paranormal/Urban Fantasy trilogy called <i>The Guardians of the Night</i>. Back in April I featured the cover reveal for <i>Darkness Comes This Way</i> and I hope you will all add this exciting, fabulous debut series to your To-Be-Read lists! Check out the details below, and there is also a link to Goodreads :)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIvhyphenhyphenxTLR-J_hyphenhyphenVmWrlT5txFBzYeMgugXUeBsjekHwKZ1QRBdQ9aW_nnM4TfVQHKSFwr8D0hQN5PbRY3s3_PkGT49cuMKGd6aRZJ4-I4Ulh3AeA1nTUmB0IK4n92KwSz_BRBv8iAZw7SY/s1600/ThroughTheseWickedNights-Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIvhyphenhyphenxTLR-J_hyphenhyphenVmWrlT5txFBzYeMgugXUeBsjekHwKZ1QRBdQ9aW_nnM4TfVQHKSFwr8D0hQN5PbRY3s3_PkGT49cuMKGd6aRZJ4-I4Ulh3AeA1nTUmB0IK4n92KwSz_BRBv8iAZw7SY/s400/ThroughTheseWickedNights-Cover.jpg" style="border: 5px solid #3B3B3B; padding: 0px;" width="350" /></a></div><span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Author:</b></span> Pixie Lynn Whitfield<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Series:</b></span> The Guardians of the Night #2<br />
<span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Expected Release Date:</b></span> January 8, 2013<br />
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<blockquote><span style="color: #351c75;"><b>Summary:</b></span> The world isn’t the same anymore. Not since humans discovered vampires are real. Zarah and her new team of Guardians barely escaped and are in hiding. What once was her job of protecting them, now she is stuck cowering away as a new threat emerges from the humans: Hunters. War is approaching. To add to her list of growing problems, a group of Fallen have been living in The Compound. Seth is one she can't seem to resist. He teaches her a lot about the side of her she's never known about until recently. Draven has grown cold and distant again since the battle with Nathanial, and she is left feeling conflicted. These are the least of her worries though. Something else is up. A video is discovered with a shocking revelation, and Zarah has a feeling things are about to go haywire.<br />
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Everything is crashing down around her. If she doesn't do something soon, they all will suffer the consequences. Even if it means destroying her beliefs and extinguishing what little compassion she has left.</blockquote><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Find Pixie!~</span></b></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: orange;"><a href="http://the-bookaholic.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Bookaholic</a></span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: yellow;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pixielynnbooks" target="_blank">Facebook</a></span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: lime;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://twitter.com/addiction2books" target="_blank">Twitter</a></span></b></span> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: cyan;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5782773.Pixie_Lynn_Whitfield" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></span></b></span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 3px solid rgb(105, 101, 101); margin-left: 20px; padding: 8px;"><div style="background-color: #48b5eb; padding: 15px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NqrUf2WVhRM/T4mAeKIuoBI/AAAAAAAACQY/e4CRqZH_vkg/s320/pixie%2Blynn%2Bwhitfield%2Bauthor.jpg" style="border: 7px solid black; padding: 0px;" width="191" /></div></div><b>About the Author:</b> Pixie Lynn Whitfield uses three names because she likes to be a little extra spunky. Not really. Underneath it all, she’s just a little short geek who loves to always have a nose in a book or learning about history. She’s lived in Texas her entire life, and despite her fear of flying, is determined to visit Ireland one day because it’s where all of her ancestors are from. Her father taught her how to read at the age of four, and it was all over from there. She’d known from that first “I do not like green eggs and ham” line that all she wanted out of life was to be a writer one day too. And when he started telling her ghost stories and true legends about Vlad the Impaler, etc. when she was six, she fell in love with the paranormal.<br />
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Pixie writes YA--Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, Dystopian, and some Horror. She used to write news articles, but never liked it much because she had no freedom to write to her heart’s desire.<br />
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Outside of writing and reading, she loves all things baseball and tennis, rock music/concerts, and blogging. She adores the book blogging community, having been a part of it herself for over a year now as well. Be sure to drop by her blog--she always enjoys making new friends and following others too!</div></div><br />
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-90177290118571065152012-08-27T16:06:00.003-04:002012-08-27T16:17:22.375-04:00Book Review: Cold Fury<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rT9hyijQ4wQ/UClw6TogwPI/AAAAAAAADh8/S7HmGq_1tao/s1600/cold%2Bfury%2Bt.m.%2Bgoeglein.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rT9hyijQ4wQ/UClw6TogwPI/AAAAAAAADh8/S7HmGq_1tao/s320/cold%2Bfury%2Bt.m.%2Bgoeglein.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><b style="color: #351c75;">Author:</b> T.M. Goeglein<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Series:</b> Cold Fury #1 <br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Publisher</b>: Putnam<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Release Date:</b> July 24, 2012<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Pages:</b> 313<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</b> 3 days<br />
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<div style="background-color: white; border: 3px solid rgb(105, 101, 101); margin-left: 20px; padding: 8px;"><div style="background-color: lightcyan; padding: 15px;"><b style="color: #351c75;">Summary: </b>Sara Jane Rispoli is a normal sixteen-year-old coping with school and a budding romance--until her parents and brother are kidnapped and she discovers her family is deeply embedded in the Chicago Outfit (aka the mob).<br />
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Now on the run from a masked assassin, rogue cops and her turncoat uncle, Sara Jane is chased and attacked at every turn, fighting back with cold fury as she searches for her family. It's a quest that takes her through concealed doors and forgotten speakeasies--a city hiding in plain sight. Though armed with a .45 and 96K in cash, an old tattered notebook might be her best defense--hidden in its pages the secret to "ultimate power." It's why she's being pursued, why her family was taken, and could be the key to saving all of their lives.<br />
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Action packed, with fresh, cinematic writing, Cold Fury is a riveting and imaginative adventure readers will devour.</div></div><br />
<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">LC's Take:</span></b></i></div><br />
<i>Cold Fury </i>was a book that I was really interested in reading because it sounded pretty much like nothing I had ever read before-- and let's be honest, it isn't very often that you see the Mafia coming up as a genre in YA fiction! So I knew that I had to give this one a try, especially since it looked like it was going to be an action-packed thriller that would be keeping me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end...<br />
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Now, don't get me wrong-- I did enjoy reading this one. However, I can't say that it turned out to be *quite* the crazy adrenaline-rush that I had been hoping for. It was still a really great book, but I had some issues with it-- which is unfortunate, since <i>Cold Fur</i>y did have many really good things going for it too.<br />
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First of all, I definitely liked Sara Jane as the main character. I thought she was a tough, kick-butt kind of character and she managed to have this great assertiveness about her without coming across as being cocky or overly aggressive. I loved that she was a boxer and knew how to fight but that she also had this whole girly thing going on too with her crush on Max. So points have to be given out to the main character in this book-- I thought she was strong, brave, and totally rocked.<br />
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Another thing about<i> Cold Fury</i> that I loved was that a lot of the writing was incredibly good-- case in point:<br />
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<div style="background-color: white; border: 3px solid rgb(105, 101, 101); margin-left: 20px; padding: 8px;"><div style="background-color: #f5d0a9; padding: 15px;"><i>"The recesses of a troubled brain at rest are terrible places because they have no boundaries-- no backward or forward or beginning or end. They are timeless, bottomless pits where a sleeping soul goes to sort out its worries and woes... The subconscious spins like an awful, haunted buzz saw. It turns faster and faster, ripping through the day's events, shredding forgotten memories, and slicing to bits all hope for the future." p. 128-9</i></div></div><br />
Some of the more reflective and descriptive writing in <i>Cold Fury</i> was amazing, and a lot of the action scenes were just as well done. T.M. Goeglein is one super-talented writer who stands out against many other YA authors I've read lately, so I have to gush a little about the awesome writing style in this book. The back of the cover described it as being "cinematic" and I absolutely have to agree-- you felt like you were right in the middle of a Mob movie during certain scenes!<br />
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So... when it comes down to it, my main issue with <i>Cold Fury</i> was the pacing-- it just did not work for me. The beginning was filled with lots of flashbacks and memories, then around page 100 some present-day action starts to take place, but then we're thrown a bunch of family history and super-lengthy explanations about the Mob, and it just really threw me off. I felt like things were all over the place-- we have Sara Jane on this hunt to find her family while being chased by this crazy Ski Mask guy, then there's a sub-plot going on at Sara's school with her crush Max and her outcast suicidal friend Doug, and then there's all of these flashbacks about boxing and backtracking to Sara's childhood... not to mention, the whole long-winded chapter explaining the Chicago Outfit-- AKA The Mafia-- and to be honest, some of it just seemed to drag a bit, pulling me away from the main action. So with the pacing, it seemed to start slow, then sped up, then it slows way down with tons of explanation, and then slams you back into the action again-- it just didn't flow very well in my opinion. <br />
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<i>Cold Fury</i> was one of those books that I have a hard time putting a rating on, because there were aspects to it that I really liked and others that fell flat for me. On one hand, I loved the main character, the writing was really great, and I thought that the plot that centered on a girl from a Mafia family was really unique. Unfortunately, I also felt like there was just way too much back-tracking, Mafia history, and explanations-- and not enough action. It's not that I didn't find these things interesting, but they majorly slowed the plot down to a crawl in some spots and made it really difficult for me to stay invested in what was going on. The ending was still really good, and I would say give this one a shot if you want a genre that's really different-- and even if you do like action, I think this series has great potential to step it up in the next book and get really good! <br />
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<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><b>~Cover Talk~</b></div><br />
This is SUCH a kick-ass cover, and I absolutely love how it looks like a movie poster. Once again though, and not to beat a dead horse, but the cover for me turned out to be slightly misleading, because I looked at it and figured this was going to be an all-out adrenaline-fest kind of story with tons of action and a super fast-paced plot. The story didn't quite live up to my expectations in the end, but the cinematic cover is still pretty awesome. <br />
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<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">LC's Rating: </span></b></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://s1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/?action=view&current=35star-1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" height="59" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/35star-1.png" width="200" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 3px solid rgb(105, 101, 101); margin-left: 20px; padding: 8px; text-align: center;"><div style="background-color: #fcdfff; padding: 15px;"><b>The writing was really great and the main character was one tough chick-- I only wish that the pacing hadn't been so sporadic and the plot less choppy! I would have liked this one more if there had been more action and less explanation/back-tracking.</b></div></div><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-33053717193089943902012-08-24T13:00:00.000-04:002012-08-24T13:00:05.480-04:00Book Blog Makeover! Forever 17 Books<a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/LCDesignsGRABBUTTON-1.png" /></a>It's <span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">M</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">A</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">K</span><span style="color: #ff306b; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">O</span><span style="color: #ffa107; font-weight: bold;">V</span><span style="color: #ffca08; font-weight: bold;">E</span><span style="color: #8af300; font-weight: bold;">R</span><b> </b>time at <i>LC's Adventures</i> again! I am really excited to show you guys the latest re-design that I did for Sara over at Forever 17 Books!<br />
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Sara got in touch with me awhile back wanting to have something done for her book blog-- up until now, she had just been using one of the generic Blogger template styles and she wanted to have something more unique that reflected her own style. She told me that she liked tigers, especially white Bengals, and her fave color was sky blue. We decided to create a design with a white Bengal tiger lounging on a stack of books, and have a color theme of icy blues and light grays. Since she didn't want anything too flashy or over the top, I kept everything pretty subdued and simple. So.... here are the results! Check out Sara's new Book Blog Makeover below!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Old Design...</i></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwAdohSbAStccfEnp_xTG1riKD080z5bKtBzmB0dT7-4JXkg-0TVveWKi2shNLlxCMTnahR3qKlNpQDhLDfprANXUwy0HeH7DZTtfVLyAcYvVcxRxJgRt62zeNoWPJBdWY7OK4pkN9pgc/s1600/Sara+OLD+design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwAdohSbAStccfEnp_xTG1riKD080z5bKtBzmB0dT7-4JXkg-0TVveWKi2shNLlxCMTnahR3qKlNpQDhLDfprANXUwy0HeH7DZTtfVLyAcYvVcxRxJgRt62zeNoWPJBdWY7OK4pkN9pgc/s640/Sara+OLD+design.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>New Design!</i></b></span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZLxDmoh2q4z1CRcCjQKRN42cXQg6znBDeO8eSFjj07Bxd6S-oaISWm-vZ8G-bX_uHml8BAAiApTLd38D7rEIpu8rE-XJqyZLxAiKEVInzgRf_9oc0nRnI_lgL6-TZfmrzbktwT0wRiZg/s1600/Sara+NEW+design.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZLxDmoh2q4z1CRcCjQKRN42cXQg6znBDeO8eSFjj07Bxd6S-oaISWm-vZ8G-bX_uHml8BAAiApTLd38D7rEIpu8rE-XJqyZLxAiKEVInzgRf_9oc0nRnI_lgL6-TZfmrzbktwT0wRiZg/s640/Sara+NEW+design.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
I am so happy with how Sara's new blog design turned out, because I know that it fits her personality and style so much better than the old Blogger template. Not to mention that tiger turned out better than I thought it was going to-- he looks so regal sitting on his stack of books haha! ;)<br />
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I hope you guys will take a minute to stop on over to Sara's blog at <a href="http://forever17books.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Forever 17 Books</span></b></a> and let her know what you think of her new look-- and be sure to follow her as well! ;)<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>~Grab a Button!~</i></b></span></div><br />
<center><div align="center"><a href="http://forever17books.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp26/sarabara081/Sara%20Blog%20Design/grabbutton.png" /></a> </div><div align="center"><form><textarea cols="20" rows="6"><a href="http://forever17books.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp26/sarabara081/Sara%20Blog%20Design/grabbutton.png"/></a></textarea></form></div></center><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">*****</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #ff1f48;">Are you considering a new look for your blog? Do you just need an extra little something to spruce up the look you already have? Please stop on over and see me at Lea Christine Designs by clicking on the button below-- you can check out the services I offer and all the designs I have already done!</span></b></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.leachristinedesigns.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--A8fOOgmNQA/T4tcBoJ8gHI/AAAAAAAACRw/97pkZ5UybbI/s1600/LC+Designs+GRAB+BUTTON.png" width="160" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">Happy Reading!</span></i></b></div><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-44616133373256435882012-08-23T08:00:00.023-04:002012-08-23T12:06:23.909-04:00Cover Reveal + Giveaway! Timeless by Michelle Madow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAhuE6wcdkduCXeRPxRGxBzs0CJpNsT4cIRy58qtyQAMGA8I-PgZogl-d3W4l3youc1YzZhVXcsXn3PGJfmS-Dep9kqfvSoTiZfnFo1mfuhOyV_4u8vB_juCKe1kUsncY6oxlO7ThnjyY/s1600/coverreveal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAhuE6wcdkduCXeRPxRGxBzs0CJpNsT4cIRy58qtyQAMGA8I-PgZogl-d3W4l3youc1YzZhVXcsXn3PGJfmS-Dep9kqfvSoTiZfnFo1mfuhOyV_4u8vB_juCKe1kUsncY6oxlO7ThnjyY/s640/coverreveal.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
OK everyone, today I am SO flipping excited to be participating in the cover reveal for a wonderful YA series by an absolutely lovely YA author-- her name is <b style="color: #fd2062;">Michelle Madow</b> and the series is the <b><span style="color: #fd2062;">Transcend Time Saga</span></b>. The third and final book in this saga is called <i>Timeless</i>, and will be released <b style="color: #fd2062;">November 20</b> of this year...<br />
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Yay! So onto the cover reveal, which will be followed by a <span style="font-size: large;"><u style="color: #fd2062;"><b>totally sweet giveaway</b></u></span>, so be sure to check that out below as well-- and yes, it is International! :D<br />
<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
</span></b></i></div><div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">~Timeless Cover Reveal~</span></b></i></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7ILvlStZJUA/UDQSBB_Wo7I/AAAAAAAADsg/P1hcrunCyPE/s1600/Timeless+cover+michelle+madow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7ILvlStZJUA/UDQSBB_Wo7I/AAAAAAAADsg/P1hcrunCyPE/s640/Timeless+cover+michelle+madow.jpg" style="border: 4px solid rgb(60, 55, 57); padding: 0px;" width="442" /></a></div><blockquote style="color: #f3f3f3;"><center>Author: Michelle Madow ♥ Series: Transcend Time Saga ♥ Publisher: Dreamscape ♥ Release Date: November 20, 2012</center></blockquote><br />
Now, I have actually not read any of the books in this series yet, but I am seriously dying to-- ever since I saw the cover for the first one, <i>Remembrance</i>. I just love how they all have that beautiful masquerade theme going on!<br />
<br />
Have you started the Transcend Time Saga yet? If not, be sure to check out the first two books in this series below-- you can get the <b style="color: #f74184;">e-version</b> of <i>Remembrance</i> for only <b style="color: #f74184;">$2.99</b> so be sure to add it to your TBR lists!<br />
<br />
<blockquote style="color: #f3f3f3;"><center><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005EN77IG/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005EN77IG&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/remembrance-michelle-madow/1104532744?ean=9780615512440" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a> | <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/remembrance-transcend-time-1/id458564147?mt=11&ls=1" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">iBooks</a> | <a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Remembrance-Transcend-Time-1/book-kNuNnflybUa9PoGLxKYK0A/page1.html?s=-09nc8a18kO9ONlNXmoxvA&r=2" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Kobo</a> </center></blockquote><br />
And now time for...<br />
<br />
<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">~The Epic Giveaway!~</span></b></i></div><br />
So in celebration of Timeless' cover reveal, Michelle is having an absolutely AMAZING giveaway--and also, it is International! Here is what Michelle will be giving away to one really lucky winner:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NO4hPlLNHKY/UDQZ-gvgJWI/AAAAAAAADuQ/1-zMUStaVuA/s1600/PrizePack.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NO4hPlLNHKY/UDQZ-gvgJWI/AAAAAAAADuQ/1-zMUStaVuA/s640/PrizePack.JPG" style="border: 4px solid rgb(60, 55, 57); padding: 0px;" width="578" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">One (1) signed copy of <i>Remembrance</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">One (1) signed copy of <i>Vengeance</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">One (1) signed copy of <i>Timeless</i> (when it's released)</div><div style="text-align: center;">Three (3) signed <i>Remembrance</i> bookmarks</div><div style="text-align: center;">A gorgeous mask that looks like the one on the cover of <i>Remembrance</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">A mention in the acknowledgements section of <i>Timeless</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Interested?? Just fill out the Rafflecopter Form below!</span></b></i></div><br />
<center><a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/2ce57d29/" id="rc-2ce57d29" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script></center><div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />
</span></i></b></div><div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">~About Michelle~</span></i></b></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZldbWG4WcTE/UDQbj07V1II/AAAAAAAADuc/aPxxhfHE_7Q/s1600/michelle+madow+author.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZldbWG4WcTE/UDQbj07V1II/AAAAAAAADuc/aPxxhfHE_7Q/s320/michelle+madow+author.jpg" style="border: 4px solid rgb(60, 55, 57); padding: 0px;" width="221" /></a></div>Michelle Madow was inspired to write Remembrance after seeing Taylor Swift's "Love Story" music video while a junior at Rollins College in Winter Park, FL. The song and video gave her the idea about a high school girl reincarnated from Regency Era, England. She handed in the first chapter as a homework assignment for class, and when her teacher and classmates wanted her to continue writing, she decided to go for it. By the end of the school year, her first novel was<br />
completed!<br />
<br />
Along with the Transcend Time Saga, Michelle Madow has written two other young adult novels, both which will be developed into series.<br />
<br />
Michelle Madow graduated from the Park School of Baltimore in 2005, where she always took two English classes each semester. She graduated from Rollins College in 2010, cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in English. At Rollins she was a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, and a member of the International English Honor Society Sigma Tau Delta.<br />
<br />
She received the Charles Hyde Pratt Award for Excellence in Creative Writing in 2010.<br />
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For more information on Michelle and her books, please visit www.michellemadow.com.<br />
<br />
Michelle lives in Florida, where she is hard at work writing more novels for young adults. She is represented by literary agent Molly Ker Hawn at The Bent Agency.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: #351c75;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">~Author Links~ </span></b></i></div><br />
<blockquote style="color: #f3f3f3;"><center><a href="http://blog.michellemadow.com/" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Blog</a> ♥ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MichLMadow" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Facebook</a> ♥ <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5028484.Michelle_Madow" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> ♥ <a href="https://twitter.com/michellemadow" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">Twitter</a> ♥ <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/MichelleMadow" style="color: #f3f3f3;" target="_blank">YouTube</a></center></blockquote><br />
<img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" />Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-58166511916258330502012-08-21T17:40:00.004-04:002012-08-21T18:43:51.031-04:00Summer Reading Book Review: Darkness Before Dawn<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/p/lcs-summer-reads.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DRQjvh6t3Oo/T7fzOISbRzI/AAAAAAAACn0/eKD6a-n4YH8/s320/LC%2BSUMMER.png" width="303" /></a></div><div style="color: #ff184e; text-align: center;"><br />
<b>LC's Summer Reads will be featured throughout the Summer of 2012-- These are books that I decided would be perfect for on the beach, in the sun, or pretty much wherever I happen to be this summer! Click on the button above to see what other books I've read or plan on reading! :)</b></div><div style="color: #ff184e; text-align: center;">*****</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IzBHlKoDk4s/UCF_StDlvxI/AAAAAAAADeo/59AbTfEdoeI/s1600/darkness%2Bbefore%2Bdawn%2Bj.a.%2Blondon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IzBHlKoDk4s/UCF_StDlvxI/AAAAAAAADeo/59AbTfEdoeI/s320/darkness%2Bbefore%2Bdawn%2Bj.a.%2Blondon.jpg" style="border: solid #383838 4px; padding: 0px;" width="211" /></a></div><b style="color: #351c75;">Author: </b>J.A. London<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Series:</b> Darkness Before Dawn #1 <br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Publisher: </b>HarperCollins<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Release Date:</b> May 29, 2012<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Pages:</b> 342<br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Read it in:</b> 2 days <br />
<b style="color: #351c75;">Source:</b> ARC from the Publisher<br />
<blockquote style="color: #eeeeee;"><b>Summary:</b> Only sunlight can save us.<br />
<br />
We built the wall to keep them out, to keep us safe. But it also makes us prisoners, trapped in what's left of our ravaged city, fearing nightfall.<br />
<br />
After the death of my parents, it's up to me--as the newest delegate for humanity--to bargain with our vampire overlord. I thought I was ready. I thought I knew everything there was to know about the monsters. Then again, nothing could have prepared me for Lord Valentine . . . or his son. Maybe not all vampires are killers. Maybe it's safe to let one in.<br />
<br />
Only one thing is certain: Even the wall is not enough. A war is coming and we cannot hide forever.</blockquote><br />
<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">LC's Take:</span></b></i></div><br />
<i>Darkness Before Dawn</i> was SUCH a wonderful surprise for me. Honestly, I started out worried that this was going to be yet another cliche vampire story, but boy was I wrong-- with a Post-apocalyptic twist in a world where vampires rule over humans, this book surprised me in all the right ways, and I am really, really glad that I chose to give it a chance! <br />
<br />
Dawn is the delegate of her city-- a job her parents held for many years until they were unexpectedly murdered. In a dark post-apocalyptic world, it is her job to represent all the people living within the walls of broken down Denver and make sure that the vampires lurking outside are kept happy with a steady supply of blood. Reporting to the lead vampire, Lord Valentine, Dawn must negotiate and be diplomatic enough to fight for the human race but also be careful not anger him. Keeping the peace between vampires and humans is a constant struggle, and it isn't until Dawn meets Victor that she learns not all vamps are blood-thirsty monsters. Only problem? Victor happens to be Lord Valentine's son... <br />
<br />
So like I mentioned, <i>Darkness Before Dawn</i> was one of those books that I was a little "iffy" about at first-- and even in the first half of the book, I was sort of scared that it was taking a wrong turn into Been-There- Done-That territory-- but the last half of it totally blew me away and I ended up absolutely LOVING this book. I seriously cannot wait to get my hands on the next one in the series! <br />
<br />
So first, a word about the beginning and why I was worried about this book becoming super cliche-- first, we all know there are like a <i>gazillion</i> YA books about vampires. They are freaking <i>everywhere</i>. And even though this book claimed to have a fresh, new take on the vamp genre, I was a little skeptical, especially since right away there was the ever-dreaded, <i>waaaaay</i> over-played--<br />
<br />
<br />
wait for it....<br />
<br />
<br />
Love triangle!<br />
<br />
<br />
Oh yes, we have a good ol' love triangle, and not only that, but it started out as THE most typical kind of triangle there is. Dawn is caught up in her feelings for Michael, the good-guy athletic boyfriend with blond hair and then she gets all tangled up with Victor, the darkly mysterious and seductive vampire whom she isn't sure she can trust. <i>I KNOW.</i> I can't even flipping count how many times this same kind of love triangle has been played out in YA books, BUT-- and here's a big but (haha I'm such a dork)-- <i>I actually ended up</i> <i>liking this one</i>. Yes, it was the Good Boy vs. Bad Boy love triangle, but you know what, I totally became wrapped up in it by the end of the book. (And I'm <i>so</i> Team Victor by the way-- hott, sexy, brooding vampire with a tragic past? Ummm yeeah.... sign me up for that please LOL :P )<br />
<br />
So points are being awarded to the love triangle in <i>Darkness Before Dawn</i>-- which I almost never give, because love triangles typically annoy the holy bejeezus out of me, so this is a pretty big deal guys. Just sayin'. <br />
<br />
Next awesome thing about this book? I absolutely <i>loved </i>how it mixed a Post-apocalyptic world with the whole vampire genre, it worked SO well and gave the story a very dark and eerie feel to it. Dawn's world is dark, dangerous, and provided the perfect backdrop for an awesome story.<br />
<br />
I was also a big fan of Dawn Montgomery herself. As the main character, I liked that Dawn had a strong-willed personality and was slightly reckless. I also liked that she could stand on her own two feet and didn't spend the entire book mooning over which guy she liked more. I mean yes, there is some of that obviously, but it didn't overwhelm the rest of the story and get to be super annoying. So I loved Dawn and I would definitely read the next book because she was such a great character. <br />
<br />
The writing style itself was a little difficult to read at first because it seemed choppy, i.e. there were lots of small, broken up sentences that felt sort of clunky and made me stumble over a lot of it while I was reading. I would have liked it if the writing had flowed a bit better instead of being so broken up, but the fragmented style didn't kill the story for me in the least, and by the end I was dying to get into the next book-- mainly because the author did the most genius thing possible by introducing us to some awesome new characters (Victor's sister Faith for example? I loved her!) and giving only hints as to who they were, which was like dangling cake on a stick because now I cannot WAIT to read the sequel! Well played, J.A. London. Well played.<br />
<br />
So all in all, <i>Darkness Before Daw</i>n was an awesome vampire book-- it had originality, good characters, and an intriguing storyline. The post-apocalyptic twist was pulled off really well, the love triangle wasn't too annoying and actually had me interested, and Dawn was a main character I'd want to follow into the next book. And with the ridiculous number of vamp books out there, I think that this one did a really awesome job at standing out on its own. So to all my paranormal fans out there-- be sure to add this one to your TBR lists right now!! :)<br />
<br />
<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><b>~Cover Talk~</b></div><br />
OK, so I know that a lot of people might think that this cover is sort of generic and looks like a million other YA book covers but... GAH! I just LOVE it so much! It's just so elegantly dark and Gothic, and the first time I saw it I was just like **wow!** First off, that dress is absolutely to-die-for gorgeous, and I love the air of mystery surrounding the girl whose face is hidden, and the gloomy clouded sky in the background with the black birds just sets the tone for how dark the story is. The *only* thing-- and this is so dumb-- but it bothers me a little how the "R" in Darkness is backwards. I don't know why! Haha, but other than that I really adore this cover.<br />
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<div style="color: #351c75; text-align: center;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;">LC's Rating: </span></b></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://s1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/?action=view&current=5star-1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" height="53" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20stars/5star-1.png" width="200" /></a></div><div style="color: #eeeeee; text-align: center;"><blockquote>LOVED IT. With an action-packed plot and a cast of awesome characters, <i>Darkness Before Dawn</i> also had a Post-apocalyptic twist that was refreshingly original and kept me intrigued from beginning to end. I cannot wait for the next book in this series!</blockquote></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Check it out!</i></b></span></div><center><table><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/006202065X/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=006202065X&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/Amazonbutton.png" /></a></td><td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006IE2LTU/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B006IE2LTU&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/AmazonKindlebutton.png" /></a></td><td><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12872080-darkness-before-dawn" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i1090.photobucket.com/albums/i367/Lea1533/Blog%20Design/goodreadsbutton.png" /></a></td> </tr>
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</noscript>Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3322527388512357503.post-86052988028600962992012-08-18T08:00:00.001-04:002012-08-18T08:00:01.510-04:00Yay I'm Back!! August Book Haul<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zXl2yD4N9XY/T5dYbRq-E3I/AAAAAAAACUg/bamJH3vW7cg/s1600/BOOK+HAUL+BUTTON.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zXl2yD4N9XY/T5dYbRq-E3I/AAAAAAAACUg/bamJH3vW7cg/s320/BOOK+HAUL+BUTTON.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>What a crazy summer this has been! I wanted to just say how happy I am to be featuring a book haul this weekend because it has been soooo long... I took a bit of a break from my blog over the past 5-6 weeks due to life getting nuts but I am definitely trying to get back into the swing of things. Here is a brief update of what's been going on at <i>LC's Adventures</i> lately!</b></div><b><br />
</b> <br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #f50125; font-size: x-large;"><i><u>~Latest Posts~</u></i></span></b></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-blog-makeover-reading-enchantress.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #f58b01;">Book Blog Makeover! The Reading Enchantress</span></a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-where-it-began.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #66f501;">Book Review: Where It Began by Ann Redisch Stampler</span></a> (First 5 Star Review I've given out in a LONG time!)</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2012/08/arc-book-review-pizza-love-and-other.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0187f5;">ARC Book Review: Pizza, Love and Other Stuff That Made Me Famous</span></a> (SUPER cute book ^_^)</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="http://lcsadventuresinlibraryland.blogspot.com/2012/08/arc-swag-giveaway-whats-left-of-me-by.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #7e06ce;">ARC + SWAG Giveaway! What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang</span></a> (be sure to go enter!)</b><br />
<b><br />
</b> <b><span style="color: #f50125; font-size: x-large;"><i>~Book Haul!~</i></span></b></div><center><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/p-9egcMqICk" width="420"></iframe></center><div style="text-align: center;"><b><b><span style="color: #f50125; font-size: x-large;"><i><br />
</i></span></b></b> <b><b><span style="color: #f50125; font-size: x-large;"><i>~Links~</i></span></b></b></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><b>The First Days by Rhiannon Frater <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0765331268/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0765331268&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9648068-the-first-days" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Fighting to Survive by Rhiannon Frater </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0056DTRL4/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0056DTRL4&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6350211-fighting-to-survive" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Seige by Rhiannon Frater </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0765331284/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0765331284&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6718719-siege" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Ashes by Ilsa Bick </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1606841750/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1606841750&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004J4X9TC/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004J4X9TC&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9975679-ashes" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Entangled by Nicki Jefford </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1477588388/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1477588388&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13494086-entangled" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The Crown of Embers by Rae Carson </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062026518/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0062026518&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007HC3RHW/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B007HC3RHW&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10816908-the-crown-of-embers" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0545424925/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0545424925&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13449693-the-raven-boys" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Blood Fever by Veronica Wolff </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/045123703X/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=045123703X&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | Kindle | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12488998-blood-fever" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0084TBHOM/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0084TBHOM&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0029KHT8K/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0029KHT8K&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5231173-twenty-boy-summer" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061767581/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0061767581&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BY77CW/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002BY77CW&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4758093-l-a-candy" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl </b><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316077038/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316077038&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002WAUV7S/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002WAUV7S&linkCode=as2&tag=lcsadvinlib-20" target="_blank">Kindle</a> | <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6304335-beautiful-creatures" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #63f00b; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Please leave me links to your book hauls below!</i></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="color: #f00b41;">♥</span> <span style="color: #0ba0f0; font-style: italic;">Happy Reading everyone</span> <span style="color: #f00b41;">♥</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ucoczyvhtIY/T5RtL3NQzRI/AAAAAAAACT0/8Uxh-qZIJDc/s320/LC%2BSignature.jpg" width="180" /><br />
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<noscript>&lt;br /&gt; &lt;img src="http://wms.assoc-amazon.com/20070822/US/img/noscript.gif?tag=lcsadvinlib-20" alt="" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; </noscript>Lea Christinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11867337774792345543noreply@blogger.com25