Waiting on Wednesday (7)

For those who don't know, Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme where we get to let everyone know about what books we are eagerly anticipating the release of. WoW is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Want to participate? Grab the logo on her page, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave your link on her blog!

*****

This week's pick is called The Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon. The cover is super-creepy yet beautiful, and the plot sounds intriguing. Below is some other information and a summary from Goodreads:

Title: The Carrier of the Mark
Author: Leigh Fallon
Release Date: October 4th, 2011
Pages: 352

Goodreads Summary: A move to Ireland is about to introduce Megan to her destiny, her real destiny, can she embrace it and will she survive it?

A tragedy in Megan’s past set her on a predetermined course. A chain of events has been set in motion that brings Megan to Kinsale, a small town in the south of Ireland where her destiny awaits her. Her life starts to fall into place as she makes new friends and settles into her new school. However, the reclusive and distant Adam DeRís calls to her body and soul.

She finds herself increasingly drawn to Adam and his strange family. Adam knows a secret from her past and he and his family hold the key to her future. A future that binds her to Adam and his world, a world of power, mystery and ancient orders. A world that unbeknownst to her, she very much belongs in.

*****

There are some raving reviews on Goodreads that make me even more excited for this one to come out later this year! What is everyone else waiting on this week?
 

Teaser Tuesday (6)

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

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

*****

This week I have been reading Tithe by Holly Black. Not going to lie, it is pretty awesome. Here is my teaser:

"Long, low tables were heaped with golden pears, chestnuts, bowls of bread soaking in buttery milk, pomegranates ripped in half and half again, violet petals on crystal plates, and all manner of strange delicacies. Wide silver goblets sat like toads on the tables, upright and overturned in equal proportion. Scarlet-clad faerie ladies brushed past men in torn rags, and courtiers danced with crones."

~p.143, Chapter 7

Definitely enjoying this one so far! What is everyone else reading this week?

Third Winner Added!!

(Audrey has nothing to do with this, but I love her anyways haha...)

Hi guys, I just wanted to let you know that, because I have officially reached 300 followers before the end of my 200 Follower Giveaway, as promised I am adding a THIRD WINNER to the contest, who will also win a book of their choice! YAY!! I am so happy to have had such success with this giveaway, and am excited to see who the winners will be :)

If you have not had a chance to enter the 200 Follower Giveaway yet, there is still lots of time! This contest doesn't end until June 1st, so please feel free to get your entries in any time between now and then-- you can click HERE to see the official rules and details, and find the form to fill out to become eligible.

Once again, thank you to everyone for all of your amazing support, and for making LC's Adventures in Libraryland such a success! :)

Book Review: Blue Bloods

Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Release date: March 27, 2007
Pages: 336

Summary: Schuyler Van Alen is confused about what is happening to her. Her veins are starting to turn blue, and she’s starting to crave raw meat. Soon, her world is thrust into an intricate maze of secret societies and bitter intrigue. Schuyler has never been a part of the trendy crowd at her prestigious New York private school. Now, all of a sudden, Jack Force, the most popular guy in school, is showing an interest in her. And when one of the popular girls is found dead, Schuyler and Jack are determined to get to the bottom of it.

Schuyler wants to find out the secrets of the mysterious Blue Bloods. But is she putting herself in danger? Melissa de la Cruz’s vampire mythology, set against the glitzy backdrop of New York City, is a juicy and intoxicating read.

LC's Take: 

I have to say-- even after being a little iffy about this book due to all the negative reviews-- I did enjoy Blue Bloods. The characters kept me amused, the plot kept me hooked from beginning to end, and the descriptive elements built up a world that I could definitely picture as I read.

I do have to say though-- even though I personally enjoyed reading this book-- I can also understand why there are so many readers out there who absolutely cannot stand it. In my case, those reasons didn't really bother me all that much. I felt like Melissa de la Cruz had a really good story here, and I give her credit for creating a unique twist with the over-done vampire genre-- however, I don't know if this book is completely targeted to appeal to the general YA audience, for the following reasons:

• There is an obscene number of references to fashion designers and brand names. Now I have to admit, I have a bit of a superficial side to me that goes a little gaga over things like Jimmy Choo stilettos and other high-end names from Vogue magazine, so I didn't mind all the fashion refs. However, if you don't give a crap about what brands characters are wearing, you might get annoyed by all the name-drops throughout the book. (Warning: there are tons.)
• On a similar note, there are lots of rich, pretty people in Blue Bloods. After all, Blue Bloods are the elite. If rich, popular, elitist, pretty people make you want to rip your hair out, once again, be prepared for a lot of upper-class drama.  
• Many (and I do mean many) liberties were taken with the historical parts of this book, which focused on the pilgrims coming to Plymouth in the 1620's. I thought it was creative of the author to include "letters" written by a certain woman (I won't give away who she is!) from the 1600's throughout the book-- it was a  unique way to connect the past with what was going on in the present plot. Luckily, American history is not really my area of expertise-- which is a good thing, because as you may know, I absolutely HATE when authors take liberties with history that I actually know a lot about.
• Relating back to my first two points, the plot itself is very Gossip-Girl-meets-Mean-Girls-meets-Paris-Hilton-meets-Cosmo-Magazine (Haha, how's that for a description??) Personally, I don't mind lots of fluff as long as the overall plot is keeping me interested-- and Blue Bloods did keep me interested. If you aren't adverse to teen drama and don't always take your reading too seriously, this should't be an issue for you either.
• Even though this book is technically about Vampires, there isn't all that much in the way of Vampire-ishness in this book (I don't think Vamps were even mentioned until about a third of the way through). I think this might be developed later in the series, but Book One was much more focused on drama than on the paranormal. For hardcore vampire fans out there, I think this could be a bit of a turn-off. But I still liked it. 

These are just some things to keep in mind before you decide to read this book. I do applaud Melissa de la Cruz  for taking a swing at a plot that was pretty difficult to pull off. I thought that she was able to take a story line that could have been extremely confusing and made it work-- I was eager to keep reading right through to the very end, and the cliff hanger in the last few pages made me wonder what will be happening next. Even though the characters didn't stand out, they were all still entertaining.

And on that note-- if you are OK with reading a book solely for (mindless) entertainment and not much else every once in awhile-- then you might be able to enjoy this book, too. My advice? If you do decide to read it, just don't take it too seriously! It was overall just a fun book.

LC's Rating: 

A fun, different take on Vampire Lore, Blue Bloods is full of drama and intrigue. I applaud the author for taking a new direction with an over-worked theme, but at the same time, there's a lot in this book that might turn off its target audience. I personally didn't mind it, but be warned, this series isn't for everyone!

Waiting on Wednesday (6)

For those who don't know, Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme where we get to let everyone know about what books we are eagerly anticipating the release of. WoW is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Want to participate? Grab the logo on her page, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave your link on her blog!

*****

This week's WoW book is called Don't Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala.

All I had to do was read the summary and then a few of the comments that it has gotten from other authors and groups to get drawn into this book. Every girl (and guy) has been in a tough spot with relationships at some point in their life, and this book sounds like it speaks out on dealing with those hard times. Check out below for more info:

Title: Don't Breathe a Word
Author: Holly Cupala
Release Date: October 18, 2011
Pages: 320

Goodreads Summary: Joy Delamere is suffocating.

From asthma, from her parents, and from her boyfriend, delectably dangerous Asher, who is smothering her from the inside out.

Joy can take his words—tender words, cruel words—until the night they go too far. Now, Joy will leave everything behind to find the one who has offered his help, a homeless boy called Creed. She will become someone else. She will learn to survive. She will breathe...if only she can get to Creed before it’s too late.

Set against the gritty backdrop of Seattle’s streets and a cast of characters with secrets of their own, Holly Cupala’s powerful new novel explores the subtleties of abuse, the meaning of love, and how far a girl will go to discover her own strength.

*****

Praise for Don't Breathe a Word: 

“Holly Cupala’s debut novel will be immensely popular among teens. Teen fans will be captivated by the theme of owning your own path, the persistence of life and closure.” ~Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

“I dare you to set it down during its last hundred pages. I dare you.” ~Deb Caletti

“A powerful story of self-discovery, and a brilliant debut novel.” ~Ellen Hopkins

*****

So that's my WoW for this week-- what is everyone else waiting for??

P.S.~ If you haven't heard, I am hosting an awesome giveaway! Click here for more details :)

Book Review: Wicked Lovely

Author: Melissa Marr
Release Date: June 12, 2007
Pages: 328
Read it in: 5 days

Praise: "Riveting and dark: I love this tale of a smart, tough girl who walks the razor's edge between an ancient faery curse and her future!" ~Tamora Pierce

Summary: (Goodreads) All teenagers have problems, but few of them can match those of Aislinn, who has the power to see faeries. Quite understandably, she wishes that she could share her friends' obliviousness and tries hard to avoid these invisible intruders. But one faery in particular refuses to leave her alone. Keenan the Summer King is convinced beyond all reasoning that Aislinn is the queen he has been seeking for nine centuries. What's a 21st-century girl to do when she's stalked by a suitor nobody else can see? A debut fantasy romance for the ages; superlative summer read.

LC's Take: 

Sigh... OK, so I really, really wanted to like this book-- I had been so excited to get into the Wicked Lovely series! But honestly-- for whatever reason-- I just could not get hooked. In fact, it almost got (gasp!) DNF-ed. Let me explain:

When I first picked up Wicked Lovely I was pretty excited-- the cover is gorgeous and I'd never read a book focusing exclusively on fairies. However, I have to admit that I had some difficulties with it from the very beginning, simply because it starts right in the middle of the action with very little explanation for what the heck is going on: there's a girl named Aislynn and she's pretty freaked out because she sees faeries everywhere, but she can't tell anyone so she just tries to run away where they can't find her. (Ummm... OK.) Maybe it was so hard to follow because it felt like the author assumed the reader knows all about faeries, or "fey." Well, I don't know anything about faeries so I felt pretty out-of-the-loop for the first 100 pages or so. (They have "glamours?" There are fey courts? They're deathly allergic to iron or something?? Yeeeah, I felt clueless!)

For this reason, I found it kind of difficult to connect with the characters or get into the plot because I had no idea what was going on. The author seems to know a lot about faery lore, but the way she goes about telling the story left me totally confused. The writing seemed very clunky to me, and this made it hard to read quickly because I just couldn't stay focused. And to be completely honest, this just made me kind of bored with the whole book. I mean, if you don't get what's going on, how are you going to maintain interest in it?

There were definitely other issues I had with this book, besides not knowing what was going on throughout the first third of the story:

• I felt like the writing style was somewhat sloppy and it wasn't until around p.160 that I finally could get into the plot a little. Because of this, it was just really difficult to stay interested in what was going on.
• You know those incredibly annoying plot holes that you just can't get over as you're reading a book? Oh wow, there were so many here! One that stood out: One of the number one rules that Aislynn lives by is she can't stare at fairies because they can't know that she can see them. So how is it that the fairies are described down to the last detail from Aislynn's POV all the time? Isn't she supposed to not be looking at them?? Ahh! Logic!
• There wasn't much in the way of character development: Aislynn never had much of a presence in the story. I felt like things just happen to her and she passively reacts-- I couldn't connect with her on an emotional level at all. 
• There were definitely more than a few typos throughout the book which is always a turn-off, because it makes you think that the entire thing was poorly edited. Usually I can pass by a couple typos, but in this case, added to everything else that bothered me, my end impression was that it was just sloppily done. 

To be fair, there were some things that I liked about this book: The snippets from old 18th/19th century books about faery lore, published in Ireland, Scotland and England were very interesting to read at the start of each chapter, and it shows that the author did her research about the subject she's writing on (it just wasn't translated well enough so that I could understand it, too!) Also, Aislynn's love interest Seth? Yum-my haha :)

I don't want to totally knock this book just because I could not connect with it personally-- I think that while it may not be for everyone, there is definitely a reader base that will enjoy Wicked Lovely. I would say that if you love the subject of fairies, or you can follow a plot that isn't completely straight-forward, this may be a great book for you. Unfortunately, I was not a fan, but I know that there are many fans of this series out there-- so it may be worth a shot!

LC's Rating:

If you are into fairies and know a lot about fairy lore before you begin this book, you might be able to get into the story being told. However, if like me you don't know anything about this subject, you might be highly confused about everything going on!

Note About Blogger Issues...

Hey guys, so as I am sure you are all aware, Blogger went down for a good 24 hours (at least) and posts/comments got erased. I wonder at my amazing timing for hosting a giveaway haha... but anyways, now that things are back up and running, I just wanted to let you know that FIRST, the giveaway is still going as planned, and SECOND, to everyone that entered, all of your entries and information are still saved in Google Docs so you are still eligible-- please don't worry about re-posting, re-commenting, etc. since I have that info and I'll take your good word for it that the extra entries are legit :)

*****

Alrighty, so to everyone else, if you missed the fact that I am doing my very first ever giveaway and that I am STILL super-excited about it: Here is that info for you! I hope that you can enter to win, and good luck to everybody! (Also, I'll be putting up a direct link to the contest on my sidebar soon as well, so everyone has easy access to the rules, form, etc.)

Whew! The Blogger scare is (hopefully) over, and I am looking forward to getting back to my book blogging with all my amazing followers and readers :) So Happy Friday and talk to you soon!

LC's 200 Follower Giveaway!!

WOOHOO!! 

I am so happy and excited to let you guys know about my VERY FIRST EVER giveaway contest at LC's Adventures in Libraryland! In celebration of reaching 200 followers, I will be giving away TWO (2) BOOKS to a first place winner and ONE (1) BOOK to a second place winner...

But wait! There's more...

(haha that was cheesy) 

If I reach 300 followers by the end of this contest (June 1st), I will include a THIRD WINNER who will also get ONE(1) BOOK of their choice-- pretty sweet, huh!?

And now for...

The Official Rules:

(some of this is a little redundant-- just want to make sure we're all on the same page...)

• There will be TWO WINNERS
• Winner #1 will get their choice of TWO (2) books
• Winner #2 will get their choice of ONE (1) book
• If I get up to 300 followers by the end of this giveaway (June 1st, 2011) I will ADD a Winner #3, who will also get their choice of ONE (1) book
• You must be a follower of LC's Adventures in Libraryland to participate- or become a new one :)
• Your name and email must be provided in the form below
• Extra entries are possible! You must provide direct links in the form below to be eligible for these. You can get a maximum of 17 entries for this giveaway. 
• Giveaway is open to anywhere that Book Depository ships (check the BD link provided- this is international!!)
• Last day to enter is June 1st, 2011 at 11:59pm EST
• Winners will be chosen at random from Random.org
• Winners will be notified on June 2nd by email-- they will have 48 hours to respond

OK, so here is where I entice you all by showing off the wonderful selection of books you have to choose from!

**TaDa!**

Oh yeah, pretty fantastic huh?? And to make your decision-making a little easier (aren't I nice?), here are links to reviews for all of these books from Goodreads, so please feel free to shop around a little before making your selections:

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

13 Little Blue Envelops by Maureen Johnson

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Wake Unto Me by Lisa Cach

Alrighty, so let's get this party started!

Click HERE to fill out your entry form.
(SORRY- this giveaway is finished, but stop back to see upcoming giveaways!)

Good luck to everyone, and thank you again for all of your support!! 

Waiting on Wednesday (5)

For those who don't know, Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme where we get to let everyone know about what books we are eagerly anticipating the release of. WoW is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Want to participate? Grab the logo on her page, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave your link on her blog!

*****

OK, so this week's WoW pick is Luminous by Dawn Metcalf. Why? Holy moly, that cover! It is insanely beautiful! Click on the cover image above to fully appreciate it! **sigh** Just stunning.

So anyways, after recovering from my cover-love, I had to read the synopsis. All I have to say is-- "huh." Haha, I don't really know whether this is going to be a totally awesome, mind-blowing kind of book, or just really, really strange and confusing. (To be honest, the summary did confuse me.) But then I also read some ARC reviewers' opinions on it, and for the most part they were pretty positive.

Well, I will let you be the judge-- Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:

As reality slips and time stands still, Consuela finds herself thrust into the world of the Flow. Removed from all she loves into this shifting world overlapping our own, Consuela quickly discovers she has the power to step out of her earthly skin and cloak herself in new ones-skins made from the world around her, crafted from water, fire, air. She is joined by other teens with extraordinary abilities, bound together to safeguard a world they can affect, but where they no longer belong.

When murder threatens to undo the Flow, the Watcher charges Consuela and elusive, attractive V to stop the killer. But the psychopath who threatens her new world may also hold the only key to Consuela's way home.

Aaaaand... if that intrigues you, here is some further information:

Release date: July 7th, 2011
Pages: 304
Blogger Comments:  "Overall a very intriguing read.  If you are interested in reading something unlike anything you've read before definitely pick this story up." ~Karissa @ Karissa's Reading Review
"The thing that I really loved and appreciated about this book the most is that it doesn't treat the reader with kid gloves... Luminous isn't afraid to challenge the reader and throw them off balance." ~Marg @ Clockwork Reverie

 Hmmm... interesting, no? What do you think?

*****

Also, while we're here I wanted to take a moment to make an announcement **ahem!** Here goes:

Tomorrow will mark the opening of my VERY FIRST EVER GIVEAWAY!!

It is in celebration of the fact that I have reached 200+ followers and I am just so darned happy that I had to spread the joy with some awesome freebies :)

So... please STAY TUNED tomorrow for when I officially post the details, rules, form, and all that jazz. All I will say for now is that it is going to be ONE SWEET CONTEST. I am very excited and hope that you will join in!!

Until tomorrow then, happy reading everyone!!!

Teaser Tuesday (5)

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

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

Alrighty, so basically I was on a role with my reads and reviews but for whatever reason, I've been slower than molasses this weekend (huh, haven't used that phrase in awhile...) I am currently reading Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr and am about halfway through it-- I've been reading it for like 4 days. I know, I really need to pick up the pace! But anyways, here is my teaser for this week:

"And they were kissing again, slow and soft and somehow more maddening than the first time. Somewhere between telling him she was meeting Keenan and asking him where they stood, the stakes had shifted.


Her hands found the bottom of his shirt, slid under it, over skin and the rings that decorated his chest. Any objections she used to remember had melted."

Ooh lala! OK, I swear this is the page that my bookmark was on, I didn't like go looking for the steamiest section or anything! Soooo anyways, haha, what is everyone else reading this week??

Monday: 200 Followers!!

Woohoo!! 

OK, so I need to take just a minute to jump up and down a little bit and have a mini-celebration, because my book blog just reached 200 followers! This makes me soooo happy, especially to know that all of you guys have been so supportive and have given me such an amazing online community of fellow readers and bloggers to connect with :) So I am posting this evening to be a little sentimental and cheesy and let you all know how much I appreciate you guys for following, commenting or just stopping on by to see me. I am thinking it is getting to be time for a giveaway to celebrate! Thanks again everyone, and "Happy Reading!!"

In My Mailbox (3)

Hellooo everyone!! In My Mailbox is a weekly book meme from Kristi over at The Story Siren, where we get to share the books that we have gotten over the week, either from the bookstore, the library, or were lucky enough to win/receive from other bloggers, authors or publishers.

Not going to lie, I am still working though an enormous pile of books that I've had sitting under my kitchen table for like a month now-- but I did get a few new ones from the library AND I was very lucky to win my very FIRST ARC (**excited!**) from Jessica over at ::Musings + Teen Librarian:: So now I have experienced that warm and fuzzy feeling of finding a book-shaped package by my mailbox (technically not IN it because it's too small) and I have to say, I want to win more books now ;)

From the Library

The Breakup Bible by Melissa Kantor

Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz

The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Won!

Popular by Alissa Grosso

Note: If you click on the top picture with the three library books, it turns out huge (a bigger image just wouldn't fit on my blog), and then the titles in pink will take you to Goodreads reviews. I chose The Breakup Bible and Blue Bloods, first because they both sounded really good, but also because Melissa Kantor and Melissa de la Cruz are going to be at a Teen Book Festival I am going to next weekend (yay!) And then I have heard some really good things about The Body Finder as well, so looking forward to getting into that eventually!!

If you guys have either read or heard anything about these books, please let me know what you thought or if you would read these-- also curious about what everyone else is getting in their mailboxes this week-- let me know! 

Happy reading :) 

Follow Me Friday (5)

It's FRIDAY again! Follow Me Friday is a weekly book-blogger meme hosted by Parajunkee over at Parajunkee's View. Have a book blog? You can join in the fun too! Just visit Parajunkee's site at the pink link above, be sure you are a follower of her blog and the blog she is featuring for the week, put your name in the Linky, create your own FF post on your blog, and then start commenting and following whomever you wish!

*****

Alrighty, so it is 7:30 in the morning, and I am SO not a morning person, but I have to be up to go to this all-day conference thing for work... WooHoo! So because I went to bed super-early last night and I am rushing to get out the door this morning, I probably am not doing this week's FF question-- BUT!! If you are new here or just stopping over for a visit please please feel free to leave me a comment or a follow and I will definitely get back to you later today! Love all you guys, and I hope you have an awesome Friday :)

Book Review: Hex Hall

Author: Rachel Hawkins
Release Date: February 1, 2011
Pages: 352
Read it in: 2 days

Summary: On her 12th birthday, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. Three bumpy years later, after a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, she's exiled to Hex Hall, as isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Then when a mysterious predator begins attacking students, and Sophie's only friend is the number-one suspect, a horrifying plot begins to surface. Soon, Sophie is preparing for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

LC's Take:  

Can I just say how much fun this book was to read with Sophie Mercer as the narrator? She was freaking hilarious! Her tone was clever, snarky, and sarcastic to the point where I was laughing out loud through pretty much the whole thing. (One particular LOL moment was when Sophie is observing one of the drop-dead gorgeous girls in her school : "I bet she woke up with her hair looking like something out of a Pantene commercial while little bluebirds circled around her head, and raccoons brought her breakfast or something.") She is a character who is secure enough to make fun of herself and pretty much everyone else around her, and that made this book really entertaining.

The story unfolds as Sophie arrives at Hecate (A.K.A "Hex") Hall after a love spell of hers turns senior year prom into a nightmare. Right away I got drawn into the world Sophie finds herself in, surrounded by witches, warlocks, faeries, shape-shifters, and one lone vampire (who turns out to be Sophie's roommate-- lucky girl). When Sophie meets the super-popular and snotty witches Anna, Chaston and Elodie on her first day, it's like a scene straight out of Mean Girls. Within a few weeks at Hex Hall, Sophie starts learning a lot about her past and who her family is-- all while being haunted by a mysterious girl in green who looks disturbingly similar to herself... and then of course there is the hott love interest, Archer who, unfortunately is dating Elodie, the meanest of the mean girl clique.

It soon becomes clear that something evil is lurking at Sophie's school, as one by one students are attacked by an unknown force. By the end, it turns out that there is a lot more to Sophie than she first thought possible... The unfolding drama and mystery combine into one story that had me hooked through all 32 chapters. I guess the only thing that sort of got to me about this book was that it dealt with some really dark things in the plot, especially towards the end, which didn't seem to match the humorous tone set throughout the book. Just my opinion, but those two things clashed for me. I also may have had a slight issue with the book not being quite as original as I'd have liked (if you read it, you'll probably be able to pick out certain influences from other books/movies, too). All in all though, this was still a good pick. I really loved Sophie with all of her smart-aleck observations and her down-to-earth personality, and the clever dialogue and fast-paced series of events made it super-easy to fly through this book in 2 days.

LC's Rating:

If you are looking for a fun read that you can easily blow through in a couple sittings, this is a really good book to chose. The humor keeps the story light-hearted while the mystery moves the plot along pretty quickly. Each chapter ended on the perfect cliff hanger, making it nearly impossible to put down-- altogether an enjoyable and entertaining pick!

Waiting on Wednesday (4)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly book meme where we get to let everyone know about what books we are eagerly anticipating the release of. WoW is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. Want to participate? Grab the logo on her page, post your own WoW entry on your blog, and leave your link on her blog!

*****

**Oh. Em. Gee.** I am SO excited for this one! After reading Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey, I had my wonderful readers let me know that YES there WILL be a sequel with Jessica and Luscious! WOOHOO!! Here is the info for the next book which I am pretty much hopping up and down for:

Title: Jessica Rules the Dark Side
Author: Beth Fantaskey
Anticipated Release Date: January 9, 2012
Pages: 368
Goodreads Summary: When Jessica Packwood found out she was a Romanian vampire princess, she had the shock of her teenage life. Turns out that was the easy part. Now, married to Prince Lucius Vladescu, she has to claim her throne and convince a vampire nation she’s fit to be their queen. But Jess can’t even order a decent meal from her castle’s Romanian staff, let alone deal with devious undead subjects who would love to see her fail.

And when Lucius is accused of murdering a vampire Elder and imprisoned without the blood he needs, Jessica finds herself alone, fighting for both their survivals.

Desperate to clear her husband’s name and win his release, Jess enlists the help of her best friend Mindy Stankowicz and Lucius’s mysterious Italian cousin, Raniero Lovatu. But both of them are keeping some dark secrets. Can Jess figure out who to trust – and how to rise to power – before she loses everything, including the vampire she loves?

Full of romance, mystery, and danger, the highly anticipated sequel to Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side shows that sometimes a princess has to earn her “happily ever after” – with a sharpened stake in hand.

*****

Ahh!!! This sounds freaking AMAZING!! Seriously I do not want to wait until next year to get my hands on this one! I love the summary, I LOVE love love the cover, absolutely gorgeous-- I just might have to see if there is any way to grab this one earlier. Hmmm.... upcoming Teen Book Festival I'm going to and Beth will be there?? Maybe I can meet her and ask for an advance copy??? I'll try to convince her to give me one :)

What is everyone else looking forward to this week?? 

Teaser Tuesday (4)

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

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

OK, so I literally JUST started this book this morning: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins, WHO I am hoping to maybe meet at a Teen Book Festival I'm going to in a couple of weeks (**yea!**) This one has gotten some good reviews, so I am definitely looking forward to getting into it!!

I don't know what I was expecting a vampire's room to look like. Maybe lots of black, a bunch of books by Camus... oh, and a sensitive portrait of the only human being the vamp had ever loved, who had no doubt died of something beautiful and tragic, thus dooming the vamp to an eternity of moping and sighing romantically.

What can I say? I read a lot of books.

But this room looked like it had been decorated by the unholy lovechild of Barbie and Strawberry Shortcake. 

~Chapter 3, p. 33

Yeah, I can never do just two sentences haha. What is everyone else reading this week?

Book Review: Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

Author: Beth Fantaskey
Release Date: January 18, 2010
Pages: 384
Read it in: 3 days

The Hook: The undead can really screw up your senior year...

Summary: Marrying a vampire definitely doesn't fit into Jessica Packwood’s senior year “get-a-life” plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth—and he’s her long-lost fiancé. Armed with new-found confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire’s Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war—and save Lucius’s soul from eternal destruction.

LC's Take: 

It feels like a really long time since I have posted a book review-- I have been so busy lately, so I apologize for slacking off!! I am hoping to get back into my reading/blogging groove this week :) OK, so now for my review...

Seriously, what is there not to like about this book? You've got hot vampires, vampire princesses, snotty cheerleaders trying to steal hot vampires away from their betrothed, blood pacts-- oh the drama! LOVE it. This book was fantastic, I had so much fun reading it.

Jessica AKA Antanasia (that's her Romanian vampire princess name) was an awesome female protagonist- she is funny, quirky, insightful, and a fully-developed character that you can really connect with. What I liked most about her is that she was an individual- she had her own interests and strengths, she was smart, talented, and didn't have to depend on Luscious (main love interest) to have a personality-- as sometimes happens in books, where the gal can't exist without the dashing vampire guy! **cough cough twilight cough** Jessica is a main character you can root for, and I found myself feeling the same things she did: confusion and disbelief when she learns she's a vampire, anger and jealousy when some popular cheerleader tries to steal her vampire man, and real fury and betrayal when that vampire falls for said cheerleader. One of the best parts of this book is how Jessica grows into her own- you can see her go from being this gawky, awkward teenager to becoming a regal, confident princess who is proud of who she is. That is always an amazing character development that really makes a book worthwhile and rewarding to read.

Speaking of this vamp guy, I had very mixed feelings about Luscious Vladescu-- on one hand he's an arrogant, condescending and insensitive jerk to Jessica (he is a vampire prince, after all), but then he also has a passionate, romantic side that really makes you feel for him. He has been stuck his whole life in this blood pact between two warring vampire families and was raised by ruthless, power-hungry vampire "Elders."  As a result, he is both dripping self-importance while also being extremely vulnerable. It was a roller coaster with Luscious- first I liked him, then I got annoyed with him, then I hated him, then I felt sorry for him. Despite being a vampire, he was very human, and I guess that's what made him an endearing character, faults and all. I thought the author did a really good job at making such a complex character-- you can never really pin him down with one specific trait, and I think it's a real feat for an author to be able to create someone that multi-dimensional. Also, I thought it was very creative of the author to include Luscious' point of view by having stand-alone chapters of his letters back home (despite them being extremely annoying at times- oh man, **spoiler** especially the prison one, I was dying).  

Bottom line: I really enjoyed this book, and I am really hoping there is going to be a sequel to it. The plot had me hooked the entire way through, and the ending was wonderfully climactic. The characters Jessica and Luscious are ones that I definitely want to see again-- their chemistry is just so addicting. The narrative was funny, sexy, and dark all at the same time; full of passion, high-school drama and Romanian vampire lore. This is one vampire love story that is definitely worth your time!

LC's Rating:

Strong, multi-dimensional characters and a wonderfully-addicting plot make this book one you have to read, especially  if you are into the vampire lit genre!

Musing Mondays (1)

Musing Mondays is a book meme hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading, and it basically just poses some insightful question about your reading style... today's question is:

Do you care if the book’s storyline is unrealistic? Will you keep reading, or will you set the book aside?

This depends. I love fantasy/paranormal/supernatural plots just as much as I like YA that takes place in a contemporary, believable setting. As long as the characters are acting in a realistic way (their actions make sense based on how the author has developed their personalities) and events take place in a logical way, then I will keep reading the book. What I probably could not stand is if a character started acting completely contrary to how they've been portrayed, or if events get so ridiculously unbelievable that I can't even take the story seriously anymore.

Another thing I will add that really bothers me is when I am reading an historical fiction about events that really did take place in the past but the author has changed everything around and sort of "tampered" with history to create their own twist on what happened. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with creating a new story out of past events, but personally, as a history major and history-obsessed nerd, I just can't stand it, and will most likely stop reading a book if it starts saying a bunch of stuff that runs contrary to what really happened-- I feel like it isn't doing history justice. (One major example would be The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory- I just couldn't like this book because I know that half the stuff it covers never could have taken place.) Maybe because these kinds of historical fictions deal with real people, I think we owe it to them to portray them as they really were and not make things up, because it warps people's perceptions of who they were in real life.

That's just my opinion! How about you? Do you mind reading an unbelievable story?