In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by the Kristi over at The Story Siren. The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of our blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of our blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.


Library:
Unraveled By Gena Showalter
Last Sacrifice By Richelle Mead


Bought:
Leviathan By Scott Westerfeld


Won:
Dust City By Robert Paul Weston (signed) ~ Received from Penguin Group (CA) Thanks to Kathy @ 
I Am A Reader, Not A Writer

Egalleys:
Blood Red Road By Moira Young (Simon & Schuster galley grab)
The Near Witch By Victoria Schwab (netGalley, Disney-Hyperion)
Two Moon Princess By Carmen Ferreiro-Esteban (netGalley, Tanglewood)

Book Review ~ Crescendo

Crescendo (Hush, Hush #2)
By Becca Fitzpatrick
Published By Simon & Schuster

Summary (Goodreads): Nora Grey's life is still far from perfect. Surviving an attempt on her life wasn't pleasant, but atleast she got a guardian angel out of it: a mysterious, magnetic, gorgeous guardian angel. But, despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever and even worse, he's started spending time with Nora's arch-enemy, Marcie Millar. 

Nora would have hardly noticed Scott Parnell, an old family friend who has moved back to town, if Patch hadnt been acting so distant. Even with Scott's totally infuriating attitude Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feeling that he's hiding something. 

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

My Thoughts: While I liked the overall pace and action of the story the character change of Nora was odd. The one thing I liked in the first book was that she wasn't your typical teenager falling all over the new hot guy. This book starts a few months later and suddenly she's a clingy obsessed girlfriend who cannot think for herself. She got a little better towards the end of the book but still seemed to be doing things on the fly without really thinking about them. While her relationship with Patch was on/off throughout the story I do still like these two together.  I also liked the changes in Vee, I remember thinking in the first book how can these two be friends. This character seemed more in line with what you would expect from the friendship they are supposed to have.  The ending definitely left me with more questions than answers and I am looking forward to the next book.


Rating: 3.5

Follow Friday and Blog Hop

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee. This weeks question:

Q. Inspired by the inane twitter trend of #100FACTSABOUTME, GIVE US FIVE BOOK RELATED SILLY FACTS ABOUT YOU.

This one is harder than I thought it would be: 1. I own almost every book by Nora Roberts/J D Robb, even if I haven't read it.
2. I'm addicted to library book sales, especially the $5 a bag day.  We just fill them up and go through them when we get home, most end up going back to the library to be resold.
3. I have not read any classics but maybe one or two
4. Series over stand alones
5. I will never get through my TBR, I add 5 for every 1 I read




The Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This meme is hosted by Crazy For Books.


This week's question:
"If you could physically put yourself into a book or series…which one would it be and why?"


There are so many and it really depends on what I'm reading at the time. I really love Maria V Snyder's world that she created for the Study/Glass series. I enjoy when you have to go strictly by what the author tells you and not by what you think a (real) time/place is like. Plus it has Valek and Ari and Janco :)


Happy Reading and Hopping! Leave a comment so I can return the favor

Book Review ~ Halfway to the Grave

Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress #1)
By Jeaniene Frost
Published By Avon

Summary (Goodreads): Flirting with the grave... 
Half-vampire Catherine Crawfield is going after the undead with a vengeance, hoping that one of these deadbeats is her father--the one responsible for ruining her mother's life. Then she's captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter, and is forced into an unholy partnership. 

In exchange for finding her father, Cat agrees to train with the sexy night stalker until her battle reflexes are as sharp as his fangs. She's amazed she doesn't end up as his dinner--are there actually good vampires? Pretty soon Bones will have her convinced that being half-dead doesn't have to be all bad. But before she can enjoy her new found status as kick-ass demon hunter, Cat and Bones are pursued by a group of killers. Now Cat will have to choose a side . . . and Bones is turning out to be as tempting as any man with a heartbeat.

My Thoughts: I'm conflicted about this book. While I enjoyed it overall there was something about it that caused me not to Love it.  With all the love I have seen for this series I may have come into it expecting too much. I liked the premise of Cat hunting/killing  vampires as a way to atone for what was done to her mother and her birth.  On the flip side she just seemed incredibly ignorant about a lot of things not just vampire related but in general. I did feel she got better as the book went along and seemed to learn from Bones even if she wasn't always opened to it.  Speaking of, I did like Bones and completely understand what all the fuss is about.  There was enough action in this book to keep me interested from beginning to end and want to pick up the next book to find out what happens. 

Rating: 3.5 

Waiting On Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Bite Club (Morganville #10)
By Rachel Caine
Published By NAL Hardcover
Release Date: May 3, 2011


Summary (Goodreads): After discovering that vampires populate her town, college student Claire Danvers knows that the undead just want to live their lives. But someone else wants them to get ready to rumble. 

There's a new extreme sport getting picked up on the Internet: bare- knuckle fights pitting captured vampires against each other-or humans. Tracking the remote signal leads Claire- accompanied by her friends and frenemies-to discover that what started as an online brawl will soon threaten everyone in Morganville...

~~I just finished Ghost Town recently and I'm in full Morganville mode. I look forward to seeing  how things that happened at the end of that book affect Claire and her friends.

Book Review ~ Outside In

Outside In (Inside Out #2)
By Maria V. Snyder
Published By Harlequin Teen
egalley from netGalley

Warning: Spoilers from 1st book if you have not read it.

Summary (netGalley):
 ME?

A LEADER?

Okay, I did prove that there’s more to Inside than we knew. That a whole world exists beyond this cube we live in. And finding that led to a major rebellion—between worker scrubs like me and the snobby uppers who rule our world. Make that ruled. Because of me, we’re free. I thought that meant I was off the hook, and could go off on my own again—while still touching base with Riley, of course. He’s the one upper I think I can trust. But then we learned that there’s outside and then there is Outside.

And something from Outside wants In.

My Thoughts: I ended up liking this book more than I thought I would. I was curious what could be done considering they are living in this huge ship and cannot go anywhere else. The author managed a plot that worked with this and still seemed plausible with the situations. There were a couple of things I didn't like. There were too many flips in this book. Trying to figure out if someone is good, then bad, then good again with no repercussions from when they  were bad. I think it's the last that bugged me more than all the flipping. The other, for me, was the Exile. It was made a point that the reason for the exile was a major button pusher and yet we were never told why it took place. I need closure and don't feel I got it  from this (unless I missed that page). The relationships were much the same as the first book; break-ups, make-ups, and shower scenes (tastefully done for those who have need to know). We got to meet some new characters and get familiar with some of the old ones.
Overall I enjoyed the story once it got going except for what was mentioned above. This is one of my favorite authors and I have enjoyed all her books so far and look forward to reading more.


Rating: 4

Book Review ~ Ghost Town

Ghost Town (The Morganville Vampires #9)
By Rachel Caine
Published By NAL Hardcover


Summary (Goodreads): While developing a new system to maintain Morganville's defenses, student Claire Danvers discovers a way to amplify vampire mental powers. Through this, she's able to re-establish the field around this vampire-infested Texas college town that protects it from outsiders. 

But the new upgrades have an unexpected consequence: people inside the town begin to slowly forget who they are-even the vampires. Soon, the town's little memory problem has turned into a full-on epidemic. Now Claire needs to figure out a way to pull the plug on her experiment- before she forgets how to save Morganville...

Overall Thoughts: These are the first YA books I read after HP and Twilight. I love the pace of these books. I can usually finish them in a day but still enjoy the story. Ghost Town had a little bit of everything you would expect. The Fab Four were ever present, even when they didn't all know each other, they work well together. Michael is still probably my favorite in this series, ever since he was just the ghost in the Glass house. 

Probably one of my favorite vampires in any book is Myrnin. Even saying that I think something is wrong with it. His crazy (literally), eccentric genius just makes any story that he is a part of. I also love the interactions between him and Claire, the way she trusts him even when she shouldn't.

The power struggles between Amelie and Oliver were kinda Blah for me. They really didn't add anything to the book or change much in town. I do like the possible relationship between them.

The only thing I was thinking at the end was "This is a disaster waiting to happen." I look forward to reading about said disaster.

Rating: 4

Follow Friday and Blog Hop

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee. This weeks question:

Q. How did you come up with your blog name? Mine was just based purely on the type of books I read, which is just about any. Whether I buy them new or used or borrow them from the library it's all good with me.

The Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This meme is hosted by Crazy For Books.


This weeks question:
"Do you read only one book at a time, or do you have several going at once?"


I definitely have more than one going at a time. I sometimes have trouble deciding what I feel like reading so I'll start several until one just pulls me in.

Have a Great Week! Happy Reading and Hopping!

Book Review ~ Intertwined

Intertwined (Intertwined #1)
By Gena Showalter
Published By Harlequin Teen

Summary (Goodreads): There's something about the new guy at Crossroads High…

Most sixteen-year-olds have friends.

Aden Stone has four human souls living inside him:

One can time travel.

One can raise the dead.

One can possess another human.

One can tell the future.

Everyone thinks he's crazy, which is why he's spent his entire life shuffled between mental institutions and juvie. All of that is about to change, however. For months Aden has been having visions of a beautiful girl—a girl who carries centuries-old secrets. A girl who will either save him or destroy him.

Together they'll enter a dark world of intrigue and danger…but not everyone will come out alive.

Dislikes: This book was definitely not a stand alone book. For most of the book it just seemed to be setting up for future events/books. It seemed to take time away from things that actually happened in this book. There was a part of the group that was "lost" in this book and I didn't feel it was executed as well as it could have been. It all happened very quick and seemed rushed. The ending confrontation seemed kind of rushed as well.

Likes: I really enjoyed the premise of Aden having other souls living inside of him and along with the souls comes an individual power. The rest of the cast of characters were a nice fit with Aden. I liked how when they were together their abilities seemed to balance out and work but if even one was missing it caused problems. The romance between the two couples was not overdone and worked throughout the story and added anther layer. I also liked the infusion of all the different paranormals (witches, demons, fairies, etc).

Overall: While I would have liked more focus on certain parts, I liked the set up for future books  and I'm interested to find out who the souls are and how/if they are able to be removed from Aden. I'm also interested in seeing how Aden's new found role with the vampires and his meeting with the witches plays out.

Rating: 4

Book Review ~ Fairy Tale

Fairy Tale
By Cyn Balog
Published By Delacorte Books

Summary (Goodreads): Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King.

Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future.

My Thoughts: I had a really hard time with this book and almost didn't write this because of how I felt about the book.  It starts out with Morgan holding courting complaining because some freshman hasn't come back with the fries she wants yet. This character just devolves from there. Throughout the whole book she is very much a me, me, me type character. Cam and Pip do redeem this book a bit, both characters were interesting and the book would have benefited with more focus on them.  Everything that happens to Cam is just mentioned instead of being a part of the book, example we're told that he is having lessons (draining lessons) on being a fairy but we never get to see these or find out what the training is.  I spent the second half of the book hoping that the author was leading up to some character growth with Morgan and she would become the person that Cam kept describing her as (strong, able to take care of herself). I didn't feel it ever happened and I also didn't enjoy how easily Morgan was able to switch from Cam (the love of her life) to Pip, it just seemed to transition to smoothly considering the history her and Cam had. 

Rating: 3 I ended up giving this a 3 because even though I didn't enjoy the overall story it was still well written. It was well paced and an easy quick read.

Waiting On Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Hunt The Moon
By Karen Chance
Published By Signet Select
Publication Date: June 7, 2011

Summary: Cassandra Palmer recently defeated a god, which you'd think would buy a girl a little time off. But it doesn't work that way when your new job description is Pythia — the world's chief clairvoyant. Cassie is busier than ever, trying to learn about her power, preparing for her upcoming coronation, and figuring out her relationship with the enigmatic sexy master vampire, Mircea. 

But someone doesn't want Cassie to become Pythia, and is willing to go to any lengths to make sure the coronation ceremony never happens—including attacking her mother before Cassie is even born.(

Book Review ~ The Hidden Oasis

The Hidden Oasis
By Paul Sussman
Published By Grove/Atlantic Inc.

Summary (Goodreads): The Hidden Oasis opens in 2152 BC with eighty priests setting out under cover of darkness into Egypt’s Western Desert, dragging with them a sled on which rests a mysterious object swathed in cloth. Four weeks later, having reached their destination, the priests calmly slit each other’s throats.

Four thousand years later in present-day Egypt, professional rock climber Freya Hannen arrives for the funeral of her sister, Alex, a Saharan explorer. From the outset, Freya is suspicious of claims that Alex had taken her own life, and sets out to uncover what really happened to her sibling. In her quest for the truth Freya joins forces with Alex’s friend, English academic Flin Brodie, a world authority on the prehistory of the Sahara. Flin is also searching for answers—he has devoted his career to tracking down a mythic hidden oasis.

In this propulsive, nail-biting thriller —all the more engrossing because Sussman himself has worked extensively as an archaeologist in Egypt —we follow Flin and Freya on an unforgettable adventure.At stake are not simply the answer to one of archaeology’s greatest mysteries —the location of the legendary lost oasis of Zerzura —but also the key to the astonishing, terrifying secret that lies at the oasis’s heart.

Dislikes: There were some dry parts in this book that really slowed it down and made it seem even longer than it really was (622 pgs).  There were almost too many characters is this story. At times you would get a short 3-4 line paragraph about a character watching their son sleep, etc. more to remind you the character existed than to add anything to the story. I would have preferred them to just stay in the background until needed.

Likes: Both Flin and Freya were great main characters. Each had their own tragic back stories that added to their overall character. The author did a good job showing each characters flaws, and how their past mistakes made them the way they are, without actually telling you their pasts until it fit into the story. While it was easy to place these two as the good guys and there was one for sure bad guy, the rest of the supporting characters really left you guessing what side they were really on until the end. Even though they were evil assassins I really enjoyed the twins. They were disturbing and yet quirky mama's boys who only wanted to open a food stand and watch football (soccer). They also brought a smile in the last scene of the book, may not have been intended but it still did.


Overall: I'm not as familiar with Egyptian mythology as Greek and this book was  full of facts and intriguing mysteries surrounding the Sahara and The Zerzura. While long it was well paced and full of action that kept me reading. The twists were well done and some were surprising, who was good vs. who was evil. I can definitely see myself finding time to check out more of this author's work. 


Rating: 3 

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by the Kristi over at The Story Siren. The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of our blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of our blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.


I haven't done one of these in awhile. Things are finally starting to settle down around here so hopefully I can get some reading done.


Gifts: 
Blood Wyne By Jasmine Galenorn
Tangled Webs and The Shadow Queen By Anne Bishop (Black Jewels Novels)
Zombies Vs. Unicorns   Black Vs.Larbalestier


Library:
Moon Sworn By Keri Arthur
Ghost Town By Rachel Caine
Num8ers By Rachel Ward


Bought:
Balefire  By Cate Tiernan
The Iron Witch By Karen Mahoney


Received for Review:
Quicksilver By Joy Spraycar
Running on Empty By Sandra Balzo
The Restorer By Amanda Stevens


So what did you get? Happy Reading and Have a Great Week!!

Book Review ~ One for the Money

One for the Money
By Janet Evanovich
Published By St. Martin's Griffin

Summary (Goodreads):Welcome to colorful Trenton, New Jersey, and the wild and wonderful world of Stephanie Plum. In One for the Money, rookie "apprehension agent" Plum may be a bit wet behind the ears, but nobody's gonna take it easy on her; especially her first skip, an ex-cop and murder suspect named Morelli.


Dislikes: I can't quite put my finger on it but there was something a little off about the book. I know that this was wrote awhile ago but there was word usage and fashion that seemed way older than when it came out.  I also wasn't overwhelmed by Stephanie. She was just an OK lead for me, there seemed to be other characters that far outshined her throughout the book. She also seemed to make some outright stupid decisions that may have helped the story move along but didn't seem to fit what we were supposed to expect of this character. 


Likes: My favorite character was the Grandma. She was fun and quirky and provided some comedic relief when the book seemed to be getting too serious.  Ranger and Morelli both added to this story and were more interesting than Stephanie was.  I also enjoyed the rest of the characters, Stephanie's family and the Stark St hookers all added another dimension to the book.


Overall: I enjoyed the overall mystery and felt the book was well paced and an easy read. I'm concerned by how long this series is already and if it will stay interesting. I'm almost finished with another mystery series that only had one main character and after so many books it starts to become unbelievable. I will continue with this series, I own the second already and my aunt is up to book six and swears by it.


Rating: 3.5

Follow Friday and Blog Hop

The Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word! This meme is hosted by Crazy For Books.


This weeks Question:"Who's your all-time favorite book villain?"
I had an answer for this and then my brain just blanked... I'll go with my second choices for now and update if I remember what I was thinking.


Lord Voldemort  from Harry Potter series and The Ring from LOTR trilogy.












Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee. This weeks question:
TBA




Have a great week and Happy Reading!!

Waiting On Wednesday

This is my first Waiting On  post. This meme is from Breaking the Spine. My choice for this week is based on being tired of winter and this book being set for release a couple of days before my birthday (well into summer!!).

Night Veil (Indigo Court #2)
By Yasmine Galenorn
Release Date: July 5, 2011

Summary: Eons ago, vampires tried to turn the Dark Fae in order to harness their magic, only to create a demonic enemy more powerful than they could have imagined. Quietly amassing their strength for centuries, the Vampiric Fae-led by the merciless Myst, Queen of the Indigo Court-are determined to enslave the world. Only one witch stands in her way...

Cicely Waters grew up believing she was simply one of the magic-born-a witch who can control the wind-but when she returned home to New Forest, Washington, she discovered she was also one of the shifting Fae. Now she must perfect her gift. For Myst, Queen of the Indigo Court, has captured Grieve, the Fae prince who holds Cicely's heart. To save both her beloved Grieve and her friend Kaylin-whose demon is waking-Cicely must journey deep into the heart of the Indigo Court. But even as Cicely gathers strength, old alliances are breaking faith.

And new allies, like the hedonistic vampire Lannan Altos, promise to take Cicely down a far darker path than she's ever travelled before.