Book Review ~Across the Universe

Across the Universe (#1)
By Beth Revis
Published By Razorbill

Summary (Goodreads): A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

My Thoughts: I'll admit I was concerned when I started reading this book. It is very similar to Maria V. Snyders Inside Out series. Luckily those similarities ended with the spaceship and the living tiers of the inhabitants, this book is very much its own story. What worked the most for me was the story being told from two different POVs. It made the story flow while giving you both sides of the ship. 

I really liked Amy, she was stuck in an unimaginable situation and still managed to come out the other side. I'm still not sure how I feel about Elder, especially after the last part of the book, so it made the relationship between him and Amy just kinda blah for me. 
Overall I thought this was an enjoyable story that had enough drama and action to keep it interesting from beginning to end.


Rating: 4

Follow Friday & Blog Hop

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee. This weeks question:
Q In light of the Summer Solstice also known as Midsummer... Lets talk about Fairies. What is your favorite fairy tale or story that revolves around the fae?
A. Old classic fairy tale that I loved growing up was Sleeping Beauty. More current is a little harder, I like a lot but not one specific. Dark Swan series, Meredith Gentry, Iron Fae, could probably keep going but will stop now.  





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: 
Q When did you realize reading was your passion and a truly important part of your life?
A. Not exact but at a very young age. I had the all the disney story books and can remember reading them all the time. My mom was a big fan of the library so we were there often also.


Happy Hopping and Reading! Have a Great Week!

Book Review ~ Blood Stains

Blood Stains (The Searchers #1)

By Sharon Sala
Published By Mira
received from: netGalley for review

Summary (Goodreads): At the reading of her father's will, Maria Slade receives shocking news—as a four-year-old, she'd witnessed her prostitute mother's murder and been taken into hiding by the well-meaning preacher who'd raised her as his own.

Maria remembers none of that. But now she's determined to flush her mother's killer out of hiding and discover the identity of her birth father. She heads to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she meets Detective Bodie Scott.

Empathizing with this beautiful woman looking to find out who she really is, he opens the decades-old case file. Their investigation leads them down a dangerous path, where no one is what they seem. Where a father does not want to be found. And a murderer has "like mother, like daughter" in mind for Maria.

My Thoughts: This series is about a set of sisters that find out they were each "adopted" under extreme circumstances and their journey to find out who they really are. This book is about Maria, who witnessed the murder of her mother but cannot remember anything from the time before she was brought to her family's ranch.

While some may not, I enjoyed the fact that it seemed to be more suspense than romance. You can tell there is something building between the Maria and Bodie but it seems to take a backseat to finding the murderer and getting Maria's memory back before it's too late.  Maria comes to town as this strong independent woman who has set a goal and isn't going to let anything get in her way except when she had breakdowns (fear of storms) so Bodie could "save the day". I found Bodie to be your typical cowboy cop. There was nothing wrong with this but nothing special either. Since there was nothing about either of these characters that really made them stand out for me I focused more on the story.

Since we knew who the killer was throughout the story, this was more about would the good guys figure it out in time or would the killer get his way. 

Overall an enjoyable easy read that left enough for me to want to find out what happens with the other two sisters. 

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.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns (Fire and Thorns #1)
By Rae Carson
Published By Greenwillow/HarperCollins
expected Release Date: September 20, 2011


Summary (Goodreads):Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness. 

Elisa is the chosen one. 

But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can’t see how she ever will. 

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. 

And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake. 

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young. 

Most of the chosen do. 

**I love high fantasy type books and this one sounds really interesting.

Book Review (Shorts) ~ The Poison Eaters

The Poison Eaters and Other Stories
By Holly Black
Published By Big Mouth House

Summary (Goodreads): Poisonous girls whose kisses will kill. A fateful eating contest with the devil. Faeries who return to Ironside, searching for love. A junior prom turned bacchanalia. In twelve short stories, eerie and brimming with suspense and unexpected humor, Holly Black twists the fantastical creatures you thought you knew in ways you’ll never expect.


My Thoughts:
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown ~ This story had an interesting take on vampires. For some reason the description of Coldtown made me think more of a concentration camp than anything else. This was a good choice for the first story. 


A Reversal Of Fortune ~ Gross is the only word I can think of for this one. An interesting way to win a bet but still Gross.


The Boy Who Cried Wolf ~ Not bad but not one of my favorites. Alex's need to read only things that he believes are facts and what he does with that information to try and save his family.


The Night Market ~ What one sister will do to save the life of another who has been cursed by an enkato (elf boy)


The Dog King ~ I enjoyed this one. The king that has most of the wolves killed but keeps one as a pet and how said pet turns on him.


Virgin ~ I felt confused when I finished reading this one. Like I missed something or it wasn't long enough to fill in the blanks.


In Vodka Veritas ~ A private school, latin club secret society, prom, and a junior class orgy. 


The Coat of Stars ~ Everyone should know by now, don't try and bargain with a fairie. It works in this story though.


Paper Cuts Scissors ~ I had read this one in another anthology and it was my favorite, it still is. A guy who is trying to help his girlfriend, who has gotten lost in her books.


Going Ironside ~ This was too short and I didn't really get much from it. I have only read Tithe so that may be why I was lost on this one.


The Land of Heart's Desire ~ This is another of my favorites. An odd mix of why you should keep some things secret, the punishment if you don't,  and how easy it is to mistake love and hate.


The Poison Eaters ~  This was a great ending to this collection.  Royal politics, grudges, and ambitions that caused The Poison Eaters to be created as tools for their "father". 


Rating: 4 more good than bad in this collection