Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill over at Breaking The Spine. It's a weekly event that spotlights upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating.

Spell Bound (Hex Hall #3)
by Rachel Hawkins
published by Hyperion
expected release date: March 13, 2012

Summary: Hailed as “impossible to put down,” the Hex Hall series has both critics and teens cheering. With a winning combination of romance, action, magic and humor, this third volume will leave readers enchanted.

Just as Sophie Mercer has come to accept her extraordinary magical powers as a demon, the Prodigium Council strips them away. Now Sophie is defenseless, alone, and at the mercy of her sworn enemies—the Brannicks, a family of warrior women who hunt down the Prodigium. Or at least that’s what Sophie thinks, until she makes a surprising discovery. The Brannicks know an epic war is coming, and they believe Sophie is the only one powerful enough to stop the world from ending. But without her magic, Sophie isn’t as confident.

Sophie’s bound for one hell of a ride—can she get her powers back before it’s too late?

**I enjoyed the first two books of this trilogy and with the way the second ended I definitely want to read this one.

What are you looking forward to reading?

Book Review ~ After Midnight

After Midnight (The Youngbloods #1)
by Lynn Viehl
published by Flux

Summary: Sophomore Catlyn Youngblood is used to her nomadic existence. When they settle down in Lost Lake, Florida, Cat meets the enigmatic, handsome Jesse Raven. As their attraction intensifies, Cat learns that the Ravens are a centuries-old vampire clan, and--worse still--she is a descendent of a world-famous vampire hunter.

My Thoughts: Overall I enjoyed this story. I ended up liking the premise of the series more at the end once everything was explained. Who Cat's parents were and the different gifts the three Youngbloods have.
Cat and Gray worked for me but I'm not sure how much I care for the oldest brother Trick. He just seemed to over the top with his controlling of everything. Even after you find out why it seems like too much.
The romance between Cat and Jesse was OK. I'll wait to see where it goes before I make a final decision. I did like the fact that being around him or thinking about Jesse helped Cat to remember things she was meant to forget.
High school drama didn't work for me. I had that figured out right away but it detract from the book any. I love quirky so my favorite characters were Ego and Kari.
The only problem I had while reading this book, there seemed to be a lot of editing errors. Between missing word, double words and words out of place it became annoying. I'm used to there being a few but it seemed to be happening more often than usual in a finished book.

Rating: 3 I have the 2nd book on netGalley and I'm looking forward to see how Cat remembering everything while the rest of the town has been made to forget works out.

Follow Friday

Follow Friday is now hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of course and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it'll allow us to show off more new blogs!

Q. Activity!!! Take a picture or describe where you love to read the most…
A. I mostly read in M's really old but comfy recliner, if not it's in bed before I go to sleep.

You can either follow by GFC or Linky. Let me know if your a new follower so I can follow back :)

Book Review ~ Darker Still

Darker Still (Magic Most Foul #1)
by Leanna Renee Heiber
published by Sourcebooks

Summary: I was obsessed.

It was as if he called to me, demanding I reach out and touch the brushstrokes of color swirled onto the canvas. It was the most exquisite portrait I'd ever seen--everything about Lord Denbury was unbelievable...utterly breathtaking and eerily lifelike.

There was a reason for that. Because despite what everyone said, Denbury never had committed suicide. He was alive. Trapped within his golden frame.

I've crossed over into his world within the painting, and I've seen what dreams haunt him. They haunt me too. He and I are inextricably linked--bound together to watch the darkness seeping through the gas-lit cobblestone streets of Manhattan. Unless I can free him soon, things will only get Darker Still.

My Thoughts: It took me forever to read this book because I kept putting it down. While I like Natalie and Mrs Northe, I did not feel any connection with Lord Denbury. I had a hard time believing the way every woman that came across his painting seemed to fall madly in love with him. I think I would have understood it more if there had been some kind of spell that was put on the picture rather than the way we were given.
I enjoyed the process of Natalie finding her voice and herself and that was the thing that kept me picking the book back up after setting it aside. She seemed to get stronger as the events going on got weirder and darker.
A couple of things I didn't get. If Natalie could see these other things/beings in her dreams, why didn't her mother just show herself to her instead of going through Mrs Northe? Also, I don't like when scenes have no purpose. Like Maggy trying to do a seance when Natalie shows up to free Denbury. It added nothing, you could take that part out and just had Natalie show up and wait for the devil and had the same outcome.
I ended up liking enough that I will probably give the second book a try. The society and what part Maggy ends up playing has potential to bring me back.

Rating: 3.5

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill over at Breaking The Spine. It's a weekly event that spotlights upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating.

The Crimson Crown (The Seven Realms #4)
by Cinda Williams Chima
published by Hyperion 
expected release date: October 23, 2012

Summary: A thousand years ago, two young lovers were betrayed— Alger Waterlow to his death, and Hanalea, Queen of the Fells, to a life without love.
     Now, once again, the queendom of the Fells seems likely to shatter apart. For young queen Raisa ana’Marianna, maintaining peace even within her own castle walls is nearly impossible. Tension between wizards and Clan has reached a fevered pitch. With surrounding kingdoms seeking to prey on the Fells’ inner turmoil, Raisa’s best hope is to unite her people against a common enemy. But that enemy might be the person with whom she’s falling in love.
      Navigating the cutthroat world of blueblood politics has never been more dangerous, and former streetlord Han Alister seems to inspire hostility among Clan and wizards alike. His only ally is the queen, and despite the perils involved, Han finds it impossible to ignore his feelings for Raisa. Before long, Han finds himself in possession of a secret believed to be lost to history, a discovery powerful enough to unite the people of the Fells. But will the secret die with him before he can use it?
      A simple, devastating truth concealed by a thousand-year-old lie at last comes to light in this stunning conclusion to the Seven Realms series.

**I have loved this series from the beginning and am eager to find out how it all ends.