Top Ten Tuesday -- Books I want to reread

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they come up with a topic and then you create your own list. Because who doesn't love making lists?

This week's top ten is Books I Want To Reread. This was easy for me cause I've been thinking about it lately.

1. Vampire Crush by A.M. Robinson:
This book was fantastic! Yet I never wrote a review. This was such a fun vampire book and I fell madly in love with the characters and the writing style. It's something I could reread multiple times.

2. Clarity by Kim Harrington:
I read this book months ago and never wrote a review for it. I adored the book and want to write a review (I was so swamped at the time with school that I never got around to writing a review) and I want to give it a great review. I don't feel like I can do this fairly without rereading the book.

3. Nevermore by Kelly Creagh:
I loved this book but I'm not sure if I remember all the details about it completely. I remember most but I want to reread it before the 2nd book comes out early next year. I want to be able to dive into the next book with a full on memory of everything that happened in the first.

4. Just One Wish by Janette Rallison:
This book makes me happy. I loved everything about it. I even did a painting of the cover of the book. It just makes me happy.

5. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins:
Who wouldn't want to reread this book? Though I do think I will "reread" it by listening to the audiobook which comes out soon.

6. Paper Towns by John Green:
Yet another book on this list that I didn't get around to writing a review for. Weird because John Green is one of my all time favorite authors now. This book was so awesome!

These are really the only ones that were coming to me at the moment. There are probably a few others but these are the ones I've been in the mood for lately. I've been in a major book slump the last two weeks so maybe I will reread one of these to get me back in the reading mood.

Review: Hourglass

Hourglass by Myra McEntire

Published by Egmont USA

Genra: YA

397 pages

What it's about (from goodreads):

One hour to rewrite the past . . .

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.

Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut.


My thoughts:
Hmmm this one was a mix for me. While I enjoyed it while I was reading it, it is not a book that every time I look at the cover I'll think "oh I loved that book!" It was fun, but not entirely memorable.

It took me a little bit to get into the story. Emerson at first was a little hard to like. It took me about a third of the book to get to like her. One other reason I had a hard time getting into the book was it was a little hard to understand exactly what the "ghosts" were. I never fully understood that. It was explained once and it only made a little bit of sense. Then when the other characters would ask about it, Emerson would say "well it's complicated." Yes it was, which is why it needed to be explained a little more.

I also wasn't really feeling the romance in the story. I get why Emerson liked Michael, he's hott, he's rich, it's a taboo relationship. What teenage girl doesn't go for that? But Michael? I just wasn't convinced about their relationship. Mostly because I felt that there wasn't a whole lot to Michael. He was a little one dimensional to me. Who I did like though was Michael's best friend. I thought he was hilarious.

So really, I did like this book. I read it pretty fast, and enjoyed it even though I didn't understand all of it. While I won't be running to the store the day the 2nd book comes out, I think I will continue with the series. I'm curious enough to keep going.

My rating: 8/10

105 YA books list (yup, I added to it)

There is a 100 YA book list that has been floating around and I thought that I would post about it, see which ones I've read, own, or need to read. I got this list from Vy's Blog.

Pink are ones I've read
Blue are the ones I own but haven't read
Green are the ones I want to read

1. Alex Flinn - Beastly

2. Alice Sebold – The Lovely Bones

3. Ally Carter – Callagher Girls (1, 2, 3, 4)

4. Ally Condie - Matched

5. Alyson Noel - The Immortals (1, 2 , 3, 4, 5, 6)

6. Anastasia Hopcus – Shadow Hills

7. Angie Sage – Septimus Heap (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

8. Ann Brashares – The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (1, 2, 3, 4)

9. Anna Godbersen – Luxe (1, 2, 3, 4)

10. Anthony Horowitz – Alex Rider (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)

11. Aprilynne Pike - Wings (1, 2, 3)

12. Becca Fitzpatrick - Hush, Hush (1,2)

13. Brandon Mull – Fablehaven (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

14. Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret

15. Cassandra Clare - The Mortal Instruments (1, 2, 3, 4)

16. Carrie Jones – Need (1, 2, 3)

17. Carrie Ryan – The Forest of Hands and Teeth (1, 2, 3)

18. Christopher Paolini – Inheritance (1, 2, 3, 4)

19. Cinda Williams Chima - The Heir Chronicles (1, 2, 3)

20. Colleen Houck – Tigers Saga (1, 2)

21. Cornelia Funke – Inkheart (1, 2, 3)

22. Ellen Hopkins – Impulse

23. Eoin Colfer – Artemis Fowl (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

24. Faraaz Kazi – Truly, Madly, Deeply

25. Frank Beddor – The Looking Glass Wars (1, 2, 3)

26. Gabrielle Zevin – Elsewhere

27. Gail Carson Levine – Fairest

28. Holly Black – Tithe (1, 2, 3)

29. J.K. Rowling – Harry Potter (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

30. James Dashner – The Maze Runner (1, 2)

31. James Patterson - Maximum Ride (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

32. Jay Asher – Thirteen Reasons Why

33. Jeanne DuPrau – Books of Ember (1, 2, 3, 4)

34. Jeff Kinney - Diary of a Wimpy Kid (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

35. John Boyne – The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

36. John Green – An Abundance of Katherines


37. John Green – Looking for Alaska


38. John Green – Paper Towns

39. Jonathan Stroud – Bartimaeus (1, 2, 3, 4)

40. Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl - Caster Chronicles (1, 2)

41. Kelley Armstrong – Darkest Powers (1, 2, 3)

42. Kristin Cashore - The Seven Kingdoms (1, 2)

43. Lauren Kate - Fallen (1, 2, 3)

44. Lemony Snicket – Series of Unfortunate Events (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)

45. Libba Bray – Gemma Doyle (1, 2, 3)

46. Lisa McMann – Dream Catcher (1, 2, 3)

47. Louise Rennison – Confessions of Georgia Nicolson (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)

48. M.T. Anderson – Feed

49. Maggie Stiefvater - The Wolves of Mercy Falls (1, 2, 3)

50. Margaret Peterson - Shadow Children (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)

51. Maria V. Snyder – Study (1, 2, 3)

52. Markus Zusak – The Book Thief

53. Markus Zusak – I am the Messenger

54. Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

55. Mary Ting – Crossroads

56. Maureen Johnson - The Little Blue Envelope (1, 2)

57. Meg Cabot – All-American Girl (1, 2)

58. Meg Cabot – The Mediator (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

59. Meg Cabot – The Princess Diaries (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)

60. Meg Rosoff – How I live now

61. Megan McCafferty – Jessica Darling (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

62. Megan Whalen Turner – The Queen’s Thief (1, 2, 3, 4)

63. Melina Marchetta – On the Jellicoe Road

64. Melissa de la Cruz – Blue Bloods (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

65. Melissa Marr - Wicked Lovely (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

66. Michael Grant – Gone (1, 2, 3, 4)

67. Nancy Farmer – The House of the Scorpion

68. Neal Shusterman – Unwind

69. Neil Gaimen - Coraline

70. Neil Gaiman – Stardust

71. Neil Gaiman – The Graveyard Book

72. P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast - House of Night (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

73. Philip Pullman – His Dark Materials (1, 2, 3)

74. Rachel Caine – The Morganville Vampires (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)

75. Rachel Cohn & David Levithan – Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist

76. Richelle Mead – Vampire Academy (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)


77. Rick Riordan - Percy Jackson and the Olympians (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

78. Rom LcO’Feer – Somewhere carnal over 40 winks

79. S.L. Naeole – Grace (1, 2, 3, 4)

80. Sabrina Bryan & Julia DeVillers – Princess of Gossip

81. Sarah Dessen – Along for the Ride

82. Sarah Dessen – Lock and Key

83. Sarah Dessen – The Truth about Forever

84. Sara Shepard – Pretty Little Liars (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)

85. Scott Westerfeld – Leviathan (1, 2)

86. Scott Westerfeld – Uglies (1, 2, 3)

87. Shannon Hale – Books of a Thousand Days

88. Shannon Hale - Princess Academy

89. Shannon Hale – The Books of Bayern (1, 2, 3, 4)

90. Sherman Alexie & Ellen Forney – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

91. Simone Elkeles - Perfect Chemistry (1, 2, 3)

92. Stephanie Meyer – The Host


93. Stephanie Meyer - The Twilight Saga (1, 2, 3, 4)

94. Sue Monk Kidd – The Secret Life of Bees

95. Susan Beth Pfeffer – Last Survivors (1, 2, 3)

96. Suzanne Collins - The Hunger Games (1, 2, 3)

97. Suzanne Collins – Underland Chronicles (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

98. Terry Pratchett – Tiffany Aching (1, 2, 3, 4)

99. Tonya Hurley – Ghost Girl (1, 2, 3)

100. Wendelin Van Draanen - Flipped

101. Stephanie Perkins - Anna and the French Kiss

102. Julie Kagawa - The Iron Fey (1,2,3,4)

103. Lili St.Crow - Strange Angels (1,2,3,4)

104. Lisa Schroeder -- Far From You

105. Veronica Roth -- Divergent

I think it's funny some of the books that are on this list. Some are "midgrade" and some *cough* The Host *cough* are actually adult books. I'm adding onto the list with books I think should be on there. There are a lot of books on here as well that I've never even heard of. Time for me to go look them up.
I think it would be cool if everyone who posted about this list would add onto it. Make it sort of a "must read" list for us YA lovers out there.

Cover Reveal! Insurgent!!!!

Veronica Roth revealed the cover for her second book, Insurgent. I can not wait for this book!!!!!!!!!

I  love this cover! I think the tree looks really good and is a lot easier to tell what it is than the first book cover. Plus this one will tell us more about Amity which is the one faction I really want to know about.

This book will be out some time next year which is too far away!

ARC Review: Crave

Crave by Melissa Darnell

Published by Harlequin Teen

Genre: YA

416 pages

Release date: Oct. 18th 2011 (US)

What It's About (from Goodreads):

Savannah Colbert has been shunned all her life by the kids of the Clann. And when she undergoes some drastic changes after a strange illness, Savannah learns secrets about the group and about herself—dangerous secrets. For the Clann are powerful magic users, and Savannah herself is half Clann and half vampire—a forbidden, unheard of combination. Falling for Clann golden boy Tristan Coleman isn't just a bad idea—it could be deadly if anyone finds out. But her attraction to Tristan—and his to her—isn't something either of them can resist for long.(

My thoughts:
At first I could not put this book down. Once I started reading it I had to keep going. I needed to know when Savannah and Tristan were finally going to get together! I had to know what happens, but once 6am hit, I knew I had to put the book down and go to bed (which was a hard thing to do). The next day I picked the book back up and finished it. Though having that break in between did sort of change my views of the book a little. I lost some of the interest in it.

The loss of interest was mostly due to the fact that I realized how much the book repeats itself. Savannah spends most of her time freaking out about her "gaze daze" and about how she is  breaking the rules. At least 50 pages of the book could have been cut out due to repetitiveness.

But besides that I did enjoy the story. It actually felt like a few different stories in there because the mood does change throughout the book. It is done in "parts" and each part has a little different feel. I really liked the characters in the book. Tristan being my favorite. I found his character to be the most interesting and would have loved to have more of the story be in his POV. The story mostly focused on Savannah who I did not care for as much just because of how much she worried. That got a little obnoxious.  The best friend Anne, was also a great character. She cracked me up even though I don't believe she was supposed to be funny.

So all in all, I liked this book. It is very much a forbidden love, Romeo and Juliet, teen angst love book which I happen to adore. It could have used a little less repeating and some more to the ending, but other than that I enjoyed it. Don't know if I will continue with the series though because the next book seems like it is going to pretty much be the exact same thing.

My rating: 9/10

Favorite quote from book:
"I understood then why humans have noses. So we can find each other to kiss in the dark."

Book I Gave Up On #3 -- Fury

Fury by Elizabeth Miles

Published by Simon Pulse

Genre: YA

$17.99 (US hardback)

370 pages

What it's about:

It’s winter break in Ascension, Maine. The snow is falling and everything looks pristine and peaceful. But not all is as it seems...

Between cozy traditions and parties with her friends, Emily loves the holidays. And this year’s even better--the guy she’s been into for months is finally noticing her. But Em knows if she starts things with him, there’s no turning back. Because his girlfriend is Em’s best friend.

On the other side of town, Chase is having problems of his own. The stress of his home life is starting to take its toll, and his social life is unraveling. But that’s nothing compared to what’s really haunting him. Chase has done something cruel...something the perfect guy he pretends to be would never do. And it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed.

In Ascension, mistakes can be deadly. And three girls—three beautiful, mysterious girls—are here to choose who will pay.

Em and Chase have been chosen.


Why I Gave Up:
I feel like I've been giving up on a lot of books lately. I see how many books I have on my never ending TBR list and how many books I still have on my want list, and on hold at the library and I give up on only eh books a lot easier than I used to.

I got about half way through Fury before I realized that I didn't really like it. The two main characters, Em and Chase are pretty boring. All they do are worrying about themselves. I guess that is pretty normal in books, but this one just got to me. Em is sleeping with her best friend's boyfriend and Chase spends so much time worrying about his looks (omg there is a stain on my shirt!) instead of doing anything else with his time. O.M.G. I was just having a hard time with people trying so hard to be "in" at school. Do teenagers really try that hard to fit in anymore? I don't believe they do. At least they didn't at my high school.

Then these three beautiful girls show up and things get weird. Yet they get weird very very slowly. While I find it a little interesting, I don't think I'm willing to finish the whole book to figure out what happens to everyone. It's just not my cup of tea.

Review: Ashes, Ashes

Ashes, Ashes by Jo Treggiari

published by Scholastics

Genre: YA dystopian

$17.99 (US Hardback)

344 pages

What it's about:

Epidemics, floods, droughts--for sixteen-year-old Lucy, the end of the world came and went, taking 99% of the population with it. As the weather continues to rage out of control, and Sweepers clean the streets of plague victims, Lucy survives alone in the wilds of Central Park. But when she's rescued from a pack of hunting dogs by a mysterious boy named Aidan, she reluctantly realizes she can't continue on her own. She joins his band of survivors, yet, a new danger awaits her: the Sweepers are looking for her. There's something special about Lucy, and they will stop at nothing to have her.

My thoughts:
I'm madly in love with dystopia books at the moment. This one happens to be about something I've been really interested in since I took an environmental bio class a few years ago. What if all the horrible things that scientists say is going to happen actually happens? What if horrible diseases come back? What if the polar ice caps melt causing flooding, and the contents start to shift and change? How would people survive?

I was sucked into this book pretty fast. I found the details on how the main character, Lucy, was surviving and how she handled the loss of almost all of humanity, including her whole family. Most of the book really is describing what Lucy does on a day to day basis. How she catches food, makes a tent out of pieces of nature, that sort of thing. It is like the teenage girl version of Bear Grylls (aka Man vs. Wild on Discovery channel for all you non-discovery channel nerds out there). I really liked Lucy's character though I do feel like there could have been more to her. In that aspect the characters personalities were sort of lacking. They were not the focus of the story. The setting really was the focus.

I can think of a few things that I would have liked to see fixed up a bit in this story. For starters there were a few notable editing errors. I also would have liked to see more character development. The ending was sort of a surprise as well. The story starts out pretty slow and stays slow. Then all the sudden BAM! There is a bad guy and a bigger plot line. I would have liked to see a little more come from that and the ending. It just sort of hit you.

Even though I said I would have liked to see a few things fixed up, these errors really didn't bug me until after I finished the book. I enjoyed the whole book while I was reading it. I'm also a little confused, is this a stand alone or is this going to be a series? That is the other question the ending had me asking. I really can't tell.

My rating: 9/10

I went on a book buying spree!

Today I decided to allow myself to buy as many books as I wanted (well, close to as many as I wanted) because it will be the last time I ever get to shop at a Borders books. NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! *cries* I ended up going to three different Borders. One of them today was it's last day and every book was 50 cents! One of the others had everything at least 85% off, and the other 70%. I went a little crazy. I got.....

Clarity by Kim Harrington (read library copy before)
Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen
Bite Club by Rachel Caine
Tempestuous by Lesley Livingston
Passing Strange by Daniel Waters
Secrets and Shadows by Shannon Delany
The Seven Rays by Jessica Bendinger
Return to Paradise by Simone Elkeles
Trance by Linda Gerber
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (for a friend)
The Good, the Bad, and the Undead by Kim Harrison (for my sister)
A Fistful of Charms by Kim Harrison (also for my sister)
Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk (already read but wanted still)
Warrior Avenged by Addison Fox (cover totally caught my attention)
Private Demon by Lynn Viehl (also another one where I liked the cover)
Dark Calling by Darren Shan
The Rising by Temple Mathews
The Sword of Armageddon by Temple Mathews

Those last two are "Borders exclusive" books and I don't know much about them, like wtf is the first book and why does Borders never have it?

I did have to limit myself on some of these. I was kinda mad cause some of the books I got back at 25% off were still there.... for 85% off. Should have just waited two weeks. sigh oh well. There were other books I'm now wishing I would have got but decided to hold back on.

Top Ten Tuesday-- Sequels!

Every week, the lovely ladies who run The Broke and the Bookish have a topic. You then write down your top ten of whatever the topic of the week is. Who doesn't love to make lists?

This weeks top ten is Top Ten Sequels I'm excited for!!!!!

This one is easy. These are in no order.

1. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins:
Okay, so this isn't really a "sequel" it's just a second book by the same author. But Stephanie did say that Anna will make a short appearance in the book. So that makes it a sequel, right???

2. Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Divergent#2):
I'm listening to the audiobook for the 2nd time this summer. It makes it my 3rd time "reading" the book since it first came out in.... what? May? Can't get enough of Four!

3. Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan (Lost Hero #2):
I loved the Percy Jackson series and I"m so glad that the Lost Heroes series is almost as good. I love learning about the new characters and the other side of the Greek gods.

4. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (Infernal Devices #2):
AHHHHHH!!!!!!! Will and Jem!!!!! *swoon*

5. City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare (Mortal Instruments pt. 2 book 2)
Okay so it's just book 5, but Cassie was calling it MI pt. 2 so I will as well. After reading the spoiler post Cassie did, I'm insanely excited to see how it all plays out (nightclub scene anyone????)

6. Enshadowed by Kelly Creagh (Nevermore #2):
This one feels like it's taking forever to come out! The first book was really big but I loved everything about it. I can't wait to find out how the story continues.

7. Fever by Lauren Destefano (Chemical Garden #2):
This dystopian was really really good and I want to know what happens to everyone.

8. Perception by Kim Harrington (Clarity #2):
This was just a fun story. Hmmm I never did write a review for the first one..... I should probably do that sometime.

9. Allegiance by Cayla Kluver (Legacy #2):
I could not believe the ending to the first book. Gah! What happens next?????

10. Hereafter #2 by Tara Hudson:
Tara gave away one spoiler for the second book and I'm pretty excited to find out how it's gonna play out.

Review: Ripple

Ripple by Mandy Hubbard

published by Razorbill

Genre: YA

$16.99 (US hardback)

272 pages

What it's about:

Lexi is cursed with a dark secret. The water calls to her, draws her in, forces her to sing her deadly song to unsuspecting victims. If she succumbs, she kills. If she doesn't, the pain is unbearable. To keep herself and those she cares about safe, she shuts herself off, refusing to make friends or fall in love-- again. Because the last time she fell in love with a boy, he ended up dead.

Then Lexi finds herself torn. Against her better judgment, she's opening up again, falling in love with someone new when she knows she shouldn't. But when she's offered the chance to finally live a normal life, she learns that the price she must pay to be free of her curse is giving him up.



My thoughts:
I was so excited to start reading this book. I read Mandy Hubbard's book You Wish back when it first came out and absolutely loved it. Loved the plot, the writing style, the characters, everything.

Which is why this book was a little bit of a let down. It took me a week to finish it because I just wasn't connecting to it. Lexi would not stop wining. I probably would be too if I killed the boy I love, but in a book, it's just not a good thing. The first half of the book this is all she does. So I never liked her much.

The second half of the book is much better. You get to see more of Lexi besides the complaining side and get to see a little more of the other characters. There was a big gaping hole I found in the story which had me constantly questioning a lot of the book and the characters.

Overall, I wish there had been a little more to the plot. There is something about Mandy Hubbard's writing style that really attracts me, but this book fell short for me.

My rating: 7/10

My laptop is broken!

Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't been updating my blog much lately. My laptop broke and it's with the geeks at geeksquad for at least another week. It is absolutely horrible not having my laptop. How in the world do people live without computers????

I hope to get on and do some posts soon but I'm taking the opportunity of my computer free life in order to get a bunch of my projects done.

--Ariel