Review: A Beautiful Dark

A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies

Published by Harper Teen

Genre: YA paranormal?

$17.99 (US hardback)

390 pages

What it's about:
On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites;like fire and ice;Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.


In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can't help falling for, and Devin, who she can't stay away from, the consequences of Skye's choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.


My thoughts:
This book had me scratching my head in confusion. I really was not seeing why Skye was even slightly attracted to either Asher or Devin. Which made the whole entire book a little pointless.

Skye meets both Asher and Devin at her surprise birthday party. And then Asher and Devin promptly ruin the party by getting into a fist fight. Then of course the two gorgeous boys end up going to her school and ruining her life there. They take her away from her friends, they distract her so bad that she starts failing her classes, they are constantly toying with her emotions, and then don't forget, they tell are the ones who tell her life shattering news and completely destroy her life.

Oh yeah, I can totally see why she falls in love with the boys *eye roll.*

The book never really got my attention, not even at the twist in the end. I just wasn't buying the whole relationship that Skye has with the boys or the whole reason why the boys were there.

My rating: 6/10
I had absolutely no emotion towards this book. I didn't like it or hate it. Therefore, it's a 6/10

Review: Dead to You

Dead To You by Lisa McMann

Published by Simon Pulse

Genre: YA

$16.99 (US hardback)

243 pages

What it's about:

Ethan was abducted from his front yard when he was just seven years old. Now, at sixteen, he has returned to his family. It's a miracle... at first. Then the tensions start to build. His reintroduction to his old life isn't going smoothly, and his family is tearing apart all over again. If only Ethan could remember something, anything, about his life before, he'd be able to put the pieces back together. But there's something that's keeping his memory blocked. Something unspeakable...

My thoughts:
I always love reading Lisa McMann's books. I know when I'm going into them, they are going to be a quick, dark and edgy type of book. Dead to You did not disappoint me.

Going into this book, I pretty much figured out how it was going to end. Having read four other Lisa McMann books, I could figure what she was going for in this book and really, it was the only ending I could see for this book anyways. Even though I was pretty sure I knew how everything was going to play out, I still loved reading it. Right from the first page, it just throws you into the drama. There isn't anything leading up to it, it just smacks you in the face. The reader is immediately immersed in all the sorrow and awkwardness that one can only imagine would be hanging in the air if a long lost son of 9 years all the sudden showed back up. How do you act around each other? How do you bring the child back into your life? And then to be that child, how do you handle all of that?

I really liked Ethan's character. I thought he was an interesting narrator even though it is obvious that he is hiding information from both his family and the reader, and really, even from himself. It allows the reader to feel the frustration and despair that is always in the De Wilde house.

While the ending just kinda sneaks up on you, it actually really worked for this book. Life can be a sneaky bastard and McMann shows that with this ending. Of course with it being an abrupt ending, I was left with questions, but that is very normal for me. I feel that way about almost all books.

My rating: 9/10

Selling Some Of My Books

I've updated and added a bunch of books to the ones I'm selling. I have a whole page dedicated to them. Here is the updates.

Here is a list of books that I am currently selling. My book habbit costs me a lot of money (but is oh so worth it) and it takes up a lot of room. While I hate to sell my books, I just don't have the room for them and I need the money so I can buy more books or buy gas to go to book signings.


Price

All the books are 50% off or more of the original price.

Shipping
I can ship about 2 hardbacks, or 3 paperbacks per mailing envelope and ships at about $3.50 anywhere in the US (thank goodness for Media Mail!). The $3 price is if the envelope is packed full.

International buyers: I am willing to ship to other countries if you are willing to pay extra for shipping. I do not know how much that normally costs but we can figure it out.


How to Pay
I've got a lovely little paypal donate button on my blog, located on the ride side bar underneath "Labels" and above "About Me." It has it's own label and everything.

If you'd like to buy any of these books, please email me at hyperhamster15@hotmail.com and in the subject, put something like "blog books" so I know it's not spam. If you would like to know about how much shipping will cost before you decide to buy, please put your address in the first email you send me and I can go price everything out.

I am also up for doing book swaps.


Young Adult
*The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong (hardback $6)
*Bumped by Megan McCafferty ($8)
*Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber ($5)
*The Dark Divine by Bree Despain (Hardcover $7)
*Deadly little Games by Laurie Faria Stolarz (hardback $7)
*Fallen by Lauren kate (hardback $7)
*Forgotten by Cat Patrick ($9)
*The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross ($9)
*Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick (hardcover $7)
*Lament by Maggie Stiefvater ($4)
*The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor ($7)
*Love Bites by Ellen Schreiber (hardcover $6)
*Never Bite a Boy On the First Date by Tamara Summers ($3)
*Nightshade by Andrea Cremer (the pretty hardcover version $7)
*Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles ($4)
*The Red Pyramid ($9)
*Ripple by Mandy Hubbard ($8)
*Royal Blood by Ellen Schrieber ($4)
*Shiver (hardcover $7)
*Stargazer by Claudia Gray (hardback $6)
*Viola In The Spotlight by Adriana Trigiani ($8)
*Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston ($4)
*You Wish by Mandy Hubbard ($4)

*Glimmerglass by Jenna Black ($4)
*Shadowspell by Jenna Black ($4)
*Sirensong by Jenna Black ($4)

*Bite Me! by Melissa Francis ($4)
*Love Sucks! by Melissa Francis ($4)

*Betrayals by Lili St.Crow ($4)
*Defiance by Lili St.Crow ($4)
*Reckoning by Lili St.Crow ($4)


Adult
*A Hunger Like No Other by Kresley Cole ($3)
*Dark Desires After Dusk by Kresley Cole ($3)
*Dark Needs at Night's Edge by Kresley Cole ($3)
*First Drop Of Crimson by Jeaniene Frost ($3)
*Eternal Kiss of Darkness by Jeaniene Frost ($3)
*The Harlequin by Laurell K. Hamilton (Hardback $4)
*Mr Parker Pyne, Detective by Agatha Christie ($1)
*Murder at Hazelmoor by Agatha Christie ($1)
*Passenger to Frankfurt by Agatha Christie ($1)


And because I don't believe in selling ARC's, here are arc's I'll be giving away if you are willing to pay shipping:

*The Deadly Sister by Eliot Schrefer
*The Espressologist by Kristina Springer
*The Keepers' Tattoo by Gill Arbuthnott
*The Vampire Stalker by Allison Van Diepen

Feature and Follow Book Blog Hop

F&F is a weely blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison.   Q: What book would you love to see made into a movie or television show and do you have actors/actresses in mind to play the main characters?
 

Hmmm that's a hard one. I have a love/hate relationship with my favorite books being turned into movies or tv series. So I'm picking one that is actually being turned into a movie and say City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. I'm insanely disappointed in who they have cast for both Clary and Jace.  Here is my dream cast.

So those are the people I really wish they would cast. I'm so angry about the Lili and Jamie casts that they have already done. Lily is a poor actress with hideous eyebrows that no one ever seems to fix for her and while Jamie is a decent actor, but he isn't really "Jace" material. Plus he's already in Twilight and Harry Potter. He doesn't need to be in MI too. He's being a major blockbuster hog.

Anywho, here are some of the posts I've done this week:

My Hunger Games Challenge

A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison Review

My Book Boyfriend-- St. Clair!

TTT: Books that need theme songs

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotwood Review

Hunger Games Challenge

Hunger Games the movie is coming out soon, who else is way excited? I already have my midnight showing tickets, going to make my own District 7 Tribute shirt for the showing, I have my District 7 card pass thingy being made and I've played all the online games to see if I could survive the hunger games (I can't). I'm so ready for the movie!

One of my babysitting kids showed me this fan made Hunger Games video and asked "can you make it through the video without crying?"

Turns out I can't.

But that's okay, because we haven't found a single person who can make it through without crying (well, at least people who have read the books can't make it through tearless).

So I want to know, can you make it through this whole video without crying?

And if that link doesn't work for you, here is another link to it: Clicky clicky

Here is something to make you laugh after all that crying I just asked you to do. EviliguanaProductions are those hilarious people that did that Twilight trailer spoof we all know and love. These guys are so funny. Now they did Hunger Games.

On a side note:
If you don't know what online Hunger Games games I'm talking about, a few years ago Scholastics put together a few fun games for fans to see if they could survive the hunger games. Those games can be found Here.

Review: A Perfect Blood

A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison

Series: The Hollows #10

Published by Harper Voyager

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

$27.99 (US hardback)

438 pages

What it's about:

Ritually murdered corpses are appearing across Cincinnati, terrifying amalgams of human and other. Pulled in to help investigate by the FIB, former witch turned day-walking demon Rachel Morgan soon realizes a horrifying truth--a would-be creator is determined to make his (or her) own demons. But it can't be done without Rachel's blood, in this latest blockbuster by a "New York Times"-bestselling author.

My thoughts:

If you've followed my blog for any length of time, you might have figured out that I am a massive Kim Harrison fan. In my opinion, Kim can do nothing wrong when it comes to her books. I adore every page of her books.

APB has a very different feel than all the other books in the Hollows. Rachel has blocked out her ability to do ley line magic so she can hide from the demons. She has been "outed" and the world now knows that she is a demon. This leaves the mood of the book pretty somber. Rachel is finally growing up and facing reality! Out of all the books, this one definitely has the most character growth to it. It is also the darkest of all the books. We see a whole new side of life in Rachel's world. We learn a lot more about the humans and how they feel towards the inderlanders.

This is one of my all time favorite series, if not my favorite series (besides Harry Potter of course). I love how vivid the characters are. I feel like I personally know them because Kim describes them so well. And the world in which the characters live is just as well described. If I ever go to Cinci, I think I will be shocked to find out that there isn't a Hollows or the IS or FIB. I feel like this is a real place, that's how incredible Kim's writing is.

My rating: 10/10

My Book Boyfriend--St. Clair!

My Book Boyfriend is a weekly meme hosted by Missie over at The Unread Reader. Each week you post about a boy from a book you love. Why is this boy so awesome? Who should play him in a movie? What are his best quotes? Tell us all about him.

Ever since I read Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins last January, I've been trying to find an actor that could fit the image of the incredibly beautiful boy in my head. It's been a really long, hard search, and thanks to someone on the AATFK facebook page, I have found an actor! Yay! Now I can do the post about Etienne St. Clair!

About Etienne
*It's pronounced Eh-t-yen (though I like to say it the American way Et-eh-nee)
*He has a French name and an English accent, but he's American
*Goes to an American school in Paris
*Plays soccer
*Is pretty short but doesn't admit to it
*"The first thing I notice is his hair--it's the first thing I notice about everyone. It's dark brown and messy and somehow both long and short at the same time. I think of the Beatles, since I've just seen them in Meredith's room. It's artist hair. Musician hair. I-pretend-I-don't-care-but-I-really-do hair.
Beautiful hair."

Who should play him in a movie
Thanks to a fan girl on facebook, I can say that Pierre Boulanger should play Etienne!

“Most people in Atlanta don't have an accent. It's pretty urban. A lot of people speak gangsta, though," I add jokingly.

"Fo' shiz," he replies in his polite English accent.

I spurt orangey-red soup across the table. St. Clair gives a surprised ha-HA kind of laugh, and I'm laughing too, the painful kind like abdominal crunches. He hands me a napkin to wipe my chin. "Fo'. Shiz." He repeats it solemnly.

Cough cough. "Please don't ever stop saying that. It's too-" I gasp. "Much."

"You oughtn't to have said that. Now I shall have to save it for special occasions."

"My birthday is in February." Cough choke wheeze. "Please don't forget.”

 

“His eyes lock on mine."Anna,I promise that I will never leave you."

My heart pounds in response.And Étienne knows it,because he takes my hand and holds it against his chest,to show me how hard his heart is pounding,too.”

Oh my. He's English.

"Er. Does Mer live here?"

Seriously, I don't know any American girl who can resist an English accent.

The boy clears his throat. "Meredith Chevalier? Tall girl? Big, curly hair?" Then he looks at me like I'm crazy or half deaf, like my Nana Oliphant. Nanna just smiles and shakes her head whenever I ask, "What kind of salad dressing would you like?" or "Where did you put Granddad's false teeth?"

"I'm sorry." He takes the smallest step away from me. "You were going to bed."

"Yes! Meredith lives here. I've just spent two hours with her." I announce this proudly like my little brother, Seany, whenever he finds something disgusting in the yard. "I'm Anna! I'm new here!" Oh, [Gosh]. What. Is with. The scary enthusiasm? My cheeks catch fire, and it's all so humiliating.

The beautiful boy gives an amused grin. His teeth are lovely - straight on top and crooked on the bottom, with a touch of overbite. I'm a sucker for smiles like this, due to my own lack of orthodontia. I have a gap between my front teeth the size of a raisin.

"Étienne," he says. "I live one floor up."

"I live here." I point dumbly at my room while my mind whirs: French name, English accent, American school. Anna confused.

He raps twice on Meredith's door. "Well. I'll see you around then, Anna."

Eh-t-yen says my name like this: Ah-na.

Sorry that last quote is so long. It's the first time Anna (and the reader) meet Etienne and sets the whole tone of the book. I have got to read this book again. Or listen to the audiobook because I own it but have never listened to it *gasp!* that is just wrong when I think about it. Hmm....