In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox. Check out The Story Siren to learn more!

This week I got TWO books. Crazy right?!

Everything Is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis

Stuck at home caring for her severely depressed mother and abandoned by her father, Mazzy has only the day-to-day dramas of her neighborhood to keep her busy. But between flirting with the boy next door and worrying about the fact that she's flat-chested, Mazzy has to face the fact that her mom is emotionally paralyzed by a family tragedy. As readers delve into the story, they'll eventually discover what it was that tore Mazzy's family apart, and they'll see what it takes to put it back together.

North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley

Terra is tall and blonde, with an unbelievably gorgeous body, but what most people in her stifling Washington town notice is the port-wine birthmark covering half her face. Terra secretly plans to leave her small town by escaping to an East Coast college, but is pushed off-course by her controlling father. When she meets handsome, goth Jacob who immediately understands her battle with feeling different, Terra is forced in yet another direction. With her carefully laid plans disrupted, will Terra be able to find her true path?

I am so excited to get both of these books read! What did you get this week?

Undone by Brooke Taylor

****Undone by Brooke Taylor****

Originality- 18/20
Characters- 18/20
Remembrance- 9/10
Quote-ability- 10/10
Entertainment- 18/20
Ending- 9/10
Recommend to read- 9/10
TOTAL- 91/100
Grade- A

When Kori Kitlzer, the “dark angel” of the 8th grade, tells Serena Moore that they are more alike than she thinks, Serena is instantly intrigued. As their friendship solidifies and their lives entwine, Serena tries to become more like the fearless, outspoken, and ambitious Kori. Soon Serena doesn’t know where she begins and Kori ends. But when a twist of fate yanks Kori away from Serena, she will need to find a way to complete her best friend’s life left undone.

I was a little worried when starting to read this because everyone said it was fantastic. And I really wasn't in the mood for a major dispointment. Thank god I was satisfied. Serena was such a fun character to read about. There were so many funny things that she said, and it wasn't overly played at all. I've actually used some of their comebacks. fuahaha. I couldn't fully understand Serena's relationship with Kori though. Kori was always being to cruel and heartless. Yeah I know in the end Kori is there for Serena, but who would put up with it? Why would Kori keep something so big from Serena for so long? I just find it hard to believe that two people so "close" and dependent on each other could make each other feel so crappy. Still I looked past this remembering all of the horrible things my friends and I went through and all the crap they pulled with me. Sometimes it doesn't matter. That aside I loved the whole story. Kori dying really changed and affected Serena. I enjoyed reading about how Serena trying to BE Kori, but in the end learning how to really be herself. Overall I think that Undone was one of the first books I read that showed a REAL friendship that isn't all cupcakes and rainbows.

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle

****Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle****

Release Date: May 14th 2009

Originality- 17/20
Characters- 19/20
Remembrance- 8/10
Quote-ability- 9/10
Entertainment- 19/20
Ending- 10/10
Recommend to read- 9/10
TOTAL- 91/100
Grade- A

Carly changed over the summer. She is stronger and at peace with who she is. But her younger sister Anna changed too. Anna grew boobs. Anna and Carly are totally different. Carly has to be the strong sister, and be there when Anna needs her. Which she does a lot. But sometimes things happen that pin sisters against each other and you'll have to find a way to push past all the bad and start new.

I really liked read this book. A lot of only children probably wouldn't have been able to understand why Anna and Carly would fight the way they did and the reasons behind them. But I have a younger sister and I see why Carly gets angry at Anna. Carly was a very relatable main character. I could even see myself as her. Of course my sister wouldn't betray me. Still it's easy to remember times that I might have said things to my sister that made her feel like she was worth less then me. Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks was a great example of how High School can try to break through something as strong as sisterhood. The whole concept of the story was fantastic and I was left thinking about how I affect my sister. Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks was way better then I expected it to be and I would recommend it to anyone in the mood for a feel good story or has a sister.

Sorry+ A Look Inside

Sorry for not updating! I was sick. And then finally when i got better my internet stopped working for a couple of days. I COULD have updated yesterday...but I didn't. So again, I'm sorry.

"A Look Inside" Is a post where I'll have a featured author, and I'll choose a book that they wrote. I always come out after finishing a book with a favorite character, so I'll also have a featured character, and one of my favorite quotes from them.

Author: Sarah Dessen
Book: The Truth About Forever
Character: Bert and Wes
Quote: "Okay..." he said, and then he was moving, standing up, going forward, "now. Gotcha!"
"God!" he said, "that was--"
"Number six," Wes finished for him. "By my count."
Bert got to his feet, glaring at us. "I'm going to get you so good," he said darkly, pointing a finger at Wes, then at me, then back at Wes. "Just you wait."
"Leave her out of it," Wes told him. "I was just demonstrating."
"Oh no," Bert said. "She's part of it now. She's one of us. No more coddling for you, Macy."
"Bert you've already jumped out at her," Wes pointed out.
"It's on!" Bert shouted ignoring this.

Okay that was more of an excerpt but I had to so I could capture the essence of the "gotcha" and brotherly relationship.

Sixteen-year-old Macy Queen is looking forward to a long, boring summer. Her boyfriend is going away. She’s stuck with a dull-asdishwater job at the library. And she’ll spend all of her free time studying for the SATs or grieving silently with her mother over her father’s recent unexpected death. But everything changes when Macy is corralled into helping out at one of her mother’s open house events, and she meets the chaotic Wish Catering crew. Before long, Macy joins the Wish team. She loves everything about the work and the people. But the best thing about Wish is Wes—artistic, insightful, and understanding Wes—who gets Macy to look at life in a whole new way, and really start living it….

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox.

I'm back on the steady stream of one book a week. I think it's pretty good. But I would love to get more.

Peace, Love, and Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle

Growing up in a world of wealth and pastel-tinted entitlement, fifteen-year-old Carly has always relied on the constancy—and authenticity—of her sister, Anna. But when fourteen-year-old Anna turns plastic-perfect-pretty over the course of a single summer, everything starts to change. And there are boys involved, complicating things as boys always do.

What did you get this week?

When It Happens by Susane Colasanti

I'm sorry about my posts being all sporadic. I've been home sick, so it's a bit hard to get up and post.

****When It Happens by Susane Colasanti****

Originality- 16/20
Characters- 19/20
Remembrance-8/10
Quote-ability- 9/10
Entertainment- 18/20
Ending- 8/10

Recommend to read- 9/10
TOTAL- 87/100

Grade- B

At the start of her senior year, Sara wants two things: to get into a top college and to find true love. Tobey also wants two things in his senior year: to win Battle of the Bands and to make Sara fall in love with him. A popular jock named Dave, though, moves in on Sara first. But Tobey's quirky wit and big blue eyes are hard for Sara to ignore. Plus, he gets the little things that matter to her - like why she loves the Lloyd Dobler boom-box scene in the movie Say Anything....Can a slacker rock-star wanna be win the heart of a pretty class brain like Sara?

Now this is the kind of book that can bring you out of any bad mood and make you believe in love. Just like in a real relationship problems arise, such as past girlfriends and the issue of sex. When It happens felt so real. Like I was reading about two of my closest friends. Colasanti weaves a fragile love story that faces many obstacles. The language used was so teen-agey. I really didn't want to believe that this is how we talk...but it's true. I was able to identify with every relationship in the story. Everyone has gone through at least one of these relationships. I could feel every emotion felt by Tobey and Sara. In the beginning Sara was confused about what she wanted like just about every teenage girl. I have nothing to complain about except the lack of originality. The story was great but not at all new. When It Happens was a spirit raising read that made me feel butterflies.

Waiting On Wednesday

Yeah, yeah i'm not even finished reading Untamed but that doesn't mean I'm not excited for this one! Don't you just looooove the cover!?

Title: Hunted: A House of Night Novel

Author: P.C. and Kristin Cast

Release Date: March 3rd

The good news: Zoey’s friends have her back again and Stevie Rae and the red fledglings aren’t Neferet’s secrets any longer. The bad news: Ancient evil with the face of an angel has been let loose – that and various other nasties (whose faces aren’t so angelic). Grandma Redbird is in trouble. Heath is in trouble. The House of Night is in trouble. Okay, let’s face it – Zoey’s whole world is in trouble! But when the trouble comes from a being who appears to be beauty personified, will the world believe it? Especially when only a teenager and a group of misfits are the only ones who really understand the danger he brings. Will Zoey have the strength and wisdom to reveal the truth? Especially when, in the House of Night, the truth is often hard to come by…

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox.

This week went better then last week! I only got one book but to me that's way better than none. I've been expecting this one for a while, and i'm glad I finally got it.

Once Bitten by Kalayna Price

Kita Nekai, on the run and the smallest of her shifter clan-a calico cat among lions and tigers-is being hunted. She was expected to accept her role as her father's successor whether or not her cat was up to the task of leading the clan. She disagreed. Now she's less than a step ahead of the hunters, bone-tired, cold, and living hand-to-mouth in the city of Haven. And that's the high point of her day. She's also drugged, "accidently" turned into a vampire, and sentenced to death for recklessly creating a rogue shifter who tortures its human prey. She's got seventy-two hours to find the rogue, evade a city full of hunters, prove she's not responsible for the rogue, and keep the vampire council from killing her. All while sorting out an apprentice mage, a married ex-boyfriend shifter-hunter, and the vampire who made her.

What did everyone else get this week!?

Invisible Touch by Kelly Parra

****Invisible Touch by Kelly Parra****

Originality- 18/20

Characters- 18/20

Remembrance-7/10

Quote-ability- 8/10

Entertainment- 18/20

Ending- 8/10
Recommend to read- 8/10

TOTAL- 85/100
Grade- B

Kara Martinez has been trying to be "normal" ever since the accident that took her father's life when she was eleven years old. She's buried the caliente side of her Mexican heritage with her father and tried to be the girl her rigid mother wants her to be—compliant and dressed in pink, and certainly not acting out like her older brother Jason. Not even Danielle, her best friend at Valdez High, has seen the real Kara; only those who read her anonymous blog know the deepest secrets of the Sign Seer. Because Kara has a gift—one that often feels like a curse. She sees signs, visions that are clues to a person's fate, if she can put together the pieces of the puzzle in time. So far, she's been able to solve the clues and avert disaster for those she's been warned about—until she sees the flash of a gun on a fellow classmate, and the stakes are raised higher than ever before. Kara does her best to follow the signs, but it's her heart that wanders into new territory when she falls for a mysterious guy from the wrong side of town, taking her closer to answers she may not be able to handle. Will her forbidden romance help her solve the deadly puzzle before it's too late...or lead her even further into danger?

Lots of the time if a book has a mystery I figure it out far before the main character. This time I was just as confused as Kara. I didn't put it together until she did. This kept me turning the pages frequently wanting more. I've learned that if the main character has some kind of "gift" they don't want it. They see this great thing as a burden. And I guess for some it really is. Like Kara's gift will cause her head to throb if she ignores the clues to the puzzle. But at least this makes her act on her gift instead of ignoring it. I liked how Kara was able to pursue a relationship even when her brother doesn't like it. The ending left my mouth hanging open in surprise. Once I thought I had it figured out everything changed. I was at the edge of my seat whenever Kara was in danger, which was often. Overall I think that Invisible Touch was an amazing read that was able to keep me bewildered.

A Look Inside

"A Look Inside" Is a post where I'll have a featured author, and i'll choose a book that they wrote. I always come out after finishing a book with a favorite character, so i'll also have a featured character, and one of my favorite quotes from them.

Author: Stefan Petrucha
Book: The Rule of Won
Character: Caleb
Quote: "This isn't to say Screech Neck is the poorest place in the world but, well, we're all a bit impressed when people show up with new loose-leaf paper."

I really loved how The Rule of Won had a serious concept that was wrapped around hilarious witty things like this.

I really want your input! If you have any suggestions concerning the featured author, book, character, or quote e-mail me at txmandaxt@yahoo.com

The secret of The Rule of Won is simple, yet its power has been suppressed for generations. The universe is one of infinite abundance—ask, and you shall receive. Umm, yeah right. Meet Caleb Dunne, slacker extraordinaire. Caleb prefers to glide through life with the minimal amount of effort, so he isn’t too jazzed when his overachieving girlfriend, Vicky, convinces him to join a new school club based on a controversial book, The Rule of Won. Slackers don’t join school clubs, do they? As The Rule gains popularity, though, the club members start to gain power within the school. From dark posts on the club’s online message board to all-out threats in the hallways, it becomes apparent that the group is getting out of control. For slacker Caleb, though, the only thing worse than doing something is not doing something.

Waiting On Wednesday

So, the last book I finished reading was Wake and I absolutely adored it. I really can not wait untill the next book comes out. Thank goodness that happens this month, which means I really won't be waiting that long. I think I'm pretty much addicted. Must. Read. More! I wanna know what happens next! A review will be up for Wake sometime next week I think.

Title: Fade

Author: Lisa McMann

Release Date: February 10th

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck. Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open — but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both. Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability — and it's bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared....

Old Magic by Marianne Curley

****Old Magic by Marianne Curley****

Originality- 19/20
Characters- 18/20
Remembrance-8/10
Quote-ability- 8/10
Entertainment- 18/20
Ending- 9/10

Recommend to read- 8/10
TOTAL- 88/100

Grade- B

The moment the new guy walks into the room, Kate senses something strange and intense about him. Something supernatural. Her instincts are proven correct a few minutes later when, bullied by his classmates, Jarrod unknowingly conjures up a freak thunderstorm inside their classroom. Jarrod doesn't believe in the paranormal. When Kate tries to convince him that he has extraordinary powers that need to be harnessed, he only puts up with her "hocus pocus" notions because he finds her captivating. However, the dangerous, uncontrolled strengthening of his gift finally convinces Jarrod that he must take Kate's theories seriously. Together, they embark on a remarkable journey -- one which will unravel the mystery that has haunted Jarrod's family for generations and pit the teens against immense forces in a battle to undo the past and reshape the future.

How many ways will I say awesome in this review? It's been a while since i've read a book and had very few complaints. I'm not trying to say this book was perfect. It was actually only a bit better then average. My favorite thing? No REAL annoying characters! There is only one part when Kate pisses me off. And that is when she pulls a Bella. She decides she's gonna risk her own safety and well-being for others. Seriously? Do you really think this is going to work Kate? Because your plan really sucks. That annoying part didn't really last long though. Now onto the amazingness. Finally a book that can be fantasy without any vamps! I mean it's not like the witch idea was really creative but it was different. I really liked when Jarrod battles, he has the ability to keep you at the edge of your seat without being disgusted. All of the characters were very well written. Kate was brave and confident despite being ridiculed by her classmates, which gave her a sense of confidence that I admire. Overall I think Old Magic was a fascinating read with a different storyline and pretty fantastic characters.

Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley

****Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley****

Originality- 18/20

Characters- 13/20

Remembrance-8/10

Quote-ability- 7/10

Entertainment- 15/20

Ending- 7/10
Recommend to read- 7/10

TOTAL- 75/100
Grade- C

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.And if I should die before I awake, I pray the popular attend my wake.Charlotte Usher feels practically invisible at school, and then one day she really is invisible. Even worse: she's dead. And all because she choked on a gummy bear. But being dead doesn't stop Charlotte from wanting to be popular; it just makes her more creative about achieving her goal. If you thought high school was a matter of life or death, wait till you see just how true that is.

I guess I'll start off right away by telling you about the horrible characters. Charlotte seemed like an average pretty likable character at first but THEN you learn about her plan to become popular...First of all I could really care less about popularity but Charlotte took it a little too far. Especially after she dies and still tries to get Damen to go out with her. Seriously? You think this is how you're supposed to do to make peace? REALLY?! Because you don't even really know him. Get over it mmkay? But that was practically the whole premise of the book. It wasn't horrible though, there were some redeeming qualities. For example the cute illustrations, and more importantly Scarlet. Scarlet was a funny and interesting character. Pretty much the only reason I continued on. I probably would of gave up if it wasn't for the cheering scene. And I will admit the plot was really original. It makes you think about life after death, and I book that makes me think about worldly things gets some brownie points. Overall I think Ghostgirl was a cute read but wasn't really my thing due to Charlotte's popularity fetish and delusion.

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a post where I tell you the books that I received this week either by buying them from the bookstore, going to the library or from my mailbox.

It was one of those weeks *sigh* It's okay though. I'm expecting books in the mail this week, so HOPEFULLY it won't be like this again next week.


I think I'll take this opportunity to tell you about this guy. People call him Tickle and he likes to talk about pretty much everything. I almost trampled him with my talk of books, but ultimately convinced his girlfriend to buy 2 Sarah Dessen Novels!! I made someones life a little better... Anyway, you can view him here when he is broadcasting-- http://www.justin.tv/ticklethis275