Books Read in 2012

December
65. Insurgent- Veronica Roth
66. One Second After- William R. Forstchen
67. The Calling- Kelley Armstrong
68. House Rules- Jodi Picoult
69. Dark Inside- Jeyn Roberts
70. Hourglass- Claudia Gray
71. Fourth Comings- Megan McCafferty

August
64. Beautiful Lies- Jessica Warman

July
56. The Last Princess- Galaxy Craze
57. Vertigo- Kristina Dunker
58. The Sundered- Ruthanne Reid
59. Pushing the Limits- Katie McGarry
60. The Goddess Legacy- Aimee Carter
61. A Midsummer's Nightmare- Kody Keplinger
62. Anteater-Boy- Dean Ammerman

63. The Angel Experiment- James Patterson

 
June
48. Serpent's Kiss- Melissa de la Cruz
49. What I Didn't Say- Keary Taylor
50. My Life Next Door- Huntley Fitzpatrick
51. One Breath Away- Heather Gudenkauf
52. Temptation- Karen Ann Hopkins
53. What Happened to My Sister- Elizabeth Flock
54. Revived- Cat Patrick 
55. The Drowned Cities- Paolo Bacigalupi

May
38. Robinson Crusoe- Daniel Defoe
39. Ashen Winter- Mike Mullin
40. Keep Holding On- Susane Colasanti
41. Henry Franks- Peter Adam Salomon
42. Purity- Jackson Pearce
43. It's Our Prom- Julie Anne Peters 
44. Cold Kiss- Amy Garvey
45. The Line- Teri Hall 
46. The Scorpio Races- Maggie Stiefvater 
47. Keys to the Repository- Melissa de la Cruz 

April
26. Save the Pearls Part One: Revealing Eden- Victoria Foyt
27. What Do You Want to Do Before You Die?- The Buried Life  
28. Girl Unmoored- Jennifer Gooch Hummer
29. The Stone Girl- Alyssa B. Sheinmel 
30. Tomorrow Land- Mari Mancusi 
31. Belles- Jen Calonita
32. I Hunt Killers- Barry Lyga 
33. 172 Hours on the Moon- Johan Harstad
34. Yesterday- C.K. Kelly Martin
35. Fear- Michael Grant 
36. The Van Alen Legacy- Melissa de la Cruz 
37. Lord of the Flies- William Golding 

March
18. The Weepers- Susanne Winnacker
19. A Tale of Two Cities- Charles Dickens
20. DJ Rising- Love Maia
21. The Rivals- Daisy Whitney
22. The Water Wars- Cameron Stracher
23. Ship of Souls- Zetta Elliot
24. Gossip- Beth Gutcheon
25. Rock on- Denise Vega

February
10. Twisted- Sara Shepard
11. Revelations- Melissa de la Cruz
12. I Hate You, Kelly Donahue- Mark Svartz
13. Let It Snow- John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle
14. The Importance of Being Earnest- Oscar Wilde  
15. Goddess Interrupted- Aimee Carter
16. The Mockingbirds- Daisy Whitney
17. Forever- Maggie Stiefvater 

January
1. Pieces of Us- Margie Gelbwasser
2. Hamlet- William Shakespeare  
3. Immortal Beloved- Cate Tiernan 
4. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight- Jennifer E. Smith  
5. Why We Broke Up- Daniel Handler 
6. Masquerade- Melissa de la Cruz
7. The Fault in Our Stars- John Green 
8. Darkness Falls- Cate Tiernan
9. At Season's End- Eric Hendershot

College and the Future

I am almost done with my first semester of college, which I decided to not blog during. I'm pretty bad at time management and I didn't want to take on too much at once. Especially since this was a totally new experience for me. But I am coming back full swing in 2013!!!!

For the rest of the month I will be working on posts and features and giveaways. I hate when I abandon you guys, but it was necessary and I'll make it up to you! My roommate is in graphic design, so maybe we'll even get a fantastic new site redesign?!

I'll see all of you guys again in the new year. Thank you so much for sticking with me!

4 Year Blogoverary Giveaway!

Yesterday marked 4 years blogging for me. It's hard to believe that I started this blog before my freshmen year of high school and now I am going into my freshmen year of college. The blog has come a long way and expanded in a lot of ways. I can't wait to see where the blog goes next.


I want to thank all of my amazing followers for sticking with me through the rough patches and leaving comments, or just for reading what I think.

I'd like to thank you and celebrate the blog turning 4 with a giveaway!!

There will be two winners and each winner will get a book of their choice from my giveaway pile!

***If I get passed 700 followers, each winner will get another book!!

To Enter::

--Being a follower is MANDATORY for this giveaway, since I am thanking my followers!

--US mailing addressed only! I can't afford to ship internationally, sorry!
--Fill out the form HERE. It also where you will choose the book you would like to receive if you win.

--Ends 9/1

For extra entries--
+1 tweet about the giveaway
+3 blog about the giveaway
+2 post about the giveaway in your sidebar

Dark Shadows

Title: Dark Shadows

Director: Tim Burton

Writer:  Seth Grahame-Smith, John August, Seth Grahame-Smith, and Dan Curtis

Starring: Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer and Eva Green

Grade: 73% or C-

 

 

My Thoughts::
I went to see this movie with a couple of my friends near the beginning of summer vacation. I only had a slight idea of what the movie was about, but since I knew it was supposed to be a comedy that featured Johnny Depp, I didn't hesitate to see it.

Since I wasn't completely sure what the whole movie was about my expectations were a bit weird. I thought they were all vampires in the family, not just Depp's character. I was disappointed but not completely let down. Even though this wasn't a strong "vampire" movie, it did do well with adding other supernatural elements. This mixed with its comedy, though not parody, made it really refreshing to watch.

The characters were pretty diverse which made it really hilarious to watch them interact. I liked getting the background information about Johnny Depp's character as well as Victoria. A lot of the humor came from Depp's character adjusting to life so far beyond his years and misunderstanding it greatly. The sex scene was also..interesting. And of course the action scenes were full of awesome paranormal abilities.

Unfortunately the good parts of this movie weren't so good when mixed with pretty much the only style of movie making Burton knows. Everything just feels too overdone and wacky and dark. The cast is his usuals which I just wasn't entirely feeling this time around. I wish Burton didn't feel like this is how he has to make movies.

Top Ten Tuesday: My Posts That Give the Best Impression of Me

 

Top Ten Tuesdays is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's top ten is...

 Top Ten Posts On Your Blog That Would Give The BEST Picture of YOU (as a reader and a person -- so pick the 10 best reviews/posts that you wish every potential reader of your blog would see!)

1. Fear by Michael Grant
2. Favorite Books Quotes
3. 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad
4. Bridesmaids
5. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
6. Books I Want to Give As Gifts
7. Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

August TBR List

8 books were read of the 12 on last month's list. I might have raised the bar too high, so I'm going to pull it back to 10 and hope to surpass it.

Here are the books that I want to read this month, in this order::

1. Beautiful Lies by Jessica Warman
2. Glitch by Heather Anastasiu

3. Touched by Cyn Balog
4. Erebos by Ursula Poznanski

5. Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett

6. Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown
7. Lost Girls by Ann Kelley
8. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
9. Hourglass by Claudia Gray
10. Misguided Angel by Melissa de la Cruz

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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

The Boy Recession by Flynn Meaney

It's all about supply and demand when a high school deals with the sudden exodus of male students.

The boy recession has hit Julius P. Heil High, and the remaining boys find that their stock is on the rise: With little competition, even the most unlikely guys have a good chance at making the team and getting the girl. Guitar-strumming, class-skipping Hunter Fahrenbach never wanted to be a hot commodity, but the popular girls can't help but notice his unconventional good looks. With a little work, he might even by boyfriend material.

But for down-to-earth Kelly Robbins, the boy recession is causing all sorts of problems. She has secretly liked her good friend Hunter for a while now, but how can she stand out in a crowd of overzealous Spandexers?

As if dating wasn't hard enough without a four-to-one ratio!

Summer Wrap Up Read-A-Thon

Hosted by In Between and Some Like It Paranormal
Runs from August 4th - 12th
Click HERE to sign-up.

I haven't been making my monthly goals for the last two months, which is worrisome because it's summer and I have plenty of time to read. I start college later this month and I really want to get a jumpstart on my reading to give myself the best chance of making my goal. Here are the books that I want to read during the readathon.

1. Beautiful Lies by Jessica Warman
2. Glitch by Heather Anastasiu

3. Touched by Cyn Balog
4. Erebos by Ursula Poznanski

5. Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett

6. Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown

If I can do more that would be great, but I really want to accomplish this! I will be updating and doing challenges on this post as well. Good luck everyone!

July in Review

Once again I'd like to apologize. My computer died completely about two weeks ago. I tried to keep things going, but it was too hard to find access to a computer that I could work on the blog with. Then I bought a new computer but didn't have time to really use it because I had orientation for the college that I'm going to in the fall. But here I am, about ten days after my last post, ready to pull it all together again.

I read 8 books this month (you can check them all out in the Books Read page)
I reviewed 4:

What I Didn't Say by Keary Taylor
My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf
Book Tour: The Sundered by Ruthanne Reid Review/Giveaway

I reviewed 0 movie(s) this month:

Challenges so far:

I read 63/100 books towards my personal goal.
2/5 books for the 2012 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge
3/6 books for the Zombie Challenge 2012
0/7 books for the 2012 Finishing the Series Challenge

Blog Changes:

Once again just some adjusting of buttons. 

Overall:

Unfortunately I only read 8 books again this month. I really need to pick up my game before college starts! I also didn't review much, but at least I have an excuse for that. Even worse, I haven't made progress on my challenges, which really disappoints me. I really hope to excel this month and share with you my happiness with my 4 year blogoversary.

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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Everyone's sorry. But no one can explain why.

Harper Scott's older sister, June, took her own life a week before high school graduation, leaving Harper devastated. So when her divorcing parents decide to split up June's ashes, Harper steals the urn and takes off cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going—California.

Enter Jake Tolan, a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession…and an unknown connection to June. 

When he insists on joining them, Harper's just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanor and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what Harper needs. Except…Jake's keeping a secret that has the power to turn her life upside down—again.

Contest Saturday

Here are some contests that are currently going on right now in the blogosphere that are book related. Click the links to enter them. I will try to hold my own contest each month.

Win a copy of False Memory HERE. Ends 7/30

Win a copy of Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone HERE. Ends 7/31

Win a copy of On Fire HERE. Ends 8/1

Win an apocalypsies starter pack HERE. Ends 8/5

To the Cinema! #16

This post is similar to a Books to Come post, but will only feature MOVIES that I am excited about releasing. I will include trailers for your viewing pleasure. I'll probably only do this monthly so it doesn't push out reviews that I need to post.

Sparkle

Compliance

Lawless

One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf

Title: One Breath Away
Author: Heather Gudenkauf
Publisher: Harlequin
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 87% or B+
Buy It: Amazon

In the midst of a sudden spring snowstorm, an unknown man armed with a gun walks into an elementary school classroom. Outside the school, the town of Broken Branch watches and waits.

Officer Meg Barrett holds the responsibility for the town's children in her hands. Will Thwaite, reluctantly entrusted with the care of his two grandchildren by the daughter who left home years earlier, stands by helplessly and wonders if he has failed his child again. Trapped in her classroom, Evelyn Oliver watches for an opportunity to rescue the children in her care. And thirteen-year-old Augie Baker, already struggling with the aftermath of a terrible accident that has has brought her to Broken Branch, will risk her own safety to protect her little brother.

As tension mounts with each passing minute, the hidden fears and grudges of the small town are revealed as the people of Broken Branch race to uncover the identity of the stranger who holds their children hostage.

My Thoughts::
Any book that can give me the feel of a Jodi Picoult book without all of the court mumbo jumbo that is kind of hard to understand and takes me out of the story. When I read the summary of this book I was immediately interested. I felt invested in the story already and wanted to see how things would turn out.

Usually multiple narrators makes the story choppy and hard to understand because there is too much going on and it's hard to keep track of everything. But with books that take place in such a short amount of time you want to get as much out of the story as possible. It was done very well in this book. Things moved fluidly from one character to the next and did it in such a way that kept up the suspense until the big reveal at the end.

Let's talk more about this suspense and mystery. Through each narrator's chapters they ask the same question; Who is is in the school with the gun? Each character offers different clues and different ideas about who it could be. Everytime I thought I knew something about who the man was, another character would disprove my theory. I was kept guessing until the very end and I had no clue. That was the best part. Usually I'm able to figure it out before the reveal, but this time I couldn't.

I was able to connect to all of the characters in different ways which made me see the story from several different angles. You can see how carefully the narrators were chosen by the author because they all just fit together perfectly and help you get the most knowledge about the situation.

Overall I think this was a book that can really hit you hard because of it's serious content. There was plenty of action and suspense to keep you on your toes the entire time.

Winner: Summer Lovin Giveaway Hop

And the winner of the Summer Lovin Giveaway Hop (a copy of Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen) is.....

Bookworm Lisa

Congrats Lisa!! I have already e-mailed you. If you don't reply within 48 hours a new winner will be chosen.

Thanks to everyone who entered!

The books from this giveaway and the last one will be sent out this weekend.

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

Title: My Life Next Door
Author: Huntley Fitzpatrick
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 91% or A-
Buy It: Amazon

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. As the two fall fiercely in love, Jase's family makes Samantha one of their own. Then in an instant, the bottom drops out of her world and she is suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A dreamy summer read, full of characters who stay with you long after the story is over.

My Thoughts::
I requested this book while I was in a bit of a requesting spree on netgalley. It didn't sound like the typical book that I would request, but I just can't help myself when in comes to books that includes large families. My immediate family is only a little larger than average, but my mom came from a huge family and I've always loved reading about them when I was younger.

The plot and the way that the story was told reminded me of Sarah Dessen's books, which is a great compliment. I was enveloped by all parts of the story, not just the romance. I love getting to know the family and other side characters that aren't just the usual two best friends. Jase was the swoon worthiest character that I've had the pleasure of reading so far this summer. He was so caring and a great big brother. All of the characters really flew off of the page but I especially loved Jase's little brother George.

The plot was slow at some points and Samantha really got on my nerves at times. She would know the right thing to do, but still not do it, causing more to be ruined in the process. Her best friend bothered me even more. It really showed me how everyone can see a situation differently.

Overall I think that this book had a great romance and some fantastic characters that helped boost up the lackluster ones. This is a great summer read.

Top Ten Tuesday: For People Who Liked The Hunger Games

 

Top Ten Tuesdays is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's top ten is...

Top Ten Books For People Who Like X Book (Pick a book and pick 10 readalikes). I chose The Hunger Games.

1. Gone by Michael Grant
2. Dark Parties by Sara Grant
3. The Maze Runner by James Dashner
4. Candor by Pam Bachorz
5. Divergent by Veronica Roth
6. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
7. Blood Red Road by Moira Young
8. All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.


Between You & Me by Marisa Calin

Phyre knows there is something life-changing about her new drama teacher, Mia, from the moment they meet. As Phyre rehearses for the school play, she comes to realize that the unrequited feelings she has for Mia go deeper than she’s ever experienced. Especially with a teacher. Or a woman. All the while, Phyre’s best friend—addressed throughout the story in the second person, as "you"—stands by, ready to help Phyre make sense of her feelings. But just as Mia doesn’t understand what Phyre feels, Phyre can’t fathom the depth of her best friend’s feelings . . . until it’s almost too late for a happy ending. Characters come to life through the innovative screenplay format of this dazzling debut, and unanswered questions—is "you" male or female?—will have readers talking.

Contest Saturday

Here are some contests that are currently going on right now in the blogosphere that are book related. Click the links to enter them. I will try to hold my own contest each month.

Win a June/July release HERE. Ends 7/16

Win a copy of I Am (Not) The Walrus HERE. Ends 7/18

Win a copy of Shut Up HERE. Ends 7/19

Win a copy of False Memory HERE. Ends 7/30

Book Tour: The Sundered by Ruthanne Reid Review/Giveaway

Author's Site / Twitter / Facebook

Goddess Fish Tour Site / Twitter / Facebook

Title: The Sundered

Author: Ruthanne Reid

Publisher: 4th Floor Publication

Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 84% or B
Buy It: Amazon  

Harry Iskinder knows the rules. Don't touch the water, or it will pull you under. Conserve food, because there’s no arable land. Use Sundered slaves gently, or they die too quickly to be worthwhile.

With extinction on the horizon and a world lost to deadly flood, Harry searches for a cure: the Hope of Humanity, the mysterious artifact that gave humans control over the Sundered centuries ago. According to legend, the Hope can fix the planet.

But the Hope holds more secrets than Harry knows. Powerful Sundered Ones willingly bow to him just to get near it. Ambitious enemies pursue him, sure that the Hope is a weapon. Friends turn their backs, afraid Harry will choose wrong.

And Harry has a choice to make. The time for sharing the Earth is done. Either the Sundered survive and humanity ends, or humanity lives for a while, but the Sundered are wiped out.

He never wanted this choice. He still has to make it. In his broken, flooded world, Hope comes with a price.

 

My Thoughts::

I've been a part of several book touring sites for a while now yet this is the first tour I signed up for. Since I feel the responsibility that comes with being a tour host is great, I was really picky in choosing the book's and authors that I would want to represent so personally. Once I saw the synopsis for The Sundered, I knew that this was the book to break me out of my touring shell. I was wildly interested in the plot and could hardly hold myself back to wait to read it closer to tour.

Even though my expectations were so high along with my excitement levels for this book, I was not disappointed. We jump into the story right away which initially led to a bit of confusion. Thankfully the world and it's customs are explained thoroughly starting almost right away. The mystery along the way is enough to keep anyone interested, but we also get action, suspense, a little romance, and betrayal. And of course let us not forget the ethical questions that are on the shoulders of our main character.

The characters didn't pop out of this book for me, except for a few. I liked our main character Harry, but The Sundered Ones he traveled with overshadowed him. I became much more interested in the storyline than I did in Harry. I did like him though, and that was enough for me. The Sundered Ones that we get to know are so compelling and I loved Harry's conversations with them. The little clues that were given always brought something to light while also causing us to have more questions. I felt like I was alongside Harry, trying to figure everything out and what the solution could be.

The ending of the book was a real shocker and a scary...almost pleasing, turn of events. Usually an ending like this would be my favorite part of the book, but not this time. Instead I loved the questions that this book made me ask myself and the revelations that I've had to make about what the human race is capable of. If this book interests you at all, do not pass it up!

Giveaway!
Ruthanne is giving away a $5 Amazon Gift Card to one commenter at every stop. She is also giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card to one commenter at the end of the entire tour. You can comment on as many blogs as you like. GO COMMENT TO WIN!! Be sure to include your email address.

Check out the rest of the tour!
July 9: Sweet Southern Home
July 9: REVIEW ONLY Journey of a Bookseller
July 10: It's Raining Books
July 10: STOP 2 Welcome to My World of Dreams
July 11: Hywela Lyn (Romance That's "Out Of This World")
July 11: Long and Short Reviews: SFF Guests
July 12: REVIEW ONLY Pavarti K Tyler
July 12: STOP 2 Lisa Haselton's Reviews and Interviews
July 13: Castle Macabre
July 13: REVIEW ONLY Bombarded With Books

What I Didn't Say by Keary Taylor

Title: What I Didn't Say
Author: Keary Taylor
Publisher: CreateSpace
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 80% or C
Buy It: Amazon

Getting drunk homecoming night your senior year is never a good idea, but Jake Hayes never expected it all to end with a car crash and a t-post embedded in his throat.

His biggest regret about it all? What he never said to Samantha Shay. He's been in love with her for years and never had the guts to tell her. Now it's too late. Because after that night, Jake will never be able to talk again.

When Jake returns to his small island home, population 5,000, he'll have to learn how to deal with being mute. He also finds that his family isn't limited to his six brothers and sisters, that sometimes an entire island is watching out for you. And when he gets the chance to spend more time with Samantha, she'll help him learn that not being able to talk isn’t the worst thing that could ever happen to you. Maybe, if she'll let him, Jake will finally tell her what he didn't say before, even if he can't actually say it.

My Thoughts:: 
There were a couple of things that made me want to request this book on netgalley. First of all, I feel as if I don't read enough books that have a male main character. The best I do on a regular basis is when a book has two narrators and one of them is a boy. But it is rare when I find myself totally enveloped in a male's perspective. Another reason I requested this book is because I wanted to delve into a down to earth novel without the gears and whistles that my current favorite genres have.

Jake was a great main character. He was very fleshed out. Once and a while he would get frustrating for me as a reader because he would be so down and I couldn't understand why. But yet, I wasn't really supposed to understand why because Jake barely understood it either. Him and Samantha blended well together and each had a lot to give to one another. It was interesting to watch their relationship evolve.

Rarely do I enjoy a book this much whose main plot seems to be majorly about the love interest. But as you read, it becomes more than that.  I liked the underline messages that the book included. My favorites were that you can't really judge a person based solely on what you think about them, and there is always a bright side and you could have it much worse. You can never assume things about people until you really know what their life is like.

Summer Lovin Giveaway Hop

 

 See the rest of the Giveaways HERE.

I signed up on I Am A Reader, Not A Writer

 

My Giveaway:: I am giving away a copy of Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen! Here's the summary:

The first time she saw him, she flipped. The first time he saw her, he ran. That was the second grade, but not much has changed by the seventh.

She says: “My Bryce. Still walking around with my first kiss.” He says: “It’s been six years of strategic avoidance and social discomfort.” But in the eighth grade everything gets turned upside down. And just as he’s thinking there’s more to her than meets the eye, she’s thinking that he’s not quite all he seemed.

To Enter:: Fill out THIS FORM by 7/17
**Winner will be announced on 7/18  and will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.

+3 Entries for being a blog follower!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Want For My Birthday

 

Top Ten Tuesdays is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's top ten is...

Top Ten Tuesday Freebie (whatever topic you'd like)! I chose books I want for my birthday because it's on the 21st of this month and I've been thinking about it a lot.

1. Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick
2. Ruthless (Pretty Little Liars #10) by Sara Shepard
3. Across the Universe by Beth Revis
4. Perfect by Ellen Hopkins
5. Fire by Kristin Cashore
6. Trapped by Michael Northrop
7. This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
8. One Second After by William R. Forstchen
9. Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne
10. The List by Siobhan Vivian

Once Upon a Read-a-Thon

 

Hey everyone! Since I'm behind in my reading ALREADY this month, I am really excited and in much need of this read-a-thon.This is hosted by Angela at Reading Angel, Candace at Candace’s Book Blog, and Lori at Pure Imagination.

The read-a-thon officially started at 12:01 wayyy early this morning, but I wanted to wait until now to put up my post. Here are the books that I want to read before July 11th at 11:59 PM.

1. The Sundered by Ruthanne Reid

2. Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

3. The Goddess Legacy by Aimee Carter
4. A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger

If I finish these I'll add on another. But these are what I really want to get read.

I will be posting updates along the way on this post as well as challenges. The link to this page will be on my sidebar. I will write a final wrap up post on the 12th!

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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

For Review::
Glitch by Heather Anastasiu
Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown
Lost Girls by Ann Kelley
Swimming to Elba by Silvia Avallone

Contest Saturday

Here are some contests that are currently going on right now in the blogosphere that are book related. Click the links to enter them. I will try to hold my own contest each month.

Win a June/July release HERE. Ends 7/16

Win a copy of Shut Up HERE. Ends 7/19

July TBR List

Once again we have no video. I'm pretty busy trying to catch up and don't have the time to sit down and make and upload a video. Most likely I will next month though! 8 books were read of the 10 on last month's list. I have higher and more ambitious hopes for this month.

Here are the books that I want to read this month, in this order::

1. The Last Princess by Galaxy Craze
2. Vertigo by Kristina Dunker
3. The Sundered by Ruthanne Reid

4. Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

5. The Goddess Legacy by Aimee Carter
6. A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger

7. Anteater-Boy by Dean Ammerman

8. The Angel Experiment by James Patterson

9. Beautiful Lies by Jessica Warman

10. Misguided Angel by Melissa de la Cruz
11. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
12. Hourglass by Claudia Gray

June in Review

I'd like to start off by saying that I'm sorry that the blog has been a bit quiet for almost a week. There was a pretty bad and big storm Friday night and I lost power and access the internet until yesterday. Things will be back on track now!

I read 8 books this month (you can check them all out in the Books Read page)
I reviewed 8:

Henry Franks by Peter Adam Salomon
Purity by Jackson Pearce
It's Our Prom by Julie Anne Peters
Serpent's Kiss by Melissa de la Cruz
Cold Kiss by Amy Garvey
The Line by Teri Hall
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Keys to the Repository by Melissa de la Cruz

I reviewed 2 movie(s) this month:
Chernobyl Diaries
Snow White and the Huntsman

Challenges so far:

I read 55/100 books towards my personal goal.
2/5 books for the 2012 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge
3/6 books for the Zombie Challenge 2012
0/7 books for the 2012 Finishing the Series Challenge

Blog Changes:

Once again just some adjusting of buttons. 

Overall:

I did pretty good this month until my whole area was without power. I should have read more since I didn't have distractions, but it was just too miserably hot and I had to entertain my sister. Besides, I do most of my reading at night and I couldn't read in the dark. Next month I'll have to work extra hard to catch up on my reading and reviewing. It would be nice to get in a personal book or two, which is why I'm looking forward to the near read-a-thon, it is MUCH needed.

Books to Come in July

These books will be released in the month of July. All links will send you to their Goodreads page.

 Endlessly (Paranormalcy #3) by Kiersten White

Hide and Seek (The Lying Game #4) by Sara Shepard

Once (Eve #2) by Anna Carey

 Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard

Spark (Sky Chasers #2) by Amy Kathleen Ryan

 Team Human by Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan

Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

The Thing About the Truth by Lauren Barnholdt

Snow White and the Huntsman

Title: Snow White and the Huntsman

Director: Rupert Sanders

Writer:  Evan Daugherty, John Lee Hancock, Hossein Amini, and Evan Daugherty

Starring: Kristin Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, and Charlize Theron

Grade: 84% or B

 

 

My Thoughts::
I didn't plan on seeing this movie. I love going to theaters to see movies, but in most cases they are movies that I've said "ooooh I want to go and see that when in comes in!" while watching the previews. But my friends wanted me to go to the movies with them and this is what the rest of them wanted to see.

I think retellings of stories are great because you're able to appeal to a new and different audience. While the original Snow White movie was directed towards children, this movie was aimed at young adults. I haven't watched the original Snow White or read the book in so long that I won't be comparing this new movie to those. I'll let it stand on its own in my mind. And it does, the characters have new personalities and the story is different in many ways.

The evil witch wasn't just an evil witch. She was power hungry with a very tortured past. I always love it when I can feel some sympathy for the bad guy. I felt connected to most of the characters this way. We are able to learn about their pasts which somehow make us feel like there is more at stake. More than ever we don't want them to die. Except for the witch and her brother of course, but their evilness overtakes any sympathy gained in the film. I really liked how the dwarfs were used in the film and the history we get about them.

The acting was pretty good. I know a lot of people like to complain about Kristen Stewart, but out of most of the big time actresses, I couldn't imagine anyone being a better Snow White. Plus I think this role was awesome for the type of actress that she is. The other actors did a good job as well, especially the witch and the huntsman. SWOOOOON was all I could do whenever that huntsman was on screen.

Overall I think that this movie had a good amount of action without foregoing the storyline. With decent acting and a hot guy, you should see this film.

Top Ten Tuesday: Characters Who Remind Me of Someone I Know

 

Top Ten Tuesdays is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's top ten is...

Top Ten Characters Who Remind Me Of Myself Or Someone I Know In Real Life

Me:
1. Chloe Saunders from The Darkest Powers Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong.
2. Lee Fiora from Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld

Friends:
3. Bert from The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
4. Matt from Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
5. Marley from DJ Rising by Love Maia
6. Astrid from The Gone Series by Michael Grant
7. Hassan from An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Keys to the Repository by Melissa de la Cruz

Title: Keys to the Repository (Blue Bloods Series Companion)
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Acquired: Bought
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 74% or C
Buy It: Amazon

Lavish parties. Passionate meetings in the night. Bone-chilling murders. Midterms. The day-to-day life of Schuyler Van Alen and her Blue Bloods friends (and enemies) is never boring. But there's oh-so-much more to know about these beautiful and powerful teens. Below the streets of Manhattan, within the walls of the Repository, exists a wealth of revealing information about the vampire elite that dates back before the Mayflower. In a series of short stories, journal entries, and never-before-seen letters, New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz gives her hungry fans the keys to the Repository and an even more in-depth look into the secret world of the Blue Bloods.

My Thoughts::
I wasn't going to read this book, but since I don't want to miss anything in the series, I decided to pick it up figuring that it would be a fast read. And while it was a fast read, it was better and more fulfilling than I thought it would be.

We are given a little background info and story so far briefing for each character. It was a nice refresher but would have been better if we learned anything new from it. There were some things that were cleared up from inconsistencies in the books, which was nice. And since there have been a good amount of books so far, it was great to go back and review what happened and how each character was involved. It's really easy to forget details or even not realize exactly how something happened, so this was very helpful.

The best part about this book were the very short stories that were spread throughout. We got some added scenes that we haven't seen, as well as scenes that we have scene but told from another character's perspective. So even though we aren't told exactly NEW information I think we get a much better hold on the characters and the important things we are supposed to know so far in the series. I definitely feel better about what I know about the books after reading this.

Overall I think that Keys to the Repository was a good refresher but not worth buying. The little stories were great, but there weren't enough of them to warrant buying it since the book was short as it is. But it was a nice little guide so checking it out is a great idea.

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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

 

Bought::

The Future of Us by Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick 

For Review::

Erebos by Ursula Poznanski

Beautiful Lies by  Jessica Warman
Confessions of an Angry Girl by Louise Rozett

Contest Saturday

Here are some contests that are currently going on right now in the blogosphere that are book related. Click the links to enter them. I will try to hold my own contest each month.

Win a copy of A Want So Wicked HERE. Ends TODAY

Win a copy of This is Not A Test HERE. Ends 6/26

Win 1 of 3 prize packs HERE. Ends 6/27

Win a prize pack of Vampire Anthologies HERE. Ends 6/27

Win a copy of Dead Reckoning HERE. Ends 6/27

Win a copy of Summerland HERE. Ends 7/1

Win a copy of This is Not A Test HERE. Ends 7/1

Win a copy of Something Like Normal HERE. Ends 7/3

Win an ebook copy of Spear of Seth HERE. Ends 7/5

Win a June/July release HERE. Ends 7/16

Win a copy of Shut Up HERE. Ends 7/19

To the Cinema! #15

This post is similar to a Books to Come post, but will only feature MOVIES that I am excited about releasing. I will include trailers for your viewing pleasure. I'll probably only do this monthly so it doesn't push out reviews that I need to post.

People Like Us

The Imposter

Ruby Sparks

Chernobyl Diaries

Title: Chernobyl Diaries

Director: Bradley Parker

Writer: Oren Peli, Carey Van Dyke, and Shane Van Dyke

Starring: Jesse McCartney, Jonathan Sadowski and Olivia Dudley

Grade: 78% or C+

 

My Thoughts::
I saw this movie not really knowing what to expect. I knew the basic plot and that it was supposed to be scary, but I didn't know how. Was it zombies? Ghosts? Something else really creepy? Plus it was made by the same guy who does the Paranormal Activity movies, and I don't really like those at all. So I went in with very low expectations.

The movie was better than I thought it would be. We're able to figure out the dynamic of the group of friends pretty quickly. Knowing this dynamic, especially the one between the brothers, makes this movie more intense. What my friends and I loved was that you weren't quite sure who was going to die and when. In pretty much all scary movies with deaths, it is easy to pick out who is going to die, when, and who will be the last person standing. But with this movie we couldn't do it. Most of our guesses were wrong, or we were tricked into being right.

Instead of just things popping out at us to make us freak out, we were scared in other ways. There is the whole lingering question of what is out there and how it got there. And of course the underlying FREAKING RADIATION THAT NO ONE CARES ABOUT AFTER 45 MINUTES INTO THE MOVIE. They were nervous about visiting and then they're cool with spending the night? Even before they knew about the killing things, you would think they would want out of there as soon as possible.

I have complaints, and really felt totally meh about the movie until the very end. Oh wow. Did not see that coming. So I think I liked it well enough.

Winner: Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hop

And the winner of the Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hope (a copy of ttyl by Lauren Myracle and Blood Oath by T.L. Clarke) is.....

Summer McDaniel

Congrats Summer!  I have already e-mailed you. If you don't reply within 48 hours a new winner will be chosen.

Thanks to everyone who entered!

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: The Scorpio Races
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Acquired: Won
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 80% or B-
Buy It: Amazon

Some race to win. Others race to survive.

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line.

Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn't given her much of a choice. So she enters the competition - the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

My Thoughts::
It happened to me once again guys. I had the wrong idea of what this book was about. For some reason I had it in my head as a dystopian read. Corrupt government, forcing people to race in these deadly races and there was no choice about it. The summary just sounded like this. I couldn't understand until I read the book why people would choose to be in the races year after year. Since I love dystopian and that was what I was hoping for, I was a little let down. But not for long.

Once I got used to what the book was ACTUALLY about, I started to enjoy it. Learning about the island culture was really cool and I was able to see why people would choose to be a part of the races even thought they were so dangerous. Though I couldn't help but be mad when people didn't want to include Puck. Tradition is important, but I didn't see a reason for them to not what women to be involved. This added to the conflict in the story and made it more interesting. Even though we do get a little bit of history, I wish we were told more about the water horses and what the world is like.

Puck and Sean were both really great characters. It's easy for me to read about characters and make connections to their likeliness of characters in other books. But it was harder this time. The dynamic of their lives were more old fashioned along with their interests. Plus I've never read a book like this before. Puck's younger brother was so adorable and I loved whenever he was there. I also enjoyed the American horse buyer from Sean's chapters. It's rare to find side characters that you can connect with and get to know along with the main characters.

Overall I think that the plot was new, the love felt real, and the characters were genuine. Though a bit boring at times, I liked this book.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Summer TBR List

 

Top Ten Tuesdays is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's top ten is...

Top Ten Books On My Summer TBR List

1. A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger. I'm already hearing good things about this book and I can't wait until next month when I plan to devour it!

2. Hollowland by Amanda Hocking. This book sounds so interesting and it was free, which is fantastic. I'm afraid that I'll forget about it and it'll fall to the wayside, so I really want to read it this summer before things get too busy.

3. Vertigo by Kristina Dunker. I plan to read this one in a week or so. It sounds so creepy and I love that kind of thing in the summer.

4. Insurgent by Veronica Roth. I want to read this book as soon as possible! But I'm trying to be smarter with my reading so I don't get behind on review books, so it'll have to wait until the end of summer.

5. The Calling by Kelley Armstrong. I love these books soooo much! As soon as I can I'm going to get right into this.

6. Misguided Angel by Melissa de la Cruz. I'm doing a good job getting caught up with this series and I hope to get a couple steps closer to the last book this summer.

7. Gone by Lisa McMann. It has taken me soooo long to finally finish this trilogy and I'm ready to do it!

8. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead. I'm working hard to finish series that I've started, but I can't help but want to start this very much loved one as well.

9. Revived by Cat Patrick. I read Forgotten last summer, and I am excited to read this newest book buy Patrick this summer!

10. Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty. I know I'm getting through these books slowly, but I like feeling as if I've grown up a little between each book.

The Line by Teri Hall

Title: The Line
Author: Teri Hall
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
Acquired: Bought
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 71% or C-
Buy It: Amazon

An invisible, uncrossable physical barrier encloses the Unified States. The Line is the part of the border that lopped off part of the country, dooming the inhabitants to an unknown fate when the enemy used a banned weapon. It’s said that bizarre creatures and superhumans live on the other side, in Away. Nobody except tough old Ms. Moore would ever live next to the Line.

Nobody but Rachel and her mother, who went to live there after Rachel’s dad died in the last war. It’s a safe, quiet life. Until Rachel finds a mysterious recorded message that can only have come from Away. The voice is asking for help.

Who sent the message? Why is her mother so protective? And to what lengths is Rachel willing to go in order to do what she thinks is right?

My Thoughts::
This was one of those books that I saw all over the place and became very very interested in. But because I rarely have extra money to spend on books, it got pushed to the wayside and lingered a long time in my Amazon wishlist. Eventually though I got Christmas money to spend and used it to buy books, including this one. But since I've wanted it for so long, it was in my wishlist for so long, and it took me so long to read it, I mostly forgot what it was about. This wasn't good.

My mind was all hyped up for this great dystopian book that a lot of people seemed to enjoy, but it kind of fell flat for me. I can usually jump right into books like this and speed through them. They are what I use to pull myself out of a reading slump. But this one was just so dull...almost boring. The world building was great, at least when it was actually mentioned. Thank goodness her mom was so intense with the history lessons, or we wouldn't have learned anything. Nothing really happens until the end of the book. It was pretty short so I thought it would have a faster flow. But mostly it was just a build up for the next book.

Rachel was a fine main character. Nothing she did made me dislike her, but I didn't really like her that much either. She added to the whole "meh" ness of the entire book. I will admit that there were interesting bits here and there where I would get excited, but they were too few and far between. By the time that I was almost finished I didn't want to read the next book. BUT..then there was the ending..And I think the ending intrigued me enough to read what happens next.

Overall I think that The Line had a very interesting world, I just wish that we would have seen a lot more of it. The characters and the plot didn't really do it for me but the ending made it worth 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. In My Mailbox was inspired by Alea and turned into a meme by Kristi.

Bought::
Insurgent by Veronica Roth
The Calling by Kelley Armstrong
Bloody Valentine by Melissa de la Cruz
Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty
Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart

For Review::
The Sundered by Ruthanne Reid
Blood Zero Sky by J. Gabriel Gates