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 Goddess Interrupted HERE. Ends 6/11
Win a copy of Dark Frost HERE. Ends 6/12
Win a copy of Timepiece HERE. Ends 6/12
Win a copy of Insanity HERE. Ends 6/14
Win a copy of Call of the Sea HERE. Ends 6/21
Win 2 summer reads HERE. Ends 6/22
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Purity by Jackson Pearce
Author: Jackson Pearce
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 85% or B
Buy It: Amazon
My Thoughts::Before her mother died, Shelby promised three things: to listen to her father, to love as much as possible, and to live without restraint. Those Promises become harder to keep when Shelby's father joins the planning committee for the Princess Ball, an annual dance that ends with a ceremonial vow to live pure lives — in other words, no "bad behavior," no breaking the rules, and definitely no sex.Torn between Promises One and Three, Shelby makes a decision — to exploit a loophole and lose her virginity before taking the vow. But somewhere between failed hookup attempts and helping her dad plan the ball, Shelby starts to understand what her mother really meant, what her father really needs, and who really has the right to her purity.
Originally, I didn't know if I wanted to read this book because I didn't know if it was for me. The summary made it sound like there would be a lot of talk of religion, which isn't really something that I'm interested in and can sometime make me feel uncomfortable. But the plot still sounded good and humorous, so I gave it a shot anyway.
Thankfully, I didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable when reading this book. Except of course when I'm supposed to. When the book did turn towards religion it didn't try to convince the reader of anything or be pushy. It simply explained the main character's thoughts about it that I am sure a lot of people have. I actually liked this because each person has to come to their own decision about religion and the book makes a strong point in making sure that people know that there is no "right" choice, it is just about what feels right for you.
That was also the same point that the book makes about sex. Everyone will make their own choices according to what feels right for them. Our main character Shelby was so funny and really a great person. She was someone that I could imagine hanging out with. Actually, I can imagine hanging out with her whole little group of friends. So few books that I read bring a decent amount of characters that aren't just stereotypes of high schoolers. Though they weren't completely original, they were a step up.
Overall I think the book explored two very important issues while also making the reader laugh and connect to the characters. Though who Shelby ends up with in this end is no surprise, I was very pleased by it.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Henry Franks by Peter Adam Salomon
Author: Peter Adam Salomon
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd.
Acquired: Received free for an honest review
Age Group: Young Adult
Grade: 72% or C-
Buy It: Amazon
My Thoughts::One year ago, a terrible accident robbed Henry Franks of his mother and his memories. He can’t remember anything: the accident, his mother, his life. The past sixteen years have vanished. All Henry has now are scars and a distant father—the only one who can tell Henry who he is. If only he could trust his father.Henry tries to piece together his past with help from Justine, his only friend. Could his nightmares—a sweet little girl calling him Daddy, murderous urges, dead bodies—hold clues? While a serial killer stalks their small Georgia town, Henry unearths the bitter truth about his mother—and himself.
This book just sounded so odd and different when I read the description that I just had to request it. So many theories about what would happen, or did happen, were going through my head right away before I even started the book. I wanted see what the actual plot and drive of the story would be.
The book wasn't really going anywhere until halfway through, which disappointed me. Henry is getting to know a girl..so is it a romance? But he was in an accident and doesn't have his memory of before, so it is a healing journey? But his dad is acting weird, is it an abuse story? But then it is kind of none of those. The plot was kind of all over the place and didn't get me excited or prepared for what was to come. The actual truth of it all came out of nowhere and it would have been so much better if there was some kind of buildup. A lot of the stuff said and done earlier one seemed kind of like useless filler. Then when things are finally happening, it is all rushed out at the end.
Henry was the only character that we see any development in. The others mostly fell flat and just fulfilled their role without contributing much to the story. His father was interesting and played a large part, but that all happened in the past, Henry might as well have read the information in a diary. Justine is even worse. She does give the story a little bit of a push in the right direction though. Actually, my favorite part of the book was the what happens next bit at the end, which takes place several years later. And that little section was just about more interesting and captured my interest more than the entire book.
Overall, I really liked the idea of the story, but it didn't come through for me very well. It was very hectic and didn't grab you into the mystery that it was supposed to be.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Book Blogs
This week's top ten is...
Top Ten Tuesday Rewind (Pick any past topic you want!). And I chose..Favorite Books Blogs. These are sites that I check daily and make sure to see what's going on/participate in their events. In no particular order..
1. Reading Angel. I really like this blog. I always watch her Mailbox Monday and TBR videos. She also hosts the page count contest that I participate in, which is a great motivator. She is funny and it really brightens my day when I can check out a new post.
2. The Book Monsters. I love love love the Choose Your Thons that they host. It is such a clever idea. They have cool features and their reviews are very concise.
3. Pop Culture Junkie. There aren't a whole bunch of book stuff on this blog, but I enjoy he Hardcover Vs. Paperback and lookalikes feature. I've been following this blog for so long that I can't imagine not checking it out.
4. The Book Muncher. This is another blog that I have been following for years. I love the reviews because they are so thorough!
5. Green Bean Teen Queen. This blog is great with book news and book related movie news. I also love that she's a librarian, so we get a lot of cool stories about that.
6. Turning Pages. I was one of this blogs first followers, and it is so cool to watch a blog grow so much! I love her personality and you can easily relate to her love of books.
7. Holes in My Brain. This girl is so funny! Even when her posts are about nothing, her wonderful voice comes through and you're entertained. She really knows how to capture her audience through words, that's for sure.
8. Pure Imagination. I started reading this blog shortly after Reading Angel, and I love it almost as much. She is so nerdy with her love of books and I always make sure to check out her videos. Plus, her blog designs are SO pretty!
9. Peace, Love, Books. Her site and her reviews are really appealing to teens. You can really see her personality come through her blog.
10. WORD for Teens. Her site is so simple, but yet so very eye catching. I love the features that she does, including Friday Fonts, and bookcases!
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