In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Story Siren,

This week I received:
Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan

and from Random Buzzers:
Faerie Winter by Jamie Lee Simner


What did you receive in your mailbox?

The Demon Trapper's Daughter by Jana Oliver

Reading Level: Young Adult

Paperback: 368 Pages

St. Martin's Griffin: February 1, 2011

ISBN: 978-0-312-61478-0

My Rating: 3/5

Seventeen-year-old Rile, the only daughter of legendary demon trapper Paul Blackthorne, has always dreamed of following in her father's footsteps. The good news is, with human society seriously disrupted by economic upheaval and Lucifer increasing the number of demons in all major cities, Atlanta's local Trappers Guild needs all the help it can get-even from a girl. When she's not keeping up with her homework or trying to manage her growing crush on fellow apprentice Simon, Riley's out saving distressed citizens from foul-mouthed little devils-Grade One Hellspawn only, of course, per the strict rules of the Guild. Life's about as normal as can be for the average demon-trapping teen.
But the a Grade Five Geo-Fiend crashes Riley's routine assignment at a library, jeopardizing her life and her chosen livelihood. And as if that wasn't bad enough, sudden tragedy strikes the Trappers Guild, spinning Riley down a more dangerous path than she ever could have imagined. As her whole world crashes down around her, who can Riley trust with her heart-and her life?

'The Demon Trapper's Daughter' by Jana Oliver was not what I expected. I actually don't even know what I really expected from it but that wasn't it. I felt very disconnected from the characters. I just couldn't...click with them. There was no appeal for me. The story line was decent. There were a few things I didn't like and a few things I did like.

The story is about Riley, a high school girl who is an apprentice demon trapper. Her father is also a demon trapper and her long time crush, Beck. Riley has experienced a lot of heartache and loss in her life and it continues throughout 'The Demon Trapper's Daughter.' Riley was a confusing character for me. She never really stuck with one personality throughout the book. At one point, she was a valley girl and all "omigod, did you see that totally cute guy? He's so amazing!" And then other times, she's completely mature and grownup. She doesn't talk like some love struck teenage girl. Sometimes she hates everyone, then she loves them. And I never really felt the love interest buildup the way I do in some books. However Riley's demon fighting, and Becks, is always a good time!

Well 'The Demon Trapper's Daughter' is not one of my favorite books, I still liked it. I thought it had some endearing qualities and had some annoyingly redundant aspects. I'll still be picking up the next book in the series which I think is set to come out in August. But it's definitely not on the top of my "most wanted" list.

Follow My Book Blog Friday

Follow My Book Blog Friday is a weekly even hosted by Parajunkee's View






This week's question is:

Q. Let's step away from books for a second and get personal. What T-Shirt slogan best describes you?

It's hard to find a t-shirt that matches me...but I think this one explains just how deep my love for it is LOL:

This shirt is from Busted Tees

Love this week's question! Can't wait to see everyone's t-shirt! hehe.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly even hosted by Breaking the Spine.

My WoW pick this week is:

Bloodlines

By: Richelle Mead

Publication Date: August 23, 2011

From Amazon:
When alchemist Sydney is ordered into hiding to protect the life of Moroi princess Jill Dragomir, the last place she expects to be sent is a human private school in Palm Springs, California. But at their new school, the drama is only just beginning.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Bloodlines explores all the friendship, romance, battles and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive - this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone's out for blood.

What are you Waiting on this week? Don't forget to leave links! :)

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Reading Level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 391 Pages

Publisher: Scholastic

ISBN-13: 978-0-439-02349-8
ISBN-10: 0-439-02349-1

My Rating: 5/5

Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark, are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol-a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.
Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.

'Catching Fire' is the second book in 'The Hunger Games' series by Suzanne Collins. I fell in love with 'The Hunger Games' and all the characters. All this book did, was make me love it more! 'The Hunger Games' is one of the most incredible series I've read to date. I love it! Collins came up with an incredible series and I'm thankful I get to live in that world if even for a short time!

'Catching Fire' is the continuing story of Katniss Everdeen. She is doing a tour through the 12 districts with Peeta for being the Victors of the 74th Hunger Games. Life isn't much better for her though. She still seems really depressed and she's torn between Gale and Peeta. I love how Collins broke down her struggle in this book for Peeta and Gale. If she chooses Peeta, she's doing what the Capitol wants. If she choose Gale, she's choosing to rebel and will put her life and the life of everyone she loves in jeopardy. And then there is a crazy twist in 'Catching Fire,' actually there is a couple twists.

Collins did an amazing job continuing the story of Katniss. I love the series so much! I really can't even describe how much I love it! haha. I know that 'Hunger Game's is being made into a movie so I'm really anxious to see it! And I'm really anxious to read the last book in the series, 'Mockingjay.' As for 'Catching Fire,' it's amazing!!!

Vacation!

I just wanted to write a post and let everyone know that I'm going to be gone from today until Monday. So I won't be able to post on my blog till Tuesday! : ( Sorry guys! I thought I should come on and let everyone know that I'll be away and I didn't just stop blogging haha.
Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend and if you live down near my end (NY) try to stay out of that heat! UGH!

Happy Reading! :)

Blog Tour & Guest Post: Mishap & Mayhem by M.M. Shelley

Blurb:

For centuries magical beings have hidden in the darkness, waiting. Some good, some evil. A battle is brewing, and only twins, Grasiella and Tatiana, have the power to stop it.

Buy links: Amazon, B&N, Smashwords

Bio:  

M.M. Shelley is a storyteller, wordsmith and dreamer. MISHAP AND MAYHEM, a captivating story of faerie's and magic, is her debut novel. She has traveled the world extensively in search of the magic which is often overlooked in every day life. M.M. Shelley is a native of southern California, and a student of mythology from which she gets much inspiration.

Links: www.mmshelley.com / http://mmshelley.blogspot.com/

By the Sea Shore


The sea has always fascinated me; I think it has to do with the fact that it is so massive and filled with ancient stories. There are stories of pirates who had fought and died on the seas, forbidden romances, and romance lost. Stories of ghost who haunt lighthouses and lighthouse keepers with strange disappearances, stories of betrayal and revenge, wars won and lost.


My love for the sea is what inspired me to write a fantasy that involved the sea. Hawaii was the perfect setting for my story, I found the history to be so rich and I also don’t believe it’s shared enough. The islands are filled with some great stories of mythology and folklore.


When I first started talking to my friends and family about my story most of them thought that Hawaii was an odd place for a fantasy. I stuck with my ideas and I wrote Mishap & Mayhem, the story of twins Grasiella and Tatiana who visit their grandmother over the summer. I myself spent a summer with my grandparents and have some of the best memories. No, they didn’t live in Hawaii, but that was okay.

My grandfather did tell me stories, some of them about the sea. My grandfather use to go fishing some weekends and there is one story he told that was about a fisherman. The fisherman took his boat out real early one morning before there was light; he always went out into the sea alone, he liked the solitude.
He set up his nets like he normal did and turned away. There was a splash in the water near his boat; this got his attention because it was so close to his boat. He looked for his flash light to check the water, but it wasn’t in the place it should be. In his pocket was a lighter, he pulled it out giving it a flick as he held it over the water leaning over as he did so.

A mermaid was caught in the bindings of the nets. The fisherman was so surprised that he dropped the lighter into the sea. Before the fire extinguished it burnt the net giving the mermaid enough slack to break her way free. She did not disappear into the water; instead she reached for the fisherman and said to him, “You will not be catching any fish today or any day.” The fisherman would have been dragged into the sea below if he did not quickly pull out a pocket knife and fight the mermaid off.


My grandfather ended his story with this advice, “There are two things you make sure you have with you when you go fishing. A pocket knife and a beer, because with the one you never know what’s out in those waters and the other, at least you could always say you weren’t sober and couldn’t be sure.”

Thanks to Fay-Bay’s Books for letting me share with you all today. Please share with me what stories are some of your favorites. You can also find me over at my blog: mmshelley.blogspot.com and on twitter @MM_Shelley


Much love,
M.M. Shelley

Across The Universe by Beth Revis

Reading Level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 416 Pages

Publisher: Razorbill

ISBN: 978-1-59514-397-6

My Rating: 5/5

Amy and her parents are cryogenically frozen passengers aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed. They have been led to believe they will wake up on a new planet, 300 years in the future.
But fifty years before Godspeed's scheduled landing, Amy is mysteriously unplugged from her cryo chamber, the near-victim of an attempted murder.
Amy discovers an enclosed world where nothing makes sense, where Godspeed's passengers have forfeited all control to Eldest, a tyrannical and frightening leader, and Elder, his rebellious and brilliant teenage heir.
Amy and Elder are instantly bonded. But can they trust each other? All Amy and Elder know is that they must discover Godspeed's hidden secrets before whoever woke Amy tries to kill again.

I was extremely skeptical about reading 'Across The Universe.' I had heard some good things so I was interested in reading it, but I wasn't overly excited. And I'm not really all into Sci-Fi and stuff like that. 'Across The Universe' totally changed my perspective on Science Fiction. Revis is an amazing author. Her ability to flip back and forth and write between two characters (Elder and Amy) is astounding! Where most people would mix two personalities and stories, Revis made clear distinctions and stuck with them throughout! I will not only be watching for more stuff from Revis, but I will be looking into reading some more Sci-Fi!

'Across The Universe' is the story of Amy and Elder. Amy is a teenage girl from Earth. The book starts off with her going through a cryogenic freezing process. Let me just tell you, that the descriptions and depth of that part of the story are enough to give you nightmares! I would hate to have to undergo anything even remotely close to that level of torture! YEESH! Amy and her parents are set to wake up 300 years in the future on a new Earth like planet. Elder is the soon to be leader of the ship Godspeed. He has big shoes to fill and no one to teach him the ropes. Well, he has Eldest who is supposed to teach him everything but ends up teaching him next to nothing. Eldest stumbles upon Amy in the Cryo level because someone unplugged her. They quickly become friends and together try to figure out what exactly is going on on Godspeed and who is responsible for unplugging her.

One of the things that I loved about the way Revis wrote 'Across the Universe' is that, it's mystery and a sci-fi. I love to watch movies and make my own speculations about who the killer was or who robbed the bank or whatever. Always little clues and people (at least I) will always be like "OHHH! I know he did it. He's guilty! Look at him! and all the evidence points to him!" Then 5 minutes later, it's someone else. Well, that is what Revis does with 'Across the Universe.' Not only is the story captivating, but it keeps your mind engaged through the whole story and leaves you thinking about it when you're not reading. Trying to add up all the clues and figure out who did what. I was very doubtful when I started reading 'Across the Universe' but, even through my skepticism, I ended up loving it!

I'm looking for some suggestions for any Sci-Fi books, so if anyone knows any, please leave a comment so I can check them out. Thanks guys!! :)

Friday Book Blogger Hop!

Friday's Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Crazy for Books!

This week's question is:

How/Where do you get your books? Do you buy them or go to the library? Is there a certain website you use like paperbackswap?

I actually buy almost all of my books. And there is really no specific store that I buy my books from. A few books that I get are for reviews. But I have never requested an ARC from anyone, I usually just buy what I want to read, and review it! :) I used to get a few books from the library but I moved recently and now I don't live anywhere near a library.

Can't wait to read every one's Hop answers! :) I learned about paperbackswap.com this week from Crazy for Books so I'll be excited to learn about more things like that!! haha.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking The Spine.

This week's Waiting on Wednesday pick is:

The Faerie Ring
Kiki Hamilton
Publication: September 27, 2011


From Amazon:

The year is 1871, and Tiki has been making a home for herself and her family of orphans in a deserted hideaway adjoining Charing Cross Station in central London. Their only means of survival is by picking pockets. One December night, Tiki steals a ring, and sets off a chain of events that could lead to all-out war with the Fey. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and it binds the rulers of England and the realm of Faerie to peace. With the ring missing, a rebel group of faeries hopes to break the treaty with dark magic and blood—Tiki’s blood.

Unbeknownst to Tiki, she is being watched—and protected—by Rieker, a fellow thief who suspects she is involved in the disappearance of the ring. Rieker has secrets of his own, and Tiki is not all that she appears to be. Her very existence haunts Prince Leopold, the Queen’s son, who is driven to know more about the mysterious mark that encircles her wrist.

Prince, pauper, and thief—all must work together to secure the treaty…

What are you waiting on this week? Don't forget to leave your links! :)

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Reading Level: Young Adult

Paperback: 640 Pages

Publisher: Little Brown

ISBN-10: 9780316027656
ISBN-13: 978-0316027656

My Rating: 5/5

From Goodreads:
Readers captivated by Twilight and New Moon will eagerly devour Eclipse, the much anticipated third book in Stephenie Meyer's riveting vampire love saga. As Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and a malicious vampire continues her quest for revenge, Bella once again finds herself surrounded by danger. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward and her friendship with Jacob —- knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the ageless struggle between vampire and werewolf. With her graduation quickly approaching, Bella has one more decision to make: life or death. But which is which?

'Eclipse' is the third installment in the Twilight Saga. It was much, MUCH better than Twilight. I think I only liked it better because there was actually stuff going on in this book. Not Bella just sitting around thinking about depressing stuff and being Bella. There was vampires, werewolves, an army. Great! Definitely better than New Moon by far!

'Eclipse' is the continuing story of Bella Swan. She is still with Edward but confused about Jacob. I'm confused about it sometimes too. Like, pick someone! haha. The Volturi is keeping an eye on them to see if Bella is a vampire, but they also have to worry about Victoria. There is fighting, finally! It seems like everyone just kisses and makes up in the Twilight Saga.

'Eclipse' is superior to 'New Moon' on so many levels. And I like the fact that Bella isn't just sitting around feeling sorry for herself. I get the whole undying love thing but really, my life wouldn't come to a complete stop for months if some guy just walked away from me. I guess I get it...sort of. Anyways, 'Eclipse,' definitely WAY better. I already know how I feel about Breaking Dawn I just have to write my review. I will say that, even though I get frustrated with the 'Twilight Saga' I was still completely addicted to it when I first read it. I think it took me a week to read all 4 books. It wouldn't have been a week but I had to wait for Breaking Dawn to come in the mail from Amazon.

Blood Promise by Richelle Mead

Reading Level: Young Adult

Paperback: 512 Pages

Publisher: Razorbill

ISBN: 978-1-59514-310-5

My Rating: 5/5

Dimitri's heart has gone dark. Now Rose must journey to the ends of the earth to find-and kill-her one true love...
or has the time come to join him?
My heart shattered. My world shattered. You will lose what you value most...
It wasn't my life...It wasn't even Dimtri's life.
What you value most.
It was his soul.

The 'Vampire Academy' series is one of my favorite series of books. Rose Hathaway, one of my favorite characters. I could probably rant and rave for hours about how amazing I think the Vampire Academy series is, but I think I've done that in the 3 reviews prior to this one. 'Blood Promise' is no joke. It's Rose on a whole new level. Mead's amazing ability to string together a story so perfectly is unbelievable!

The story is told through Rose Hathaway. She has left St. Vladamir's to keep her promise to Dimitri, the love of her lifetime. Impossibly sexy...he is like those men you hear about, tall, dark, and handsome! Rose shares an indescribable bond with her best friend, Lissa. But she leaves Lissa behind for Dimitri even though she has sworn to protect her. The story actually takes place throughout Russia. I was worried that I would miss all the drama back at the academy with Rose being in Russia, but you don't miss a beat! Rose regularly dives into Lissa's mind, just to check on her. And she has still has the dream encounters with Adrian.

Mead did an amazing job of blending two separate stories into one fantastic book! We get to read about Rose and everything she is going through in Russia. But we also get to know everything that is going on back at the academy with Lissa, Christian, and Adrian. There are also a ton of new characters introduced in 'Blood Promise.' One of those new people, well, I won't say who it is but he's important. And the book leaves off with Rose spinning another crazy scheme that easily will lead into Spirit Bound! I can not wait to read Spirit Bound. Hopefully I'll be picking it up soon!

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

Reading Level: Young Adult

Paperback: 563 Pages

Publisher: Little Brown

ISBN-13: 9780316024969

My Rating: 4/5

I knew we were both in mortal danger. Still, in that instant, I felt well. Whole. I could feel my heart racing in my chest, the blood pulsing hot and fast through my veins again. My lungs filled deep with the sweet scent that came off his skin. It was like there had never been any hole in my chest. I was perfect-not healed, but as if there had never been a wound in the first place.

'New Moon' is the second book in the Twilight Saga. I absolutely fell in love with Twilight when I read it. The day I finished Twilight, I ran out and bought New Moon. What can I say, I was addicted! lol. I loved New Moon at first...and I probably would have given it a 5/5 when I first read it. Now that I've had some time to let it sink in and really think about, and reread it. Not so much. The Twilight Saga is important to me because it rekindled my love for reading. But I didn't like New Moon nearly as much.

New Moon is the continuing story of Bella Swan. In a nutshell, it's Bella facing some unimaginable situation and fighting with her conflicting feelings for Edward and Jacob, her getting hurt, being clumsy, etc...While New Moon is still a great book, it's nowhere near as good as Twilight. I felt like New Moon was slow paced compared to Twilight. There wasn't much going on. You get to meet the wolf pack but that's about it. For me anyways. And I liked the whole thing with the Volturi. But there were a lot of parts when I was like, "that's it?"

The Twilight Saga is great! and I love it. But I think I only love it because it got me back into reading. And the whole forbidden love aspect. haha. Twilight is WAY better than New Moon. Hopefully I'll be able to write my review for Eclipse soon. And then Breaking Dawn. I have to say, I think a lot of people HATE Twilight because it's so popular...or it was? I think that, they got this opinion in their minds before they even read it. About how stupid it was going to be and it affected their "Twilight experience." It really isn't that bad!

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Reading Level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 288 Pages

Publisher: Viking Juvenile

ISBN-10: 067001110X
ASIN: B004R96SCO

My Rating: 4/5

Lia and Cassie were best friends, wintergirls frozen in matchstick bodies. But now Cassie is dead. Lia's mother is busy saving other people's lives. Her father is away on business. Her stepmother is clueless. And the voice inside Lia's head keeps telling her to remain in control, stay strong, lose more, weigh less. If she keeps on going this way-thin, thinner, thinnest-maybe she'll disappear altogether.

'Wintergirls' by Laurie Halse Anderson is completely different from anything that I've read. I have never read anything else by Anderson so I'm not sure if this is normal for her. I can't really compare. For me, 'Wintergirls' was a struggle at times, but amazing at others. I loved her sporadic writing style for Lia. It felt like I really got a look at the destruction within Lia's mind. How torn and damaged she really is. But at times, I felt like Anderson took things a little far.

'Wintergirls' is told through Lia, an extremely troubled girl. Lia has so many problems but most of them stem from her anorexia. The fact that she has a best friend who suffers from bulimia doesn't help. From the very first paragraph in the book, we get an in depth look at how messed up Lia is when we find out about Cassie's death. Best friends for years, yet it doesn't faze her. The whole book is Lia struggling with cutting, anorexia, mental issues, downfalls with her family, and a ton of other problems.

At times while I was reading 'Wintergirls' I thought that Anderson was very vicious with some of the things she said. That she took things too far. But, when I think back now about it being Lia's thought process it makes sense. Being fat is unacceptable in today's society and Lia knows it. Her solution, don't eat. It's sad. 'Wintergirls' was an intense and emotional read for me. I really liked it. After I got used to Anderson's writing style for Lia, I loved it. I love how different it is and how much it allows you to really get in Lia's head. I definitely plan on reading more from Anderson soon!

In My Mailbox

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Story Siren.

This week I bought:
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

Stargazer by Claudia Gray

Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

I received:
The Darlings are Forever by Melissa Kantor

What did you receive in your mailbox?

RAK

For those of you who don't know, RAK is Random Acts of Kindness. An amazing thing that the Book Soulmates run. If you haven't signed up yet, you definitely should! :)

The RAK I received this month was:

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer
From: Lisa @ A Life Bound By Books

Thank you so much Lisa! :) I can't wait to read Nightshade. I'm soooo excited haha.

Can't wait to see everyone else's RAK!

Friday Book Blogger Hop!

Friday's Books Blogger Hop is hosted by Crazy for Books.

This weeks question is:

“What keeps you reading beyond the first few pages of a book, and what makes you want to stop reading a book and put it back on the shelf?“

Usually what keeps me reading a book past the first few pages are the characters. Or the potential story line. The way the author writes too. Sometimes you can get a book and just tell within the first page or so that it isn't going to be good. I usually give the book a chance anyways and continue to read. If it improves, that's awesome and I'll finish it. If it gets worse, I probably won't. I've only read one book so far that was so...terrible I couldn't finish it.

Can't wait to see every one's answer to this weeks question! Thanks for Hopping by! :)