Hey guys!!
As you may have noticed, I've not been around for the last week. It's not because I haven't been reading (cause I have been...oh, I have been) but rather because life has gotten too busy for me to sit around and schedule/write blog posts all the time.
I already maintain a personal blog and I am an online student heading into my last few semesters of school. Add to that my responsibilities to family and friends, I just do not have enough time to keep up here!
That being said, I will be taking a hiatus for a little while. I'm not sure how long, yet, but I'm hoping to be back here very soon! Right now, I've got to focus on finals for school and I am also looking at moving soon so I have to focus on that, as well.
If you'd like to keep up with my life, please check out my personal blog HERE. You are also more than welcome friend me on Goodreads so that you can keep up with my book reviews there!
As I said before, I'm hoping that this hiatus doesn't last too long! But, until then, keep reading!
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Monday, March 17, 2014
Goodreads Tag!
Heeeyyy! I've been the worst blogger lately, I know! I have no excuses. Just pure laziness and not wanting to sit in front of a computer all day, ya know? I should have some reviews and what not up this week but, since I've got nothing going on today, I thought that I'd do this Goodreads tag that I came across on Kim's blog! If you feel like you want to participate, go ahead!
one. What was the last book you marked as read? Hmm....I think it was Divergent Thinking....or maybe The Lost Girl. One of the two.
two. What are you currently reading? This Star Won't Go Out: The Life and Words of Esther Grace Earl by Esther Earl with Lori & Wayne Earl; Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews; annnd The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu. Usually, I only read 2 books at a time, but I'm almost done reading Esther's story sooo three it is for now!
three. What was the last book you marked as to-be read? 17 pages later...haha...The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith
four. What do you plan on reading next? I'll probably read No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale and Zenn Scarlett by Christian Schoon so that I can move on to read the ARC I got of the second book in that series.
five. Do you use the star rating system? Yes, I do!
six. Are you doing a 2014 Reading challenge? I'm doing the regular reading challenge, not like...any fancy ones that other bloggers do, haha. My goal is to read 50 books this year. I'm currently at 25 books. I'm halfway done and the year isn't even half over yet!
seven. Do you have a wish list? Yes! I do! But not on goodreads...it's on Barnes & Noble.
eight. What book do you plan to buy next? Probably Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi but I'm a really big impulse buyer when it comes to books, so I don't even really know!
nine. Do you have any favorite quotes? Would you like to share a few? I have loads of favorite quotes! You can see some of them here.
ten. Who are your favorite authors? I have a few! J.K. Rowling, of course. John Green is simply amazing. Veronica Rossi, Wendy Wunder, Lauren Oliver...that's just to name a few!
eleven. Have you joined any groups? I'm part of a few groups but I'm not really an active participant in any in particular.
twelve. Are there any questions you'd like to add? Nope! This was fun!
If you haven't already, you can add me on Goodreads here!
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Book Review: The Archived by Victoria Schwab
Title: The ArchivedAuthor: Victoria Schwab
Publication Date: January 22, 2013
Publisher: Hyperion
Format: Hardcover
Links: Goodreads - Barnes & Noble - Amazon
Synopsis: Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.
Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.
Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often—violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.
Being a Keeper isn’t just dangerous—it’s a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da’s death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.
In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption. (Via Goodreads)
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My Review
Mackenzie Bishop is a Keeper--a role passed down to her by her grandfather whom she fondly refers to as Da. A Keepers job is not easy, in fact it can be down right dangerous. Mackenzie keeps track of Histories--or copies of dead people that contain a person's history--ensuring they do not escape from The Archives (a library type system where Histories are kept) or the Narrows (the place between real life, known as the outer, and the Archives). Mackenzie takes danger to the next level when she becomes somewhat obsessed with the boundaries between the dead and the living. It doesn't help that someone is altering and messing with these Histories and the entirety of the Archive.
I cannot tell you how long I have wanted to read this book--which is why I was super excited to finally see it on the shelf at my local library (it takes forever to get quality books!). I was intrigued from the moment that I read the blurb, but that intrigue was only slightly maintained while I was reading it.
I loved the whole premise of the story. It's so unique which is something that I think a lot of books are missing nowadays. Remember how everything at one point was about Vampires? And how dystopian type novels are all the rage right now? Well, this book falls into neither of those categories, which is great! It's originality allows it to stand out among the rest. It was an interest take on what happens in the afterlife and it really made me think. How interesting would it be to be able to read the Histories of other people? I mean, it's every single memory, every insignificant or significant detail of a person's life is preserved by a History--which is pretty much an exact replica of the person as he or she was in life. I can think of a few Histories that I would love to read. The story definitely gained points in my book for originality.
It also freaked me out a lot, but that's another story for another day--haha.
In general, I liked Mackenzie. She's smart and she's so brave (something that I totally am not). But she also has her weaknesses. Her feelings are so intense and so raw…I loved it. Wesley, Mac's love interest and fellow Keeper is great. He's a bit sarcastic and kind of a badass but he balances Mac out perfectly. Also, he's my new stand in boyfriend and I hope that he plays a bigger role in the second book in the series.
The writing was absolutely brilliant and beautiful and great and just every other positive adjective out there. I've never read any other books by Victoria Schwab but I had heard that her writing is deliciously haunting and just plain amazing. She definitely lives up to her reputation with The Archived. I would get so lost in her words and in the world that she created that most of the time I would totally forget how terrified I was until it was too late to put the book down anyway. Seriously…I DREAMT about this book. That's how I know a book is good--when it can creep into my subconscious.
Fair warning, this book is not for the lighthearted. There are a few violent scenes that I had to take a break at from time to time. And it forced me to focus on my own mortality from time to time. I also would not recommend reading this book alongside a similarly creepy book (I'm looking at you, Hollow City). However, I definitely do recommend this book. It is beautifully written, the plot is great and will draw you in, and the characters will become your friends.
I cannot tell you how long I have wanted to read this book--which is why I was super excited to finally see it on the shelf at my local library (it takes forever to get quality books!). I was intrigued from the moment that I read the blurb, but that intrigue was only slightly maintained while I was reading it.
I loved the whole premise of the story. It's so unique which is something that I think a lot of books are missing nowadays. Remember how everything at one point was about Vampires? And how dystopian type novels are all the rage right now? Well, this book falls into neither of those categories, which is great! It's originality allows it to stand out among the rest. It was an interest take on what happens in the afterlife and it really made me think. How interesting would it be to be able to read the Histories of other people? I mean, it's every single memory, every insignificant or significant detail of a person's life is preserved by a History--which is pretty much an exact replica of the person as he or she was in life. I can think of a few Histories that I would love to read. The story definitely gained points in my book for originality.
It also freaked me out a lot, but that's another story for another day--haha.
In general, I liked Mackenzie. She's smart and she's so brave (something that I totally am not). But she also has her weaknesses. Her feelings are so intense and so raw…I loved it. Wesley, Mac's love interest and fellow Keeper is great. He's a bit sarcastic and kind of a badass but he balances Mac out perfectly. Also, he's my new stand in boyfriend and I hope that he plays a bigger role in the second book in the series.
The writing was absolutely brilliant and beautiful and great and just every other positive adjective out there. I've never read any other books by Victoria Schwab but I had heard that her writing is deliciously haunting and just plain amazing. She definitely lives up to her reputation with The Archived. I would get so lost in her words and in the world that she created that most of the time I would totally forget how terrified I was until it was too late to put the book down anyway. Seriously…I DREAMT about this book. That's how I know a book is good--when it can creep into my subconscious.
Fair warning, this book is not for the lighthearted. There are a few violent scenes that I had to take a break at from time to time. And it forced me to focus on my own mortality from time to time. I also would not recommend reading this book alongside a similarly creepy book (I'm looking at you, Hollow City). However, I definitely do recommend this book. It is beautifully written, the plot is great and will draw you in, and the characters will become your friends.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Waiting On Wednesday: The Museum of Intangible Things by Wendy Wunder
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine that features upcoming releases that we can't wait for!
Title: The Museum of Intangible Things
Author: Wendy Wunder
Publication Date: April 10, 2014
Synopsis: Loyalty. Envy. Obligation. Dreams. Disappointment. Fear. Negligence. Coping. Elation. Lust. Nature. Freedom. Heartbreak. Insouciance. Audacity. Gluttony. Belief. God. Karma. Knowing what you want (there is probably a French word for it). Saying Yes. Destiny. Truth. Devotion. Forgiveness. Life. Happiness (ever after).
Hannah and Zoe haven’t had much in their lives, but they’ve always had each other. So when Zoe tells Hannah she needs to get out of their down-and-out New Jersey town, they pile into Hannah’s beat-up old Le Mans and head west, putting everything—their deadbeat parents, their disappointing love lives, their inevitable enrollment at community college—behind them.
As they chase storms and make new friends, Zoe tells Hannah she wants more for her. She wants her to live bigger, dream grander, aim higher. And so Zoe begins teaching Hannah all about life’s intangible things, concepts sadly missing from her existence—things like audacity,insouciance, karma, and even happiness.
An unforgettable read from the acclaimed author of The Probability of Miracles, The Museum of Intangible Things sparkles with the humor and heartbreak of true friendship and first love.
Title: The Museum of Intangible ThingsAuthor: Wendy Wunder
Publication Date: April 10, 2014
Synopsis: Loyalty. Envy. Obligation. Dreams. Disappointment. Fear. Negligence. Coping. Elation. Lust. Nature. Freedom. Heartbreak. Insouciance. Audacity. Gluttony. Belief. God. Karma. Knowing what you want (there is probably a French word for it). Saying Yes. Destiny. Truth. Devotion. Forgiveness. Life. Happiness (ever after).
Hannah and Zoe haven’t had much in their lives, but they’ve always had each other. So when Zoe tells Hannah she needs to get out of their down-and-out New Jersey town, they pile into Hannah’s beat-up old Le Mans and head west, putting everything—their deadbeat parents, their disappointing love lives, their inevitable enrollment at community college—behind them.
As they chase storms and make new friends, Zoe tells Hannah she wants more for her. She wants her to live bigger, dream grander, aim higher. And so Zoe begins teaching Hannah all about life’s intangible things, concepts sadly missing from her existence—things like audacity,insouciance, karma, and even happiness.
An unforgettable read from the acclaimed author of The Probability of Miracles, The Museum of Intangible Things sparkles with the humor and heartbreak of true friendship and first love.
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Why I'm Waiting
I am so excited that Wendy Wunder finally has a new book coming out! I read her first book, The Probability of Miracles, back in 2012 and was instantly in love with it and with her. Needless to say, I've been waiting a long time for this one.
The entire plot of the book is interesting, too. I'm loving the whole road trip/traveling genre that's been around lately. It helps me with my whole dreams of wanderlust. Plus, it's a story about two girl best friends. There definitely aren't enough books that focus on friendships between girls. Right now, I think that's what the world needs.
Plus, from the reviews that I've read so far, it looks like the book is much deeper than just a simple road trip story. Wunder is great at tackling bigger issues, so I'm excited to see what she does with this!
What books are you waiting on this week?
Monday, March 10, 2014
ARC Review: Time After Time by Wendy Godding
Title: Time After TimeAuthor: Wendy Godding
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Publication Date: April 1, 2014
Format: ARC
Links: Goodreads
Synopsis: She has died countless times before, and she is not going to let it happen again.
Abbie Harper dies just before her eighteenth birthday. It has happened before, more times than she can remember — and always at the hands of the same man. Her dreams are plagued with past lives, cut short.
But this latest dream feels different. Her past life as Penelope Broadhurst — an English pastor’s daughter in 1806 — keeps bleeding into her present life in ways both sinister and familiar. As Penelope meets and falls in love with the dashing Heath Lockwood, so too does Abbie meet the brothers Marcus and Rem Knight. One wants to love her; the other to kill her.
Time is running out for Penelope, but as Abbie mourns her inability to change the past, she chases the slim chance to save her future. To survive, she must solve the puzzle of an ancient love story…and Penelope just might be able to help. (Goodreads)
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My Review
I received an ARC from Escape Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Time After Time follows Abbie Harper, a 17-year-old who has crazy dreams about girls from different times. They all share some things in common, like the fact that they all kinda look alike and that they're always murdered prior to their 18th birthdays by the same dude. As it turns out, these girls are her in her past lives and she's on a quest to stop the same thing from happening this lifetime around.
All in all, I'd say that this book is simply just ok. I thought I would be completely drawn in to the whole reincarnation plot, but I wasn't. Honestly, I was bored for most of the book and definitely would have rather read anything else.
As far as characters go, I couldn't get too attached to anyone, really. Abbie's devil-may-care attitude annoyed me from the get go. I mean, I get that she's totally into being this alternative kind of person, but pretty much everyone who doesn't agree with her or anyone who merely tries to suggest something better for her is met with disdain, eye-rolling, and a bad attitude. She wants everyone to fit into her idea of a person, and yet she frowns upon people who want to fit in another roll? Super annoying! I don't even know how she has friends…or boys chasing her, for that matter.
I was a bit so-so about the other characters. While they were fairly well written, I honestly just did not feel attached to anyone.
I did enjoy the way that the author switched between story lines, from Abbie in the present day to Penelope, one of Abbie's past life girls. I enjoyed Penelope's story and would have loved to learn more about the other girls. That certainly would have made the read more interesting.
Overall, this book was simply just ok. I don't think that I would read it again, but that's just me. I gave it 2 out of 5 Stars on Goodreads.
Time After Time follows Abbie Harper, a 17-year-old who has crazy dreams about girls from different times. They all share some things in common, like the fact that they all kinda look alike and that they're always murdered prior to their 18th birthdays by the same dude. As it turns out, these girls are her in her past lives and she's on a quest to stop the same thing from happening this lifetime around.
All in all, I'd say that this book is simply just ok. I thought I would be completely drawn in to the whole reincarnation plot, but I wasn't. Honestly, I was bored for most of the book and definitely would have rather read anything else.
As far as characters go, I couldn't get too attached to anyone, really. Abbie's devil-may-care attitude annoyed me from the get go. I mean, I get that she's totally into being this alternative kind of person, but pretty much everyone who doesn't agree with her or anyone who merely tries to suggest something better for her is met with disdain, eye-rolling, and a bad attitude. She wants everyone to fit into her idea of a person, and yet she frowns upon people who want to fit in another roll? Super annoying! I don't even know how she has friends…or boys chasing her, for that matter.
I was a bit so-so about the other characters. While they were fairly well written, I honestly just did not feel attached to anyone.
I did enjoy the way that the author switched between story lines, from Abbie in the present day to Penelope, one of Abbie's past life girls. I enjoyed Penelope's story and would have loved to learn more about the other girls. That certainly would have made the read more interesting.
Overall, this book was simply just ok. I don't think that I would read it again, but that's just me. I gave it 2 out of 5 Stars on Goodreads.
Saturday, March 8, 2014
Coming Attractions #5
Um....so apparently, I've been doing Coming Attractions for 5 weeks now! Craziness!!!!
Here's what's happing this week around these parts...
Here's what's happing this week around these parts...
Coming Soon
Monday: ARC Review-Time After Time by Wendy Godding
Tuesday: Top 10 Tuesday-All Time Favorite Books in {insert genre here} Genre
Wednesday: Waiting on Wednesday with Breaking the Spine
Thursday: Book Review-Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
Friday: Tiger Lily dreamcast (cause I didn't do it last week)
Wednesday: Waiting on Wednesday with Breaking the Spine
Thursday: Book Review-Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
Friday: Tiger Lily dreamcast (cause I didn't do it last week)
Saturday: Book Review-The Archived by Victoria Schwab
Book Hauls
From the library
(not including Hollow City...that one's mine!)
The Archived by Victoria Schwab
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale
Confessions of A Hater by Caprice Crane
From Walmart
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
NetGalley ARC
The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu
Divergent Thinking edited by Leah Wilson
He Texted: The Ultimate Guide to Dating in the Digital Era by Lisa Winning
Read This Week
Time After Time by Wendy Godding
Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
The Archived by Victoria Schwab
The Here and Now by Ann Brashares
Links of the Week
What's going on around yo' part of the interwebs?
Book Review: Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
Title: Tiger LilyAuthor: Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Publication Date: July 3, 2012
Format: ebook
Links: Goodreads - Barnes & Noble - Amazon
Synopsis: Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . .
Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell.
Peter is unlike anyone she's ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland's inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she's always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.
With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it's the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who's everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.
From the New York Times bestselling author of Peaches comes a magical and bewitching story of the romance between a fearless heroine and the boy who wouldn't grow up. (via Goodreads)
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My Review
I am seriously just sitting here right now trying to figure
out how to accurately review Tiger Lily. There are just so many feelings behind
it, how am I supposed to capture all of that in a short review?! Ah,
well…here’s to trying, right?!
Tiger Lily is presented as a retelling of Peter Pan but it
follows Tiger Lily, rather than Peter himself. The story is told from Tinker
Bell’s point of view and it follows Tiger Lily as she discovers who she is as a
young woman in Neverland and as she mingles with Peter and his Lost Boys. Of
course, Wendy Darling makes an appearance and when she does, Tiger Lily’s
entire world seems to change. Tiger Lily captures the bliss and the heartbreak
of growing into a woman and everything that comes with it.
When I first found out that Tiger Lily was written from Tinker Bell’s point of
view, I was a bit nervous. Tink is my favorite character both in the Disney
movie and in J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. However, I came to love Tink even more
through Anderson’s interpretation of her character. Tink is one of Tiger Lily’s
most loyal friends, following Tiger Lily around and trying to protect her as
best she can. Plus, who better to tell a story than a little faerie who
observes all?
Tiger Lily is all at once everything I’m not and everything
that I am. I remember being exactly like Tiger Lily at one point. A girl lost,
trying to figure out what to do with her life. Through the course of the book,
Tiger Lily goes through so many things that could either make or break her.
Jodi Lynn Anderson did a great job with writing a strong, female character.
I, of course, cannot forget my darling Peter Pan. Peter is
every bit of the lost boy that you know and love. He’s rambunctious, a bit
careless, and playful but underneath all of that, Anderson captures the essence
of who he really is, just a boy who is a little frightened and unsure. I think
I fell in love with Peter more while reading this book and I didn’t even think
that was possible.
Supporting characters were amazing as well! Even if they seemed like super
minor characters, each one had his or her own story and background. One that
you could imagine for yourself.
I’m also going to hate myself for saying this but I couldn’t
find myself hating Wendy. Ok, well, I could, but also I could see myself in
Wendy Darling. I’ve never liked Wendy Darling but I could sympathize with her.
I could understand why she did the things she did. I got her…and that usually never happens!
It’s really hard to pinpoint just one thing that I really
liked about the book because I liked everything. The story itself was beautiful
and heartbreaking all at the same time. There were times when I just had to put
the book down simply because I couldn’t go on…it was too hard! I felt that the
meaning of the story also extended past just a re-telling of Peter Pan and love
and what not. I love how it touched on themes of growing up, womanhood, society
and gender norms, and loss.
If there is anything that I am critical about, I’d have to
admit that I was a bit bored in the beginning of the book. I wanted so badly to
just dive in and enjoy the book, I was a little worried when that wasn’t my
immediate reaction. However, as I pushed through, I got so into it that I
couldn’t even imagine putting the book down and when I had to, I would do so
grudgingly.
There are so many good things about this book. How well
written it is. How heartbreaking it is. The characters. The entire world of
Neverland and how it showcases it’s dark side. The pirates, the lost boys, the
tribes, the mermaids. Everything about it is just lovely. I would have to say
that Tiger Lily is officially one of my favorite books of all time. And that is
saying something because I’m the kind of girl who can never choose favorites
when it comes to books!
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