Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Breaking the Spine to promote and spotlight upcoming books.

This week, I am really looking for The Less Dead by April Lurie. This book looks amazing and the cover really draws me in. The summary itself

Summary: Noah Nordstrom has been dissing the religious beliefs of his father, who hosts a popular Christian radio show and whom Noah accuses of spreading hate. When two local gay teens are murdered, Noah’s anti-evangelism intensifies—he’s convinced that the killer is a caller on his dad’s program. Then Noah meets Will Reed, a cool guy. But when he learns that Will is gay, Noah gets a little weirded out. Especially since Will seems really into him. Noah gives Will the brush-off. Meanwhile, the killer is still at large . . . and soon Noah finds the next victim. It’s Will. Racked with guilt, Noah decides to investigate. He knows the serial killer is targeting gay teens, but only those who live in foster homes, whose deaths are not that important to society; they are the less-dead. Noah, however, is determined to prove that someone cares. With the help of Will’s journal, which he pocketed at the scene of the crime and in which the killer has written clues, Noah closes in on an opponent more dangerous than he can guess.

Hardcover, 240 pages

Random House Children's Books
January 12, 2010

Betrayals: Lili St. Crow

SUMMARY (Courtesy of borders.com):

Dru Anderson's parents are gone, her best friend is a werewolf, and she's just learned that she's not entirely human. Now Dru is stuck at a secret New England school for other teens like her, and she's the only girl. A school full of cute boys wouldn't be so bad, but Dru's killer instinct says that one of them wants her dead.

OPINION: 5 STARS

Throughout much of this book, Dru is playing up the pity party. She is mopey, depressed, and walking around with a constant cloud over her heard. A few times, I admit it annoyed me but in truth, in this story line it was almost nice to see it. In Strange Angels, for the most part, Dru was strong, could handle herself, and even when things were horrible she pressed forward. This was actually a refreshing switch from the usual starts out weak but gets strong development scene in numerous novels. Because how strong Dru really can be was shown so well in the first installment of this series, her weakness and vulnerability actually made sense, as it generally revolves around losing her grandmother, mother and most recently her father. The teenage girl who just needs her parents that she had to hide in the first book comes out in this book and I actually really enjoyed that aspect.

The cast of characters covers a wide range, from vampires to wolves to mixes of both, each with their own different personalities and caveats. The name of the book, obviously, hints at what kind of content the plot could hold but even at the end of this book, I am still left with a ton of questions and few answers- many relating to different characters. I have to admit, however, the names of the different wulfen are fantastic; they have a given name- Robert, Samuel- and then a pack type name from Dibs to Shanks.

The writing is on the same level as with Strange Angels- I don't feel like St. Crow improved too much in that area but she does have a unique style that appeals to me. Some of the descriptions she uses- especially with imagery- draws me in, painting things perfectly and making me feel and see what Dru does. The way she explains the skinchangers and the wulfen shifting between their forms- even the attributes of Christophe- all are unique and poignant.

I read this book in about 2 days, spending much of my free time reading or reading a few sentences in between doing other things. It kept me interested and wanting to read even though there were few huge, fast moving action points. There were a few, but they were staggered and interrupted with in story down time before picking back up but I still enjoyed the book. I got to know not just Dru better, but Graves and even some of the other wulfen too. This book has set a great stage for future books, pulling in many elements without tying them together. There are plenty of open ends and plenty of directions this series can go and I actually really like it.

This installment isn't as fast paced, but it is still gripping and intriguing. Dru is a character that many people can relate to- strong and smart but still weak and needy. She has her flaws, and wears them on her sleeve, while still trying to kick butt with a cocky sense of humor to boot. 5 stars for the great descriptions, the logical character development, and the very well done overall world and plot.

Author Interview: Rick Yancey

I was lucky enough to have the chance to interview Rick Yancey, author of The Monstrumologist. For those of you who missed my raving review of this amazing, well written, brilliant book, it can be found here along with a book summary.

Without futher ado... here is the interview. It is my first one, but I personally think it turned out great and am kind of bouncing in my seat over it... *blushes*

Where/how did you come up with the idea for THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST and how long did it take you to write/develop the story?

After finishing the Alfred Kropp adventures, I wanted to try my hand at a genre I have loved since I was a kid - the Victorian mystery/horror novel, a la DRACULA. What emerged after multiple attempts to get it just right was a cross between Sherlock Holmes and Frankenstein . . . THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST.

How far are you in your work on the next installment of this series and how long do you foresee the series to be?

There will be three books at the least. I'm working on the second book now. If anything, even scarier . . .

I certainly am awed by how you write, especially your descriptions- even the gory ones. Do you ever have to stop yourself from getting too gory or do you write it all in there, regardless of how vivid a picture it will create?

I try to faithfully record everything that Will Henry witnesses, and I don't consciouslessly hold something back. It is what he sees, and what anyone would see, should they go where a monstrumologist goes.


Do you ever scare yourself with some of the ideas you come up with or have trouble going back to the real world after a writing session?

All the time. And let me tell you, at 3:00 in the morning, monsters are REAL.

Are you interested in the horror genre outside of your own work and if so, what are some of your favorites?

I'll mention some. DRACULA, FRANKENSTEIN, the works of E.A. Poe and H.G. Wells. Early Stephen King. My book is compared over and over again to Lovecraft, whom I must confess I have never read. Maybe I'm channeling his spirit or something . .

Where were you first introduced into the horror genre enough to make you want to write it?

It had to be the first time I read DRACULA. Totally freaked me.

You write books for both adults and teens- is there one kind you like to the others and are your writing styles and processes different between the two?

The styles certainly are different, because I always write in the first-person, and no narrator should sound like another. The process is the same. Sit butt down, hands on keyboard, GO. I'm lucky in that I write both for pleasure; neither kind of book is a chore, and I know I'm very, very lucky that that is the case.

What is your favorite part and the hardest part of writing?

Favorite part: when the story just seems to start writing itself (that's when I know I'm on to something). Worst part: When nothing I try seems to work. Then I feel like a complete fool for ever taking up writing to being with.

Do you have any interesting writing quirks or rituals you go through?

I like to hum theme music when I write. I also act out certain scenes. But only when nobody is watching!

Is there anything else you would like to say or tell us?

Read my book! Please! It's really, really good. Really good!

Thank you, Rick, for taking the time to answer my questions and I agree with the last thing- read the book. It is phenomenal, at least in my opinion- and since this is my blog, and my interview, and my attempt to promote his awesome book, its really the only opinion that matters. =D And with the holidays coming up, what better time to ask for this book?

Chat with Lauren Kate, Author of Fallen- and maybe win a copy of the book

For those of you that have facebook, here is some news you might be interested in:

There will be a live chat with Lauren Kate on December 3 from 5-6 pm GMT on the designated facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/fiercebook/167743501407

Also, right now you have the chance to win 1 of 50 copies of the book by becoming a group member and answering the question of why angels are better than vampires, which is a great opportunity to get your hands on the book.

If you haven't already, you still have a chance through December 6 to win 1 of 5 copies of the book from a contest I am currently holding, details here.

On a related note, I am also having a contest through Sunday, November 29 in honor of hitting 50 f0llowers- one of the prizes is The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove, also by Lauren Kate and just released on November 12. If I hit enough entries in the next week, I will throw in another winner and my ARC of Fallen as a prize as well.

All three of these are great opportunies to win Lauren's books and help spread the word about the chat with Lauren Kate!

Contest Reminder!

Just a reminder- there is one week left to enter my first contest, in honor of my first 50 followers! Details can be found here but here is a rundown-

The books up for grabs are:

The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove by Lauren Kate
Possessions by Nancy Holder
Midnight Twins by Jacquelyn Mitchard

There will be 2 winners- first place will pick two of the three and second place will get the third.

If I get up to 30 total entries, I will go ahead and throw in another book to pick from which will be my ARC of Fallen by Lauren Kate.

If I get up to 40 entries, I will add another winner, with first place still picking 2 books, then second place picks, and third place gets the left over one.


I also am having a giveaway for 5 copies of Fallen by Lauren Kate, courtesy of Random House, ending December 6- details here.

In My Mailbox (4)

I am again trying to behave and not buy too too many books, so this was a slower week (but that's a good thing for my wallet). This week might end up with a few because Half Price Books is having 20% of sale the day after Thanksgiving and I just might be going to that... plus I am sure Borders will have some good coupons.

So here is what I got (and yes, I actually posed my dog some today- he was again shockingly cooperative):

Won from Princess Bookie:

Castration Celebration by Jake Wizner
An Off Year by Claire Zulkey

Bought from Amazon:

Shadowland by Alyson Noel

Bought from Borders:

Betrayals by Lili St. Crow

So, what's in your mailbox this week? This weekly meme is hosted by Kristi over at the Story Siren.

Princess Bookie Contest

Princess Bookie is having a Thanksgiving/Christmas give away coming up and the time to earn extra entries is now. If you go to her site, you can see the details here but please comment and say you saw this from me- I get extra entries and would really appreciate it. The details for the actual prizes are coming but there will be a total of 8 books and her contests are always amazing. =)

2010 Reading Challenges

Okay... I decided to try a few of the 2010 reading challenges. Yay! =P I read like crazy anyhow, so I figured why not? Plus since you can count one book towards many challenges, I think I should be pretty set.

The two right now that I want to do are both hosted by J. Kaye's Book Blog:

2010 Young Adult Reading Challenge - Super Size Me Level: Read 75 YA Novels

2010 100+ Reading Challenge - Read 100 or more books in 2010, can be any genre, format, etc so long as it has an ISBN and can be bought.

I will be posting the books for both contests as I finish them rather than trying to make the list now since new books are constantly coming out and I also just read depending on my mood and what looks good at the time but you can follow my progress here and this list will link to my reviews for each as well.

The link to my post dedicated to each separate challenge is going to be on the left hand bar of my page by the corresponding picture. Right now, there is no link because I won't make the pages until 2010 when I start reading but stick around for it. =D

The Story Siren is also having a 2010 Debut Author Challenge which I might also be attempting- those details will come once she's gotten the details out too.

Hold Still: Nina LaCour

SUMMARY (Courtesy of borders.com):

Devastating, hopeful, hopeless, playful . . . in words and illustrations, Ingrid has left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend's suicide.

OPINION: 4 STARS

This isn't an action story. It isn't an adventure, it isn't full of twists and turns. It's a story of development and a story of healing. It's a story of the aftermath of a best friend taking her own life and leaving behind thousands of questions and few answers.

As far as angst goes, I would rate this one actually relatively low. Going in, I knew the premise and I knew it would be an emotional story but there were few times where I was completely overcome with emotion which I find to be both good and bad. Good in the sense that LaCour certainly wrote a great story with plenty of emotion but bad in that I felt it could have gone deeper sometimes.

The writing is choppy- but it has to be in this story. This is written in Caitlin's perspective- and if it wasn't choppy, and didn't skip, and if scenes didn't cut off abruptly, I think the overall effect would have been diminished. This is more than a book about the stages of grief although they are in there, but in the background rather than the central focus.

Caitlin is a photographer and although there are plenty of other books where that is a common hobby, I really liked how big a part of the story it actually was- and the progression with it. It was as central a focus as Ingrid's death and there are several scenes that focused on the photography aspect that stand out in my mind.

I think what I liked even most about this book was that it showed both sides of the suicide thing- the people left behind, and the person who was so far gone that it seemed like the only way out. While the latter was not the central focus, it was still there- and I couldn't help but ache for Ingrid and understand how hard she tried until she just couldn't do it anymore. The incorporation of her journal into the story- and into Caitlin's steps towards getting better- were quite well done.

The characters, across the board, were ones I liked. Dylan was tastefully done and I like how her sexual preference also showed up many times, rather than being said once or twice and ignored. I think she was my favorite character in the book, followed by Jayson- both were more minor than major but still played important roles in the book, ones which I appreciated.

The writing was really good, considering the state of mind of the person it was being written in the perspective of. It didn't need to be wowing and poignant because Caitlin is a teenager that is broken, hurting and confused- and the writing certainly reflected that in my mind.

Overall, I give this 4 stars because while it was good, I did enjoy it- things fell into place- I still felt like it could have used a little more depth throughout the book although I did find the ending to be quite fitting and surprisingly good for closure.

CONTEST- WIN 1 OF 5 COPIES OF FALLEN

I am holding a contest to give away 5- yes, 5- copies of Fallen by Lauren Kate, to be released December 8, courtesy of Random House. This contest is international- books will be shipped directly from Random House once the winners are announced.

My review for this book is below but I loved it and am eagerly waiting for Torment.

This contest will end December 6 at midnight (CST) and winners will be announced December 7- just in time for the book release. =)

Random.org will be used to produce my winners.

To enter, leave a comment with your email (I want to be able to find my winners faster for this contest, so emails are needed- if you are not comfortable leaving it or want to avoid the spam that somtimes comes with it, feel free to email me at flamingo1325[at]gmail[dot]com) and tell me why you want this book.

For extra entries-

+2 blog follower, old or new

+2 if you spread the word by linking to twitter, sidebar, etc (max 3- must give link)

+5 for making an actual post (link it)

+3 if you add me or already have added me to your blog roll (link it)

+5 for referrals- if someone leaves your name that you referred them in their entry, you and the new follower both will get 5 extra entries (details, obviously)

Help spread the word on this one and promote the book and again thank you to Random House for providing me with this. Good luck everyone!

**Also check out my other contest going on right now, in honor of 50 follower as I am giving away The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove, Lauren Kate's first book, released just a month prior to Fallen, ending Nov 29. Enter here.**

Fallen: Lauren Kate

SUMMARY (Courtesy of borders.com):

Seventeen-year-old Luce is a new student at Sword & Cross, an unwelcoming boarding/reform school in Savannah, Georgia. Luce's boyfriend died under suspicious circumstances, and now she carries the guilt over his death with her as she navigates the unfriendly halls at Sword & Cross, where every student seems to have an unpleasant--even evil--history.

For a trailer, go here.

OPINION: 5 STARS

Okay you all know I was disappointed in Hush,Hush- Nora herself really bothered me and while I try not to let the dislike of a character ruin a book for me, it did on that one. Many of reactions seemed out of sync to me, her rationalizations fell short, etc. But this book certainly did not disappoint. It was well worth the read and though it took me awhile to read it, that is more because I have been feeling pretty sick lately and haven't gotten any reading done. There was worry of appendictis but that is on the wayside for now but who knows. So, I blame that for the fact that I didn't finish this book in a day or two but rest assured, if I was feeling up to par, I would have.

Mysterious is certainly one of the first words that comes to mind- not just the mystery surrounding Daniel but also several other characters. Things seemed off but in a setting like a reform school, why wouldn't they seem weird? In that sense, the setting was perfect and was also a unique way to thrust in the high school setting so often seen (and generally needed) in this genre. While there were many things I was able to surmise while reading, there were plenty of other unexpected twists and turns that kept me interested.

Action wise, things don't really pick up until the last 150 pages or so but I wasn't bored in the 300 pages prior. There were enough little things and enough events to help build that air of mystery to keep me thinking, guessing and reading. This is a love story but it is made quite obvious towards the end of the book that it is not only a love story and there are a million unanswered questions that will guarantee me not only to read the next book, but to certainly preorder it- it comes out September 2010 and is called Torment, a title which I really like, especially after reading this first installment.

As far as first meetings for the star crossed lovers go, this one is certainly my favorite. It is unexpected and just downright hilarious. I stared at it for a few moments before I truly laughed out loud (despite being at work)- and the later reason for it made me laugh even more. As with many other fantasy type love stories, Luce was of course drawn right towards Daniel but I liked the reasoning for it- there was a solid reason for it rather than she just was. This, of course, was hinted at in the prologue although that was tastefully done to leave the reader with an idea of things but far more questions but it did help piece things together as the story progressed further. The concept behind the entire book was something I really did love- it went beyond Daniel and Luce wanting each other and had to do with more than just one fallen angel.

The reason for things to be different this time- for the events in the prologue to not reoccur, like it leads you to believe they will- is so simple yet absolutely brilliant. It is not something I would have guessed at if it had not been hinted at in one particular scene to then confirm my supsicions later. If this book ended with that explanation, I highly doubt I would have hit on the innocent reason for this time to be different and that made me enjoy the overall idea even more. It is heartbreaking, astounding and sad but also quite genius and I could see the thought that went into everything about this book, about how things will be needed to tie into later books, and about the characters and events.

Luce was a character I did like and although the book is written in 3rd person, it focuses on her- Kate didn't stray from her story to show other sides despite the freedom she had with the perspective. The reader saw and knew what Luce did, pieced things together as she did, and was shocked in the same places as she was. Her guilt over what caused her to be in reform school in the first place was prevalent in many places but her interactions with the other students helped ease that in a logical way to where she didn't simply forget it but she didn't hold onto it as much. In several ways, Luce was also witty and fun and I found her to have many different unique sides, particularly on the kind of life she lived before being forced into reform school and how such a move drastically changed so many things. In many ways, she was able to start over and change things about herself- there was plenty of character development in my eyes particularly when she brought up things about before the incident, etc.

I think what I liked even more was that although Daniel was the boy Luce wanted from the start and although many things are explained, the reader gets to know other characters far better than him. At the close of the book, there is a huge air of mystery surrounding Daniel- he was not summed up in a perfect little box with a bow on top although I imagine that was a hard thing to do to avoid the inherent writer's desire to shine a light on such a character. I applaud Kate on this facet of the story- for leaving her leading man cloaked for the time being and leaving me with more firm thoughts of Cam and even Arianne.

There was plenty of humor in the book, from many different characters rather than just one or two. I actually liked all the characters, even the ones that were 'bad'- they were well written and developed in such a way that I couldn't help hold a soft spot for them before their darker side came out.

The ending- loved the ending. It was absolutely bittersweet and beautiful and far from a fairy tale happy ending. I could picture the events of it perfectly and adored the closing lines- which also just left me with even more questions and burning curiosities. This is certainly a book I would recommend to anyone who is into the fantasy genre, regardless of age. It is an easy read although there were shining moments of perfectly serene and beautiful imagery where Kate surprises the reader with an unexpected, striking and poignant way with words that grabs you. Although the entire writing isn't filled with such instances, there were a handful and they certainly stood out for me.

I give this book 5 stars overall because the cover (I was reading an ARC which didn't have the same cover but face it, that cover is beautiful), the characters, the plot and idea as a whole, as well as those few instances of stunning writing tied together fantastically for me. I also read her first book, The Betrayal of Natalie Hartman, recently and must say, while I did enjoy that book, I loved this book. The writing is actually quite different in the two and showcases the talent Kate does have- and even if it is not the best, she does have talent, it is good and has the potential to become great.

Click on the widget on the left hand side of my blog page for access to a chapter excerpt from this book and also stay tuned, as I will soon be holding a contest for Fallen.

La Femme Readers Contest

La Femme Readers is having a preholiday/almost 500 followers giveaway!

There are two winners, and each picks any book they want (under $25) off Amazon.com and she will ship it to you. This is a VERY generous prize and a fantastic contest so if you aren't a follower, head over there and sign up to help bump her past 500!

Contest details can be found here and it ends Dec 20.