Book Review: Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

You know, I'm really starting to enjoy Sarah Dessen. So much so, that I think I'm going to go back and read her entire collection. My favorite thing about her books is how she takes one person's crisis and and shows how everyone around that person is experiencing something similar. This is exactly the case in Just Listen. For those of you who haven't read it yet, here is a short summary that I got from goodreads:

Last year, Annabel was "the girl who has everything"—at least that's the part she played in the television commercial for Kopf's Department Store.This year, she's the girl who has nothing: no best friend because mean-but-exciting Sophie dropped her, no peace at home since her older sister became anorexic, and no one to sit with at lunch. Until she meets Owen Armstrong. Tall, dark, and music-obsessed, Owen is a reformed bad boy with a commitment to truth-telling. With Owen's help, maybe Annabel can face what happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.

Here are three things I loved about the book:

1. Annabel wasn't perfect. While I was reading about how Sophia and Annabel became friends, I questioned some of the things Annabel did to win her good graces. Even though these things weren't necessarily "right", it made sense. Like a lot of teens, Annabel just wants to fit in, be popular, and not be left in the dust. Sometimes those ambitions can really cloud your judgement.
2. Even though she did these bad things, I felt terrible during Annabel's shunning. Deep down, I knew Annabel meant well. By the end I was rooting for her so hard.
3. The secondary plots. The relationship between Annabel and her sisters was interesting to explore. On the one hand you have bubbly Kirsten, and in miserable, brooding Whitney, the complete opposite.

Overall, this was an excellent story that I could see myself re-reading. If you've read other Sarah Dessen books and liked them, this one will not disappoint.

Have you read this book? Tell me what you thought!

RELATED LINKS

• Read what Sarah has to say about Just Listen on her website.
• Buy the book: Barnes and Noble | Amazon | IndieBound

January Round Up

Well, it's February now so let's take a look at how I did with my goals.

Reading
Read three books and started two more.

1. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi.
   This was a great book to start off the year with. The writing was clever and the story moved at a pace that kept me wanting more. I hate that I need to wait so long for the next one to come out.
   Buy the book: Amazon | Indiebound | B&N
   
2. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead.
   Another good book. I've had this on my shelf since last year and never got around to reading it. Now that I have, I'm sorry I didn't pick it up sooner. I liked the dynamic here was between two friends and not your typical teenage love triangle involving the supernatural. The vampire/guardian relationship is interesting to me, and it's a fresh angle to approach a vampire story with.
   Buy the book: Amazon | Indiebound | B&N
   
3. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.(new release)
   I pre-ordered this book back in August when John Green said he'd sign every copy. The wait from August until January was excruciating. Usually what happens when I anticipate a book like this for so long, is that it is a huge let down. Not so with TFIOS. I laughed, I cried, I laughed again. Most of all it made me think about life and how I waste most of my time doing stupid things. It made me appreciate all those substantial moments that not everyone gets to experience. Bottom Line: READ THIS BOOK.
   Buy the book: Amazon | Indiebound | B&N

Writing
I didn't meet this goal. Boo! The day job plus being pregnant has sucked the life-blood out of me. I find it hard to do anything other than read or watch TV. The thing about goals, is to not be so hard on yourself when you don't meet them. It just sets you up for failure. Which is why I'm modifying this goal to "Work on WIP at least 2 hours per week."

I know it will take much longer to finish these edits, but at least I will be making progress.

Blogging
Only three entries in January, but that's a start, considering I didn't have ANY in December and it's only one less than the goal I set for myself. Thanks again, pregnancy!

So how did everyone else do with their January goals? Finish any interesting writing projects? Read any excellent books?

Ultraviolet - R.J. Anderson

Sixteen-year-old Alison wakes up in a mental institution. As she pieces her memory back together, she realizes she’s confessed to murdering Tori Beaugrand, the most perfect girl at school. But the case is a mystery. Tori's body has not been found, and Alison can't explain what happened. One minute she was fighting with Tori. The next moment Tori disintegrated—into nothing. But that's impossible. No one is capable of making someone vanish. Right? Alison must be losing her mind—like her mother always feared she would.

The tagline alone is what interested me in the book: "Once upon a time there was a girl who was special. This is not her story. Unless you count the part where I killed her." I mean, how can you resist with a line like that?

Thankfully, the rest of the book did not disappoint. Alison was an interesting character and meets some even more dynamic characters during her stay at the mental hospital. My favorite of those being Micheline because there is way more to her than meets the eye.

As far as plot goes, the story moved along at a pretty nice pace. The ending completely threw me for a loop. Just when I thought one thing, early plot elements that I thought were throwaway details came into play. I never in a million years expected the book to end the way it did. Bravo, R.J. Anderson, for completely throwing me off track.

If you like books set in the real world with paranormal twists, you will enjoy Ultraviolet.

RELATED LINKS

• Buy the book: Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble
  
• Get in touch with R.J. Anderson: Twitter | website
  
• Add Ultraviolet to your goodreads shelf.
  

Book Review - Divergent by Veronica Roth (plus a giveaway)

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Think Fight Club meets The Matrix, all set in post-apocolyptic Chicago.

I tried a few times to write a review of this book without gushing, but I simply can't. I LOVED this book. So much that I might even bring it on vacation with me so I can read it again.

The character development rocked. Beatrice went from being unsure, to scared, to confident in such a natural progression that I never doubted her transformation. Even characters not entirely central to the plot were developed well. As each initiate was introduced, I understood why they chose the faction they did. Even if it was a complete surprise at first.

And speaking of surprises, this book was full of them. There were twists and turns throughout the story, but I never felt cheated, like the twist was a cheap trick to keep me interested. Instead, the reveals made the rest of the story that much more satisfying.

With such an engrossing plot and interesting characters, I can't imagine someone not liking this book. Which is why I'm giving it away to celebrate my blogiversary!

"HAPPY BLOGIVERSARY TO ME" CONTEST
The last few times I did contests I did the extra entries thing and to be honest, it really sucked checking to make sure everyone was really posting what they said they were, so this contest will be on the honor system.

Prize: Winner's choice! I'll send you a copy of any book I've reviewed on my blog thus far. Click here to see a list. Anything that has a link is fair game. By my count, that's 28 books for you to choose from. Some new releases and some a little older. Take your pick!
Rules:

• To be entered into the contest, just comment below. Make sure you leave a way for me to contact you. Your twitter account or an email address will work.
  
• Multiple comments by the same person will be considered one entry.
  
• You DO NOT have to be a follower to win. Although it would be awesome if you follow anyway!
  
• Must be 13 years of age to enter.
  
• The winner will be announced on July 18. Once contacted, said winner will have 48 hours to get back to me with their address and book choice. If the winner does not get back to me, I'll pick someone else.
  
• Open to anywhere Book Depository ships.
  
• If hard cover and paperback are both available, winner may choose format. (Must be available on Book Depository.)
  
• You can get extra entries for promoting the contest. +1 for anything you do. Leave a link in your comment.
  

GOOD LUCK!

Book Review: Clarity by Kim Harrington

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case--but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother--who has supernatural gifts of his own--becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?

As far as mysteries go, this book surprised me with the killer. I had an inkling that is was a certain character about halfway through, but then I was thrown for a loop. The reveal was done well, too.

When Clare wasn't helping to solve the crime, she was just a normal girl, and I loved this. If you took out all of the paranormal scenes, this could have read like a contemporary young adult novel. She did normal things like eat ice cream on the boardwalk and take walks on the beach. It's fun to see a character that isn't defined by her ability. It's just a piece of who she is.

One of my favorite secondary characters has to be Clare's eccentric mother. The way she uses her ability to read thoughts cracked me up. It even got me wondering how I'd react if I had that ability. I'm sure hearing people's thoughts 24/7 would drive me crazy, but Clare's mom seems to take joy in it. Especially when it means eavesdropping on her kids.

Clarity was an exciting, fast read that I'd recommend for anyone looking for something paranormal but without vampires, werewolves or fairies.

RELATED LINKS

• Buy the book: Amazon | Borders | IndieBound
  
• Web-stalk Kim Harrington: Twitter | website
  
• Add Clarity to your goodreads shelf.
  

Friday Reads - Mini Reviews!

Since I haven't finished a book in quite a long time, I thought I'd at least pop in and give an update on what I'm trying to finish.

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
I adored Suite Scarlett when I read it last year, and this one is quickly becoming another favorite. I can't wait to finish so I can pick up The Last Little Blue Envelope. Maybe I will even make the hour drive out to Fairless Hills for her signing on June 11.

• Author Info: Website | Blog | Twitter
  
• Buy it: Amazon, Free Kindle Version (limited time) , Borders, IndieBound
  
• Add it to Goodreads

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss This one comes highly recommended from my online book club. I'm enjoying it, but slogging through. I have the paperback and it's rather large, so I only read it before bed. I'm getting a mystical, magical Harry Potter vibe from it, even though it's more serious.

• Author info: Website | Blog | Twitter
  
• Buy the book: Amazon | Borders | Indiebound
  
• Add it to Goodreads
  

I'll also be starting Clarity sometime soon so I can mail it to the next person waiting for it. Very excited for this one! What are you reading this weekend?

Book Review: An Abundance of Katherines - John Green

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton’s type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact.

On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl.

If I had to sum up Colin Singleton with one word I'd probably use "selfish". Which is a funny thing to say about the main character of a book, because all I ever seem to read is "your main character must be likable". While he's selfish, he's also endearing. Colin has some quirks that I imagine come with the territory of being a child prodigy. He's anti-social, can't tell a story, and is consumed with the idea that he must become famous for something - even if it's a theorem on why 19 girls dumped him.

While reading, I sometimes found myself being as selfish as Colin. I stopped caring about Hassan and Lindsay and TOC (The Other Colin) and only wanted Colin to finish his theorem. Why had 19 girls named Katherine dumped him? More interestingly, why did he choose to keep dating Katherines if they kept dumping him?

The subject of the book lends itself to comedy. Hassan, Colin's friend, is great for comic relief, and the footnotes (yes, footnotes - what did you expect from a book about a prodigy?) are one of the funnier parts of the book.

All in all, another great book by John Green. Can't wait to read his next one!

RELATED LINKS

• Buy the book: Amazon | Borders | IndieBound
  
• Web-stalk John Green: Website | Twitter | Vlogbrothers
  
• Add An Abundance of Katherines to your goodreads.
  

Book Review: This Girl is Different by JJ Johnson

This girl is different… That’s what Evie has always told herself—and it’s true. Home-schooled by her counter culture mom, she’s decided to see what high school is like for the first time—for her senior year.

As it turns out, it’s not just Evie who’s Different. Lots of people are. Many of her assumptions about others are turned on their heads as she makes friends with kids her own age for the first time, discovers what’s good and what’s bad about high school, and learns lessons about power and its abuse—both by the administration and by Evie herself.

After reading the first few pages of this book, I knew it would live up to its title. Evie is certainly different than any character I've come across - she's a home-schooler who loves snakes, lives in a self-sufficient dome home, doesn't shave her legs, and has a penchant for quotes. I dare you to find someone like that in another book.

But that's not the only way Evie sets herself apart. So often, we talk about strong female characters, but Evie takes this to a whole other level. She's determined, and I loved hearing her conflicting thoughts when things didn't go quite as she envisioned them. I admired how she stayed true to herself, and her cause.

The way the book's chapters were set up was also unique. Each began with a quote relevant to the story, which was then discussed or brought up in some way during that chapter. It was a nice way to frame the story and a clever way to incorporate one of Evie's passions.

Overall, this was a refreshing read about a "different" kind of girl.

E-galley supplied courtesy of Netgalley.

RELATED LINKS

• Preorder your copy of This Girl is Different: Amazon | Borders
  
• Visit JJ Johnson's website
  
• Add This Girl is Different to your goodreads.

Have you read something worth mentioning this week? Let me know in the comments!

Book Review: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

All teenagers have problems, but few of them can match those of Aislinn, who has the power to see faeries. Quite understandably, she wishes that she could share her friends' obliviousness and tries hard to avoid these invisible intruders. But one faery in particular refuses to leave her alone. Keenan the Summer King is convinced beyond all reasoning that Aislinn is the queen he has been seeking for nine centuries. What's a 21st-century girl to do when she's stalked by a suitor nobody else can see?

This book interested me because my first encounter with the fae was in Paranormalcy. For obvious reasons, this didn't leave a good taste in my mouth for the mischievous little creatures. Wicked Lovely is written from the perspective of a few different characters, and two of them are fae - Keenan, the Summer King, and Donia, the girl sentenced to life as the Winter Girl - unless Aislinn can free her. When the story shifted to Keenan or Donia's perspective, it was easy to see their motives for wanting Aislinn to join the ranks of royalty. Even if they seemed selfish to Aislinn.

The villain in this book, Beria (AKA Keenan's mother or the Winter Queen) was sort of scary. I lost count of how many fae she froze/tortured with her icy breath about mid-way through the book.

Even though this is a book about fae, I can't neglect the mortals in Aislinn's life, especially Seth. I wasn't sure how Aislinn didn't figure out sooner that Seth was into her, but I can forgive her since she had bigger problems to solve. I loved their relationship and how it evolved like a real relationship. It wasn't a "oh my god, you're so hot and I want you" thing, but a natural progression starting out as friends.

Overall, this was an entertaining book that I devoured in just a few days. I'd recommend it for readers who like paranormal books heavy on the romance.

RELATED LINKS

• Buy the book: Amazon (paperback) | Kindle* | Borders | IndieBound
  
• Web-stalk Melissa Marr: Website | Twitter
  
• Read more about fairies on wikipedia.
  

*The Kindle version of this book is available for only $0.99 and includes the following bonus material: "Cotton Candy Skies"—an exclusive short story set after the end of Radiant Shadows; a Wicked Lovely series sampler, including free chapters from the other books in the bestselling series; and an exclusive preview of Melissa Marr's first novel for adult audiences, Graveminder—a captivating story about the living, the dead, and a curse that binds them.

Book Review - The Liar Society by Lisa and Laura Roecker

Kate Lowry didn't think dead best friends could send e-mails. But when she gets an e-mail from Grace, she’s not so sure.

To: KateLowry@pemberlybrown.edu
Sent: Sun 9/14 11:59 PM
From: GraceLee@pemberlybrown.edu
Subject: (no subject)

Kate,
I'm here…
sort of.
Find Cameron.
He knows.
I shouldn't be writing.
Don't tell.
They'll hurt you.

Now Kate has no choice but to prove once and for all that Grace’s death was more than just a tragic accident. But secrets haunt the halls of her elite private school. Secrets people will do anything to protect. Even if it means getting rid of the girl trying to solve a murder.

I seem to be reading a lot of books about death lately. First, Fall for Anything, then Losing Faith and now The Liar Society. You'd think after reading a few, they'd all blend together, but that's not the case. Especially with The Liar Society. I haven't read a mystery this good in a long time.

Kate Lowry is an awesome character, but not even my favorite. I adored Seth and his conspiracy theories. He is everything you want in a sidekick: loyal, resourceful and smart. Sure, he can be a little annoying, but I guess that comes with the territory when he's in puppy-love with Kate.

Another element I loved about the book was how the flashbacks were used so well. Most of the time the flashbacks had a SERIOUS cliffhanger and I found myself wanting to flip ahead and read the next section labeled "Last Fall".

Not that the present day wasn't interesting, either. The writing was tight, and everything was relevant. I found myself saying "Oh!", a lot during the big reveal at the end, when I connected each dot to the next.

This book was like Nancy Drew, Harriet the Spy, and Veronica Mars all rolled into one!

Can't wait for the next one!

RELATED LINKS

• Buy The Liar Society: Amazon | IndieBound | Borders
  
• Follow Lisa and Laura Roecker: Blog (They have VERY good taste when it comes to blog backgrounds!) | Twitter
  
• Add The Liar Society to your goodreads shelf.
  
• Other reviews of The Liar Society: Cover to Cover | Jessica Love Writes | First Novels Club (BONUS: there's a giveaway going on until 3/15, too!)
  

Book Review: Losing Faith by Denise Jaden

When Brie's sister, Faith, dies suddenly, Brie's world falls apart. As she goes through the bizarre and devastating process of mourning the sister she never understood and barely even liked, everything in her life seems to spiral farther and farther off course. Her parents are a mess, her friends don’t know how to treat her, and her perfect boyfriend suddenly seems anything but.

As Brie settles into her new normal, she encounters more questions than closure: Certain facts about the way Faith died just don't line up. Brie soon uncovers a dark and twisted secret about Faith’s final night...a secret that puts her own life in danger.

I've been wanting to pick up this book for awhile now, but for some reason I didn't get around to it. Other than the fact that I've been reading like a total snail, I don't really have the extra funds to pick up all the new books I want. Enter, Shana. A total lifesaver. (And one of Denise's critique partners, and the person Denise dedicated the book to! How cool is that?)

Reading the blurb, I expected something like The Sky is Everywhere from this book (and we all know how much I loved that one!), but I got something very different and unique. I guess that's the thing about grief. You can write a million stories about the subject, and they'll never be the same because everyone experiences it a different way.

The story picks up a few hours before Brie finds out her sister jumped off a cliff. Right from the beginning, Brie feels like something is off about the whole situation. Faith would never commit suicide. So she starts to poke around and that's when the story really gets interesting.

There were several times I thought I knew what was going to happen, but then Denise threw me for a complete loop. Last night, I was only about halfway through the book, but then I got to one page that kicked off all the action and I could not stop reading. It took me about an hour to get through the rest of the book because I had to know what happened.

In addition to a great story, there are also some great secondary characters. At first I wasn't a fan of Tessa, but I grew to love her. I may have even liked her character arc the best. Tessa's story was a great complement to the main plot.

Overall, this was a great book, and I can't wait to read whatever Denise comes out with next! Thanks to Shana for sending me her copy to borrow!

I'd recommend this book to people who liked: The Sky is Everywhere and Fall for Anything.

RELATED LINKS

• Buy Losing Faith: Amazon | IndieBound | Borders
  
• Follow Denise Jaden: Blog | Twitter
  
• Add Losing Faith to your goodreads shelf.
  
• Other reviews of Losing Faith: Crystal Clear Reading | Imperfection is the New Pink

Book Review - Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

I would never have declared myself a sci-fi nerd. A nerd yes, but I never got into sci-fi. After reviewing my recently watched TV shows on Netflix, it's apparent I've become quite fond of the genre, but I haven't ventured into reading much sci-fi until this book. I'm happy to say that I enjoyed Across the Universe just as much as my favorite episode of Doctor Who (Blink, if you're wondering. BTW - do not click on that link of you're sitting alone in the dark.) and the whole of the series Firefly. And yes, Beth gets extra points for her use of the word "rutting".

Things I loved about the book:

• Amy is a very strong female character. She doesn't take no for an answer, but she's also appropriately scared at this new world she's brought into.
  
• The mystery. One of the things discovered towards the end is something I never saw coming.
  
• The world building. No detail is left untouched. Even without looking at the diagram of the spaceship, I was able to get a clear picture of what each level of Godspeed looked like.
  
• It gave me nightmares. It's pretty rare that a book gets that deep inside my head that I have dreams about being frozen or trapped on a spaceship. I can't imagine what that would be like. I mean, even Captain Mal and his crew got to leave the ship every so often for zany adventures.

In sum, I frexing loved this book. I can't wait for the next one.

RELATED LINKS

• Buy Across the Universe on Amazon.
  
• Stalk Beth Revis: website | twitter | blog
  
• Add Across the Universe to your goodreads shelf.
  
• Still not sold? Read these other reviews: Imperfection is the New Pink | Shana Silver | The Nerd's Wife
  

Book Review: Miscellaneous

Okay, so I haven't finished a book yet this week. (gasp!) What can I say, I've been spending my time doing things much less fun, like working my fingers to the bone at my day job, and cleaning bath tubs. Anyway, enough about my oh so glamorous life, and more about the books I'm currently reading.

Here are some mini-reviews to whet your appetite:

The Dead Tossed Waves: Gabry lives a quiet life. As safe a life as is possible in a town trapped between a forest and the ocean, in a world teeming with the dead, who constantly hunger for those still living. She’s content on her side of the Barrier, happy to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast while she watches from the top of her lighthouse. But there are threats the Barrier cannot hold back. Threats like the secrets Gabry’s mother thought she left behind when she escaped from the Sisterhood and the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Like the cult of religious zealots who worship the dead. Like the stranger from the forest who seems to know Gabry. And suddenly, everything is changing. One reckless moment, and half of Gabry’s generation is dead, the other half imprisoned. Now Gabry only knows one thing: she must face the forest of her mother’s past in order to save herself and the one she loves.

Thoughts: Good so far. It's a companion novel to The Forest of Hands and Teeth, which I reviewed last week. It's set in the same town as the ending of TFOH&T, but about 15 years later. Carrie Ryan has really stepped up her game in this one. She's certainly not afraid to kill her darlings!


Going Bovine: All 16-year-old Cameron wants is to get through high school—and life in general—with a minimum of effort. It’s not a lot to ask. But that’s before he’s given some bad news: he’s sick and he’s going to die. Which totally sucks. Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit. She tells Cam there is a cure—if he’s willing to go in search of it. With the help of a death-obsessed, video-gaming dwarf and a yard gnome, Cam sets off on the mother of all road trips through a twisted America into the heart of what matters most.

Thoughts:I love love love Libba Bray's use of similes and metaphors. Sometimes they just jump right off the page and slap me in the face. The characters are pretty awesome - so far I've met an angel who can change the color of her wings, a "little person" named Gonzo, and a talking yard gnome. I don't read novels from a male POV very often, so it's great when I can read a really well-written one.


Across the Universe: Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

Thoughts:I must confess that when I first started reading this book I had a nightmare or two about being frozen. I had to lay off reading the book at night, so it's slowed my progress considerably. Now that I'm past the frozen part, I think it's safe to start reading at night again. (Or is it??)

What are you reading?

***ANNOUNCEMENT*** If you haven't entered yet, see this post for my awesome contest. Win a book and support an amazing author all at once.

Book Review: The Forest of Hands and Teeth

The Forest of Hands and Teeth
Author: Carrie Ryan

In Mary's world there are simple truths:
The Sisterhood always knows best.
The Guardians will protect and serve.
The Unconsecrated will never relent.
And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But, slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future-between the one she loves and the one who loves her.

Mary is a unique character. At first, I wasn't sure if I liked her, but she grew on me. In her small village, she doesn't have many choices and even those are taken away from her when her brother turns on her. It's her life's goal to see the ocean that her mother always told her stories about, but one thing stands in her way: the Unconsecrated.

From the descriptions, the Unconsecrated are zombies. They hang around outside the villages, waiting for someone to get to close to the fence, and then they pounce. The story really gets going when there's a breach in the fence that protects the village and Mary, Harry (her betrothed), Travis (his brother who Mary is in love with), and Cass (Travis's betrothed) are forced to flee the village or be devoured by Unconsecrated.

Mary sees this as her chance to finally get to the ocean. She uses the opportunity to take the crew, who are soon joined by Mary's brother Jed, on a wild goose chase for her own selfish reasons.

Most other young adult books force the teens to make very adult decisions when placed in a predicament like this. It is refreshing to see that Mary is selfish in many ways, and doesn't give up her desires so she can be the mature one. She has two simples wants: Travis and the ocean, and the rest of the story shows how she attempts to get both.

If you like zombie fight scenes, you'll love this book, because there are some pretty awesome ones throughout. The Unconsecrated are beyond scary. They're unrelentless, and their moans constantly follow the group on their trek to find other living people.

There are two other books in the series - The Dead Tossed Waves (already released), and The Dark and Hollow Places (March 22, 2011).

RELATED LINKS

• Add the series to your goodreads shelf.
  
• Visit Carrie Ryan's website and follow her on twitter.
  
• Other reviews of The Forest of Hands and Teeth: Read-a-holic | Book Hooked
  

Book Review: Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers

Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers
Pages: 240
Release Date: December 21, 2010
Summary: When Eddie Reeves’s father commits suicide her life is consumed by the nagging question of why? Why when he was a legendary photographer and a brilliant teacher? Why when he seemed to find inspiration in everything he saw? And, most important, why when he had a daughter who loved him more than anyone else in the world? When she meets Culler Evans, a former student of her father’s and a photographer himself, an instant and dangerous attraction begins. Culler seems to know more about her father than she does and could possibly hold the key to the mystery surrounding his death. But Eddie’s vulnerability has weakened her and Culler Evans is getting too close. Her need for the truth keeps her hanging on...but are some questions better left unanswered?

I'm a big fan of Courtney's style of writing, so I already knew I was going to like this book. I had no idea how much I was going to like it, though. I couldn't put it down. Fall for Anything was everything I expected it to be and more. I had that painful feeling in my stomach throughout the read, but I've come to expect that from Courtney. She's not afraid to bring her characters down to the depths of hell and then kick them in the face while they're there. That's one thing I'd really like to bring to my writing. I always go for the safe ending, but life isn't always safe.

As a character, Eddie Reeves is written so well. She's sarcastic and mean, but throughout the entire book, I never questioned her actions. She's scared and confused and all the people who she needs to fall on for support have basically abandoned her. Except maybe Beth, who is a total control freak, and that doesn't sit well with Eddie.

The story itself is captivating, too. Courtney's writing is always very tight. Absolutely every detail is important - whether the reader realizes it right away or not. I love when I get to the end of her novels and it all makes sense. I usually find myself saying, "Oh! That's why she mentioned that in the beginning of the book."

If you liked Courtney's other books, you should pick this one up. I think you'll like it.

RELATED LINKS

• Also by Courtney Summers: Cracked Up To Be and Some Girls Are
  
• Buy a copy of Fall for Anything.
  
• Follow Courtney on twitter and visit her website.
  
• Other reviews of Fall for Anything: Shana Silver | Crystal Clear Reading