To Read and To Write

American Gods

2010-10-20T15:47:00.000-07:00

The storm was coming..Shadow spent three years in prison, keeping his head down, doing his time. All he wanted was to get back to the loving arms of his wife and to stay out of trouble for the rest of his life. But days before his scheduled release, he learns that his wife has been killed in an accident, and his world becomes a colder place.
On the plane ride home to the funeral, Shadow meets a grizzled man who calls himself Mr. Wednesday. A self-styled grifter and rogue, Wednesday offers Shadow a job. And Shadow, a man with nothing to lose accepts.
But working for the enigmatic Wednesday is not without its price, and Shadow soon learns that his role in Wednesday's schemes will be far more dangerous than he ever could have imagined. Entangled in a world of secrets, he embarks on a wild road trip and encounters, among others, the murderous Czernobog, the impish Mr. Nancy, and the beautiful Easter-all of whom seem to know more about Shadow than he himself does.
Shadow will learn that the past does not die, that everyone, including his late wife, had secrets, and that the stakes are higher than anyone could have imagined.
All around them a storm of epic proportions threatens to break. Soon Shadow and Wednesday will be swept up into a conflict as old as humanity itself. For beneath the placid surface of everyday life a war is being fought-and the prize is the very soul of America.
__________
Um.
Well, then.
I'll admit I was a LITTLE young to be reading this, but you know, I just skipped over the parts that were...inappropriate. Even if it was fiction, this novel was so TRUE. We do make gods out of the media, and the television, and music, and a bunch of other objects. It was really creative to see a battle between the modern gods and the older gods, such as Odin and Loki. I would never have thought about that. Really creative. Plus, there was a mystery in it, and I would have never thought that the innocent old man was the murderer. And that the method that he used would be his method. It twas GENIUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I like Neil Gaiman anyway, because Stardust was one of my favorite books/movies (I like the movie better). Well, kudos to you, Neil. Really good.
Plus, a guy in my Spanish I class saw me reading it and had a mini spaz attack. He said that he LOVED that book, and we got into a huge discussion about it. =D!
Although, I knew that Shadow's cell mate, Low-Key, was totally going to end up being Loki. It was kind of obvious.

The Dragon Heir

2010-10-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

The covenant that was meant to keep the wizard wars at bay has been stolen, and Trinity must prepare for attack. Everyone is doing their part -- Seph is monitoring the Weirwalls; Jack and Ellen are training their ghostly army; even Anaweir Will and Fitch are setting booby traps around the town's perimeter. But to Jason Haley, it seems like everyone wants to keep him out of the action. He may not be the most powerful wizard in Trinity, but he's prepared to fight for his friends. When Jason finds a powerful talisman --a huge opal called the Dragonheart--buried in a cave, his role takes on new importance. The stone seems to sing to Jason's very soul -- showing him that he is meant for more than anyone guessed. Trinity's guardians take the stone away after they realize that it may be a weapon powerful enough to save them all. Without any significant power of his own, and now without the stone, what can Jason possibly do to help the people he cares about -- and to prove his mettle?
Madison Moss can feel the beating heart of the opal, too. The desire for it surges through her, drawing her to it. But Maddie has other things besides the Dragonheart on her mind. She has a secret. Ever since absorbing the magical blow that was meant to kill Seph, she's been leaking dark powers. Although Maddie herself is immune to magic, what would her friends think if they knew what kind of evil lay within her? Trinity's enemies are as enthusiastic about her powers as she is frightened. They think they can use her to get to the Dragonheart -- and they'll use anyone Maddie cares about to make her steal the stone for them.
Moral compasses spin out of control as a final battle storms through what was once a sanctuary for the gifted. With so much to lose, what will Jason and Maddie be willing to fight for -- and what will they sacrifice? Every man is for himself in this thrilling conclusion to the Heir trilogy.
________
As I've said before, whenever I read these books, I'm in character development heaven. I wish I could develop my characters as well as Chima.
But, sadly, this conclusion was somewhat predictable. I guessed the ending, and I was right. I didn't predict that Seph would get addicted to that thing, though. That was a super special awesome plot twist. It was good all the same, though. Shockingly, though, I didn't read this one while I was traveling. I read it at school.
Have I mentioned the amazing library my school has? No? Well, lets just say, its like going to Barnes and Noble, except you don't have to pay for the books (unless you lose them). Its very large.

Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover

2010-10-20T15:36:00.001-07:00

When Cammie “The Chameleon” Morgan visits her roommate Macey in Boston, she thinks she’s in for an exciting end to her summer break. After all, she’s there to watch Macey’s father accept the nomination for vice president of the United States. But when you go to the world’s best school (for spies), “exciting” and “deadly” are never far apart. Cammie and Macey soon find themselves trapped in a kidnappers’ plot, with only their espionage skills to save them.
As her junior year begins, Cammie can’t shake the memory of what happened in Boston, and even the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women doesn’t feel like the safe haven it once did. Shocking secrets and old flames seem to lurk around every one of the mansion’s corners as Cammie and her friends struggle to answer the questions, Who is after Macey? And how can the Gallagher Girls keep her safe?
Soon Cammie is joining Bex and Liz as Macey’s private security team on the campaign trail. The girls must use their spy training at every turn as the stakes are raised, and Cammie gets closer and closer to the shocking truth….
____________
So, want to know where I got this book? The Austin Teen Book Festival.
That's right. I met Ally Carter. And had her sign my book. And got a picture with her. It was epic. The best part was I had just gotten off of a two hour flight, and went straight to see her. It was a great way to start off my Fall Break.
Anyway, I love her books! Spy novels are some of my favorite books (if my obsession with Alex Rider didn't tip you off on that). It was nice to see a good blend of action, romance, espionage, and humor. There aren't many books with all that in them that are actually good. There are a lot of paranormal books, rather than *somewhat* realistic books. Anyway, 10/10 for this one!

The Amulet of Samarkand

2010-10-19T17:33:00.000-07:00

Nathaniel is a magician's apprentice, taking his first lessons in the arts of magic. But when a devious hot-shot wizard named Simon Lovelace ruthlessly humiliates Nathaniel in front of his elders, Nathaniel decides to kick up his education a few notches and show Lovelace who's boss. With revenge on his mind, he summons the powerful djinni, Bartimaeus. But summoning Bartimaeus and controlling him are two different things entirely, and when Nathaniel sends the djinni out to steal Lovelace's greatest treasure, the Amulet of Samarkand, he finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of magical espionage, murder, and rebellion.
_________
Wow. Its been a while since I've posted. Lol.
But, anyway, this wasn't the best book I've ever read. It was really boring, and the plot did not move fast at all. I didn't like it. At. All. I'm not even going to read the second one because its just so BORING.
I remember trying to read this in fifth grade. I read the first couple of chapters, and put it back. Now I know why. So, in short, unless you have absolutely nothing else to read, then don't read this. It was like reading David Copperfield. Only ten times more boring.

Chosen

2010-08-27T15:52:00.001-07:00

Bloodlust and dark forces are at work at the House of Night, and fledgling vampyre Zoey Redbird’s adventures at the school take a mysterious turn. Those who appear to be friends are turning out to be enemies. And, oddly enough, sworn enemies are also turning into friends. So begins the gripping third installment of this “highly addictive series” (Romantic Times), in which Zoey’s mettle will be tested like never before. Her best friend, Stevie Rae, is undead and struggling to maintain a grip on her humanity. Zoey doesn’t have a clue how to help her, but she does know that anything she and Stevie Rae discover must be kept secret from everyone else at the House of Night, where trust has become a rare commodity. Speaking of rare, Zoey finds herself in the very unexpected and rare position of having three boyfriends. Mix a little bloodlust into the equation and the situation has the potential to spell social disaster. Just when it seems things couldn’t get any tougher, vampyres start turning up dead. Really dead. But, as Zoey and her friends find out, things are not always what they seem…
_________
BLECH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I did not like this book AT ALL. Totally not recommending it. Social disaster is an understatement. It was horrible the way it ended! Abandonment, all because of......ya. That's another reason I don't like this book (READ BETWEEN THE LINES AND YOU'LL FIGURE IT OUT). Nothing really happened. It was almost what anime fans would call a filler (that's an evil word, right there. I hate fillers.).
Anyway.........ugh. =P.

Betrayed

2010-08-26T15:35:00.000-07:00

Fledgling vampyre Zoey Redbird has managed to settle in at the House of Night. She’s come to terms with the vast powers the vampyre goddess, Nyx, has given her, and is getting a handle on being the new Leader of the Dark Daughters. Best of all, Zoey finally feels like she belongs--like she really fits in. She actually has a boyfriend…or two. Then the unthinkable happens: Human teenagers are being killed, and all the evidence points to the House of Night. While danger stalks the humans from Zoey’s old life, she begins to realize that the very powers that make her so unique might also threaten those she loves. Then, when she needs her new friends the most, death strikes the House of Night, and Zoey must find the courage to face a betrayal that could break her heart, her soul, and jeopardize the very fabric of her world.
__________
If you're following me on Twitter, you have already seen what reactions I've had to this book.
*spoiler alert*
STEVIE RAE DIED?!?!?!?!? AND THEN CAME BACK TO LIFE?!?!?!?!? AND TRIED TO KILL HEATH?!?!?!?!?!?
I think I'm speaking for everybody when I say:
What in the world?
Talk about confusing. Sheesh. But, you know, I kind of subconsciously knew that Stevie Rae would come back. She's a main character, for goodness sakes. Getting rid of her for good would totally put Zoey on a never-ending roller coaster ride of emotions.
Oh, and guess what? She's got THREE boyfriends. Girl, you got issues. Really big issues.
Good book, could do without so much cursing. Good grief.

Catching Fire

2010-08-26T15:27:00.000-07:00

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.
______
I think there was epic music playing the entire time I was reading this. Seriously. An epic book requires epic music. ;)
Anyway.....PEETA AND KATNISS FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!!!!!
But, anyway, Collins has done it yet again with her amazing storytelling. My grandmother's halfway through it right now (seriously, she actually BOUGHT the first book and stayed up until 1 AM reading it. Its nice to be able to talk to someone about books AND they actually know what you're talking about.
I didn't particularly like the ending, though. I'm not too keen on the fact of.......whoops. Spoiler! Sorry. Not going to tell you ANYTHING!!!! Because it would be best if you read it. So that you can be just as surprised as I was. Seriously. My mouth dropped open and I freaked out when I read the last line. I couldn't believe that- whoops. Another spoiler. Can't have that, now can we?
But, anyway Mockingjay came out this week, so I'm going to get my paws on it ASAP. It looks soooooooooooo good.
(PEETA!!!!!!!!!)

The Five People You Meet in Heaven

2010-08-20T17:35:00.000-07:00

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his meaningless life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: Why was I here?
____________
So, out of all the books we could have possibly read, we read THIS (its too long of a title to type out). Why is it that in all English classes we have to read those sappy realistic fiction books instead of something exciting (like the Hunger Games. Seriously. I'm totally for adding it to the curriculum)?
But anyway. Nothing to really write about with this book. Really short, nice and to the point with everything (NO FLUFF! PHEW!), and a very interesting ending all in all leads to a good book.
There, I'm done now? Can I go and actually read a book more than a hundred pages now?

Oh, and by the way, if you're just joining me, I'm Lauren, and I blog periodically about the books I read. But, since I've just started high school, there will be some spaces in between the posts. (Because the teachers are EVIL)

The Red Pyramid

2010-08-20T15:35:00.000-07:00

Since their mother's death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane.
One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives.
Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them —Set— has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe - a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.
__________
So, if you're following me on Twitter, one of my tweets was to the author (@camphalfblood) and I was saying that the thing I loved best about his books were the chapter titles. Example : "Muffin Plays With Knives". It makes you curious. Another one (my personal favorite): "Men Ask for Directions (And Other Signs of the Apocalypse)".
The Red Pyramid, for me, was one of those books that I could completely figure out (except for Zia. Boy, I was not expecting that). The fact that Carter had an Eye of Horus pendant did *not* make me think that he had some connection with Horus, and the fact that their dad looks exactly like Osiris did *not* tip me off that Osiris...well, that would be a spoiler, now, wouldn't it? Can't be doing that, now? (Wow I sound so British right there.)
This book was a mix of historical facts, mythology, and Riordan's own creativity. Its like Percy Jackson (which, by the way, has a follup series coming out relatively soon). So, looking into the future...........
.....(insert weird name here) and the Norse Gods.
Predictable, but it'll be good.

Guardian of the Gate

2010-08-15T17:35:00.000-07:00

The ultimate battle between sisters is nearing, and its outcome could have catastrophic consequences. As sixteen year-old Lia Milthorpe searches for a way to end the prophecy, her twin sister Alice hones the skills she'll need to defeat Lia. Alice will stop at nothing to reclaim her sister's role in the prophecy, and that's not the only thing she wants: There's also Lia's boyfriend James.
Lia and Alice always knew the Prophecy would turn those closest to them against them. But they didn't know what betrayal could lead them to do. In the end, only one sister will be left standing.
_______________
I. Love. Dimitri. Alice can have James.
Seriously! If James actually was with Alice, then he doesn't even DESERVE Lia. Seriously.
Anyway...Michelle Zink has done it again. I read this book in less than 24 hours (which, really, isn't that much of a feat for me....hmm...the curse of the fast reader: finishing the book the DAY it comes out...)
I wish more people knew about this series - its (in the words of an internet sensation) SUPER SPECIAL AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!

City of Glass

2010-08-15T17:25:00.000-07:00

To save her mother’s life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters—never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.
As Clary uncovers more about her family’s past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he’s willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City—whatever the cost?
Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the third installment of bestselling series the Mortal Instruments.
___________________
I absolutely love Simon. Why? Because he's usually the instigator of emotional conflicts between Jace and Clary, and well, all the readers know where THAT leads them.
City of Glass was a highly entertaining read, which kept me hooked me from the very start and left me hanging at the very last word. I would say some things that I enjoyed about this book, but I'm going to let this be a SPOILER FREE review. You're welcome, people, because I could have gone on and on about Alec. Seriously.
So, for the rest of you Cassandra Clare fans who have read this series, Clare's new series, "The Infernal Devices", kicks off in a few weeks with the release of Clockwork Angel, which, from the lucky people who got ARC's, I've heard is AMAZING. They've already picked teams!
Oh, and as for "The Mortal Instruments" series, City of Fallen Angels is coming out sometime next year.

CHECK THIS OUT!!!!!!

2010-07-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

Alright everyone, listen up. Take a look to the upper right corner of my blog. There is a link to my best friend Taylor's new blog: "Taking a Stand Against Child Abuse". If you've got time, could you copy that link into your URL bar and visit it? Pretty please? Taylor's boyfriend, Christian, has been abused every day of his life, and no one has ever done anything about it. This blog has been created to inform everybody about this injustice.

Science Fiction Overload!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-07-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

Has anybody else seen the ad on iTunes home page that has all those Sci-Fi show pilots for FREE? Well, I did. So, I've downloaded 7 pilots, so I think I'll let you know how they are.
1. Supernatural

I was confused for a lot of this - and a little scared. The beginning especially scared me...but it made me wonder what exactly did that (not giving anything away!) So, I decided to brave it out and see what happened. I was completely sucked into the world of Sam and Dean and their search for their father - which leads them to happen upon the case their father was working on. I still don't get (and probably never will) what happened when the woman in white stuck her hand into Sam (whoops, tiny spoiler there). I mean, shouldn't he have died, like the rest of them?
I don't know. But I'm investing in buying episode 2...and 3...and so on. Very good! =) If I can get caught up, I'll definitely be watching it on September 24!

Antony and Cleopatra

2010-07-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

William Shakespeare's play about the love affair between the Roman soldier, Antony, and the Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra.
_________
Ya.....you want to know where I bought this? In Stratford-Upon-Avon. Ha. Ha ha.
I read this on the plane and in Toronto on the way home. Surprisingly, this was actually really good. Though, I will admit it, I did skip to the end to see who died. Who wouldn't? Seriously. There has to be something to look forward to through all the funky old words and phrases that take me hours just to understand one.
There's not much to say about this one. I was confused for most of it, but I think I got the gist of it:
Antony loves Cleopatra, and vice versa. Caesar gets mad at Antony. Antony has to marry Caesar's sister. Antony and Caesar go to war. Cleopatra tricks Antony into thinking that she's dead, and he kills himself. Cleopatra can't stand to be without Antony, so she kills herself with an asp.
Did I miss anything? If I did, let me know.

The Angel Experiment

2010-07-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

Fourteen-year-old Maximum Ride, better known as Max, knows what it's like to soar above the world. She and all the members of the "Flock"--Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel--are just like ordinary kids--only they have wings and can fly. It may seem like a dream come true to some, but their lives can morph into a living nightmare at any time--like when Angel, the youngest member of the "Flock," is kidnapped and taken back to the "School" where she and the others were genetically engineered by sinister scientists. Her friends brave a journey to blazing hot Death Valley, CA, to save Angel, but soon enough, they find themselves in yet another nightmare--this one involving fighting off the half-human, half-wolf "Erasers" in New York City. Whether in the treetops of Central Park or in the bowels of the Manhattan subway system, Max and her adopted family take the ride of their lives. Along the way Max discovers from her old friend and father-figure Jeb--now her betrayed and greatest enemy--that her purpose is save the world--but can she?
_____________
Whenever anyone who knows anything about books and authors hears the name "James Patterson," there is an immediate reaction. It could bring on whispers of "Oh....Patterson writes sooooo good." Or, perhaps, "That guy? He's written too many books for his own good." My reaction is, "Wow."
Yeah, James Patterson has written a lot of books, and his writing style is really awesome. But with the Maximum Ride series, I was absolutely blown away. It was like reading a video game! There was just enough action and just enough drama that it kept me hooked until it finally ended with the flock headed to Washington, D.C.
I just wish Patterson could have provided a little more info about Jeb and the "School". Sure, I'm supposed to buy the next one (School's Out - Forever), but that's not going to happen for a couple of weeks, so I'm just left confused.
I've got a story to go with this book -
Okay, so unless you've been hiding under a rock for the past four or five years, you should know about the huge franchise of "Twilight". (You know, that series about the girl who falls in love with a vampire AND a werewolf and can't decide which one she loves more? Yeah. That's the one I'm talking about. BUT HOW COULD I MENTION IT IN THE SAME ARTICLE AS THIS BOOK? There's a reason.) So, anyway, I saw this petition online that said:
"Please sign if you protest Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart acting as Fang and Max in the Maximum Ride movie"
Well, I totally signed that one quickly. For one, Robert Pattinson is just plain UGLY. And Kristen is the human equivelant of a blank page. So there.

The Wizard Heir

2010-07-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

Sixteen-year-old Seph McCauley has spent the past three years getting kicked out of one exclusive private school after another. And it's not his attitude that’s the problem. It’s the trail of magical accidents—lately, disasters—that follow in his wake. Seph is a wizard, orphaned and untrained--and his powers are escalating out of control.
After causing a tragic fire at an after-hours party, Seph is sent to the Havens, a secluded boys’ school on the coast of Maine. At first, it seems like the answer to his prayers. Gregory Leicester, the headmaster, promises to train Seph in magic and initiate him into his mysterious order of wizards. But Seph's enthusiasm dampens when he learns that training comes at a steep cost, and that Leicester plans to use his students' powers to serve his own dangerous agenda.
_____________
I read this book partly in the car through Texas and then finished it at my Aunt and Uncle's house. Cinda Williams Chima just seems to provide good traveling books for me. ;)
Anyway...Chima has yet again enthralled me with her brilliant storytelling. Seph's story has absolutely been my favorite so far. Sure, Jack's was pretty awesome (with the swords/fighting and what not), but this one was just hilarious! Especially in the beginning-
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When Seph had to go swimming in that cold lake, and he accidentally made it heat up to a sauna temperature. The way everybody reacted was priceless. If that was made into a movie...oh, my. I would be rofling! (rolling on the floor laughing)
Yet again, in The Wizard Heir, we see great character development not only on the new cast, but also on the previous cast (Jack, Ellie, Hastings, Linda, etc.). We find out some secrets about Hastings and someone else *cough cough* that really took be by surprise.
So, all in all, a really good book. But just one question - where's D'Orsay?

The Warrior Heir

2010-07-13T18:35:00.000-07:00

Before he knew about the Roses, 16-year-old Jack lived an unremarkable life in the small Ohio town of Trinity. Only the medicine he has to take daily and the thick scar above his heart set him apart from the other high-schoolers. Then one day Jack skips his medicine. Suddenly, he is stronger, fiercer, and more confident than ever before. And it feels great until he loses control of his own strength and nearly kills another player during soccer team tryouts. Soon, Jack learns the startling truth about himself: He is Weirlind; part of an underground society of magical people who live among us. At the head of this magical society sit the feuding houses of the Red Rose and the White Rose, whose power is determined by playing The Game a magical tournament in which each house sponsors a warrior to fight to the death. The winning house rules the Weir. As if his bizarre magical heritage isn’t enough, Jack finds out that he’s not just another member of Weirlind he’s one of the last of the warriors at a time when both houses are scouting for a player. Jack’s performance on the soccer field has alerted the entire magical community to the fact that he’s in Trinity. And until one of the houses is declared Jack’s official sponsor, they’ll stop at nothing to get Jack to fight for them.
________
This was the book I read in the airport and on the plane while on my journey to Great Britain. The bad thing was that I read through this so fast that I didn't have anything else to read (besides The Necromancer) while there. I had to go buy Evil at Heart just to keep myself sane.
This novel provided a new twist on magic and such that kept me captivated until the very last page. Jack's struggles to figure who, and what, he is, and to keep that under control was absolutely a masterpiece of character development. Cinda Williams Chima worked wonders with every character in the first of the Heir Series - she gave enough information in order to make an interesting character who's intentions aren't confusing (hopefully that came out right), but Chima also left enough information out to keep us wondering about the character.
All in all, The Warrior Heir was a very good read. It's good for everyone to read. Plus, the best thing about it - there's a sequel(two, actually)!

The Necromancer

2010-07-13T18:22:00.000-07:00

San Francisco:
After fleeing to Ojai, then Paris, and escaping to London, Josh and Sophie Newman are finally home. And after everything they've seen and learned in the past week, they're both more confused than ever about their future. Neither of them has mastered the magics they'll need to protect themselves from the Dark Elders, they've lost Scatty, and they're still being pursued by Dr. John Dee. Most disturbing of all, however, is that now they must ask themselves, can they trust Nicholas Flamel? Can they trust anyone?

Alcatraz:
Dr. Dee underestimated Perenelle Flamel's power. Alcatraz could not hold her, Nereus was no match for her, and she was able to align herself with the most unlikely of allies. But she wasn't the only one being held on the island. Behind the prison's bars and protective sigils were a menagerie of monsters-an army for Dee to use in the final battle. And now Machiavelli has come to Alcatraz to loose those monsters on San Francisco.
Perenelle might be powerful, but each day she weakens, and even with Nicholas back at her side, a battle of this size could be too much for her. Nicholas and Perenelle must fight to protect the city, but the effort will probably kill them both.

London:
Having been unable to regain the two final pages of the Codex, Dee has failed his Elder and is now an outlaw-and the new prey of all the creatures formerly sent to hunt down Flamel.
But Dee has a plan. With the Codex and the creatures on Alcatraz, he can control the world. All he needs is the help of the Archons. But for his plan to work, he must raise the Mother of the Gods from the dead. For that, he'll have to train a necromancer. And the twins of legend will make the perfect pupils. . . .
_______________
SQUEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Its finally here! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *calming down*
Wow! What a book! I think I learned more from reading this than studying any mythology book. That's what I love about Michael Scott - he expertly writes in mythology with his plot line in such a way that the reader actually thinks that this could actually be happening in real life. While I was in London in June, I was scanning the streets the entire time for something fishy going on (not joking, seriously).
The twist at the end though....I've been waiting for that since Ojai. I was so happy about that happening that I actually highlighted the line where it declared the truth of that wonderful fact. But, I'm not revealing ANYTHING! So don't ask me.
I can't wait for The Warlock to come out next year. It will be AMAZING, I'm sure.

The Sorceress

2010-07-13T18:09:00.000-07:00

Nicholas Flamel's heart almost broke as he watched his beloved Paris crumble before him. The city was destroyed by Dee and Machiavelli, but Flamel played his own role in the destruction. Sophie and Josh Newman show every sign of being the twins of prophecy, and Flamel had to protect them and the pages from the Dark Elders.

But Nicholas grows weaker with each passing day. Perenelle is still trapped in Alcatraz, and now that Scatty has gone missing, the group is without protection. Except for Clarent—the twin sword to Excalibur. But Clarent’s power is unthinkable, its evil making it nearly impossible to use without its darkness seeping into the soul of whoever wields it.

If he hopes to defeat Dee, Nicholas must find an Elder who can teach Josh and Sophie the third elemental magic—Water Magic. The problem? The only one who can do that is Gilgamesh, and he is quite, quite...insane.
________
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finally got to read it! Yipee! Sad thing - Dee had Clarent, instead of Josh. =P Josh needs Clarent! Anyway. Enough of my ranting about him.
This book was, if anything, actionless. Now, sure, there were the epic battles through the streets of present day London, but this novel seemed to me to be something of a filler between Book 2 and Book 4. Others will disagree, and no offense, Michael Scott (I love you!!), but I could have used something more with this. Just a little more oomph. The plot line seemed the same as the other two. Ah, well.
I totally recommend this novel EVERYBODY EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Evil at Heart

2010-07-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

Gretchen Lowell strikes again—or does she?—in bestseller Cain's grisly third thriller to feature the female serial killer who takes sadistic pleasure in taunting Portland, Ore., detective Archie Sheridan (after Sweetheart and Heartsick). A violent attack that leaves body parts in a rest stop bathroom, along with Lowell's signature heart design, persuades Sheridan, a recovering Vicodin addict, to leave rehab and rejoin the hunt for Lowell. As he and newspaper reporter Susan Ward dig deeper, they discover that while the corpses cropping up around town are reminiscent of Lowell's nasty handiwork, they might also point to one of the myriad fan clubs dedicated to the killer, who has become a media sensation ever since her escape in Heartsick.
___________
My copy of Evil at Heart came from a Waterstone's Bookseller in Cambridge, England. Spiffy, huh? That's the actual cover - it took forever to find on the internet.
Well, anyway, like the rest of Cain's Gretchen Lowell books, it was quite the page turner with twists and turns that I could have never expected. What I could expect, though, was Susan's purple hair. Ha! I guessed right. In the first book, it was pink, and in the second, it was turquoise. Haha.
However, there were a lot of elements that made me wonder if I really should have read this book. Sure, its a good mystery, but these people are just WEIRD! Sheesh. Is a little sanity too much to ask for, Chelsea?
I would recommend this book to college students looking to scare each other. And, the mystery buff.

Dreamland

2010-07-13T17:48:00.000-07:00

Used to living in the shadow of her overachieving older sister, Caitlin has always been something of a loner. When the older sister runs away to be with a boyfriend, Caitlin is left behind to deal with her mother's anguish and her father's seeming indifference. While searching for her own identity and some sense of self-worth, Caitlin hooks up with Rogerson Biscoe. Rogerson is a mixed package: He comes from a wealthy, upper-class family, but he also comes with a reputation for being a troublemaker and a rebel. His rebellious lifestyle strikes Caitlin as refreshingly different. Rogerson is different in other ways, too, with his intense demeanor and dreadlock hair.
Though Rogerson doesn't fit in with any of Caitlin's friends, Caitlin is happy to tag along and meet his friends. While she may not always like them, she likes what Rogerson brings out in her, a side of herself that she's never explored. When she learns a terrible secret about Rogerson's life, it brings them closer, and Caitlin finds Rogerson to be an intelligent, sensitive, and caring boyfriend. But that same secret comes back to haunt Caitlin when she sees a side of Rogerson he's never revealed before. Deeply in love and caught in a cycle of abuse she doesn't know how to escape, Caitlin is desperate for someone to notice and help her. Because she can't seem to help herself.
________
*sniff sniff* Wow. There's really no words to describe how I felt about this novel. Not that I didn't like it, but it was just so....I guess the word accurate would be appropriate. The way Caitlin handled the situation with Rogerson, the situation with Cassandra, and everything else - it just seems that someone in that type of relationship would be affected psychologically in such a way that...well...in the way Caitlin was affected. And the ending - it was a tearjerker. Phew. I actually got this book from the library, and read it on the day I checked out. It was so good. Again - be 13 before you read it. Just saying, not that this book is inappropriate, but its just so dead on with everything, that it could be a little scary to the younger audiences.

Along for the Ride

2010-07-13T15:18:00.001-07:00

It's been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents' divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.
A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she's been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.
In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect.
________
Actually, I started to read this book at the Bluegrass Music Festival because I finished reading Episodes IV - VI of Star Wars, and frankly, I could have read several books that day. I was beyond bored.
I can somewhat relate to Along for the Ride, in that my parents are divorced, I am super obsessive with my academics, and I never actually got a childhood. But I'm not going to talk about any of that - except that the way Sarah Dessen relates to actual situations is absolutely amazing.
There were a couple of things that I would have rather been left out, but, hey. They just go to make the plot all the more realistic. The best part (in my opinion) was the food fight that Auden started. That was absolutely hilarious.
So, all in all, this was a really good novel. However, like the rest of Sarah Dessen's books, I am only going to recommend them to readers 13 or over.

Peak

2010-07-12T20:19:00.001-07:00

When fourteen-year-old Peak Marcello's long-lost father presents the opportunity for them to summit Everest together, Peak doesn't even consider saying no--even though he suspects there are a few strings attached. And if he makes it to the top before his birthday, he'll be the youngest person ever to stand above 29,000 feet. It's not a bad turn of events for a guy who's been stuck in New York City with only skyscrapers to (illegally) scale.
Here, in Peak's own words, is the exhilarating, gut-wrenching story of what happened on that climb to the top of the world--a climb that changed everything. Welcome to Mount Everest.
___________
Alright, alright. Sorry I haven't posted any reviews in a while. NOT MY FAULT! I was in Europe, and then I was out in the Garden, and now I finally have some free time - in Texas. So, in reality, I read this book in May. Ha.
So. Peak. This book was harsh and straightforward with the realities of climbing Mount Everest - HAPE, the extreme weather, and the struggle to just survive daily. Amazing book - perfect especially for guys looking for an awesome adventure read. This book was the perfect mix of humor, emotion, and action. I'm wishing there was a sequel...but the way it ended, I don't know if there is one...but, by the way it ended, I think Peak Marcello will be settling down from all his climbing for a while.
Another thing that I really liked about this novel was the style in which it was written. It seems that in many of the stories that Smith weaves, a Moleskine Journal seems to play into the plot (such as in Cryptid Hunters and Tentacles). Peak was written over the span of two Moleskine journals - which was pretty cool.

Speak

2010-05-11T15:06:00.000-07:00

Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won't talk to her, and people she doesn't even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that's not safe. Because there's something she's trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth.
________
"What is with you reading all these realistic fiction novels, Lauren? You used to run from them like they had malaria hidden between the pages."
Yes, I know. Why am I reading these? Here are just a couple of reasons:
1. Christopher Paolini can't get his act together and get the 4th Eragon book published!
2. Same goes for you, Michelle Zink.
3. I don't want to read the Hunger Games right now!!!!!!! *waaaah*
4. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld isn't in paperback.
5. I haven't been in a book store for 2 weeks. 0.o
What a moving novel this was. For a debut novel, this was...groundbreaking. I just got it this morning from Sam, and I was sitting in English class (we had free time) and I just sat there with my mouth gaping open. I almost started crying when the art teacher ripped his canvas. Idk why, but it was just so sad. Go Laurie!

Darkside

2010-05-11T14:57:00.000-07:00

Jonathan Starling's home has been attacked, his dad is in an asylum, he's running for his life, and there's nowhere to hide. Jonathan has stumbled upon London's greatest secret: Darkside. Incredibly dangerous and unimaginably exciting, Darkside is the creepiest place Jonathan has ever seen. It's a world of nightmares and secrets, where fear and evil rule, and Jonathan has to find a way out....
________
I ordered this book at the same time I ordered Cut. I thought it would be entirely different than it was. And guess what? It went in the same box Cut did along with Inkspell and Inkdeath (those two books are too long for any sane person to read, and yet I finally read them). Guess what else? I pulled this one out of the box at the same time as Cut. Interesting. All in all, a good story. One quick, teensy-weensy question: In most fiction stories, if a character is raked by the claws of a wereman or bitten by one, doesn't that character usually become a wereman (excluding Harry Potter)? I'm just saying. Its perfectly logical. *shrugs*

Cut

2010-05-11T14:50:00.000-07:00

Fifteen-year-old Callie isn't speaking to anybody, not even to her therapist at Sea Pines, the "residential treatment facility" where her parents and doctor sent her after discovering that she cuts herself. As her story unfolds, Callie reluctantly become involved with the other "guests" at Sea Pines -- finding her voice and confronting the trauma that triggered her behavior.
_______
Did you know that the only reason I own this book was because I thought it was some fantasy book about some cursed girl when I ordered it out of one of those book order catalogs you get from your school librarian? Yep. Only after I got it did I realize that this was what it was about. I didn't want my parents to see it, so I away in a box in my closet, and I just found it a few weeks ago. I didn't read it then, because I had other stuff to read, but I just sat down and read this within an hour. Its only 151 pages long. That's really short compared to some of the stuff I've read. Nevertheless, its shortness and lack of a true plot line are made up in its...well, I can't describe it. Just this- if you're super bored and have nothing to do, go to B&N and sit down and read this. After you read it, you'll remember that, "Oh, yeah! I have to go to that thing at that place and meet that person..."

The Journal of Curious Letters

2010-05-11T14:44:00.001-07:00

What if every time you made a choice that had a significant consequence, a new, alternate reality was created — the life that would've been? What if those new Realities were in danger? What if it fell to you to save all the realities?
Atticus Higginbottom, a.k.a. Tick, is a regular thirteen-year-old boy living a regular life until the day a strange letter arrives in his mailbox. Postmarked from Alaska and cryptically signed with the initials "M.G.," the letter informs Tick that dangerous — perhaps even deadly — events have been set in motion that could result in the destruction of reality itself. M.G. promises to send Tick twelve riddles that will reveal that on a certain day, at a certain time, at a certain place, something extraordinary will happen.
Will Tick have the courage to follow the twelve clues M.G. sends to him? Will he be able to solve the riddles in time? As M.G. warns Tick, very frightening things are coming your way. Will you join Tick and his friends on an amazing journey through the Realities? What will your choice be?
_________
It was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long. Thank goodness it was long, though, since I was on a trip to Gatlinburg when I read it. This was the ONLY thing that kept me sane during that car ride (not even the Beatles nor Grateful Dead could have saved me). Good plot, a little slow in the middle, but other than that, all around good.

Wintergirls

2010-05-10T12:50:00.001-07:00

Lia and Cassie are best friends, wintergirls frozen in fragile bodies, competitors in a deadly contest to see who can be the thinnest. But then Cassie suffers the ultimate loss-her life-and Lia is left behind, haunted by her friend's memory and racked with guilt for not being able to help save her. In her most powerfully moving novel since Speak, award-winning author Laurie Halse Anderson explores Lia's struggle, her painful path to recovery, and her desperate attempts to hold on to the most important thing of all-hope.
_________
I'm slowly working my way down the Top ALA Books of 2010 list (or whatever its called) and this was number one, so I decided to read it.
What a moving novel. It was so realistic, so...amazing, that I lost my appetite at dinner and had to finish it before I could eat anything more. Lia's struggle to leave behind her past of self abuse, anorexia, and the ghost of her friend, Cassie, to be one of the best stories I'd ever read. I'm going to reccommend this book to anyone looking for something to read. There
are some words that I will not repeat, but it is a good novel all the same.

Betwixt

2010-04-30T08:36:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Morgan D'Amici awakes in her meager home with dirt and blood under her fingernails. Paintings come alive under Ondine Mason's violet-eyed gaze. Haunted runaway Nix Saint-Michael sees halos of light around people doomed to die. At a secret summer rave in the woods, these teenagers learn of their true origins and their uncertain, intertwined destines. Riveting, unflinching, and beautiful, Betwixt shows a world as complex and compelling as any ordinary reality.
_________
For the entire time I was reading this book, I was confused. Completely lost. I didn't understand what a "fay" was because the author didn't explain it until the very ending of the book! =/ But, it was pretty good all the same. It switched point of view several times within one chapter, and that just made it all the more confusing.

The Merchant of Death

2010-04-28T09:02:00.000-07:00

Bobby Pendragon is a seemingly normal fourteen-year-old boy. He has a family, a home, and even Marley, his beloved dog. But there is something very special about Bobby.
He is going to save the world.
And not just Earth as we know it. Bobby is slowly starting to realize that life in the cosmos isn't quite what he thought it was. And before he can object, he is swept off to an alternate dimension known as Denduron, a territory inhabited by strange beings, ruled by a magical tyrant, and plagued by dangerous revolution.
If Bobby wants to see his family again, he's going to have to accept his role as savior, and accept it wholeheartedly. Because, as he is about to discover, Denduron is only the beginning....
________
Frankly, I've been avoiding this series for YEARS. Literally. Every time I saw one of these books, I would steer myself in the absolute opposite direction. But, I, from a strange impulse, decided to spend eight dollars on the first of the Pendragon series. Suprisingly, I was so into this book that I read it in less than a day. It was boring in some parts, and I found myself skipping forward to see if there would be anything else from Second Earth (you need to read to understand) within the next fifty pages.
But, once I get my library card, I'm definitely going to read the second book. (: I've got three more books to read, so ta-ta for now!

The Body Finder Giveaway!

2010-04-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

http://theeagerreaders.blogspot.com/2010/04/book-giveaway-body-finder-by-kimberly.html

The Front

2010-04-12T15:53:00.000-07:00

The fascinating characters of At Risk return in The Front - and peril is what comes to them all. DA Monique Lamont has a special job for Massachusetts state investigator Win Garano. As part of a new public relations campaign about the dangers of deciling neighborhoods, Lamont is sending Win to Watertown to come up with a "drama," and she thinks she knows just the case that will serve. Garano is skeptical because he knows that Watertown is also the base for a loose association of municipal police departments called the FRONT, set up so they aren't dependent on the state - much to Lamont's anger. Win senses a much deeper agenda - but has no idea just how deep it goes. In the days that follow, he'll find that Lamont's task, and the places it leads him, will resemble a house of mirrors - everywhere he turns, he's not quite sure if what he's seeing is true.
__________
It was really good to see Win and Monique again. I like them a whole lot more than Kay Scarpetta. I really don't know why, I can just understand them more. This tale was just as riveting as At Risk, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Speaking of the earlier novel, I watched the movie of it yesterday afternoon. Wonderful movie, wonderful cast, and I though it uncanny that Patricia Cornwell herself was a waiter in the Harvard Cafe...:)

Body of Evidence

2010-04-12T14:28:00.000-07:00

A reclusive author, Beryl Madison finds no safe haven from months of menacing phone calls - or the tormented feeling that her every move is being watched. When the writer is found slain in her own home, Kay Scarpetta pieces together the intricate forensic evidence - while unwittingly edging closer to a killer waiting in the shadows.
_____________
Half the time while I was reading this, I was confused. Why? MARK. I really don't know what to think of him. It was an interesting read, but I had just finished watching Sleepy Hollow (BEST MOVIE EVER!!!!!!!!!), so this wasn't exactly, well, anyway, good job Patricia.

Thirteen Reasons Why

2010-04-12T14:21:00.000-07:00

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker - his classmate and crush - who committed suicide two weeks earlier.
Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons she decided to end her like. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why.
Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a first-hand witness to Hannah's pain, and learns the truth about himself - a truth he never wanted to face.
________
Well..................................................I cried several times while reading this book.
Why? Becuase it never ceases to amaze me that high schoolers can be so cruel!!!!!!!! It drives me crazy that some people just don't care how other people feel! For example, one of the reasons Hannah committed suicide was because of this guy - Alex - who ruined her life by one small little phrase (different words were used):
"Best Butt in the Class: Hannah Baker"
>:( But it was a very well written book.

Fablehaven: Keys to the Demon Prison

2010-04-12T14:15:00.000-07:00

After many centuries of plotting, the Sphinx - leader of the Society of the Evening Star - is after the final artifacts needed to open the great demon prison, Zzyxx. If the legendary prison is opened, a tide of evil is certain to usurp control of the world.
In an effort to intercept the final artifacts, Kendra, Seth, and the Knights of the Dawn race to strange and exotic preserves across the globe. The stakes have never been higher, and the risks have never been more deadly.
In this explosive series finale, allgiances will be confirmed and secrets revealed as the forces of light and darkness collide in a desperate, climatic battle to control the keys to the demon prison.
________
Explosive is not the word I would use.
I would use...FANTASTIC!! SPECTACULAR!!! WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Phew. That was...epic. It was an epic win. An amazing series finale. And a TON of Seth!!!! <3 <3 =P
Anywho...all I can say is that I wish Seth had found a girl. Kendra got Gavin (who turned out to be the demon Navarog, thank goodness), and now she's got a freaking unicorn!!!! Sheesh! Is a female shadow charmer too much to ask for, Mr. Mull?!?!?
Okay. I'm done ranting on that subject. =D! What an awesome book!!!

Tithe

2010-03-23T14:26:00.001-07:00

Sixteen year-old Kaye is a modern nomad. Fierce and independent, she drifts from place to place with her mother's rock band until an ominous attack forces Kaye back to her childhood home. There, amid the blue-collar New Jersey backdrop, Kaye finds herself an unwilling pawn in an ancient and violent power struggle between two rival faerie kingdoms - a struggle that could very well mean her death.
________
*gasp* You read a book with faeries in it Lauren?
Yes. I do read the occasional book with faeries in it. I mean, that's now one of the main central fictional creatures in teen literature! First sparkly vampires, now this?!?!? What's the world of teen literature coming to?!
Anyway, this book was reeeeeeeeaaaaalllly good. I can understand, though, why it was banned from some schools *cough, cough* I wouldn't reccommend it to anyone under 14, nor to anybody else I know. *smiles sweetly to draw attention away from this book*
Good story, though. Too bad the local bookstore won't get Valiant in stock! Grrrness!

The People of Sparks

2010-03-23T14:21:00.000-07:00

When Lina and Doon lead thier people up from the underground city of Ember, they discover a surface world of color and life. The people of a small village called Sparks agree to help the Emberites, but the villagers have never had to share their world before. Soon differences between the two groups escalate, and it's up to Lina and Doon to find a way to avoid war!
__________
Yeah, I know that I said a few months back that I probably wouldn't be reading the sequel...but I had nothing else to read. I was digging around in my closet and found this.
I'm a bit frustrated with this series, but only because Lina and Doon won't just admit that they like eachother! Sheesh! =/ Anywho, interesting book. I'll say that much. Interesting ending.

This Lullaby

2010-03-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

Remy always knows when to give a guy "the speech" - right after the initial romantic rush, but before anything gets too serious. She's had her fair share of boyfriends, and she's learned all there is to learn from her mother, who's currently working on husband number five. So why is it that Remy can't seem to dump Dexter? It can't be his name. It can't be that he's messy and disorganized. And it certainly isn't that he's a musician - just like Remy's father, a man she never knew because he left before she was born. Could it be that Remy's romantic rules to live by don't apply anymore?
_____________
Sarah Dessen......well, there's not much to say. Except for the fact that me and my friend got a good laugh out of page 249, line 7. You just crack me up, Jess. ;)

The Mysterious Benedict Society

2010-03-18T17:55:00.000-07:00

"Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?"
When this peculiar ad appears in the newspaper, dozens of children enroll to take a series of mysterious, mind-bending tests. But in the end just four very special children will succeed. Their challenge: to go on a secret mission that only the most intelligent and resourceful children could complete. With their newfound friendship at stake, will they be able to pass the most important test of all?
___________
I usually don't read books with illustrations in them.
But this one was absolutely, positively, without a shadow of a doubt the best young adult mystery book that I have ever read!! I devoured this book, and I've re-read chapter 26 over WAAAAYYY too many times! Woohoo!
_____________
Oh, and by the way, anyone want to guess what is only *looks over at calendar and counts days* 5days away?!?!?!?!?!
Fablehaven: Keys to the Demon Prison!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm sooooooo excited. I read the first chapter and-
WARNING - SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 1!!!
I almost started crying! I mean, Seth's kneeling beside Graulas, Seth's like "Don't die!" and Graulas is like "I have to...but bring me this thing and it will ease my pain..."
I was so pleased with the first chapter, though, that I almost squealed in the middle of the book store. That's kind of sad.

Ruined: A Ghost Story

2010-03-08T10:16:00.000-08:00

Rebecca couldn't feel more out of place in New Orleans, where she comes to spend the year while her dad is traveling. She's staying in a creepy old house with her aunt. And at the snooty prep school, the filthy-rich girls treat Rebecca like she's invisible. Only gorgeous, unavailable Anton Grey seems to give Rebecca the time of day, but she wonders if he's got a hidden agenda. Then one night, in Lafayette Cemetery, Rebecca makes a friend. Sweet, mysterious Lisette is eager to talk to Rebecca, and to show her the nooks and crannies of the city. There's just one catch: Lisette is a ghost. A ghost with a deep, dark secret, and a serious score to settle. As Rebecca learns more from her ghost friend -- and as she slowly learns to trust Anton Grey -- she also uncovers startling truths about her own history. Will Rebecca be able to right the wrongs of the past, or has everything been ruined beyond repair?
__________
This ended almost the exact way I had hoped The Hunt for the Seventh would end. Alas, it did not, but it was an amazing story. It kept me guessing until that shocking revelation at the end (slight sarcasm).

The Hunt for the Seventh

2010-03-08T10:12:00.001-08:00

Still reeling from the death of their mother, Jim, his sister Sal, and their father move to Minerva Estate. Jim's father's job is groundskeeper; Jim's job is to not explore the estate. When Jim begins to be haunted by the ghosts of children, he has no choice but to break the rules and search the estate for some clue as to what happened to these children. As Jim has visions of the deaths of six children, he begins to unravel the nature of a prophesy that calls for the death of a Minerva child every generation. Aided by an autistic boy Jim dubs Einstein, Jim tries to uncover the truth about the deaths before a similar fate befalls Einstein. But finding clues is difficult when the current lord of Minerva Estate forbids Jim to go anywhere on the estate...
_______________
This book was okay...not the best I'd ever read, but it had a good plot line. I had hoped that it would end somewhat differently...but, oh well. I can write a fanfiction about it!!! ;)

Sweetheart/Awesome Pictures!!!!

2010-02-28T17:45:00.000-08:00

Portland detective Archie Sheridan, the former head of the Beauty Killer Task Force, hunted Gretchen Lowell for years before she kidnapped him, tortured him, and then let him go. Now that she is behind bars, Archie is finally piecing his life back together. But no matter how hard Archie tries, he just can't stop thinking about Gretchen...
When the body of a young woman is discovered in Forest Park, Archie is reminded of the first corpse he discovered there a decade ago: it turned out to be the Beauty Killer's first victim, and Archie's first case. Then the unthinkable happens - Gretchen escapes from prison, and once the news breaks, all of Portland goes on high alert. Archie knows he's the only one who can capture Gretchen - and now he has a plan. Even if it means becoming her last victim...
_____________
Three things to say:
1. Gretchen and Archie Forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2. I'm so glad Debbie is (somewhat) out of the picture. Now she won't get killed!
3. I wonder if Susan's hair will be purple in the next book, since it was pink, and now blue...just wondering.
_________________
And now......I found these pictures on the internet and thought them to be some of the most hilarious things I'd ever seen. I will now show them to you.

The Magician

2010-02-23T12:34:00.000-08:00

California: In the hands of Dr. John Dee and the Dark Elders, the book of Abraham the Mage could mean the destruction of the world as we know it. The most powerful book of all time, it holds the secret of eternal life - a secret more dangerous than any one man should ever possess. And Dee is two pages away from the knowledge that would bring the Dark Elders into ultimate power. His only obstacle? Josh and Sophie Newman - who are eight thousand miles away.
Paris: After fleeing Ojai, Nicholas, Sophie, Josh, and Scatty emerge in Paris. The City of Light, and home of Nicholas Flamel. Only, this homecoming is anything but sweet. Noccolo Machiavelli, immortal author and celebrated art collector, lives in Paris and is working for Dee. He's in hot pursuit, and time is running out for Nicholas and Pernelle. Every day they spend without the book, they age one year: their magic becomes weaker and thier bodies more frail. For Flamel, the Prophecy is clearer and clearer. It's time for Sophie to learn the second elemental magic - fire magic. And there's only one man who can teach it to her: Flamel's old student the Comte de Saint-Germain - alchemist, magician, and rock star. Josh and Sophie Newman are the world's only hope. If they don't turn on eachother first.
_____________
I had really been hoping that Sophie and Josh would turn on eachother (yeah, I'm just like that!!!) but, alas! They have not yet. But, I am still wondering what gift Mars gave to Josh. I think that it has something to do with battle strategy, since in the ending Josh said that commanders would be in high places without knowing that he knew that. After all, Mars was the Roman god of war...

The Alchemyst

2010-02-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

The truth: Nicholas Flames was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly seven hundred years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. The records show that he died in 1418. But his tomb is empty. The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects - the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it. Sometimes legends are true. And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time.
___________
I got this book as a gift for winning second place at the Regional Governor's Cup Writing Competition. It was really good, but I found myself struggling through it. I didn't like the fact that Josh really never got a choice as to what he did in the book. If they had only let him think a little longer about joining Dee...aahhh. That would have been perfect...
But, I'm about a hundred pages into The Magician, the second book in the series. But, I have the ending almost memorized. Go Josh!!!

Heart Sick

2010-02-17T20:19:00.000-08:00

Portland detective Archie Sheridan spent yyears tracking Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful and brutal serial killer. In the end, she was the one who caught him...and tortured him...and then let him go. Why did Gretchen spare Archie's life and then turn herself in? This is the question that keeps him up all night - and the reason why he has visited Gretchen in prison every week since. Meanwhile, another series of Portland murders has Archie working on a brand-new task force...and heading straight into the line of fire. The local news is covering the case 24/7, and it's not long before Archie enters a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with the killer - and his former captor. But this time, it's up to Archie to save himself...
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Well..........I wrote in my journal that I had finished one of the weirdest, creepiest, most awesome books ever. It was weird. It was creepy. And it was really one of the most intriguing mystery/thriller books that I have ever read. The ending, though...that's what really gets me. I mean, Archie was snogging Gretchen!!!! You can't get much weirder than to go to the state prison and have them get an person up at four a.m. and then start talking to this lady who carved a heart onto your chest and then start snogging her. I'm serious.

Superior Saturday

2010-02-15T09:06:00.001-08:00

Arthur Penhaligon has wrestled five of the Keys from the Trustees of the Will, but gaining the Sixth Key poses a greater challenge than any before. Superior Saturday is the oldest Denizenand the most powerful sorcerer within the House. She has thousands of sorcerers at her command and has been preparing for the Rightful Heir and the Will's escape all along. As Saturday's schemes become evident, Arthur is beset on all sides. The House is being destroyed, and only the Keys can hold back the tide of destruction. Arthur's home city is under attack. His allies are unreliable. He can't get into the impregnable Uppe rHouse, and even if he does, finding the Sixth Part of the Will and the Sixth Key might not be enouh to stop Saturday's ultimate bid for power.
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Woo-hoo! Arthur's a denizen!!!! *happy dance* Yeah, I know I sound evil, but I've been waiting for this ever since the beginning of Lady Friday. At first I didn't want him to become a denizen, but now that he is, I just...aaaaaahhh. I'm really happy. And poor Leaf, stuck in that hospital after its been nuked....sigh. These people just want the world to end, don't they? Anywho....AAAHHH!!!! ARTHUR!!!!!!!! ^_^ He's definitelty changing. He's all crazyish in the first chapter of Lord Sunday, which I have heard read by Garth Nix. Very interesting this is...

Graceling

2010-02-14T13:54:00.000-08:00

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight- she's a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king's thug. When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po's friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace - or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away...
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I'd seen all the great reviews. I'd glanced at it on Barnes and Noble.com. I even watched the trailer for this. None of that really and truly described the pure awesomeness of this book. Go Kristin Cashore!!!!!!!!! I'm going to wait a while until I read Fire, but I'm sure it'll be just as good!

()o()o()

A picture of me reading Superior Saturday by Garth Nix. ;)

Guess What? I'm screaming inside!!!

2010-02-08T15:44:00.000-08:00

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!
Guess what tomorrow is? (Besides February 9)
Heather Brewer's fourth Vladimir Tod book comes out! I'm so freaking excited! (:
Oh, but I don't get to read it until Friday. Darn.
And on the front on writing....
I'm working on Chapter 2 of my young adult novel, Purple Roses. I really enjoy writing about this...
And, I get to go to a three and a half writing competition tomorrow...as long as it doesn't snow three inches (like every meteorologist in Warren County is predicting). But, at least three of our weather men really stink at predicting weather (which, that's their job). So, I wasn't that worried...until I just a few minutes ago happened to look at the radar.
*1 hour later*
Its snowing. Big flakes. This is horrible. I have writing to do!!!!!!!! :'( I have competitions to win!!! Curse you snow!!!!!!!!

Dark Visions: The Strange Power, The Possessed, The Passion

2010-02-05T12:53:00.001-08:00

Katilyn Fairchild has always felt like an outsider in her small hometown. Her haunting eyes and prophetic drawings have earned her a reputation as a witch. But Kait's not a witch; she's a psychic. Tired of being shunned, Kait accepts an invitation to attend the Zetes Institute, where she can have a fresh start and study with other psychic teens.

Learning to hone her abilities with four other gifted students, Kait discovers the intensity of her power - and the joy of having true friends. But those friendships quickly become complicated when Kait finds herself torn between two irristible guys. Rob is kind and athletic, and heals people with his good energy. Gabriel is aggressive and mysterious, a telepath concealing his true nature as a psychic vampire, feeding off of others' life energy. Together, Rob and Gabriel's opposing forces threaten the group's stability. The once of the experiments traps the five teens ina psychic link. A link that threatens their sanity and their lives. And Kaitlyn must decide whom to trust...and whom to love.

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This book was 721 freaking pages long. But it was good. It was full of the romantic twists and turns that L.J. Smith is famous for. I was confused somewhat at the...uh....trustworthiness of Gabriel in the Passion, but I think that the ending was very good. My favorite part, though, was when Kaitlyn was put in the whatchamacallit thing and Gabriel had to talk to her telepathically so that she wouldn't lose her sanity. Pretty intriguing. But, yeah. Whoop de freaking doo. Don't get me wrong- this book was good, but just too long. Ah, well.

Fade

2010-02-03T18:38:00.001-08:00

Some nightmares never end.

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.

Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open - but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.

Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability - and its bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared...

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I agree with my friend Taylor - this one was better than Wake. I never expected what happened in this to actually happen. Very...interesting.

But, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone under the age of thirteen.

Just to be safe. ;)

Wake

2010-02-03T18:24:00.000-08:00

For seventeen year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people's dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the mushy-gushy dreams. Janie's seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime. She can't tell anybody about what she does - they'd never believe her, or worse, they'd think she was a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn't want and can't control. Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is not only a witness to someone else's twisted psyche. She is a participant...

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I read this book in one and a half hours.

But that isn't unusual for me.

So, I'll just say that this book was really good. It was different from what I've read before. It was one of those books that my best friend, Taylor got me interested in (she also got me into Fablehaven....The Last Apprentice....Sarah Dessen Books....Yeah...). So, she let me borrow the sequel, Fade, which I finished on the way home from school. Quite a good series. I'm waiting for her to finish the third and final book, Gone, so that I can borrow that one too. :)

The Last Days

2010-02-03T18:17:00.001-08:00

In the gritty apocalypse that began in Scott Westerfeld's Peeps, five teenagers find themselves creating the soundtrack to the end of the world....

Strange things are happening in New York City; trash is piling up in the streets, old friends are disappearing, angels (or devils) are clambering on the fire escapes. But for Pearl, Moz, Zahler, all that matters is their band. As the city reels under a mysterious epidemic, the three combine their talents with a vampire lead singer and a drummer whose fractured mind can glimpse the coming darkness. Will their music stave off the end...or summon it?

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Well, I thought Peeps was good, and this was just as good. I found it somewhat confusing because the point of view changed every chapter, but the story was really good. I just wish that Moz had gotten with Pearl. But NO! Minerva had to come along and be all selfish and infect Moz. I almost SCREAMED when I read that. *buries face in pillow and screams*

Well, anyway, I wish there was another book in the Peeps series, but, alas. There is not. *sighs*.

City of Ashes

2010-01-29T10:48:00.000-08:00

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? Clary would love to spend more time with her best friend, Simon. But the Shadowhunters won't let her go - especially her handsome, infuriation newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil - and also her father. When the second of the Mortal Instruments is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor suspects Jace. Could Jace really be willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?
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So, I actually finished this like a month ago...but actually never got the chance to blog about it. Hmm. I wonder how that happened....
Anyway, this book was really awesome. My favorite chapters- 9 and 10. Don't ask. Just read them. All I can say is that Simon's life really sucks. Literally. ;)
So...I'm almost finished with another book, so I should have that one on here within another two hours. :D

The Looking Glass Wars

2010-01-28T20:50:00.000-08:00

The myth: Alice Liddel was an ordinary girl who stepped through the looking glass and entered a fairy-tale world invented by Lewis Carroll in his famous storybook.
The truth: Wonderland is real. Alyss Heart is the heir to the throne, until her murderous aunt Redd steals the crown and kills Alyss's parents. To escape Redd, Alyss and her bodyguard, Hatter Madigan, must flee to our world through the Pool of Tears. But in the pool Alyss and Hatter are separated. Lost and alone in Victorial London, Alyss is befriended by an aspiring author, to whom she tells the voilent, heartbreaking story of her young life. yet he gets the story all wrong. Hatter Madigan knows the truth only too well, and he is searching every corner of our world to find the lost princess and return her to Wonderland so she may battle Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts.
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The real reason I read this- I had to teach a lesson on Lewis Carroll and I needed another visual activity besides mentioning the messed up movie. So, I decided to give this a try. And, boy, was I surprised. I never expected anything like this. This book was somewhat hard to keep up with, but I managed to get everything. I especially liked the way that we would see Alyss's struggles in the real world, and then it would switch back to Dodge for a little while. I was scared for a little while that Dodge would turn evil...but he didn't- at least not in this book. :/ He worries me.
But I think this will be a very good book series. And a good movie. In 2012. Grr.

Peeps

2010-01-28T09:13:00.001-08:00

A year ago, Cal Thompson was a college freshman more interested in meeting girls and partying than in attending biology class. Now, after a fateful encounter with a mysterious woman named Morgan, biology has become, literally, Cal's life.
Cal was infected by a parasite that has a truly horrifying effect on its host. Cal himself is a carrier, unchanged by the parasite, but he's infected the girlfriends he's had since Morgan. All three have turned into the ravening ghouls Cal calls Peeps. The rest of us know them as vampires. It's Cal's job to hunt them down before they can create more of their kind. . . .
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So, I ordered this book and waited a week for it to come in. Then, about two days after I ordered it, I went to Barnes and Noble and guess what? The had finally got it in stock. TT_TT
But this book was really good. And I mean REALLY good. This book puts any book by Stephenie Meyer, Christopher Paolini, and Heather Brewer to shame.
As usual, Scott Westerfeld does his best work. :) Luv ya Scott!

Academic Team

2010-01-27T09:01:00.001-08:00

Okay, okay...I know this is supposed to be a book blog, but I just had to post this tidbit about the academic team I'm on. We came in second place in our quick recall! And I got first in Writing! :)

House

2010-01-22T08:38:00.001-08:00

Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker - two of the most acclaimed writers of supernatural thrillers- have joined forces for the first time to craft a story unlike any you've ever read. Enter House - where you'll find yourself thrown into a killer's deadly game in which the only way to win is to lose...and the only way out is in. The stakes of the game become clear when a tin can is tossed into the house with rules scrawled on it. Rules that only a madman - or worse - could have written. Rules that make no sense yet must be followed. One game. Seven players. Three rules. Game ends at dawn.
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So, I had originally bought this book for a friend, but they said that this book was "frightening" and that I could have it back. So, I've been reading this book all week, and Its really put me on edge at night. This book really made me think. It was kind of confusing to keep up with the sudden changes from one character to another, but I did finish it! There was a movie made of it, but I think I'll wait till I'm like, 21, to watch it. :)
ve been reading th

By The Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead

2010-01-19T17:38:00.001-08:00

Daelyn Rice is broken beyond repair, and after a series of botched suicide attempts, she's determined to get her death right. She starts visiting a website for "completers" - www.through-the-light.com. (NOT A REAL WEBSITE) While she's on the site, Daelyn blogs about her life, uncovering a history of bullying that goes back to kindergarden. When she's not on the web, Daelyn's at her private school, where she's known as the freak who doesn't talk. Then, a boy named Santana begins to sit with her after school while she's for her parents to pick her up. Even though she's made it clear that she wants to be left alone, Santana won't give up. And its too late for Daelyn to be letting people into her life - isn't it?
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So, I have a really bad past that has a ton of bullying in it. Daelyn, though, had a whole lot more than I've ever had. So, when she swallows ammonia to try and committ suicide, the doctors save her, but that leaves her throat all messed up. I found this 23 day journey about a girl who just wants to leave it all behind and a boy who is unowingly convincing her to stay, really moving. I definitely reccommend it.

The Vampire Diaries, Volume 1: The Awakening and The Struggle

2010-01-19T17:24:00.000-08:00

A new school year for Elena brings along a whole lot of changes. For one, the new boy, Stefan Salvatore, is completely ignoring her. Plus, all these murders...what is going on? Elena plans on finding out...

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Yeah, I wasn't in a good mood when I wrote that summary. But anyway, I found this book rather...CHEESY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was laughing when Elena was freaking out because Damen was threatening to kill her sister. It was so....MELODRAMATIC!!!!!! And plus, they made a TV show about this. Could they have gone any more wrong?!?!?!???!?!?!?! I mean seriously- Elena is supposed to be a BLONDE. And Damen was supposed to be HOT. In case you hadn't noticed, he isn't in that picture (guy on left is Damen). And Stefan is supposed to be at least CUTE. He looks like some guy that just got out of the military, for crying out loud!!!!! Can't these people get anything right?!

Prophecy of the Sisters

2010-01-19T17:18:00.000-08:00

Twin sisters Lia and Alice Milthorpe have just become orphans. They have also become enemies. As they discover their roles in a prophecy that has turned generations of sisters against each other, the girls find themselves entangled in a mystery that involves a tattoo-like mark, their parents' deaths, a boy, a book, and a lifetime of secrets. Lia and Alice don't know whom they can trust. They just know they can't trust eachother.
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So...this book took me a while to finish. But, I think it was well worth my time. I lent this book to the a friend, and she couldn't get past Chapter 7, saying that it was scary. Frankly, I thought of this book as very intriguing. The ending was very sudden and...shocking. I could have never seen that coming! When I read that in the car, my mouth dropped open and I dropped my iPod. I couldn't believe it! Luckily, there is going to be three books, so I'll be able to hear more about Lia and Alice. Yay!

So You Want to Be a Wizard

2010-01-11T10:52:00.000-08:00

When Nita finds a book entitled So You Want to Be a Wizard, she thinks that its just a good joke. But it turns out to be the complete opposite- the book is a manual for becoming an actual wizard! So Nita, along with fellow young wizard Kit, and a white hole named Fred have to save the world from the forces of darkness!
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This was not one of my favorite books. I think I wasted four dollars on it. It was really hard for me to get into this book. It was confusing, there were a lot of things left unexplained in the ending (like, what in the world is Timeheart??????) So, I'm not going to write much about it because I have a much more interesting book waiting to be read.

Crocodile Tears

2009-12-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

Alex Rider has spent the past year turning into someone he never wanted to be. No teen should have to endure a sniper's gunshot would, hand-to-hand combat with people twice his size, and the cruelty of men intent on killing thousands to innocent lives. Yet this is the role Alex has reluctantly accepted. Until now. All Alex wants is a normal life back at school. There is more than enough suffering in the world without Alex being a part of it. And yet, not coincidentally, it's that suffering that keeps drawing him back to his life as a spy. Suffering is a business like any other. And it's about to cash in like you've never imagined.
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This book in the Alex Rider series was different from the rest. It seemed more, well, intense than the rest. One of the escapes in Chapter 23 seemed rather impossible, but I suppose that someone could do it. No matter-this book was very good. I'm glad I finally finished it. I can now read City of Ashes, even if I already read part of Chapter 9 and all of Chapter 10.
And, in addition to this, I read a Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist Manga yesterday. :)

Project 17

2009-12-27T10:47:00.000-08:00

High atop Hathone Hill, near Boston, sits Danvers State Hospital. Built in 1878 and closed in 1992, this abandoned mental institution is rumored to be the birthplace of the lobotomy. On the eve of the hospital's demolition, six teens break in to spend the night and film a movie about their experiences. For Derik, it's an opportunity to win a filmmaking contest and save himself from a future of flipping burgers at his parent's diner. For the others, it's a chance to be on TV, or for a night with no parents. But what starts as a dare quickly escalates into a nightmare. Behind the crumbling walls, down every dark passageway, and in eah deserted room the will unravel the mysteries of those who once lived there and the spirits who still might.

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I usually don't read ghost stories. Well, I usually don't read any books by Laurie Faria Stolarz, since she is one of the most prominent horror writers of teen fiction. This book was described by Publishers Weekly as, "Breakfast Club meets Blair Witch Project." Now, I have no idea what the Breakfast Club is, but I do know what the Blair Witch Project is, since the director is from around where I live. THIS BOOK WAS NOWHERE NEAR AS SCARY AS THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I mean, the whole idea of teenagers taking a camera to film something scary in a scary place is similar, but I'm serious-this book was not scary at all. I laughed when one of the characters screamed. I have a little tidbit about the scariest part below. ;) But, yeah. I'm not going to have nightmares about this book, not like Dracula. But the only reason I had a nightmare with the Prince of Darkness (Dracula) in it was because I read it before bed. Stupid me. :)

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So, while I was looking for the book cover on Google, I came across some fan made art for this book. Now, before your eyes get too big, this is a doll. With a noose around its neck. In case you hadn't noticed. This was the only part where I got freaked out. So here's how it went-
Derik, the camera dude, opened this door and went in this room. Upon entering, he saw this doll (see picture!) with a noose around its neck. And then things got even freakier. The doll started talking. And here's what it said:
"Baby Debbie likes to cry
Baby Debbie wants to die."
And then it started laughing, and the whole time it was swinging...and yeah. Scariness! Plus some cheesiness!!! :) But I liked this book.

City of Bones

2009-12-26T00:02:00.000-08:00

When fifteen year old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing strange weapons. Clary knows she should call the police, but it's hard to explain a murder when the body dissappears into thin air and the murderers are invisible to everyone but Clary. Equally startled by her ability to see them, the murderers explain themselves as Shadowhunters: a secret tribe of warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. Within twenty-four hours, Clary's mother dissappears and Clary herself is almost killed by a grotesque demon. But why would demons be interested in her? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know.
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Well. This was certainly an interesting book. It is definitely one of a kind. I've never read anything like it. It is a combination of faeries, wizards, demons, angels, werewolves, and vampires, plus romance and action. When I got to the end of this book, I was left speechless. I'm serious. I gaped at what I had just read. I never would have thought...well, anyway, I'm hopefully going to get the sequel, City of Ashes, tomorrow. Ciao, and Merry Christmas!

Swoon

2009-12-22T12:06:00.001-08:00

Torn from her native New York City and dumped in the land of cookie-cutter preps, Candice is resigned to accept her posh, dull fate. Nothing ever happens in Swoon, Connecticut...until Dice's perfect, privileged cousin Penelope nearly dies in a fall from an old tree and her spirit intertwines with that of a ghost. His name? Sinclair Youngblood Powers. His mission? Revenge. And while Pen is oblivious to the possession, Dice is all too aware of Sin. She's intensely drawn to him-but not at all crazy about the havoc he's wreaking. Determined to exorcise the demon, Dice accidentally sets Sin loose, gives him flesh, makes him formidable. Now she must destroy an even more potent-and irrestible-adversary before the whole town succumbs to Sin's will. Only trouble is, she's in love with him. What do you do when the boy of your dreams is too bad to be true?
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I borrowed this book from my friend with skepticism. I had seen this book many times at Barnes and Noble, I'd even picked it up a couple of times. But once I got past chapter two, I was hooked. This book was amazing. I couldn't have predicted the ending. I'm still reeling from the climax!!!!

The Luxe

2009-12-21T14:21:00.002-08:00

Parties until dawn, huge dresses, and irresistable boys- this is New York, 1899. Elizabeth and Diana Holland are the two most prominent girls of the season. But when financial trouble arises, and Elizabeth is forced to marry a man whom she hates, it seems that there is a problem at every corner. This tale of romance, betrayal, and jealousy will show that the Age of Innocence is anything but innocent.
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Well, I'm usually not one for romance mushy-gushy kiss kiss books, but this one really caught my attention. The historical facts just made the story so much more believable. There was mention of the Vanderbilts and the Schuylers, which were real families of New York. I thouroughly enjoyed this book, and I found myself scolding Penelope for being such a back stabbing girl. :) I can't wait to read Rumors, but I guess I'll have to, since I just started another book and one that I ordered last Saturday will finally be coming in tomorrow (I ordered it through Fed-Ex, and they shipped it to Atlanta, Georgia, then shipped it to some place in Ohio. That's kind of stupid, since I live in a state between Georgia and Ohio. Stupid Fed-Ex).

Pretties

2009-12-20T11:18:00.001-08:00

Tally has finally become Pretty. Now her looks are beyong prefect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she's completely popular. It's everything she's ever wanted. But beneath all the fun- the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom- is a nagging sense that something's wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally's ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what's wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold. Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life- because the authorities don't intend to let anyone with this information survive.
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Scott Westerfeld has done it again. He has written a novel so captivating that I couldn't put it down. I love the descriptions of everything Tally and Zane (by the way, the girl with the red hair on the cover is Tally, and the guy is Zane) have to go through. I can't wait to read Specials, though I think that one will be a little, well, weird.

Everwild

2009-12-20T10:47:00.000-08:00

Stories in Everlost tell of two mystical beings- a Sky Witch, who flys around searching for lost children, and a Chocolate Ogre, who will give you a coin that will take you to, well, no one knows.
Those are the new names for Mary Hightower and Nick. These two enemies fight to do what they think is right to the children of Everlost. Meanwhile, Allie, along with Mikey (who used to be the McGill) are trying to find Allie's parents. Allie is trying to not become addicted to the seductive art of skinjacking, when she learns a shocking secret about all skinjackers. This second book in the Skinjacker Trilogy by Neal Shusterman will take you deeper into the mysteries of Everlost like never before.
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So, after I read Everlost, I had to get the second book. Luckily, the day I finished it, Everwild came out. Who knew? Anyway, I really enjoyed this. All the while, I felt myself cheering for the characters (Except for Milos...:P). I can't wait to read the third book, but who knows when that one will come out! ;)

Everlost

2009-12-05T11:03:00.000-08:00

Nick and Allie didn't survive the car crash...but they didn't exactly get where they were going. Instead, they end up in Everlost, a limbo between what lies beyond the tunnel and the living world. There, they make a friend, Lief, and make some enemies. There are some downsides to being dead, like sinking in the ground. But, it seems that Mary Hightower, self proclaimed ruler of the Everlost has all the answers to all questions. Nick immediately likes her, but Allie has a different opinion about her. When Nick, Lief and Allie are kidnapped by the "McGill", a monster, they will do everything they can to escape-but will they escape before the true villian sinks them all?
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So...yeah. Neal Shusterman did a wonderful job with Everlost. I found every twist and turn so suprising...well, it was almost like reading The Hunger Games again. Good job Shusterman!

Blue Moon/The Hunger Games

2009-12-02T15:12:00.001-08:00

In this second book of The Immortal series, Ever and Damen's relationship seems to be fine-until a strange sickness strikes Damen. As Ever's powers increase, Damen is beginning to lose his. He looses his memory, totally forgetting about his and Ever's relationship. Ever then goes to Summerland, where she learns the workings of time. She is then faced with a choice- she could stay in the present and save Damen, or go back to the past and save her family from the car wreck...

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I read this one in a mere three hours. This series is absolutely AMAZING!!!!! Alyson Noel brings a series of books that are, for a change, not vampire involving. I was proud of myself that I found a series of books that didn't have any vamps in it. I really enjoy all the characters. I had started to like Roman, but....sadly, he is a bad guy...:'(

I don't know how I'm going to get the third book, but I'll probably just go to Barnes and Noble for a couple of hours and read it.

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Katniss Everdeen lives in District Twelve on the remains of North America. When she takes her sister's place in the annual "Hunger Games" (a fight to the death on national tv), she really has no idea what she is getting into. Katniss and her fellow contestant, Peeta Mellark, must do all they can to survive- but there are 22 other contestants, all ready to kill them both. Who will survive?

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Okay, so my friend read this book, and she got down on her knees and begged me to read it. So, while I was at her house, I read it. And I will say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have read other Suzanne Collins books (The Underland Chronicles), but this has to be her best work yet. The whole time I was reading it, I was keeping count of the contestants, counting down until there were only three left. After I finished it, my friend asked me, "Isn't Pita a kind of bread?" I found it extremely ironic that Peeta was the son of a baker. So, on my list of books to read, I have put the sequel to this, Catching Fire.

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Here is an update on Gone With the Wind.....I passed page fifty!!! Woo-hoo!!!!! The only reason I'm going so slow is because I'm reading so many other books on the side. :)

Tentacles

2009-11-26T14:31:00.001-08:00

In this sequel to Cryptid Hunters, by Roland Smith, Marty and his cousin Grace are in deep water-literally! Travis Wolfe and his team are on the hunt for a giant squid. But right behind them is Noah Blackwood, Grace's grandfather. He will stop at nothing to get Grace, the giant squid, and, the dinosaur hatchlings in his hands. Someone on the ship wants to sabotage their mission to capture the squid, and its up to Marty, Grace, and their friend Luther to get to the bottom of the mystery-or end up at the bottom of the sea.
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It has been a while since I've read Crptid Hunters, so it took me a while to remember half of the characters. Roland Smith, as always, never ceases to lose my attention in his books. This one especially kept me wanting more. The ending was exactly the way I wanted it! I am so happy with this book right now. The way it ended suggests that there will be a third book in this series. I really enjoyed this book. :)
Have a happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Evermore

2009-11-24T20:16:00.000-08:00

Ever since her parents and her younger sister died in a tragic car accident, Ever Bloom has become, well, different. She can see people's Auras, hear their thoughts, and know someone's entire life story by simply touching them. By trying to avoid contact with people, she is branded as a freak at her high school. But then, the new student, Damen Auguste, changes everything for Ever. He silences everything that she hears, gives her a little while of calm. But there are too many questions than answers about Damen, and all that Ever knows is that she is falling deeply in love with him...
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Okay, so this is the best book I've read since Twilight. I'm serious. I read this book in four hours. It was just one of those books that makes me think, "Wow. Wow!" This book totally immersed me. There were just some parts in this book that were so funny that it was hard not to start rolling on the floor, laughing my head off. Miles says the funniest things! =) I can not wait to read Blue Moon, and then Shadowlands. Right now, though, I am really backed up with reading. I still have Gone With the Wind to finish, and I borrowed Tentacles by Roland Smith from the library today, and I bought The Opal Deception, So You Want to Be a Wizard?, and The Portrait of Dorian Gray. So I'm totally fixed up for Thanksgiving break. Too many books...so little time!

Gone With the Wind

2009-11-20T09:15:00.000-08:00

Have you ever read a book that seemed to go on and on and on and on? Well, for me, that's how Gone With the Wind is. I am only on chapter three, and I am really struggling to keep my interest in this book. I am going to finish it, though. I will have to read it some day, so might as well get it over with now. My Literature teacher is really happy that I am reading this, but I still have my doubts on if I am going to like this book at all. :/

Post-Mortem

2009-11-18T18:21:00.001-08:00

In this ground-breaking novel, literary genius Particia Cornwell introduces medical examiner Dr. Kay Scarpetta. In the Richmond, VA area, a murderer is on the loose, killing women by strangling them. With five victims on her tables, Scarpetta has her hands full while trying to solve this crime, juggling an uncertain romance, dealing with the jerks who call themselves her bosses, and having to take care of her 10 year-old neice, Lucy. Plus, someone within the investigation is sabotaging the evidence, and, on top of all that, someone wants her dead. Just another case in the life of Dr. Kay Scarpetta.
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Finally! My history teacher finally found it! :) I absolutely loved this book. I was hooked on it from the very first page. I have never read a novel so...addictive! I couldn't hardly put this book down. During Academic Team matches, I read. On trips, I read. In bed at eleven o'clock at night, I read. This book was more addicting than Breaking Dawn. I can't wait to read the next book in the Kay Scarpetta series, Body of Evidence. It is going to be so good!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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On a side note.....I get to do a book report on Uglies!!!!!!!!! I am so excited. By the way, It might be a while before I update again, because I am going to read Gone With the Wind. Probably won't finish that for a couple of weeks.......:)

Uglies/Stargirl

2009-11-11T05:01:00.000-08:00

It has been quite a while since I read a book like this. Tally Youngblood is almost 16. That means that she will get the operation that will make her a pretty. But her new friend Shay knows a whole different side to the pretty world. When Shay runs away with the mysterious and unknown David, Tally thinks nothing of it, only counts down the days until her operation. But then- right before her operation- Special Circumstances (like the FBI of the future) tells Tally that she has to find Shay and turn herself in or never become pretty at all. What Tally does will shock you.
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This is the first Scott Westerfield book that I have ever read. And I will tell you- it was nothing like I thought it would be. I was totally absorbed in it. Every twist and turn that this book had kept me begging for more. When this book ended, I said to myself, "Why do authors always leave you with a cliffhanger???" So I am going to read the sequel, Pretties, as soon as possible.
Uglies really showed a new view of conformity. Every pretty looks different, but is basically the same, just like society today. This was a futuristic book, so there were some aspects of it that were, well, off the wall. A toothpaste pill???? Wouldn't that be a little weird and disgusting at the same time? Hoverboards, talking rooms, and strange words such as "bubbly" and "bogus" and "rusties"...
Anyway, this is one of the very few Science-Fiction books that I have enjoyed. GO SCOTT WESTERFIELD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
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Scott Westerfield aside...I finished Stargirl last night. The ending was soooooo sad!!!! Curse you Hillari Kimble! How dare you...erm...I better not give away the ending for those of you who are going to read this wonderful book. I saw parts of myself in Stargirl. The noncomformity, it just so applies to me. Now that I finished it...maybe I will get the answers right about this book in Academic Team!!! :)

Stargirl

2009-11-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

Since I'm still waiting for my history teacher to find Postmortem for me...I suppose I should give an update on Stargirl.
Leo and Stargil are now together (finally!) and are being "shunned" (as Archie calls it) by the rest of the school. It doesn't bother Stargirl, but it definitely bothers Leo.
If I had my way, I would be done with this book by now. But, alas, my Literature teacher has forbade me to do such a thing.
*sigh*

At Risk

2009-10-30T14:46:00.001-07:00

Monique Lamont, DA, is a person who everyone else's life centers around. Her employee, Win (for short) is called back from Tennessee Forensics Academy to help her with a new comission called At Risk. It requires them to open up an old case (which, ironically, is from Knoxville, TN) to prove that the new DNA technology can crack old cold cases. But when a violent act hits close to home, Win and Lamont will get more than they bargained for...and put more at risk than they could have ever imagined.
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This is the first Patricia Cornwell novel I have read, but this has to be the most amazing crime novel I have ever read. I got this book late Wednesday night, and I finished it this afternoon. Every twist and turn Cornwell brought about left me gasping for more about Win and Lamont, not to mention Sykes. I enjoyed Patricia Cornwell's writing so much, that I begged my history teacher to bring me the first in the Kay Scarpetta series, Postmortem. I can't wait to read it. Patricia Cornwell, I have found a new favorite author in you.

Skeleton Key

2009-10-29T17:33:00.000-07:00

Just weeks after the events of Point Blank, MI6 is back in Alex's life. He is sent to America, to the CIA, to help them in an under cover operation on the island of Skeleton Key, with CIA agents Carver and Troy. Alex is promised two weeks in the sun...nothing to worry about...leave the spying to the CIA. But, as always, things are not always what they seem, and soon Alex is sucked back in to the world of psychopaths and bombs. General Sarov of Russia has a nuclear bomb big enough to take out an entire city, and he plans to use it- unless Alex can stop him first.
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Like all Alex Rider books, it was phenomonal. I didn't put this book down (except to go to sleep). The heart-pounding, breath-stopping action that Anthony Horowitz always provides took me on a thrill ride that will make this book be always one of my favorites. My favorite part was probably when Sarov told Alex he wanted to adopt him (I don't know about you, but I'm for Alex becoming like an enemy to MI6, or something). I love all the Alex Rider books, but this one has to be my favorite, right beside Scorpia.
Anthony Horowitz never ceases to suprise me with his amazing works. In a few weeks, the sequel to Snakehead (which I have yet to read), Crocodile Tears, comes out. I can't wait.

The City of Ember

2009-10-24T12:08:00.000-07:00

I actually finished The City of Ember last night, but I was too tired to post this.
The two main characters of this book, Lina and Doon, switch jobs at the beginning of the book. In the process, Lina finds some paper which her little sister had been chewing on, and some other scraps which are some sort of "instructions" for something. When Lina and Doon figure out that it is a way out of Ember, they know what they have to do. But will they have the courage to do it?
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I have had plenty of chances to read this book, but it never interested me. I guess that this book was okay...a little boring at times, but still good. I don't know if I will be reading the other three books, but probably not. This book was for someone who had absolutely nothing to do. Which was what I was doing. Absolutely nothing. The City of Ember is a good contribution to Young Adult literature, but it is definitely NOT one of my favorite books.

The Witches/Stargirl

2009-10-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I just finished reading The Witches by Roald Dahl. I have always enjoyed Roald Dahl's writing, but this has to be the most entertaining story of his I have ever read. And, yes, this was most certainly NOT a fairy tale, but it was about REAL witches. *laughs* This tale follows a young boy as he learns about witches from his grandmamma. The witches absolutely despise children, and they want to destroy every child because they smell like dog droppings. At first, the grandson doesn't belive...but when he experiences the annual meeting of the witches of England, he begins to think differently - especially when he is turned into a mouse! It's up to him and his grandmamma to rid the world of witches once and for all by using Formula 86 Delayed Action Mouse - Maker!

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Roald Dahl, yet again, does a marvelous job with this children's book. The way he writes, the words he uses (e.g, blabbersnitch), it all falls together into this wonderful story that generations have loved. My personal favorite story of Dahl's is The BFG. I couldn't put this book down, so I have been reading it since ten this morning. It was so good! I will definitely read this book again, and I give it two thumbs up, or whatever you are supposed to say when rating books.

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As a side note, I am having to read Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli for school, so this will be an on-going thing. This book, in my opinion, is a perfect description of schools nowadays. The popular kids are the ones that the whole school revolves around. The wear the same clothes as them, talk like them, act like them- imitate them in every way possible. But when Stargirl Calloway comes into the picture, everything changes- especially for Leo.

Hello

2009-10-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Hello, blogging world! My name is Lauren, and I am an avid reader. On this blog, I will be posting books that I have read, and my reviews about them. This is my first blog....so here goes nothing!