Waiting On Wednesday #5

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for 

 

 

Seraphina 

by Rachel Hartman

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Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high. 

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life. 

In her exquisitely written fantasy debut, Rachel Hartman creates a rich, complex, and utterly original world. Seraphina's tortuous journey to self-acceptance is one readers will remember long after they've turned the final page.

 

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

Date read : March, 4, 2012 

Challenge :2012 YA/MG Fantasy Challenge ,Debut Author Challenge

Rating :  3/5
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New soul Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why. No soul Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame? Heart Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies--human and creature alike--let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all? Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.




My Thoughts

Ever looked at a book, and thought, I'm gonna fall in love with this one!
 That's what I thought would happen with Incarnate, I just loved the cover (how vain of me, but meh! you know you did it too!), but sadly, I did not fall head over heels for Incarnate.


 Now hold on, I'm not saying that I did not like it, I liked it a big deal. I loved Ana, she was strong and weak, silly and serious, cautious and impulsive, oblivious and wise, all at the same time. She isn't lying helpless somewhere waiting to be saved, she is trying to find out where she came from, and why. She felts guilty for something she had no control over. And when every time she finds out some new fact about Sam, she doesn't just get that glossy look in her eyes, and assure him everything is A OK! No, she tries to figure out how can she hand that new truth about him, she use her brain, not her hormones! How many YA heroines can you say has done this? Not that many, I know!

 The premises of Incarnate, while not exactly unique, it still has it's appeal. I really liked Jodi Meadows take on Incarnation, I haven't read lots of books on that concept, but some of the ones I did, handled it horribly. Jodi's writing had me griped so much that I stayed late to try and finish the book, I did not win against sleep. But I did manage to finish it on my way to work, I had to know, I just had gotten to the fun part where....

  Aaaaah I'm not gonna tell, go read for yourself! 

So if so far, I had nothing but good things to say about the book, why didn't I fall in love with it?? Mostly because of Sam No it's not like that. He's a cool guy I swear. And it's not his fault at all. I guess it was mine. It's just, every time I read about Sam, every time he talked, moved or drunk coffee, I kept imagining this OLD guy. I blame Jodi for this, she did an good job making sound like the all the years he lived, that I couldn't just imagine him young. And every time he was with Ana, I just imagined an old guy with a redhead. Something like this
















 I know I know! It's not fair! But I couldn't see Sam as a 18 years old.

 That's the only reason keeping me from give this book anything but 3 stars! But if you can get past this, I'm sure you will love this book like I never could.

Three Butterflies

(3/5)

Starters by Lissa Price

Date read : March, 2 , 2012

Challenge : Debut Author Challenge

Rating :  3/5
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Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man. He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders—seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in Callie's head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter, living in her mansion, driving her cars, and going out with a senator's grandson. It feels almost like a fairy tale, until Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party—and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than Callie could ever have imagined. . . .

My Review



My Review An advance review copy was provided by the publishers via NetGalley.

So I'm gonna try to review this book without giving away any spoilers. It took me a while to read this book, and it wasn't because I didn't enjoy it, but since I was provided with an eARC, and it took me a while to figure out how to download it to my eReader.

 Starters had a slow start, I know it's the first in a series, but still, I found myself bored at times, and the last 100 pages were packed with action, I can't say I expected the turn of events at the end but it felt rushed, it throw off the balance, and left me with an uneasy feeling I couldn't place. And this is the only reason that's keeping me from giving the book 4 stars.

Over all, Starts is fun read, you will try to predict what happens next, but most of the times, you will get it wrong. I'll be reading the next book for sure.

The Fine Art of Truth or Dare by Melissa Jensen

Ella is nearly invisible at the Willing School, and that’s just fine by her. She’s got her friends—the fabulous Frankie and their sweet cohort Sadie. She’s got her art—and her idol, the unappreciated 19th-century painter Edward Willing. Still, it’s hard being a nobody and having a crush on the biggest somebody in the school: Alex Bainbridge. Especially when he is your French tutor, and lessons have started becoming, well, certainly more interesting than French ever has been before. But can the invisible girl actually end up with a happily ever after with the golden boy, when no one even knows they’re dating? And is Ella going to dare to be that girl? 

Date read : March, 1 , 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

Rating : 2/5
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My Thoughts 

So, I've been waiting to read this book, well, since I saw it floating around blogs and GR, it sounded like it might be a good one, they did mention Anna and the French Kiss meets something else I haven't read, and blessed him/her who wrote the synopsis, he/she has no clue whatsoever how to compare books, because AatFK rocked, and TFAoToD SUCKED!


   Truth : I felt cheated, I was expecting a lot of fun truths and dares..
 

   Hey! Don't judge me! I loved playing truth or dare!!

Why I think this books sucked:

 1. Ella.
Yes, I think the number one reason I hated this book was because of her, I think if you take Ella of the book, you'd have a winner. She's someone who -in a million trillion years- I wouldn't be caught dead with, she's boring, boring... and yes BORING! And she talks to dead people. No no, not ghosts, not spirits, not even zombies, she talks to this dead artist, like, TALKS to him, in my standards, if you're not in paranormal /fantasy novel, it's never a good sign if you talk to dead people.  

2. The flat eventless encounters with Ella and Alex.
That says it all. There was nothing that drew me to like the "romance". The shared a lemon soda and watched Jurassic Park in french **** is that the part which is suppose to be similar to AntFK??*** Bo ho! I had more romance with a guy I went out once who talked about his mother 90% of the time, seriously! YA authors, learn to romance PLEASE!  

3. The writing.
 I found myself skipping pages at the second half of the book, not that the first half was better, but I was hopeful it would get better, at some point, I was hoping someone would kill someone so I won't have to, that surely had to spice things up!  

4. Ella.
 Yes I know I mentioned her, but I hated her so much that I had to list her again.

 5. Alex.
 I hated the major characters of the book, isn't that sad! The main reason I hated Alex was, that after a few weeks of "hiding" Ella from the school and his friends, she shows him her scar, ** and this is the only time I felt anything but hate for Ella** his response was and I quote  

“I don’t even know what okay would mean,” he said. “‘Okay.’ We’ve never been okay. We’ve been kinda scrambling for it. I mean . . . crap . . . Thank you. For showing me. I know it cost you something. But Jesus, Ella, I really don’t want to feel like I have to constantly be reassuring you of things you should know for yourself. It’s exhausting and takes all the . . . I don’t know . . . satisfaction . . . out of saying what I feel.”

 Oh yeah, he's prince charming alright. Yes I get that they're only 17 and shit, but this is a girl who hid her scar from the world, it took herself confidence, made her shy, and she found it in herself to finally show that scar to some, he goes like "uh! um, I can't keep reassuring you it doesn't bother me, I've been doing it for three weeks for god sake!" Yeah, Alex, you're "the man"!

 There were some things that saved this book from getting a 1 star, or going to my less-than-one-star shelf, Frankie is one of them, I wanted to read more about him. Ella's family is another, I guess each deserved a star for being in the book, I felt sorry for them.


Two stars in my book, means I get to use this book for future sarcastic remark, and that's what I'm gonna do!

Two Leafs

(2/5)

Waiting On Wednesday #4

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

I'm waiting for

Insurgent 

by Veronica Roth

It's more like dying to read than waiting ;)

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love. 

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so. Goodreads

But again, who isn't!

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Date read : Jan, 30, 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight, she's going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. He's out there somewhere—spraying color, spraying birds and blue sky on the night—and Lucy knows a guy who paints like Shadow is someone she could fall for. Really fall for. Instead, Lucy's stuck at a party with Ed, the guy she's managed to avoid since the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow, they're suddenly on an all-night search around the city. And what Lucy can't see is the one thing that's right before her eyes.Goodreads












“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” 
― Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island

What I thought

I think I'm in luck this year, so far, I read these beautiful written books, with hidden meanings, and wonderful words, that grip your heart and won't let go, this one, has claimed a place in my heart, and won't let go.

I had this book in my Goodreads Recommendations for a while, and I wasn't sure I wanted to read it, it didn't hold my attention, but then I found it on my eReader while heading home, and decided to give it a try, I was captivated from the first few pages, 

Where’s the fire, Lucy Dervish?’
In me. Under my skin.


Paints guys with grass growing from their hearts and girls with buzzing lawn mowers.
How can you not be in trance after reading something like that? 

I can't say that I had a lot of experience with graffiti, we don't have much around where I live, but I always get these forward emails from a friend who is obsessed with them, I always thought they were cool, but now, I'm about to be obsessed myself, art in any kind or form is something I admire and respect, I don't have to like it or understand it to respect it. Thank you Cath Crowly, for giving me a new art to appreciate.

Graffiti Moon is about a girl and a boy, who have a wild night with there friends, find themselves, lose themselves, and come out with a bit more understanding of the world. It's about finding hope, when all things seem to be lost, it's about accepting who you love 100% even if they are 85% "weird". It's about friendship and how far would a person go for that best friend who stood by when all was falling apart. There is nothing new with the concept of Graffiti Moon, but at the same time, you have this feeling, that you never read anything like this, and Yes, I assure you, you haven't. 

Cath Crowly is one smooth author! She used this book like a wall and did her own graffiti with magic world filled with pinks, blues, and a hundred shades of red. I loved how she painted Lucy and Ed, they were magical creatures from a real world ( and I don't mean this in a paranormal way ), I love their friends as well., relationships in this are unique and warm, conversations flow in a manner that you wish you were there with them. 

I loved this book, everything about it, it was a good read I wished I hadn't put off for so long.

My favorite quote 

“I guess love's kind of like a marshmallow in a microwave on high. After it explodes it's still a marshmallow. but, you know, now it's a complicated marshmallow.”

4/5

Four Flower

Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

Date read : Jan, 24, 2012

Challenge : Just Contemporary Reading Challenge

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though - she leads them as the captain and quarterback on her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys, and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university. But now there's a new guy in town who threatens her starring position on the team... and has her suddenly wishing to be seen as more than just a teammate. (Goodreads)

What I thought




As I started reading this book, I was hoping it will not be a disappointment from all the good reviews I read about it, I liked Jordan right away, she had these great friends, she had a good relationship with her family, even though she didn't have her father's full support, it was still a nice family, I really liked that, most YA novels rule out the parents, to create more drama, but here you find a great brother, a supporting mother, a father who will not stop Jordan from doing what she loves, even though he does not like it. 

Jordan is funny, she is creative in her own way, when she starts writing in her journal, she tries to find her own voice, and it's really fun to read her poems.

As I progressed in the story, I was starting to get more scared, from what? Well Jordan met Ty, I thought she will have this big make over, and be all girly-girly, thank god that did not happen, and I was scared that she will be as closed mind as most people are, but she really thinks about things, and admits when she is wrong, I hardly see that in YA novels. 

I liked all the characters in this books, Jordan's teammates were great, they defend her and protect her, and most importantly, they respect her as a leader, even when she started having feelings for guys. My favorite was Henry though, he is as complicated as Jordan is, he too, made some mistakes, but he owned up to them, he grew as Jordan did, he's funny as hell, and who doesn't love green eyes!!

This book is a light fun read, I couldn't put it down. Some might say there are some weird things happening in this book, like Henry's sleepovers, but for me, I like weird things ;) To these people I always say: If things are not happening the way you are used to, doesn't necessarily mean they are wrong, you people *shockingly* are not the center of the world! Yes, what a surprise! I for one, really enjoyed this book, and I'll be reading the next one for sure. I'm starting to like sports related books, maybe if I read some more I will start watching real sports.... Naaah  never gonna happen!

4/5

Four Ribbons