30 Days of Insight Day 4

Day 04- What you imagine paradise to be like.

Paradise to me is a place where all my wishes come true. It's a warm place with a beach but also a nice house with a pool and woods nearby. Any person I'm thinkng of will suddenly appear so I don't have to pickup a phone- I'm lazy. When I was a young kid, I always wished I had a tv above my bed-I was on the top bunk- and whatever I wanted to watch would play, so I'd want one of those. And, of course, I want a house that makes you food whenever you want, like on the Disney movie Smart House.

Non-Book Related

I've been staying with my Dad for over a week, and I have to go back home today. *sniffles* It's not only that I'll miss being over here-with free access to a tv in my OWN room and a laptop, what teen wouldn't love that?- but it means I have no guarantee when I'll have access to the internet! It sucks. I have to go back to my mom's apartment with my annoying, evil sister who I share a room with and spend the weekend probably doing nothing. Except, maybe, cleaning and packing. We're moving, but what can you really pack away when you still have almost 3 weeks to live in your apartment. Fun stuff, huh?

Ok, I'm trying to get over my surly mood with the fact that I'm going to see my smallest sister. She's 20 months and I'm so attacthed to her it's unhealthy. So I'll hang on to that fact and tyr really hard to bribe my mom to let me use the laptop. *fingers crossed*

Book Blogger Hop: August 6-9!!!

I think we pretty mcuh all know about the hop, so go join at Crazy For Books! This weeks question is: DO YOU LISTEN TO MUSIC WHEN YOU READ? IF SO, WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE READING TUNES?

I used to listen to music all the time when I read, but now, whenever I get the chance to read, it's when I'm around people and noise so I can't listen to music. If I'm reading at night before I go to sleep, I usually listen to my iPod. It depends on the mood set by the book, but I almost always listen to The Killers.

I usually don't do posts just for a contest I'm entering, but......

Denise Jaden is holding another contest to promote her new book, Losing Faith. There are some wonderful prizes- I'm too lazy to get the pics on here so I'll just tell you. An ARC of Halo by Alexandra Adornetto, an ARC of Trance by Linda Gerber, and and ARC of Hold Me Closer Necromancer by Lish McBride. These are some awesome, very coveted books and I think we'd all want to win any of them!

A terrible secret. A terrible fate.

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

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

Not only is the cover, B-eautiful, but the plot sounds very tense and interesting. It kind of reminds me of TMAS. The sister dying and her having a secret. But I don't think Brie's preggers.........or she could be, who know?? :-)

So start spreading the word about Losing Faith!

30 Days of Insight Day 3

Day 03- The five songs you would have with you on a desert island and why.

So hard......

1. MakeDamnSure by Taking Back Sunday from their Louder Now Album. I think this is the best album EVER! I love every single song on it, and that's very rare for me. MakeDamnSure is amazing- I love the lyrics and I feel in love with this band when they were featured in Degrassi. And who doesn't love Degrassi?

*I just love the album cover, cool but creepy.*

2. The Killers is alos one of my favorite bands, but if I had to pick one song, It'd be Spaceman on their album Hot Fuss. I can listen to it when I'm in any mood and dance to it all night. I'm not much of a dancer, so that means something.

3. I have to have a Coldplay song on here. Some of their songs are great but get old after a while, but one that doesn't and is one of my faves is In My Place.It makes me so emotional, but most anything by them does. Awesome song, if you haven't listen to it.

4. I have to have some different genres on here, so I'll have to add Billionaire by Travie McCoy featuring B.O.B. it's a new sing, and I love it! It's not what I usually listen to but I like it. And Travie's so cute!!!

5. I LOVE Lazy by Silversun Pickups. The band is really awesome and this song just gets me excited and makes me wanna go to one of their concerts.

I'm Participating in 30 Days of Insight

Lost in Y.A. Wonderland proposed this idea because she saw it on another blog, and it's a good way to learn more about other bloggers- besides what books they read. 

Day 01- Guilty pleasure.
Day 02- Something that inspires you.
Day 03- The five songs you would have with you on a desert island and why.
Day 04- What you imagine paradise to be like.
Day 05- A thank you letter to someone who has changed your life.
Day 06- Earliest thing you can remember.
Day 07- Favorite cover of your favorite song.
Day 08- Someone you think would make a good president.
Day 09- Five things you want to see change.
Day 10- A dream you had this past week described in detail.
Day 11- Favorite picture ever taken of yourself.
Day 12- Your favorite musical artist’s life story.
Day 13- A memory that never fails to make you laugh.
Day 14- Best mashup you’ve ever heard.
Day 15- A moment, phrase, or song that has changed your life the most.
Day 16- Something that you want to do within the next five years.
Day 17- What you want to be remembered for.
Day 18- A picture that makes you feel.
Day 19- A passage from a book that has touched you.
Day 20- A band that you immediately liked and the song that made you like them.
Day 21- Your favorite medium of art.
Day 22- Someone you would give your life up for without question.
Day 23- Most awkward first impression you feel you’ve ever given.
Day 24- Something you did as a child that other people remember you for.
Day 25- Something you would do if no one stopped you or if you knew you wouldn’t fail.
Day 26- Your definition of love.
Day 27- Your definition of the meaning of life.
Day 28- A moment you remember being completely happy in and a description of why you believe you were. What is your definition of happiness?
Day 29- What you live for.
Day 30- Ways you believe you have grown over the past thirty days.

Wanna join?

Another Read-A-Thon!

The Bibliophilic Book Blog is hosting a read-a-thon that is right up my alley. You have to read books YOU own! I probably own at least 10 books and tons of Kindle books I haven't read yet. I don't know why, but the more books I buy the more books I get from the library. It's just my thing, I guess.

On to the read-a-thon! It starts from 9am Fri. August 13th until 9am Monday August 16th. You can also win some books for things like most books read and picture of the most comfy reading place. So get ready!

You can go sign up HERE!

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors Re-Create a Cover Contest

Another one of my favorite kinds of contest- re-create a cover! This one is hosted at Trisha's Book Blog and if you win, here's what you could get:

and a signed copy of CoffeeHouse Angel!

UPDATE: Some prizes have been added!:

some CoffeeHouse Angel cup holders

and a copy of  Dreams of the Dead (The Waking) by Thomas Randall

The orignial:

When Katrina spots a homeless guy sleeping in the alley behind her grandmother’s coffee shop, she decides to leave him a cup of coffee, a bag of chocolate-covered coffee beans, and some pastries to tide him over. Little does she know that this random act of kindness is about to turn her life upside down. Because this adorable vagrant, Malcolm, is really a guardian angel on a break between missions. And he won’t leave until he can reward Katrina’s selflessness by fulfilling her deepest desire. Now if only she could decide what that might be.

Mine:

I do admit, it doesn't fit the desscription perfectly, but I had fun so that's all that matters.

Another Hunger Games Discussion

I know I've written a post about this before but what incited this discussuion is a contest at SciFuyGuy, as part of the 13 District YA Blog Tour. In order to win that awesome blanket you have to commment telling them who's your favorite character in The Hunger Games. And someone said Gale......why??? I do respect other peoples' opinions, but I don't understand the whole Peeta vs. Gale thing. I mean, Gale is hardly in the first book, and in the second book Katniss shows no intimate feelings towards him. In fact, she realizes she wants to be with Peeta!! I understand how people would like Gale for themselves(much like I want Jacob for myselves, Team Jacob!!!) but I don't see how people can defend his and Katniss' relationship as romantic. Do I need to be enlightened? Am I missing something??

I am so obviously:

Tell Me A Secret by Holly Cupala Book Trailer and Lauch Party

The TMAS Trailer Launch Party is here and running! First, here's the trailer for Tell Me A Secret by Holly Cupala! I just love her and I love the trailer! It seems to fit the book perfectly.

What's being given away:

Signed TMAS books!

TMAS t-shirts!

Fan-made bracelets from Hannah S!

Music CDs!

Sneak Previews!

Bookmarks and Handmade Magnets!

and...

A Tell Me a Secret handmade necklace from Gypsy Wings!

I just had to include this picture because it's so cool! Now all you have to do is share the trailer. Here's how:
1. Go to YouTube and then click the Share button to send to your Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or blog! 5 pts each
2. Click here to share with Holly where you posted.

Here's a pic for the road of Holly rockin' out a TMAS shirt!

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. All you do is:

1) Grab your current read and open to a random page

2) Select a few sentences from anywhere on the page- try not to include any SPOILERS!

3) Make to tell the name of book and the author so others can add the book to our TBR pile!

"He tells me that Mom and Dad are getting on his nerves, and that he hurts, and that he can't concentrate to keep up class work, but nothing about what he's thinking."

Page 135 of Breathless by Lurlene McDaniels

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott Review

From Goodreads: Once upon a time, I was a little girl who disappeared. Once upon a time, my name was not Alice.

Once upon a time, I didn't know how lucky I was. When Alice was ten, Ray took her away from her family, her friends -- her life. She learned to give up all power, to endure all pain. She waited for the nightmare to be over. Now Alice is fifteen and Ray still has her, but he speaks more and more of her death. He does not know it is what she longs for. She does not know he has something more terrifying than death in mind for her. This is Alice's story. It is one you have never heard, and one you will never, ever forget.

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars


Characters: 3/5 Stars


Ending: 3.5/5 Stars


"Alice" was abducted by Ray when she was 10 years old. She's now 15 and has been with him long enough to know his rules. She must keep him happy and be his "little girl". She must keep herself quiet, skinny, and hairless- if you know what I mean. She wants to leave but is just a lost, little girl who wouldn't know where to go. She's scared for her family because Ray said he'd kill them all and then frame her for it if she tries. And she's tried before so she believes, no matter what, she won't be able to escape Ray. The only way would be to die.

She know her time is up. The last Alice was killed when she was 15. It's only a matter of time for her. When Ray instead wants to keep her and get another little girl, Alice sees her chance. She helps him find the perfect girl, Lucy. She thinks he'll be so infatuated with little perfect Lucy, soon to be Alice, that he won't care about her if she runs. But plans change and so does Alice's life.

It's hard to say you enjoyed a book about molestation, but it was a good, emotional read for it's genre. Hard to read at times, but you just can't stop because you HAVE to know what happens. You sympathize with Alice's situation but it's hard to feel something towards her at times because she's been so corrupted by Ray. There are moments when she shines through, but they're limited and short-lived. The only problem I had with this book was Jake. I understand his part in the book, but he's a weird guy I don't understand.

P.S. If anyone has read this, can you please explain the ending to me, or what you think happens at the end? Thank you in advance.

The Thirteenth Chime by Emma Michaels Cover Re-Make Contest!!!!

These are my favorite kind of contests, so you know I had to participate! Even if I don't win, I just love being creative! Khadija at Black Fingernailed Reviews is hosting this awesome contest that she came up with. Thanks! There are very few rules for this contest but you do have to RSVP for the Twitter Party, which is August 13th, 4-10 pm.

 

Here's what you can win:

Winner #1 will receive:

A copy of The Thirteenth Chime by Emma Michaels

Some awesome signed swag

Winner #2 will receive:

 A copy of The Thirteenth Chime by Emma Michaels

Signed swag

Winner #3 will receive:

13th Chime signed swag

 Here's my cover:

This is what I came up with using only Paint. I wish I had all that fancy shmancy shtuff, but i think it looks great anyway! If you want to enter, go HERE.

Linger by Maggie Stiefvater Review

I was part of the Linger Blog Tour, thanks to Good Golly Miss Holly, and I took me such a long time to put up this review. Sorry :-( Everytime I thought I'd get around to it, it never happened. And then my mom took the laptop away- because of my evil sis, not me. Anywho, here's a description about the book- if you've been living under a rock:

From Goodreads: Their eyes, human eyes in wolf skulls, remind me of water: the clear blue of water reflecting the spring sky, the brown of a brook churning with rainfall, the green of the lake in summer as the algae begins to bloom, the gray of a snow-choked river. It used to be only Sam's yellow eyes that watched me from between the rain-soaked birches, but no, I feel the weight of the entire pack's gaze. The weight of things known, things unsaid.

Sam, who spent most of his life as a werewolf, has undergone an unlikely cure and no longer transitions between fur and skin as the temperature changes from cold to hot. This should be a happy time for Sam and true-love Grace, but just as he begins to trust his new human life, Grace feels her humanity slipping away. Sam's focus is split between worry for Grace and his role as caretaker of the werewolf pack, which for the first time in years includes new members.

Rating: 4.75/5 Stars


Characters: 5/5 Stars


Ending: 4.75/5 Stars

I absolutely loved Shiver and was super excited for Linger. And I was not disappointed! Like many other bloggers, Maggie created another book that left me speechless at times. She has such a beautiful, poetic way of writing, it's amazing. I usually have to laugh at books that use imagery and other literary devices in their writing because it sounds so odd, but Maggie is a genius. Even reading reviews of her books, they show how beautiful her writing it.

Back to the story! Sam is now human, but Grace is slowing figuring out that the wolf inside her may not be dead after all. The chapters are in the points of view of not only Sam and Grace, but also Cole, a new wolf who chose this life, and Isabel. We all love Sam and Grace but it was nice to learn more about the other characters. Cole is trying to escape his old life, where he feels guilt over his many life decisions and impact on people, but is having trouble keeping his feelings inside. Isabel is also feeling guilt over her brother's death, so I think these two characters fit very well together. I was a little confused about their relationship though. Mostly because Isabel is such a complex character. I was also disconcerted by her feelings toward Sam. And even though you read some of the story in her point of view, you also don't know what's going through her mind when it's not. It's hard to figure her out.

The problem people I know had was that, even though the story was great, there's less of Sam and Grace. It's a different part of their story and I guess and we can have them fawning over each other all the time. Like most people know, I'm a nit-picky person and I don't have many books that I think are 100%. Saying that, the only thing I had a problem with was Sam and Grcae's relationship. I know they go through a hurdle in this book, but I didn't feel like their relationship was tested. What I mean is, it seems like they're still in the honeymoon stage and knowing how far they are in their relationship, I think they should further beyond that. I don't think it's possible for any couple in the world to find their other half's annoying qualities endearing all the time. It was cheesy or another, because of the way Maggie writes, but it just seemed a little unrealistic at times. I know, I know. Like wolves are realistic, right?

I have a love/hate relationship with the end. It was very strong and unexpected, but it still gives me hope. Is anyone else botheres with Sam at the end, if you know what I mean?

No matter, I can't wait for the next book in the Wolves of Mercy Falls series, Forever!

I won The Versatile Blogger Award!

I want to say thank you to Kelsey's Book Corner and Book Infinity for chosing me for this award! When you recieve this awesome award all you do is share 7 things about yourself, pass on this award along to another 15 deserving blogs.

My 7 things:

1. I have a twin brother. Yes. Nobody ever believes it, but I do. We don't live with each other but when he's being nice, we're pretty close.
2. I'm going to be a junior in High School this upcoming school year. I'm not excited. :-)
3. I watch tv all the time. I mean, too much to the point it's unhealthy. I remember in Helath class this past year, our teacher told us to raise our hand if we watched more than 4 hours of tv a day. And no one did! I know I do, and I didn't raise my hand either, but I was, like, embarassed or something. Is that normal, do ya think?
4. I have been a shoplifter before! I'm not really proud or ashamed of it. It is what it is, I guess. When I was smaller I took chapstick from the dollar store and I bought a Johnny Depp Rolling Stone bag from Wal-Mart that had 3 books in it, about $35 worth. And the cashier didn't even notice! If I was a good citizenI would've let the guy know, but I didn't. Oh well. Sue me. Oh wait, I guess they could if they found out...
5. I love to cook. My mom doesn't really have the resources to buy me all the ingredients to make a lot of dishes I'd like to, but any chance I get...If you're not a vegetarian, you need to try this recipe by Tyler Florence!
6. I'm very lazy. That's why I didn't get into the KEY Club at my school. And I live right across the street! So this summer I told myself I'd do something. But I didn't. I've been trying to find a job also, but in this economy...it's hard.
7. I believe that my brother and I are the reincarnation of Kurt Cobain. I know, sounds crazy. But the day he died, the exact day and year, was when we were born. I always thought he was so great he had to be reincarnated as 2 people instead of 1.


My Blog Picks:

Lost in YA Wonderland
Emilie's Book World
Emily's Reading Room
Harmony Book Reviews
Life, Words, & Rock 'n' Roll- I think Stephanie Kuehnert might be too cool, but I love her blog!
Paper Cut Reviews
The Heart of Dreams
The Naughty Book Kitties
Twisted Literature and Ugly Songs
s c h o l a r b e r r y
The Bookish Girl
The Ramblings of a Book Addict
Ashley's Bookshelf
Tuning Into Ya Books
The Unread Reader