Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - It All Ends

Does everyone wanna cry with me?

Thanks to Jenni Elyse - Here is another video!

The Bookish Babes - *Blog Feature*

I am featuring Andrea and Melissa from The Bookish Babes as my next Blog Feature!

I just love reading the reviews on their blog AND they share similar interest in books as I do!  We share the same favorite series as I am sure pretty much most of you share as well.  Vampire Academy, Mortal Instruments and Nightshade!  So give it up for Andrea and Melissa!

Daimon by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Spencer Hill Press Summary:  For three years, Alexandria has lived among mortals—pretending to be like them and trying to forget the duty she'd been trained to fulfill as a child of a mortal and a demigod. At seventeen, she's pretty much accepted that she's a freak by mortal standards… and that she'll never be prepared for that duty.

According to her mother, that’s a good thing.

But as every descendant of the gods knows, Fate has a way of rearing her ugly head. A horrifying attack forces Alex to flee Miami and try to find her way back to the very place her mother had warned her she should never return—the Covenant. Every step that brings her closer to safety is one more step toward death… because she's being hunted by the very creatures she'd once trained to kill.

The daimons have found her.



My Take: Woo! Hoo! I found a new fave and I only read the Prequel! OMG…this book had my blood pumping, I think I should have my blood pressure checked! And then bam, you leave me at that? AND now I have to sit here and wait to see if I can get an ARC to fulfill my fix! To make it even worse, if I don’t get an ARC, I have to wait until September for the release date?

This series is going to seriously ROCK! Alexandra (also goes by Alex and Lexie…I love that BTW), is the type of heroine I absolutely love in a series. She isn’t afraid to run but if she is caught up in a split second moment, the fighter in her comes out.

I’m going to call her Lexie because I like that name. Anyways, Lexie is a Half-Blood (Demi-God). Half-Bloods are trained at a young age to protect Pure-Bloods from daimons, the freaky, scary lookin’ creatures!

Lexie and her mother have been on the run for the last 3 years, taking her away from the only life she has ever known to live in the real world.

My prediction is that Lexie isn’t just a Half-Blood, there is something special about her and that is why her mom has had her in hiding for so long. I guess we will have to see! PLEASE DON’T MAKE ME WAIT!!!

Here is a quote that I love:

“When I didn’t answer, he shook me, and that was it. My bitch switch was flipped and, well, my sense of self-preservation went right out the window.”

Buy on Amazon:
Daimon: A Prequel to Half-Blood (Covenant) Kindle Edition
Daimon: The Prequel to Half-Blood (Paperback Edition)

Meant to Be by Tiffany King

Author Summary:  Krista Miller feels like she has lived her entire life in a glass box with her every emotion on display. She can’t help feeling like a defect as her sensitivities have made her socially inept and without any real friends; the one exception being the boy that visits her each night in her dreams.

Krista’s emotions are put to the test when a move to California triggers a devastating change to her fantasy world. The nightly comfort that the boy provides has now become a recurring nightmare as he is taken from her by an unseen force.
Struggling to appear normal, Krista enrolls in a new school and finds it to be nothing like she thought.  Her new life is sent spiraling out of control from a strange connection with a boy, Mark, who claims to know all her secrets.
As Krista begins to explore the emotions that Mark evokes in her, secrets from their past about their shared connection threatens to separate them just when they have found each other.



My Take: It was really refreshing reading a UF romance novel with that doesn’t include the complicated love triangle. While I was in La La land, I was completely blindsided by something I did not at all see coming and then it goes from being only a romance novel to high intensity!

As soon as I picked up Meant to Be I was immediately intrigued by Krista, the life she lived and what has become of herself. Krista’s whole life has been complicated. She was found abandoned at the age of 2, she is sensitive to others emotions enough to make her terribly ill AND every night she goes to bed and dreams about a boy. Her and the boy with out a face grow up together in her dream and the dream boy is Krista's main comfort. After Krista's dad dies, her and her mother decide to move to the same place she has always been drawn to. Santa Cruz. Krista’s dreams have taken a turn for the worst. Every night, her dream is cut short and her dream guy is pulled away from her. What is cause?

I can't say that Krista is my favorite character because there are several characters that I really grew attached to. I LOVE Sam, who doesn't love Mark and I hope that I get to read more about Shawn in the next book. Even though there is only a couple pages with Robert and Lynn, I already like Lynn and I am looking forward to reading more about them as well.

I am really looking forward to see what will happen now that they know who they are and what is they need to do!

Two Chicks On Books - *Blog Feature*

So I am going to have Jaime and Patricia of Two Chicks on Books as one of my featured bloggers this week!  I am featuring this blog because they have amazing reviews!  When I read a couple of their reviews of several books they rate highly, I wanted to set all books I'm currently reading aside, run to the store and purchase the books they reviewed!  I am also a little biased here because Jaime totally rocks and Jaime and Patricia are two of my local blogger friends here in Sac Town, Cali that I just met on Twitter a short time ago!

So give it up to Jamie and Patricia!

And this is to all blogger/reviewers, come join my Book Club!

Hey Book Bloggers! Wanna join my Book Club?

For a couple of months now, I have really wanted to start a blogger/reviewer book club.

And my reason is a lot like what Megg Jensen says in her post, Love Me, Love Me Not. What I really want is for people to read the reviews I write and give me feedback, even if it’s critical. If you are a passionate book reviewer like me, then I think you would agree. Personally, I would prefer less followers if I had more people reading my reviews.

My plan is, every weekend I will Feature one of my fave bloggers and one of their reviews. I will do this, even if I am not the host that weekend Book Club.

So here’s what I am thinking, and please feel free to give me any suggestions. I am hoping to get at least 5 bloggers/reviewers every weekend to participate, but the more the merrier, right? So spread the word! And, a couple times a month I will probably ask one of you awesome bloggers to actually host the Bookluvr’s Book Club on your blog. My plan is to Feature one of my fave bloggers and one of their reviews each month, and I plan to do this even if I am not the host of that weekend’s Bookluvr’s Book Club.

Here are the rules I threw together:

• Each week that you would like to participate, add your blog Url in the InLinkz located on the hosting blog. Make sure you submit the name of your blog in the name field.
• Select at least 5 different blogs/reviewers who are participating (assuming at least 5 participate), find a review of a book you have not read, read their review and leave an honest, real comment. Since it would be nice to still get more followers, as a courtesy for joining the Bookluvr’s Book Club it would also be nice to follow the blog you are reviewing!
• If someone makes a comment on your review, be generous and at least become a follower of their blog. Maybe even consider reading and leaving a comment on one of their reviews.
• *Optional* In addition, if you come across a book you have already read and you like/dislike the review, it would be fun to chat back and forth about the book! Maybe even on twitter!
• Since this is a weekend review book club, you may enter as early as the Bookluvr’s Book Club is open and then come back anytime throughout the weekend to pick your 5 reviewers to read their reviews.
• This is also *Optional*, if you find a fabulous blog and/or review, it would be totally awesome if you would feature their blog as well. And let them know you have featured them on your blog!

Each weekend, the book club will start on Thursday at 7pm EST and entries will be closed on Sunday at 7pm EST. Since I may have other bloggers host the Book Club, feel free to come to my blog and I will list the blog that will be hosting that weekend.

Once again, I am completely open to suggestions on anything that we could change or any other fun ideas! Since this is the first Bookluvr’s Book Club meeting, I want to give more than just a week to get started and see how this turns out. So effective immediately, this first Bookluvr’s Book Club will start and run until Sunday May 29th at 7pm. I would also suggest reviewing more than 5 blogs that participate, since this first book club will go on for almost a week.
Enter your Blog Url here:

Banana Blog Hop!

Melville House Publishing asked 3 questions for their Banana Blog Hop. Here are my answers!

 

The most unusual love story I ever read?  I would have to say V.C. Andrews always had the most bizarre love stories.  I read the whole Casteel Series.  Heaven falls in love with all the wrong guys.
My favorite novel from another country?  That's easy, Harry Potter!
I'm interested in winning a copy of Banana Yoshimoto's The Lake because it sounds like a really good book!

The Birth of Jaiden by Jennifer Malone Wright

Author Summary: Long ago, a prophecy was foreseen. A child would be born, a child who held the power to destroy the world. Now, it is up to Alexander Lucas, a one-hundred-year vampire, to keep the baby girl safe from his arch enemy Malcolm.
In order to save her, Alexander must raise the child as his own. Will he be able to resist his vampire tendencies to care for a human baby? With the help of the wisest of the supernatural, an organization called The Great council, Alexander must face many battles to ensure the safety of this very special child.

My Take: I don’t think that I have ever struggled with a review as much as I am with this one! Ahhhh!!! I can’t even decide how I feel about The Birth of Jaiden! Or even how I would rate it!!

OK...I've decided! I actually REALLY liked this book, Jennifer has created an amazing fantasy novel (a guilty pleasure...shhh, don't tell anyone LOL). The writing was a little choppy but the story kept me entertained enough to not let it bother me. While reading there was never a time that I wanted to put the book down (unless my obligations required me...boo! for obligations) or I never felt like there was unnecessary detail.

I do want to say that this book is unlike any other book that I have read. First, the storyline and content of this book were completely unexpected! Second, I normally read YA books and the reason I do is because the majority of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance books that are considered adult these days would, in my mind, be categorized as Erotica novels. I’m not a fan of Erotica books. This book is not for a young adult audience, but it is not because it has detailed sex scenes.

Do you like True Blood? Then you would probably like this book. I read the first book and then half of the second book of the Sookie Stackhouse series, and those books were a little boring to me. But the True Blood TV series was totally not boring! Based on what I did read in Sookie Stackhouse, I don’t remember the brutal parts as being very vivid or graphic, UNLIKE the TV series. So when I say do you like True Blood, I am not asking if you like Sookie Stackhouse!

Basically, what I am getting at here is that, for me, The Birth of Jaiden has some pretty horrific scenes. Normally, when I read a book that has anything that disturbs me mentally, I just CANNOT handle it. But, for some reason I don’t have that problem with this book. For example, I got to a scene in the book where 3 men hurt a girl, and then Alex goes looking for the men. When he finds the men, they are obviously goners and he “sees” what they did to the girl while he is sucking one of the men dry of all his blood. When the description comes, I winced thinking, “Oh, no! I don’t think this book is going to work.” But then it ended up not disturbing me as much as I thought it might. I’m not sure if that’s because Jennifer Malone-Wright refrained from including major graphic details, leaving those details to the imagination of the reader, or because of some other reason that I can’t put my finger on!

I was talking to a co-worker about my conflictions, and she asked me, “If the scenes that are horrific were left out, would you like the book more?” And that really got me thinking! I said, “No, because I think those scenes actually made the book even better.” It is truly bizarre that I feel this way, but I don’t want Jennifer Malone-Wright to change them!

Jennifer also does a really nice job developing her characters. Each character is developed more fully as the story unfolds, and Jennifer includes the story of the character’s past life at just the right time and in just the right place. Primarily, the story follows the main character, Alex, but Jennifer does really well changing scenes to other character’s points-of-view at just the right time to keep you entertained and informed, and to keep the story flowing.

In the book, everyone in The Great Council was concerned about Malcolm and worried about the destruction that he might cause. But I kept thinking, “He isn’t the problem, the real whack job of the story is his twisted, freaky wife!” It really disturbs me to think that Levine (Malcolm’s wife) is probably one of my favorite characters. Her character is so evil (on a level that I could never imagine) that I just seem to have a hard time not thinking about her whenever I think about this book!

Another fave character of mine is Deanna. When her character is introduced, I saw her as a timid, quiet character who, later in the story, really surprises me. She comes forward with some amazing ideas on how to defeat Malcolm and then she takes the initiative to carry out her plan. At that point I saw a hot heroine and I started thinking, "I love this chick!"

I did find some strange clichés in this book. The main character is a vampire who sleeps in a coffin, but EVERY night he breaks into a church to pray AND he has a guardian angel?! Also, there is so much that is sick, evil and wicked in this book but then God still plays such a big part in the “plan” that The Great Council follows.

This book has an true ending, so you can be content with it being a stand-alone novel; however, Jennifer does leave some things open to allow the story to become a series.

Even though I really struggled with this review, I could still talk about this book for hours because it had me thinking so much! So, I will just leave it at this . . . I never had such a feeling that I might just have to come back here to change or add to my review!


Buy on Amazon:
The Birth of Jaiden (Paperback)
The Birth of Jaiden (Kindle Edition)
Buy on BN.com:
The Birth of Jaiden (Paperback)

Awesome Bookworm: Readathon!

Awesome Bookworm: Readathon!: Come join us in this Read-a-thon on June 4th! There will be prizes, trivia and more! I am super excited!

Six Moon Summer by S. M. Reine

Author Summary:

Rylie's been bitten.

She's changing.

And now she has three months to find a cure before becoming a werewolf... forever.

Rylie's parents force her to attend summer camp, but she's just as miserable at the girls' camp as she was at home-- there's nothing vegetarian for her to eat at the mess hall, she hates hiking and archery, and the other campers taunt Rylie mercilessly.  One night, the bullying goes too far, and Rylie runs away.  She doesn't get far.  It's a full moon, and she isn't alone in the forest...

She wakes up unharmed in her cabin the next morning with no memory of what happened.  The only sign something has changed are the healed scars on her chest, her increasingly keen senses, and her sudden craving for raw, bloody meat.

A boy from the other camp seems to know what's happening to her, but Rylie isn't sure if she can trust herself with Seth. He's way too cute and he knows way too much.

Rylie soon learns that she only has until the end of summer before she becomes just like the monster that attacked her: a man-eating werewolf hungry for human flesh.  Unless she can find a cure, she's going to transforming at the end of the summer and lose her life to the hunger.

My Take:
You have got to be freakin' kidding me! What a tease!

This book was really good and I would really suggest this book to anyone that likes a good werewolf book. There is an ending to this book, but, it is very abrupt.  It left me screaming, "Why does it have to end here!?!?"

S.M. Reine is a fantastic writer. The description of a werewolf change is better than I have EVER read. I could vividly see, smell and taste every bit of the change that Rylie had to go through on each of the six moons.  The story flowed very nicely and kept me entertained.

Throughout the summer poor Rilie endured heartbreak from her parent’s divorce, getting bullied, a tragic loss, a horrific attack AND the curse of becoming a werewolf.  To make it easier on her, there is a hot boy that she sneaks off to see as often as she can.  What a summer!  OK...I'm dying to say it; the bully gets what's coming to her later in the book.  Dang I'm evil!

One cliché I found quite interesting, is that she is an avid vegetarian. The thought of harming an animal is horrific to her. It's a serious problem when you have a wolf stirring inside of you and he’s hungry!  And to limit the wolf with tofu?  Not very smart.

This is a really, quick easy read, so check it out!  I am really excited to see where this story will lead!
Buy on Amazon here:
Six Moon Summer Paperback Edition
Six Moon Summer Kindle Edition
Buy on BN.com here:
Six Moon Summer (Nook Book)

Six Moon Summer Trailer!

Humongo Blogaversary Giveaway

In celebration of their 2 year Blogaversary, Reading, Writing and Waiting is doing a HUGE Giveaway! Stop by their blog to enter and to give them some support!

Witches of East End by Melissa De la Cruz

So excited for my ARC of Witches of East End by Melissa De la Cruz!

Here is the trailer!

Fast Forward: Into The Future by Kelvin O'Ralph

I knew from the very first chapter that I probably wouldn't be finishing this book. Once I got to about 1/3 of the book I then started skim reading and I just knew that I couldn't finish. It may be a good book if a really good editor adds more to the characters and make the story more compelling.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 Trailer

This trailer gives me goose bumps! To think that my Harry Potter world is going to end is heart wrenching! Just the other day someone asked me, if I had a chance to go to Orlando and I had to choose between going to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter or Disney World...hands down I would chose Harry Potter.

When I was younger, I had problems with reading and comprehension.  My parents put me in a program in my early teens that helped tremendously!  Even after I had finished the program, I wasn't really a fan of picking up a book and reading it.  I know, I know, everyone that I tell this story to says, "Are you serious?  You are an obsessive reader?"  Anyway, a friend of mine was reading Harry Potter and told me how much she liked it, so I gave it a try.  From that day forward, it became an obsession!  I think that the 3rd book was published approximately around the time I started reading Harry Potter.  I became one of the crazed fanatics waiting for the next book and it always took FOREVER!  Really early in to reading HP I was already thinking, "Seven books isn't enough!  She has to write more!"  But Rowling kept to her word, her plan was to write seven, one book for each school year.

For the 5th book release, I couldn't get anyone to go with me to a midnight release party for the book and so I had to take my nephew that was probably 7 or 8 at the time.

Anyway, enjoy this trailer!

Released by Megan Duncan

Thank you Megan for giving me the opportunity to review your book!  Released was so entertaining for me, that I think it could be a great movie or TV series.

Author Summary:  After a demon apocalypse kills their parents and everyone they know, 17-year old Abby Phillips, her brother, Carter, and friend, Max flee their home to travel through what has become the wastelands of America. When radio transmissions of a resistance offering shelter and safety cease, Abby is tempted to give up. Struggling to overcome life-threatening obstacles in their dangerous journey, Abby and her companions quickly discover there are much worse things lurking in the dark than they could have ever imagined.

My Take: This book totally ROCKED! I knew as soon as I started reading that I would like this book. Abby is a diehard heroine, not by choice but for survival and she is truly a fighter!

Abby, her brother Carter, and Carter’s best friend Max are the only living humans in their town. Max lost both of his parents to the monsters that have taken over the world, and Abby and Carter lost their father when he tried to save Max’s parents. The monsters that killed them left the 3 teenagers to survive on their own.

Abby, Carter and Max quickly come to realize that it will not be possible to survive by hiding out in their houses forever. Unfortunately, their only hope of survival was a radio transmission telling survivors to seek refuge at an Air Force Base in New Mexico, but the radio message stopped transmitting 2 weeks ago! So, with little hope, they set out on a 1500 mile journey to the Air Force base, praying they can find food, water, shelter and safety.

After the tragic loss of their parents, the three survivors never dreamed they would face even greater challenges and horrors on their journey to New Mexico. But were they ever wrong! Heck, even I didn’t imagine where the book would lead! There were moments while reading that I wanted to yell, “PLEASE! Follow your gut instinct!” And, yet, I too was completely caught off guard in some parts! It came to a point where I finally realized that Abby, Carter and Max will truly do ANYTHING to save each other even if it means doing something they thought they would never have to do.

There is another character named Taya that comes into the mix later, and I love her too! All four of these characters balance each other perfectly. I love how Abby’s security blanket is her shotgun and that Carter uses a bow! Carter is the brain of the group and Abby and Max are the strong fighters. Taya adds more fun to the mix.

There is a part in the book that had me really pondering. I was thinking, “Would my thoughts be similar to Carters?” Here is the discussion…
"“So why do you think this all happened?” Taya asked completely out of the blue, directing the question to Carter.
“Huh? You asking me?” She nodded at him. “Well there are lots of theories really. Some people believe God is punishing us, some believe they are aliens taking over our planet, some…”
“What do you believe?” Taya interrupted.
“Honestly I am not concerned about the how or why. I just want them gone.”"

I would be more than thrilled to find out what happens in the next book.  Megan Duncan is a really good entertaining writer, she kept me entertained from start to finish.

Megan Duncan's Post: 4 Star Review!
I woke up this morning to a breath-taking review from the "thief of my heart", Mindy of Magical Urban Fantasy Reads. Thank you so much for your review Mindy, I really appreciate it and I can't promise that I won't beg you to review Savor and Indulge too. :o)

So, everyone please read this awesome review and check out Mindy's blog. The site is beautiful!
http://meganduncan.blogspot.com/2011/05/4-star-review.html


Released Trailer!


Buy on Amazon here:
Released by Megan Duncan (Paperback)
Released by Megan Duncan (Kindle Edition)
Buy on B&N here:
Released by Megan Duncan (Nook)

Sorry!

So, I have been super sick this week.  Every morning I wake up feeling fine but around 1pm, while at work I start to feel like crap!  I start running a fever, then I start coughing like crazy and then I get a sore throat.  By the time I get home from work, I am so miserable that I haven’t had strength to read or even write a review of the book I finished earlier in the week.  I am going to really try to push through it today and get back on track.  Even if it means drugging myself with multiple meds.

My New Blog Design!

I want to give a big THANK YOU to Lori for my fabulous customized blog page!  Everyone should check out her work here: