Great Book Giveaway

Faery Book Givaway Hop! A whole bunch of blogs (over 100) are each giving away books along this theme.This one is a great givaway and a really cute blog. Check it out!
http://www.stuckinbooks.com/2012/01/ya-fantasy-giveaway-hop.html

My Library

Had a birthday and what did I ask for? Had an anniversary and for fun we went to Barnes and Noble. And in general the new year of sequels to last years books began. Here is what has been added to my shelf:

"Blood and Chocolate" by Annette Curtis Klause
Did you ever see this movie? I did and was totally intrigued by it! It's about a girl who belongs to a pack of werewolves and she falls in love with a very non werewolf. Wrong move cuz she was next in line to be mated to the pack leader or something like that. (Give me a break-I only saw it once about 5-7 years ago!)I knew it was based on a book and always thought I might pick it up. Well, Cassandra Clare, author of City of Bones, picked it as her first recommendation for the book club on the Mundie Moms site. Done Deal! I'm pretty excited for it.
"Peeps" by Scott Westerfeld
Yikes! Scary picture! My book doesn't have this picture on the cover! Glad about that! Anyway- I was asking one of my YW (I do this quite frequently) what they are reading and this was the answer that Nicole Garrison gave to me awhile back. Yes Scott Westerfeld wrote the "Uglies" and "Pretties" series- still haven't read those, but Nicole has and she said this one she liked even better. It is about vampires that were created because of a parasite and the main character is a carrier of the parasite but not affected by the vampirism. Don't know much more than that but it sounds pretty interesting huh? I have read the Midnighter Series by Scott Westerfeld and found it extremely different from anything else I had ever read before, VERY smart and on the edge of your seat captivating. (Recommend those!) AND-and this is a big AND- this is a stand alone book- no sequel coming out! (As far as I know.)
"Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah you know all about this one. Got it for book club. Still have a hard time with the cover although found the story to be extremely clever. Still don't know if I can hack it with the pictures though.
"The Demon's Lexicon" by Sarah Rees Brennan Ok now this is a cover I can live with! Any book that has a Tom Welling (Clark Kent from Smallville)look alike on it I will pick up purely to picture him as the main character. Easy on the eyes that one. All Superman covers aside, this book has been out for a year and Mundie Moms die for this book. I knew the sequel was coming out so I thought I would be safe to finally read it. I'll let you know if the characters are Tom Welling worthy! :)
"Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side" by Beth Fantaskey First of all I don't know if that is the author's real last name but if it is that is really cool! This has been out for a long time but I never had that much interest because it was yet again another high school vampire book but I was pretty intrigued when at the turn of the year and all of my book sites were putting up their top 5 or 10 favorite books of 2009 this was at the top of one of my very top sites. "Why?" I wondered? "#1. Really?" This person has read probably a gazillion books this year and this was her #1? It must have something seriously cool in it to warrant that. So now I am really excited to read this.
" Wicked Lovely" by Melissa Mars
Already had this book in paperback but this series has turned out to be one of my favorites and I had the last two in hardback cuz I got them as they came out but the first two were in paperback. So when I was at Hastings and saw this as one of their used books for $3 it was mine. Now I just have to find "Ink Exchange" in hardback and I will have a matching set! Highly recommend this series. Well written with wicked plot lines and love stories plus each takes place in the same world but telling a different characters love story while furthering the plot. Never read anything like that and I love it!
"The Dead Tossed Waves" by Carrie Ryan
Got this one the second it came out. This is the sequel to "The Forest of Hands and Teeth" that came out last March. I picked that one up because I was on a website that said it was a must read for those who were missing the Twilight series. I ran out and read the first chapter and saw the book trailer and was hooked. When I read the first one though it was different than anything I had ever read. It was a book with zombies in it and truthfully so frightening that I stayed up all night to finish it cuz I just couldn't leave those poor people in those predicaments till morning. I thought by the end that there was no way I could read a second one but the book stuck with me. I thought about it for weeks and weeks and realized how unbelievably it had been written. Needless to say all I remember was the good stuff and knew I had to read the second one. Just a little afraid to go back after seeing the trailer for this one but I gotta do it. Sounds like it will be worth it...here's hoping.
"City of Bones" by Cassandra Clare Wait, Britani don't you have this book already? Yes but it was another that was in paperback and the last two were in hardback. Gotta have the matching set!
And if you haven't read this yet, Run, don't walk, to my house and get it. You won't be disappointed!

There they all are. The spoils of my birthday etc. now on my shelf for your borrowing pleasure! Excuse me now...I have some reading to do.

Hunger Games #3

Ok SOOOO excited! Here is a sneak peak at the cover for the 3rd Hunger Games installment called none other than Mockingjay!
Now this book won't be released till August but I know what we are reading that month!!!

New ARC Giveaway Contest

New book coming out in February that I want to read called The Iron King. Mundie Moms is giving away an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) this month before it comes out. Just comment to enter. Contest ends January 31st.

http://mundiemoms.blogspot.com/2010/01/freebie-friday-iron-king-arc-give-away.html

Review of The Dark Divine by Bree Despain

The Dark Divine

By Bree Despain

Released December 21st 2009

(I actually got it on the eve before it came out. My husband sweet talked the ladies at Barnes and Noble into giving it to him early so he they didn't have to deal with him 2 days in a row during the busy Christmas season. Can you blame them? But seriously...GO Garth!!)

So here is the synopsis from Bree's Website:

A prodigal son

A dangerous love

A deadly secret . . .

I stood back and watched his movements. Daniel had that way about him that could shut me down in an instant. . . . I kicked the gravel a couple of times and worked up my courage again. “Tell me . . . I mean . . . why did you come back? Why now, after all this time?”
Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared—the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in blood. But she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night really held. And when Daniel returns three years later, Grace can no longer deny her attraction to him, despite promising Jude she’ll stay away.

As Grace gets closer to Daniel, her actions stir the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind Jude and Daniel's dark secret . . . and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it—her soul.

Yeah exactly! After reading that now you see why I had to have this as soon as it came out. Sounds cool huh? Well, Bree is a first time author from Utah-not sure if she is LDS or not but on her site she did reference the BYU/Utah game at one point.



So my favorite part of this book is that it kind of had a centering around the story of the prodigal son. Ok, Ok maybe it is really all about a love story but the way the author handled this theme really spoke volumes to me. Grace is a girl who has a very religious family who are truly good at heart but they really struggle in the face of this test to their faith. Each is deciding if they are going to put into practice what they have believed their whole lives. Consciously or subconsciously they are asking is it really true or isn't it and if it is what does that mean for me? In each book you read don't you tend to ask yourself, "If this was me what would I do?" I loved that this book was a supernatural romance that had basis in religious and moral dilemma. Because lets face it...put in a supernatural situation like this ourselves our decisions would be based on those things because of what we have been taught and what we believe. I really liked the main character Grace, she was very real to me and relatable. I also really liked Bree's writing, she made me very comfortable in this family and this story. The lore she involved in it was typical but with a few twists to make it more modern and and make you think this could all be explainable. I did feel a little rushed by the end not quite feeling like I had all the facts straight when Grace and Daniel finally put it all together. But I kind of think that is just because the back story is so involved and Bree knew there would be time in the next book. (Yes of course there is a sequel that will be coming out toward the end of the year but what are you going to do?) Truthfully, the last line alone makes me want to pick up the next one as soon as it comes out. I recommend this as a great and fun read. (I read it in about 3 days.) And as always it is on my shelf if anyone wants to try it out.

Woohoo For Santa!!

OK! I had an EXCELLENT Christmas! Santa knows just what I want (because I sent him my reading list) and I got this lovely stack for Christmas! (I tell you it was as exciting for me as the kids to open on Christmas morning!)Aren't they beautiful folks? So I thought I might give you all a synopsis of each and as I read them I will post my reviews and you can decide if these sound like something you might want to pick up in your spare time.
They are from Top to bottom:

"Beastly" by Alex Flinn- this one is not a new release but has just been cast for a movie. It is a modern take on the Beauty and the Beast story-always one of my favorites-told from the "Beast's" point of view.
Here is a link to the movie site. Looks pretty cool.
http://www.beastlythemovie.com/
This will be in theaters July 2010 and stars:
Alex Pettyfer as Kyle Kingsbury (Very cute boy!)
Vanessa Hudgens as Lindy
Mary Kate Olsen as Kendra the witch
Neil Patrick Harris as Will, the beasts tutor (love him!)

"Ballad" by Maggie Stiefvater
This is the sequel to "Lament:Deception of the Faerie Queen" which I read at the beginning of December and LOVED!!!! It is an awesome book and I was completely intrigued with the story and was SOOO stoked to have more of it to read. I cannot wait for this one!!!
She is also the author of "Shiver" which I have and read first. It was beautifully written and a great romance story and that is what made me want to read other things by her (while I was waiting for the sequel). But I liked "Lament" even better.

"NightWorld" by L.J. Smith
Same lady who wrote "Vampire Diaries". Yep "Vampire Diaries". Guilty!! I picked it up before the T.V. show came out because I was in between books and I was interested in the premise of the show when I saw a trailer for it. I wasn't expecting to like it but the series is kind of addicting for reasons unbeknownst to me. Luckily I don't think I am alone because I know several people (you know who you are!)who can't get enough of the TV show. And we all know the books are better than the movie, or TV show, in this case. Anyway back to "Night World" Rachel and Andrea Whitaker, in my Young Women's group, have read both series and of the 2 this is their favorite. Apparently it has a little bit of everything, witches, werewolves, vampires, shapeshifters all living in a "Night world" within our own, thus the title. Intriguing I know...Thanks girls.

"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman
I've never read anything by him. He is the guy who wrote the book "Coraline" you know from the Tim Burton "kids" film. I know Stephenie Meyer recommended one of his books, "Anansi Boys" on her book club picks on Twilight Moms website. He always sounded just a little dark for me but my sister in law, Julie, just read this and said it was pretty fascinating. It is a story about a child raised in a graveyard by ghosts after his parents where murdered. Yeah sounds a little creepy I know. However it was awarded the Newberry Medal Award and is highly recommended at Barnes and Noble. It is Young Adult so how creepy could it be? I'll give it a shot and let you know.

"The Hourglass Door" by Lisa Mangum
This is written by a first time author who happens to be LDS. Sam Arntsen read it and recommended it and then my sister in law Jenny was reading it on recommendation from Natalie Hansen who both really liked it. It is a love story that sounds a lot like Twilight at the outset but once they get into it it's totally different. Tweaked Twilight? Sounds great to me.


"Fire" by Kristin Cashore
This is the sequel to "Graceling" that I read last Christmas Break (along with "The Hunger Games"). (That little Christmas break readathon really jump started my love affair with reading this year and since then as I look back I have probably finished just under 50 books.) I REALLY enjoyed it "Graceling" , except for the ending, until I realized she was probably saving the good ending for book 2 so here I am! This series is a high fantasy in a land where some are born with special gifts or "graces" that set them apart in their field. Katsa was graced, unuasually, with killing and was trained and used as a political mercenary for her Uncle the ruler. She has always secretly hated her grace until she meets Po another "graced" noble and her match in many ways and she starts to see herself and her grace in a new light. Good stuff but like I say, I reserve judgement on the end till I read this one.

"Fragile Eternity" by Melissa Mars
This is Book 3 out of 5 in the Wicked Lovely series. Picked these up at the recommendation of Sam Arntsen and they have kind of been my guilty pleasure. I love faeries and even when they aren't the nicest of faeries. "Wicked Lovely" was great! "Ink Exchange" I LOVED and now I can't wait to read this one!
"Fallen" by Lauren Kate
This is a new release that I read about on Mundie Moms website and thought it sounded intriguing. It's about a girl who after an unexplainable accident has to go to a reform school. There she meets a boy who she feels she knows from somewhere but he won't give her the time of day yet she can't get him out of her head. On the other hand there is another boy who is plenty interested so why can't she just forget about the first? Not just a love story plenty of supernatural which to me is the perfect mix. Anyway the cover is cool enough.

"The Dark Divine" by Bree Despain
This came out on December 21st so it is very new. I heard about this on Mundie Moms as well and after reading the synopsis I RAN (or typed very quickly) to read the first chapters which are posted online here http://www.breedespain.com/TDDsneakpeak.html. I was hooked! SO excited for this one!!


"Beautiful Creatures" by Kami Gracia and Margaret Stohl
This also just came out at the beginning of December and was much "hyped on" around my network of book blogs so I had to get it and I will let you know if the hype is worth it.


So there you go. Stay tuned for reviews as I read each one and know that these are all on my bookshelf and there is nothing I like better than sharing a good book (as long as I have read it first) so if anything strikes your fancy...borrow away.

Books we have Read and Reviewed

Ok I have had several people with in and without our club ask what we have read so far. Here is the rundown:

Vienna Prelude by Brock and Bodie Thoene

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins




The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis



Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

and now Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom