It's Summer!

As you may already be aware, it is summer time. I have four months off. That is a lot of time. Fortunately I have some amazing things coming up that I can’t wait for. Of course most of them are book related. I thought l would share them with you.

Meeting Cassandra Clare

This week is Cassie’s City of Lost Soul’s UK book tour. As many of my favourite authors live in the US, they don’t frequently come over here. So when I found out Cassandra Clare was coming, who is one of my all-time favourite authors, I grabbed at it. Originally she was going to Wales, with no guarantee of anywhere else, so I splashed out to head to the Hay festival. It would have been cheaper to go to London but never mind. It will be a fun time away for the Jubilee weekend. Book signing, Q&A, Reading from Clockwork Princess. What more do you want? Can’t Wait!

HP Studio Tour

As you may or not be aware, Leavesden Studios, where the Harry Potter films were made, has been converted into a public exhibition. This is an opportunity not to be missed.  I’m looking forward to visiting all the sets, and seeing the props and costumes. 

Florida and Harry Potter Wizarding World

I’ve wanted to go to Universal Studios since the park opened. The problem with Florida is it is a little far away. However, we are now going to Florida on a family holiday. The first two days are at Universal Studios, and then we are spending a week at the coast; Harry Potter, then a week of reading books. Can’t wait. My friend is coming with us too and I am dragging her on all the rides.

Olympics

On a non-book related topic, it probably hasn’t failed to escape your notice, especially if you live in the UK that the Olympics are coming to London this year. And my dad managed to get tickets. This is another once in a life time opportunity. Especially since the park is not that far away from my parent’s house.

This summer is going to be one of awesomeness. Are you doing anything awesome this summer?

Becky

Picture sources
Sun clipart: http://www.clipartheaven.com/clipart/seasons_&_weather/sun_10.gif
Cassadnra Clare: http://www.cassandraclare.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/cassie-8-224x300.jpg
HP studio tour: http://www.wbstudiotour.co.uk/templates/leavesden/images/header/logo.png
Harry Potter Wizarding World, Universal Orlando Studios: http://movies.yahoo.com/photos/harry-potter-theme-park-revealed-slideshow-2493/#photo0
London Olympics 2012: http://www.london2012.com/documents/oda-planning/planning-update-stadium-and-aquatics.pdf

Waiting on Wednesday #7

Hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, showcasing books that we are waiting to read.

Title: Biting Cold (Chicagoland Vampires #6)

Author: Chloe Neill
Publisher: Gollancz
Pages: 386
Release Date: 8th August 2012

Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository

Turned into a vampire against her will, twenty-eight-year-old Merit found her way into the dark circle of Chicago’s vampire underground, where she learned there was more to supernaturals than met the eye—and more supernaturals than the public ever imagined. And not all the secrets she learned were for sharing—among humans or inhumans.
Now Merit is on the hunt, charging across the stark American Midwest, tailing a rogue supernatural intent on stealing an ancient artifact that could unleash catastrophic evil on the world. But Merit is also the prey. An enemy of Chicagoland is hunting her, and he’ll stop at nothing to get the book for himself. No mercy allowed. No rules apply. No lives spared. The race is on.

Another adult paranormal series that I am enjoying at the moment. None of the books have stood out as amazing so far, but maybe this will be the one.

What books are you waiting for?

Becky

Book Review: Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Title: Fever (Chemical Garden #2)
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Pages: 341
Release Date: 16th February 2012
Read In: May 2012

Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository

Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion. But danger is never far behind.
Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago―surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness.
The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous―and in a world where young woman only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion… by any means necessary.
In this sequel to Lauren DeStefano’s harrowing Wither, Rhine must decide if freedom is worth the price―now that she has more to lose than ever.

While there were things that I liked about Wither, there were things I didn’t like. I decided to continue the series because of the dystopia world. I hoped that Fever would be an improvement on the first book.

“What if he’s not there?
What if something goes wrong?
What if Vaughn finds you?
What if …”

My main problem that I had with Wither was the plot, or lack of it. I felt that it was just a lot of the characters sitting around, and I had no sense of what the story was. If a book is all about the emotional turmoil the character is put through, then this would have been fine. Unfortunately this was not the case either. But that was Wither. Fever was a different story all together. There was a story, there was a journey. There was a reason for me to keep reading. I wanted to know what happened next. There were even moments of added tension. I definitely enjoyed Fever more because of this.

Second thing that Fever improved upon was Rhine’s relationship with Gabriel. Well just Gabriel in general. I didn’t understand what Rhine thought of Gabriel in Wither. More of the story was describing her feelings on Linden than of Gabriel. However, Gabriel was the guy she was pinning for. Fortunately, with the added Gabriel time in Fever, I now actually understand what Rhine sees in him. He is so caring and protective without being overbearing. I definitely understand him better now. Looking forward to finding out more about him book 3.

Unfortunately, I still cannot connect with Rhine. It feels like I am walking along behind her, following the events that unfold. I’m not inside her head as much as I want to be. There is rarely an expression of emotion and, when there is, it feels false to me. I want to connect with her but I can’t. She is not making wildly different decision to those I would make, so it shouldn’t be too hard but...

Fever felt a little detached from the events in the first book; like it was its own story. A few tweaks, here and there, and it could have been. Maybe this was just me.

Looking back this review may seem a bit negative. I actually did enjoy this book. It is just these points that creep into my mind as I am reading it. There was a plot, there was mystery, and there was a little action. Fever has stepped it up, slightly. I’m looking forward to Sever, especially with that cliff-hanger. Hopefully the series will go out with a bang. 

Becky

Teaser Tuesday #7

hosted by Mizb @ Should Be Reading

This weeks teaser is from The Breakaway by Michelle Davidson Argyle.

                                             The Breakaway by Michelle Davidson Argyle
                                         Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository

"I don't recommend any more of that kind of behaviour. Eric doesn't like it. He said you haven't tried to get away, and it should stay that way."" - page 29.

If you want to join in it's really easy. All you have to do is:

• Get the book you are currently reading.
• Share two teasers sentences. Remember to wary of spoilers; don't want to ruin the book for those who have not read it yet.
• Also write down the Title and Author of the book. So others can read it too. :)

Can't wait to read every ones teasers! :)

Becky

Book Review: Intangible by J.Meyers

Title: Intangible (Intangible #1)
Author: J.Meyers
Publisher: J.Meyers
Pages: 318
Release Date: 31st Janruary 2012
Read in: May 2012

Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com

 

*Thanks to J.Meyers for the review copy*

Twins Sera and Luke Raine have a well-kept secret—she heals with a touch of her hand, he sees the future. All their lives they’ve helped those in need on the sly. They’ve always thought of their abilities as being a gift.
Then Luke has a vision that Sera is killed. That gift they’ve always cherished begins to feel an awful lot like a curse. Because the thing about Luke’s ability? He’s always right. And he can’t do anything about it.

This book was a decent enough read and it had the potential. Unfortunately, it lacked in areas to make it a stand out amazing book.

“”Shall she be the first to die, Seer?”
Luke head whipped up and he froze with the realization – the woman, the voice, she was addressing him directly. That had never happened before.
She spoke again, a taunt. “Yes, I think so. Her healing makes her the more dangerous.”
No. A chill tingled u hi neck, settled on his scalp. Not his sister. This one couldn’t be about Sera.”

What I found surprising about this book was that it was not just about Sera and Luke. No, we got introduced to many others and followed their stories. Each character had a different personality. There were no characters that I didn’t like. There is usually at least one in a book. 

While I liked all of the characters, my favourite had to be Marc. I have a soft spot for tragic characters. While Marc isn’t the most tragic I have seen, he is still a guy finding himself in a bad situation and is trying to get out of it. I was drawn to him straight away and I was just willing for things to be alright for him.

The mythology is a lot more rounded than the synopsis made out to be as well. Not only do we have gifted humans but also faeries and vampires. I was really interested to see how all these different societies interacted with one another. While I really enjoyed the idea, I don’t think each group was fully developed and it left me with a lot more questions. I don’t know how intentional that was, if more was going to be revealed in later novels, but I guess I would of liked a bit more in this book. Especially the vampire hierarchy; I always like a good hierarchy in paranormal novels. 

The plot was interesting, definitely generating the correct number of questions to keep me reading; wanting to find out what happens next. I mainly wanted to find out how each of the characters ended up being so heavily involved around these prophesied twins. I was also interested to know what the prophecy was and how that came to be. The climax was well done, with a good amount of tension; had me on the edge of my seat there. 

Unfortunately, the overall story was a little slow. It took a while for the plot to warm up. While I like jumping back and forth between points of view, if it is at detriment to the pace then it is better without. The pace picked up after halfway which kept me reading until the end but that doesn’t change the fact about the first half. 

The characters were what I liked the most. Unfortunately the pacing and lack of development, in plot and mythology, brought this book down for me. 

 

Becky

Reading Plan #5

Hosted by Book Journey











Summer has arrived! This means more reading, more reviews and more blogging. There wasn't a lot of blog posts last week as I was finishing exams. Hopefully this number will increase. Also here is my reading plan for this week.


On the Blog Last Week

• Cover Reveal: Days of Blood and Starlight
• Book Review: Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

What I Have Just Finished

Fever (The Chemical Garden #2) by Lauren DeStefano
Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository.

I hope to have the review up soon; along with some reviews that I still need to do. I enjoyed this book, even though I still felt detached from Rhine. 4 stars.

Currently Reading

The Breakaway by Michelle Davidson Argyle
Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository


I am enjoying it so far, especially the connection we, as a reader, have with Naomi. I feel exactly how she feels. 


To Read Next

Hex Hall (Hex Hall #1) by Rachel Hawkins
Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository

To be honest, this looks a little corny on face value. However books that I first thought would be corny have a habit of surprising. Plus this book has been getting pretty good reviews. 

Incarnate (Newsoul #1) by Jodi Meadows
Goodreads - Amazon.co.uk/.com - Book Depository

 Another book that has been on my list for some time. I have finally got round to reading it. 

 What are you planning on reading next?

Becky