Saturday 25 August 2012
Best Book Trailer I've Ever Seen.
Chaos:: So I was trollin' around and, well, since I had read Immortal City by Scott Speer I went on to find out more about the sequel. Then there it was! The book trailer! BEST ONE I HAVE EVER SEEN! I guess it's kind of cheating since the author is a -director- and is dating Ashley Tisdale *fangirls* but it's GOOD! So here it is, the book trailer to Immortal City....maybe this will convince most of you to go read it......BUT before you buy, borrow, or whatever, go check out my review from before *points up* the red words will redirect you to the page just by giving it a quick click ^_^ *points below* Go ahead and oggle the cover. It's gorgeous.
SEQUEL Releases in April 2013 by Razorbill
Friday 24 August 2012
Summerland by Elin Hilderbrand Review
Source: Hachette Book Group
Author: Elin Hilderbrand
Publisher: Regan Arthur/Little, Brown & Co.
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: June 26th, 2012
Description:
It's June 15th, the night of Nantucket High School graduation. Four juniors are driving home from a party when something goes horribly wrong and there is a crash. The driver of the car, Penny Alistair, is killed, and her twin brother, Hobby Alistair, is left in a coma. Penny's boyfriend, Jake Randolph, and Penny's friend Demeter Castle are unhurt--but suffer tremendous emotional damage. Jake and his family move to the other side of the globe--to the west coast of Australia--in order to escape the horrors of the accident. Demeter falls prey to alcohol abuse and other self-destructive behaviors that nearly lead to her destroying her own life.
SUMMERLAND delves into the circumstances surrounding this accident, the roots of which lie deep in the past, with the first interactions between these four friends and their parents. It's a novel about how tragedy affects individuals, families, and the island community as a whole, and how healing can happen, in even the most devastating circumstances.
Chaos`s Review:
As always, we shall start with the cover! I think its pretty. Summery in its own way. It doesn't reveal the story, and it just seems......... I don't know.....it's just.....PRETTY........ lol
On to the story! The beginning was a little slow for me but gradually as I continued reading on through the chapters, it got me hooked. Eline Hilderbrand did an amazing job on describing the characters, and basically gave an amazing insight into each background story into each character, which helped to better understand the story.
The setting is placed within Nantucket, and starts off with a High School Graduation party, in which Penny (the driver), Hobby (Penny's twin brother), Jake (Penny's boyfriend), and Demeter (friend) are on their way home with Penny behind the wheel. Until the car swerves off of the road and kills Penny, places her twin brother, Hobby, into a coma, Demeter lives but becomes an alcohol addict, and Jake moves to Australia.
The thing with this story is that, it wasn't just a plain book about a tragic accident, but it was more likely based towards -how- this accident came to be. What made Penny decide that she wanted to kill both herself and all the passengers within the car? Anger? Sadness? Depression? I'm not gonna tell you guys ^_0
Anyways, I thought this book would be kind of boring, but honestly, once I started I just couldn't put this book down, it was just an awesome Summer read, and would recommend it to anyone that wants to take a break from the usual supernatural love stories.
Author: Elin Hilderbrand
Publisher: Regan Arthur/Little, Brown & Co.
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: June 26th, 2012
Description:
It's June 15th, the night of Nantucket High School graduation. Four juniors are driving home from a party when something goes horribly wrong and there is a crash. The driver of the car, Penny Alistair, is killed, and her twin brother, Hobby Alistair, is left in a coma. Penny's boyfriend, Jake Randolph, and Penny's friend Demeter Castle are unhurt--but suffer tremendous emotional damage. Jake and his family move to the other side of the globe--to the west coast of Australia--in order to escape the horrors of the accident. Demeter falls prey to alcohol abuse and other self-destructive behaviors that nearly lead to her destroying her own life.
SUMMERLAND delves into the circumstances surrounding this accident, the roots of which lie deep in the past, with the first interactions between these four friends and their parents. It's a novel about how tragedy affects individuals, families, and the island community as a whole, and how healing can happen, in even the most devastating circumstances.
Chaos`s Review:
As always, we shall start with the cover! I think its pretty. Summery in its own way. It doesn't reveal the story, and it just seems......... I don't know.....it's just.....PRETTY........ lol
On to the story! The beginning was a little slow for me but gradually as I continued reading on through the chapters, it got me hooked. Eline Hilderbrand did an amazing job on describing the characters, and basically gave an amazing insight into each background story into each character, which helped to better understand the story.
The setting is placed within Nantucket, and starts off with a High School Graduation party, in which Penny (the driver), Hobby (Penny's twin brother), Jake (Penny's boyfriend), and Demeter (friend) are on their way home with Penny behind the wheel. Until the car swerves off of the road and kills Penny, places her twin brother, Hobby, into a coma, Demeter lives but becomes an alcohol addict, and Jake moves to Australia.
The thing with this story is that, it wasn't just a plain book about a tragic accident, but it was more likely based towards -how- this accident came to be. What made Penny decide that she wanted to kill both herself and all the passengers within the car? Anger? Sadness? Depression? I'm not gonna tell you guys ^_0
Anyways, I thought this book would be kind of boring, but honestly, once I started I just couldn't put this book down, it was just an awesome Summer read, and would recommend it to anyone that wants to take a break from the usual supernatural love stories.
Friday 20 July 2012
Between The Lines By Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer Review
Source: Bought
Author: Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer
Publisher: Emily Bestler Books/Simon Pulse/Atria
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA
Format: Hardcover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: June 26, 2012
Description:
Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.
And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.
Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale
Chaos' Review
The model in the cover is bang on with the description of the female protagonist, Delilah. It's simple, and pretty. I like it.
Author: Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer
Publisher: Emily Bestler Books/Simon Pulse/Atria
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA
Format: Hardcover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: June 26, 2012
Description:
Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.
And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.
Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale
Chaos' Review
The model in the cover is bang on with the description of the female protagonist, Delilah. It's simple, and pretty. I like it.
As the story begins, your introduced to this awesome fairy-tale, as soon as I read the first line, I was hooked. The story is based on a love story between a loner girl in the real, and a Prince in a storybook. But the Prince is able to speak to Delilah because, she is seemingly the only one that cared enough to be able to hear him. IT WAS SO CUTE!
The Prince's name is Oliver, he's always dreamed of getting out of his book because he's sick of doing the same thing over and over again.The cool part, was how the authors, placed the idea that the story book characters are actors on a page whenever the book is opened. However, once the book is closed, everyone does whatever they want, no need to continue running the show because there's no audience whatsoever. I absolutely adored that idea. It made wonder, what if the books I read are filled with these actors that prowl around doing whatever they feel like when its closed? I'm always paranoid now, like WHY WON'T THEY TALK TO ME!?!?!
Anyways, the book is filled with pictures and silhouettes that tie in with the story PERFECTLY! It was a total fairy-tale. And just so beautifully laid out that once I have kids in the mere future, I'd probably read this story to them at night. It's just so AWWWW!!!!!!
The story goes through the POV's of Delilah & Oliver, plus it tells the story of Oliver's book. I LOVED LOVED LOVED IT! I haven't ever read anything like this before, and I love it, honestly, if you want to chillax and read something cute, this would definite be the book for you. PLUS! I'd say that its better to buy the book, because the pictures are very well done and drawn. Pure artistry. Just gorgeous, and it brought our my inner girly self, because as the story progresses, its basically about how Delilah tries to get Oliver out of the book and into the real! But in the end, I'd say in a different point of view, it wasn't an exact happy ending. It's hard to explain. Just go read it. LOL
Immortal City By Scott Speer Review
Author: Scott Speer
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Action-Adventure, Mystery, Paranormal
Format: Hardcover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: 5th April 2012
Description:
Jackson Godspeed is the hottest young Angel in a city filled with them. He's days away from becoming a full Guardian, and people around the world are already competing for the chance to be watched over by him. Everyone's obsessed with the Angels and the lucky people they protect--everyone except for Madison Montgomery.
Maddy explores her Angel heritage—and struggles to get her wings—as the Angels and the humans head for a showdown.
Life turned upside down for Maddy Montgomery when she found out she was half-Angel and was catapulted into the scene of flashbulbs, paparazzi, and fervent adulation that comes with
being in the celebrity Angel world.
And now Maddy must face the most difficult choice of her life. She’s been offered the chance to become a Guardian. This means dangerous and high-stakes training, with no guarantee that she can succeed. But more than that, it would mean leaving her mortal life behind—forever— and allying with the Angels at a time when their relationship with humans is heading for war...
Sunday 15 July 2012
Book Review: Legend by Marie Lu
Source: Borrowed
Author: Marie Lu
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Genre: Thriller, YA, Fantasy, Dystopia, Action-Adventure
Format: Hardcover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: November 29, 2011
Description:
What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.
Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills
Calamity's Review:
As usual, the cover! I'm just gonna put this out there by letting ya'll know that I'm not a fan of this cover. I guess there's supposed to be some sort of symbolism in it, but I'm sorry, I just don't see it. I guess this where the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" comes into play. Because this book was totally interesting. It was very fast paced and I finished it in a day- this says a lot because I am probably the slowest reader, turned blogger, you will ever meet. Seriously. I isolated myself from the world around me, and just read.
Legend is written in two different POV's; Day and June. Day is this badbutt villian who OBVIOUSLY has a good side to him-how else is he supposed to find true love? and June is the pretty, smart, rebellious girl... quite immpressive. She has all the characteristics that make her irresistable. And yet.. she was boring. Have you ever read a book where the traits of a charactrer are laid out but you don't really see them actually PUT INTO the character? well, this was the only problem with Legend. The characters were just plain boring. Even though I knew that Day was this awesome villian. I just didn't FEEL it.
Besides that, the main storyline was a little flat. I love the part of a book where the mystery is being solved and Legend didn't really give me much of that. I'm waiting for the sequel because I assume thats where we'll find out whats actually going on. Legend was quite the cliffhanger and I have a lot of unanswered questions.
I rate this book a 3, only because I'm soo anxious for some answers
Author: Marie Lu
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Genre: Thriller, YA, Fantasy, Dystopia, Action-Adventure
Format: Hardcover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: November 29, 2011
Description:
What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.
Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills
Calamity's Review:
As usual, the cover! I'm just gonna put this out there by letting ya'll know that I'm not a fan of this cover. I guess there's supposed to be some sort of symbolism in it, but I'm sorry, I just don't see it. I guess this where the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" comes into play. Because this book was totally interesting. It was very fast paced and I finished it in a day- this says a lot because I am probably the slowest reader, turned blogger, you will ever meet. Seriously. I isolated myself from the world around me, and just read.
Legend is written in two different POV's; Day and June. Day is this badbutt villian who OBVIOUSLY has a good side to him-how else is he supposed to find true love? and June is the pretty, smart, rebellious girl... quite immpressive. She has all the characteristics that make her irresistable. And yet.. she was boring. Have you ever read a book where the traits of a charactrer are laid out but you don't really see them actually PUT INTO the character? well, this was the only problem with Legend. The characters were just plain boring. Even though I knew that Day was this awesome villian. I just didn't FEEL it.
Besides that, the main storyline was a little flat. I love the part of a book where the mystery is being solved and Legend didn't really give me much of that. I'm waiting for the sequel because I assume thats where we'll find out whats actually going on. Legend was quite the cliffhanger and I have a lot of unanswered questions.
I rate this book a 3, only because I'm soo anxious for some answers
ReVamped By Ada Adams Review
Source: Author
Author: Ada Adams
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Romance, Action, Mystery
Format: Floppy Cover
Subformat: Young Adult
Description:
A simple mission turned deadly.
Nineteen-year-old vampire Dawn has led a sheltered life within the confines of her father’s presidential headquarters. Upon being sent on a mission to revamp four goofy misfits into guardians of a peaceful little town of Angel Creek, Dawn believes that all her dreams have finally come true. What starts off as a simple task, turns into something unexpected, changing Dawn’s life forever and leading the action-loving, thrill-seeking vampire teen on a path of mystery, danger and intrigue.
When a human girl is kidnapped by a group of rogue vamps, Dawn discovers that there is more going on in Angel Creek than meets the eye. And it all connects to Ethan, the cute newcomer who seems too perfect to be true, Sebastian, the mysterious vampire with a turbulent past, and even Dawn herself. Dawn must not only succeed in revamping the troubled recruits, but must also prevent the vampire race from being overtaken by a malevolent villain who has a strange and obsessive fascination with her. As threat escalates, romance blooms, and ghosts from her past begin to surface, Dawn is sure of only one thing: her life will never be the same
Author: Ada Adams
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Romance, Action, Mystery
Format: Floppy Cover
Subformat: Young Adult
Description:
A simple mission turned deadly.
Nineteen-year-old vampire Dawn has led a sheltered life within the confines of her father’s presidential headquarters. Upon being sent on a mission to revamp four goofy misfits into guardians of a peaceful little town of Angel Creek, Dawn believes that all her dreams have finally come true. What starts off as a simple task, turns into something unexpected, changing Dawn’s life forever and leading the action-loving, thrill-seeking vampire teen on a path of mystery, danger and intrigue.
When a human girl is kidnapped by a group of rogue vamps, Dawn discovers that there is more going on in Angel Creek than meets the eye. And it all connects to Ethan, the cute newcomer who seems too perfect to be true, Sebastian, the mysterious vampire with a turbulent past, and even Dawn herself. Dawn must not only succeed in revamping the troubled recruits, but must also prevent the vampire race from being overtaken by a malevolent villain who has a strange and obsessive fascination with her. As threat escalates, romance blooms, and ghosts from her past begin to surface, Dawn is sure of only one thing: her life will never be the same
Chaos' Review:
The cover is simply gorgeous! Though I must say, on covers lately, there's always a face on it, personally, I'm finding it a little over done now and want to see some more mysterious and creative ones.
On to the story! 19 year old Dawn is a kick-butt protagonist who is uber intelligent and may have issues in dealing with the boys department since she has forever been kept under the wing of her Father, the President of the Vampiric citizens around the world. During the coarse of the story, Dawn receives the chance to leave home and venture out to Angel Creek, set on revamping some vampire misfits into hero's.
While reading, I got a little bored due to some things being a little too wordy at times and the text being a little descriptive. I ended up catching myself skimming throughout the coarse of the story. As a teenager myself, I have to admit that I don't have much patience when things get largely based towards the descriptive writing on surroundings and such.
Since Dawn is 19, she's practically a mature adult, and it shows in her personality, so while reading, I didn't find myself to be very amused because she was so mature and experienced in certain ways, therefore, her thoughts didn't really appeal to me and I couldn't find a way to relate to her on any level.
The characters around her, such as the 4 misfits, I thought would add in a load more comedy, but I didn't really see much and sort of wished for a little more, so it could seemingly balance out the anxiety levels within the story.
The main story base I thought was really creative, and was clearly really interesting when certain mysteries began to unravel and twists were unexpectedly added. I enjoyed that coarse.
But mainly, I didn't really enjoy it as much as I thought I would have, and I think this book would appeal better towards an older age group, because being a teenager myself, I got a quite bored.
Ada Adams is a great author in sorts and I greatly admire her at writing this book, nor do I mean anything harsh against her. Its simply an opinion and its obvious that this book just wasn't my style nor taste.
Friday 29 June 2012
False Memory by Dan Krokos ARC Review + Interview
Source: Hachette Book Group Canada
Author: Dan Krokos
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Genre: Thriller
Format: Floppy Cover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: August 14th, 2012
Description:
Find False Memory at a bookstore near you on August 14th, 2012! Or Pre-Order online!
Author: Dan Krokos
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Genre: Thriller
Format: Floppy Cover
Subformat: Young Adult
Release Date: August 14th, 2012
Description:
Miranda wakes up alone on a park bench with no memory. In her panic, she releases a mysterious energy that incites pure terror in everyone around her. Except Peter, a boy who isn’t at all surprised by Miranda’s shocking ability.
Left with no choice but to trust this stranger, Miranda discovers she was trained to be a weapon and is part of an elite force of genetically-altered teens who possess flawless combat skills and powers strong enough to destroy a city. But adjusting to her old life isn’t easy—especially with Noah, the boyfriend she can't remember loving.
Then Miranda uncovers a dark truth that sets her team on the run. Suddenly her past doesn’t seem to matter...when there may not be a future.
Chaos' Review:
Now that we're back on track, lets start with the cover as per tradition. I LOVE it! Simply gorgeous, and its B L U E, which is my favourite colour! Plus its all dark and mysterious and doesn't give away the story at. all. Lets just say that it's my way of saying PERFECT! Props to the designers!
Time to dive in on the explanation of what I thought of the story! It jumps right in on Miranda waking up with no memory whatsoever. She's freaked, panicky, and lost. Then it also turns out that she has this wicked power in which she can INDUCE fear into people surrounding her. I gotta say, this was probably the first chapter and I was gawking at how interesting the story already was! I HAD TO KEEP READING! Peter pops on in, and DANG! I liked this dude already. Then things are just going insane, and as in the description it says "Miranda discovers she was trained to be a weapon..." well, Miranda can kick some butt! I always love protagonists that can fend for themselves PLUS protect the ones around them. ITS JUST SO COOL! *fangirls* Sorry, I am a total nerd for crazy things like this.
Anyways! back on topic, Noah is hilarious, so he turns serious situations into something much lighter, no doubt, he's that guy that can piss you off with all the snarky comments he makes non stop. He's still funny though.
Man, this book was not predictable at all. So many twists and turns. Just whoa. This is one of those books that you just can't describe. Calamity asked me to put the story into words without spoiling it, and all I could say was "Go read it. like, now".
One negative I would say that countered the extreme enjoyment of this story is probably because of how the main character wasn't as interesting as the characters around her, it seemed like her personality was clearly being out-shined, but I still really enjoyed it overall.
This was totally a unique and thrilling read filled with action, romance, and mystery! Lets just say this book was
One negative I would say that countered the extreme enjoyment of this story is probably because of how the main character wasn't as interesting as the characters around her, it seemed like her personality was clearly being out-shined, but I still really enjoyed it overall.
This was totally a unique and thrilling read filled with action, romance, and mystery! Lets just say this book was
-Awesome- and leave it at that without revealing anything else.
About the Author
After pumping gas for nine years to put himself through college, Dan Krokos, now twenty-six, dropped out to write full-time. He enjoys watching TV, playing MMORPGs, and drinking coffee. Currently, he’s hard at work on the next book in Miranda’s journey. Follow his antics on twitter (@DanKrokos)
Interview
What inspired you to write False Memory?
I’d been writing a lot of the same stuff for a while. Really gritty adult crime novels. I was
getting rejections that said my stuff was too masculine, or that it wouldn’t appeal to female
readers. I started to get worried that I could only do one thing. Around that time I read
Twilight and The Hunger Games, and yes, I loved them both. They were fun.
I started reading more and more YA, and decided to challenge myself by switching gears
entirely. I grew as a writer because of it.
Once I decided to go this route, I just applied all the things I loved about books growing up.
Action, adventure, and yes, romance.
Did you base any of your characters identities/personalities on people you’ve met or
passed by?
All writers take their experiences with people and distill them into fiction, but I never
go “Okay this character is going to be just like so and so.” I think characters have to be more
interesting than real people. Let’s face it—a lot of us are pretty boring.
What is one of the wackiest things you’ve ever done?
I really can’t say without incriminating myself : )
What is one of your favourite things to do while not writing?
Watch movies. They are my favorite thing. Or certain TV series.
Anything you can reveal about the sequel?!?
Maybe after the first book is out! I can say that it is a bit scarier than the first one.
What’s it like to write from the POV of a girl? Is it difficult?
Extremely. I doubt I’ll do it again. It’s definitely a lot easier now that I know Miranda, but in
the beginning it was really frustrating. I couldn’t really base any of the character on myself,
which always makes things easier…but maybe that’s a good thing?
I was lucky enough to get a lot of female advice on Miranda’s voice though, something I’m
very grateful for.
Favourite snack while writing? Or just in general?
I’m not much of a snacker. Does ice cream count as a snack? I definitely don’t snack while
writing. I’m a little OCD about keeping my keyboard clean, so I wash my hands every time
before I sit down to write. Yeah. I really only keep coffee and water nearby.
Any words of advice to aspiring writers?
I’d say don’t give up, but if you’re really a writer, you’re not going to anyway. So I guess I
would say to get off the social media stuff, for now. You can come back. But for now, focus
100% on writing and reading. Every spare moment, you can be learning. Right now I waste
so much time on the internet (as you’ll see in the question below), and I’m trying to do a
slow rollback. It’s so easy to distract yourself when a scene gets tough, so avoid that now
before the habit becomes ingrained.
Do you have any pre-writing things you do to get into your -zone-?
Yes, but really I’m just procrastinating. I look at stuff on the internet, sometimes hours
before starting, just to put it off. I like to have a cup of coffee first to get in the zone.
What would you do if one day you woke up and had the superpower you have forever
been dreaming of having?
I would give up the writing gig and become a full time superhero. Seriously.
Find False Memory at a bookstore near you on August 14th, 2012! Or Pre-Order online!
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