Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title:  Obsidian (Lux #1)
Author:  Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Published:  May 8, 2012

Amazon |  B&N |  The Book Depository

My Rating:

Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens.

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.

If I don't kill him first, that is.

Everywhere I’ve turned these past few months, I have seen mentions of and, at times, unabated, outright frenzies over this author and some guy named Daemon. So, when my dear friend Christie over at Christie's Book Reviews began sending me cryptic, excited texts about this book (and the guy in question), I knew I needed to pay attention. Christie, being the sweet, generous friend that she is, offered to loan me her copy of Obsidian... and I didn’t hesitate to say YES, PLEASE!

I enjoyed this story, but maybe for slightly different reasons than some. Sure, I was intrigued by Katy's new neighbors and eager to uncover their secrets, but one of my favorite things about the book is that Katy is a blogger. At first I thought, Hmmm.... if this is a ploy by the author to ensure blogger appreciation… well, that’s genius, yes, but will it be convincing? All it took was Katy posting her Waiting on Wednesday and me bouncing up and down (yep, actual bouncing!) to realize that the author knew what she was talking about!

“Since it was Wednesday, I’d typed up a quick ‘Waiting on Wednesday’ post for my blog featuring this YA book about a hot boy with a killer touch - can’t go wrong there - apologized for my extended absence, responded to comments, and stalked a few other blogs I loved. It was like coming home.”

Jennifer Armentrout really captured the excitement we readers/reviewers/bloggers experience when we receive a parcel containing books (our precious)!

“Once I got home, though, and saw several packages on my front porch, all the crap from the day disappeared. A few had smiley faces on them. Squealing, I grabbed the boxes. Books were inside - new release books that I’d preordered weeks ago."

And, of course, the roller coaster of emotions we bloggers go through:

“I hurried upstairs and powered up my laptop. I checked on the review I’d posted last night. No comments. People sucked. But I did gain five new followers. People rocked. I closed out the page before I started redesigning everything.”

******************************************************************************

“Eyes still on me, he tipped his desk forward even further. ‘Guess what?’
‘What?’
‘I checked out your blog.’
Oh. Dear. Baby. Jesus. How did he find it? Wait. More importantly was the fact that he had found it. Was my blog now Googleable? That was awesomesauce with an extra heaping of sauce.”

Daemon. Oh, Daemon. I am not going to be very popular with my next statements (translation: I am fearful of being flogged by a large crowd of fangirls), but bear with me. I love a bad boy… I mean really, really love a bad boy, but Dameon… well, I’m sorry, but Dameon is an ass-butt. I just can’t fall for a guy who is sooooo mean, and it bothered me that Katy was excited by their confrontations instead of slapping that smug look off his pretty face every single time he opened his mouth. But I confess, the guy can be pretty funny:

“My lips pressed into a hard line. ‘You’re such an ass. Has... anyone ever told you that?’
He flashed a genuinely amused smile. ‘Oh, Kitten, every single day of my blessed life.’”

When I expressed my lack of enthusiasm over Daemon, Christie was quick to assure me that there were reasons behind his douche-bagginess and for me to be patient with him. So, I was... and she was right (as usual). There is definitely more to our acerbic alien than what first meets the eye. What I savored most were the Daemon POV inclusions at the end of the book. Reading certain moments from the story from his perspective and hearing his thoughts, even as he was spewing some of those venomous words, definitely gave me pause.

“But no matter where I went, what I was running from would still be with me - Kat. She wasn’t just back in the house, in that bed. She was with me now, inside me. And there was no outrunning that.”

Well, now I have to read the next book in the series! I do love the uniqueness of the story. I’ve read about vampires, werewolves, sorcerers, zombies, trolls, and hellhounds… but this was my first alien story since E.T… and I liked it! I also admittedly would rather look at Daemon than E.T (although, E.T. does usually have Reese’s Pieces...). 

I am truly excited to read Shadows (Lux #0.5), Dawson and Bethany’s story, and, of course, Onyx, the second book in the Lux series - both of which Christie gave me for my birthday (see how much she rocks??)  I wonder how I will feel about Daemon after Onyx? I think it's going to be pretty fun finding out ;)

　

Thank you, Christie, for loaning me your copy of Obsidian, for gifting me Shadows and Onyx, and for showing me what all the hullabaloo was about! Heart you tons!
 

Waiting on Wednesday (3): Sever by Lauren DeStefano

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine,

that showcases our most anticipated upcoming releases.

My WoW pick for this week is:

Title:  Sever (The Chemical Garden #3)
Author:  Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Expected Publication:  February 12, 2013

Amazon |  B&N |  The Book Depository

Time is running out for Rhine in this conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Chemical Garden Trilogy.






With the clock ticking until the virus takes its toll, Rhine is desperate for answers. After enduring Vaughn’s worst, Rhine finds an unlikely ally in his brother, an eccentric inventor named Reed. She takes refuge in his dilapidated house, though the people she left behind refuse to stay in the past. While Gabriel haunts Rhine’s memories, Cecily is determined to be at Rhine’s side, even if Linden’s feelings are still caught between them.

Meanwhile, Rowan’s growing involvement in an underground resistance compels Rhine to reach him before he does something that cannot be undone. But what she discovers along the way has alarming implications for her future—and about the past her parents never had the chance to explain.

In this breathtaking conclusion to Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden trilogy, everything Rhine knows to be true will be irrevocably shattered.

 

If you caught my review of Fever from a couple of weeks ago, then it will come as no surprise that I am anxiously counting the days until February 12 for the conclusion to The Chemical Garden Series and to find out what will become of Rhine, Gabriel, Linden, Rowan... and Cecily and Vaughn!

What book are YOU waiting to get your hands on? 

I'd love to know, so leave me a link in the comments!

Unspoken (The Lynburn Legacy #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title:  Unspoken (The Lynburn Legacy #1)
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Random House
Expected Publication:  September 11, 2012

Amazon | B&N | The Book Depository
 

My Rating: 
 

Kami Glass loves someone she’s never met . . . a boy she’s talked to in her head ever since she was born. She wasn’t silent about her imaginary friend during her childhood, and is thus a bit of an outsider in her sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Still, Kami hasn’t suffered too much from not fitting in. She has a best friend, runs the school newspaper, and is only occasionally caught talking to herself. Her life is in order, just the way she likes it, despite the voice in her head.

But all that changes when the Lynburns return.

The Lynburn family has owned the spectacular and sinister manor that overlooks Sorry-in-the-Vale for centuries. The mysterious twin sisters who abandoned their ancestral home a generation ago are back, along with their teenage sons, Jared and Ash, one of whom is eerily familiar to Kami. Kami is not one to shy away from the unknown—in fact, she’s determined to find answers for all the questions Sorry-in-the-Vale is suddenly posing. Who is responsible for the bloody deeds in the depths of the woods? What is her own mother hiding? And now that her imaginary friend has become a real boy, does she still love him? Does she hate him? Can she trust him?
 

 

I love the concept of this story: imaginary friends. Who didn’t have a make-believe companion at some point in our young lives? But what happens when you grow up and your imaginary best friend doesn’t fade away into childhood’s past? If you can’t hide from everyone that you are carrying on one side of an intelligent, albeit humorous, conversation… in your head? And even more incredible, what happens when you meet your fictitious other half… face to face?

Unique, refreshing, sassy, stimulating, exhilarating… these are just a few of the adjectives I would use to describe Unspoken. The witty and oh-so-clever banter between the lead character, Kami, and… well, everyone was fresh and so much fun to read about. Kami’s humor and snark were fantastic, and, while some may find Ash’s golden looks appealing, it was Jared who captured my attention and my heart from the very beginning. The boy breathes new life into the words “ruggedly handsome.” 

“'My body is a gift from God,' Jared said gravely.

'Except for my hips, which are clearly a gift from the devil.'" 

I was so drawn into Kami and Jared’s story that, at one point in the book (the elevator), I felt the characters’ pain so profoundly that I realized I had gasped out loud and was clutching my stomach. I LOVE when a book makes me feel what its characters are feeling. It takes a very talented author and a special kind of story to draw me in so much that I lose myself entirely and reality fades away. And that talent extends to creating a setting that is so easily seen in the reader’s eyes that you feel as though you are walking the streets of Sorry-in-the-Vale or glimpsing strange things in the Sorriest River. 

There were some great twists and turns in Unspoken, and, although the dreaded “I love you, but I can’t have you, come-to-me, don’t touch me” scenario was present, I found myself not even caring if I was getting whiplash from Jared’s moodiness and Kami’s battling emotions.

Even if Sarah Rees Brennan hadn’t convinced me with her excellent writing and fascinating story, the sudden and unexpected ending of Unspoken has me counting down the days until book two in The Lynburn Legacy releases.

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

 

Teaser Tuesday (4): The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


This week's teaser comes from the following book:

Title:   The Lost Prince (The Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten #1)
Author:   Julie Kagawa
Publisher:  Harlequin Teen
Expected Publication:  October 23, 2012

Amazon | Barnes & Noble


Don’t look at Them.  Never let Them know you can see Them.





That is Ethan Chase’s unbreakable rule. Until the fey he avoids at all costs—including his reputation—begin to disappear, and Ethan is attacked. Now he must change the rules to protect his family. To save a girl he never thought he’s dare to fall for.

Ethan thought he had protected himself from his older sister’s world—the land of Faery. His previous time in the Iron Realm left him with nothing but fear and disgust for the world Meghan Chase has made her home, a land of myths and talking cats, of magic and seductive enemies. But when destiny comes for Ethan, there is no escape from a danger long, long forgotten.

My name is Ethan Chase. And I may not live to see my eighteenth birthday.
 

My teaser is:

“‘You go back to what you were doing before,’ I replied.

 ‘You try to get on with your life, and pretend it didn’t happen.

 It’ll be easier for you…’”

 -  pg 204

Oh, my!  I wonder who’s doling out this wisdom and who is on the receiving end? I can’t wait to find out!

 

I'd love to know what your Teaser Tuesday is! Leave me a link in the comments so I can visit you!

Katertot's Review: Lost Girls by Ann Kelley

Title:  Lost Girls
Author: Ann Kelley
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: July 10, 2012

Amazon  |  Barnes&Noble

My Rating:

No parents. No rules. No way home.

Fourteen-year-old Bonnie MacDonald couldn't be more excited for a camping trip on an island off the coast of Thailand with her fellow Amelia Earhart Cadets-the daughters of the men and women stationed there during the Vietnam War. But when a strong current deposits the girls on what their boatman calls the "forbidden island," things take a turn for the worse: A powerful storm comes to destroy their campsite, the smallest of the junior cadets is found dead, and their boatman never returns. What once seemed like a vacation in paradise has become a battle against the elements.

Peppered with short, frantic entries from Bonnie's journal, Lost Girls is a page-turning, heart-pounding adventure story about a group of teen girls fighting for their lives.

Lost Girls by Ann Kelley was a heart-pounding book that I eagerly read within two days. Ms. Kelley wrote this story perfectly, which is difficult to do with an action or adventure story. She made the events of the story believable and didn’t go overboard with injuries or death. Lost Girls was an amazing book that I’ll be revisiting for sure!

The beauty of the book, in my opinion, is that it was set in May of 1974. I love a book set in the 70’s - or anything 70’s, really. This book was a total hit with me!

I was shocked - and intrigued - by the fact that the author didn’t wait a hot second before killing off a little girl in a gruesome way (vivid details were not given). I knew that, when that happened, I was in for quite a ride. And boy did Ms. Kelley take me on one! She fills the pages of her book with entries from the main character Bonnie MacDonald’s journal. Bonnie is a fourteen-year-old girl currently living in Thailand with her mother - her father is a soldier, so they are stationed there for the time being. When Bonnie and her Amelia Earhart Cadet group go off for three days to survive on an island in the middle of the sea, things turn bad in the blink of an eye. Horrible storms and winds, a dangerous ocean in which no one can sail (yet another reason to lose hope of ever being saved), and a forest filled with wild boars, tigers, snakes, and more. Can Bonnie pull together a plan and get everyone off the island alive?

The elements seem to be against Bonnie and her peers as they try to stay alive in the wilderness of a supposedly forbidden island. I found that it was easy to get lost in the story and feel as if I were one of the girls myself. This book was very emotional for me in some parts: when Bonnie met the monk, when Layla Campbell realized she needed to step up her game… when a beloved character died.

--- Bonnie MacDonald - Bonnie was one of my favorite characters in this book because, although she was fourteen, she kept her focus and was able to keep everyone alive for weeks, with help from her friends, but hardly any from their leader.

--- Layla Campbell - Mrs. Campbell was an interesting character. Her bad definitely outweighed her good in some points. When things got bad, she turned to alcohol and drugs, and, unfortunately, encouraged two of the girls to join her, which, sadly, they did without hesitation. She even kept whiskey for herself when it could have saved another girl’s life. After a traumatic event, Layla was forced with the incredible decision of giving up or becoming the leader she should have been all along.

--- Jas - Jas was such a wonderful character. Also one of my favorites. She knew so much and it was her knowledge, education, and survival skills that helped the group stay alive, too. She was always telling people things about animals and plants they found on the island. I admired that greatly.

--- Hope - My favorite character, Hope, was the one I felt the worst for. Her father was unspeakably cruel to her. Hope was easy to love. She had a hard life, though, and it showed in her stutter and lack of courage and confidence in herself. I loved Hope's fight to overcome her stutter, her will to gain the other girls' respect, and her struggle to obtain bravery and confidence. Really someone to look up to.

I could go on all day long about Lost Girls, but I don’t want to give too much away. Lost Girls was an amazing book by a very talented author. I would absolutely love to see it made into a movie - I already know who I would want to play some of the characters. I will definitely be reading more of Ann Kelley’s work, as she sure knows how to pull a reader in!

Lost Girls was a very intense book, and some scenes might upset younger readers, especially when the little girl dies in the very beginning. I was able to relate more to this story because the characters were older and more mature than some of the middle-grade books I’ve recently read. Also, there is a bit of mild language in this book. These features make the book more YA than middle-grade, which is why I recommend it to readers thirteen/fourteen and up. I believe this story would appeal to any reader of or over that age because it contains something for everybody.

Au Revoir, summer… Bonjour, 8th grade

As our summer draws to an end, Katertot is excited to begin her new journey into the 8th grade. I can't believe my BABY CHILD is going to be an 8th grader!! To celebrate this milestone, we would like to give away some great books that are set in or around school.

First up and the reason we southern gals are butchering the beautiful French language in our post’s title: Anna and The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Katertot hasn’t read this one, and, while I’m not a big fan of contemporaries, I enjoyed this book... and, especially, Etienne St. Clair.

Next up is the first book of a series that neither of us have read, but it is definitely on my TBR list:

Vampire Academy (#1) by Richelle Mead. Not sure this one is Katertot-approved, but I’ll soon find out. I’ve been hearing a lot about this series and Dimitri, in particular, so I ordered one copy for myself and one for a giveaway winner, too!


It’s just not a giveaway for me if I can’t throw in a zombie book. Here’s one about zombies trying to get into a school! Much better excuse than “the dog ate my homework.” How could we not add This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers to the loot bag?

Last, but certainly not least, is our BIGGEST prize and Katertot’s all-time favorite series! Since she wishes she was going to Hogwarts, she is giving away the ENTIRE Harry Potter series in a beautiful boxed set:

And who wouldn't want to do homework with this incredibly cool Gryffindor pen?

Fill out the Rafflecopter form below for your chance to win ALL OF THESE THINGS (said in the voice of Ross Geller)!

Remember, guys and gals, no cheatin’, or I’ll be a-deletin’. Erm... entries, that is… not the actual cheaters.
  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winners!

Congratulations to BookLoverTris for winning the $50.00 gift card! 

 She chose a B&N gift card and her name sparked an awesome conversation between the two of us about our favorite book, Divergent ;)

Moving prevented me from publicly congratulating the winners of my last two giveaways, so I want to say congratulations to:

 Jess, the winner of Anne Eyre by Summer Day

And

Christie, Jessica, Kristie, and Courtney, the winners of the Zombie Survival Giveaway

Thank you to all who participated! 

Fever by Lauren DeStefano

Title:  Fever (The Chemical Garden #2)
Author:  Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Simon&Schuster Children's Pub
Publication Date: February 21, 2012

Amazon |  B&N |  The Book Depository

My Rating:







     

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 women 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 the 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.

“But there’s no such thing as free.

There are only different and more horrible ways to be enslaved.”

I was longing for a “don’t-want-to-eat, can’t-sleep, a-natural-disaster-couldn’t-make-me-put-this-book-down” story. Fever by Lauren DeStefano was just that. I read it in one day. Ms. DeStefano’s addictive writing and her fascinating characters do not disappoint.  This was an amazing sequel to Wither, a book I was, at first, reluctant to read, but fell head over heels for.

In Fever, we are introduced to a host of new characters that are a treat to read about!  Lilac, Jared, and the crazy Madame. Then, there’s sweet little Maddie, who everyone underestimates, but is always a step ahead. Oh, and hoarders! Yes, HOARDERS! Our favorite main characters remind us why we fell so hard for them in Wither, and I love that Fever picks up right where Wither left us (in absolute suspense, but I digress). Rhine is her usual fearless self and is more determined than ever to reunite with Rowan in this sequel. Then, of course, there is my beloved Gabriel. I adored getting to know him better. In Wither, I craved for Gabriel and Rhine to have more time together. Fever feeds that craving without completely satisfying it, which is a good thing, because I do love that anticipation and hunger for a happy ending.  Some have asked about the absence of Linden, but his presence is definitely felt, and, when he does appear in Fever, I found it to be well worth the wait. I was not a huge Linden fan in Wither, but he really got my attention in Fever, and, while I’m still focused on Gabriel, I am certainly beginning to understand Linden’s appeal.

“Love unrequited is violent. He loves you so much that he's turned it into hate.”

I could almost hear the clock ticking away the precious minutes that these characters have left, and my desire for Rhine to be reunited with Rowan was at an all-time high.

“And then I wonder, does my brother think of me this way? We entered this world together, one after the other, beats in a pulse. But I will be first to leave it.
That's what I've been promised.

When we were children, did he dare to imagine an empty space beside him where
I then stood giggling, blowing soap bubbles through my fingers?

When I die, will he be sorry that he loved me? Sorry that we were twins?

Maybe he already is.”

The amazing world-building and heart-pounding plot make Fever an outstanding second installment in The Chemical Garden Series. Lauren DeStefano’s thought-provoking and evocative writing pulls the reader in and refuses to let go until the last page, though I dare you not to think about the story for days after.

“Because even if the lie is beautiful, the truth is what you face in the end.”

The highly anticipated Sever (The Chemical Garden #3)

is due out February 12, 2013.  Please click the book to your left for more details.

Intangible by J. Meyers

Title:   Intangible
Author:   J. Meyers
Published:  January 31, 2012

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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.


 

Intangible is an enthralling book that tells the story of Luke and Sera Raine, twins who share more than just a sibling bond - they also share mysterious preternatural gifts. This is a secret they guard with their lives, and they live in fear of what might happen if people found out. They’re about to realize it isn’t just “people” finding out their secret that would put their lives and loved ones in imminent danger. What follows is an exciting paranormal adventure full of mystery and magic and brimming with the supernatural.

Intangible has a huge cast of characters that were so much fun to read about. The author did a great job fleshing each one out, yet leaving you wanting more. Luke and Sera are very likeable male and female protagonists with a story that is heartbreaking and intriguing at the same time. Sera is so lovely and selfless, always using her powers to help those in need. I couldn’t help but feel bad for Sera, knowing that she keeps others at a distance out of fear of being rejected. She never knows if someone likes her for her or if it’s a side effect of her power. So when Marc, the handsome stranger, arrives in town, will she be able to trust him with her heart? Or does Marc have secrets of his own?

“He wanted the girl. This girl. More than anything else he’d ever wanted. She was amazing. And if she could do what he thought she could do? 

That just made him want her even more.”

Luke is the guy everyone loves. Friendly, easy on the eyes, and a very protective brother. He fills the “hero” role quite well. He would love nothing more than to see Sera happy, and Marc may have been just the guy to make that happen…until Luke’s vision reveals the opposite. That’s not the only vision Luke has that has him racing against the clock and, for the first time in their lives, hiding something from his sister. Will Luke be able to change his vision this time and save the most important person in his life?    

Fey, Sera’s best friend, was a force to be reckoned with. I wish Fey had been more forthcoming with her story… or that the twins would have figured it out earlier, so I could have more details about this interesting and pivotal character.  I hope we can delve further into Fey’s background in the next book.   

Then, there is my favorite character: Jonas. Oh, Jonas. Dark, beautiful, brooding Jonas. Jonas is exactly the kind of guy that I love to read about. No flowery, flattery compliments - just straightforward, down-to-business hotness. His fierce need to protect and his struggle to do the right thing make Jonas someone I can’t get enough of. I can’t wait to read more about him!  

J. Meyers has created a captivating world full of fascinating, mythical inhabitants.  

“‘I thought I’d call the police and ask them to come along.’ She mimed holding a phone to her ear. ‘Hi, my brother and boyfriend have been kidnapped by vampires and taken into the Realm. Can you help me save them?’ Oh, but I should probably tell them to beware of the goblins and faeries they may encounter on the way.’

Jonas’s jaw dropped.

‘You’ve seen goblins and faeries? Together?'

‘No, of course I haven’t. There’s no such thing as goblins and faeries. That’s not the poin--’ Sera stopped at the look on Jonas’s face. ‘You have got to be kidding me.’ 

Was every mythological creature actually real?”

I really enjoyed the different points of view throughout Intangible. Multiple POV’s can be confusing, but I felt the author did a tremendous job making the dialogue flow and the conversations easy to follow. The author really allows the reader to get inside the characters' heads, which makes for a nice change of pace and an absorbing read. I love the beautiful, vivid descriptions the author provides and would love to visit Vermont one day in the future:  

“They stood side by side, staring out at the water. There was no warmth to be had from the sun shining on them, but it was beautiful glinting off the smooth surface of the water. If they stood there long enough, they’d see the sun go down behind the Adirondacks across the lake, leaving a color-streaked sky.”  

The magnificence of the Realm was breathtaking:  

“More colorful, more beautiful, more intense. More everything. 

From the side of the mountain where they stood, she could see rolling green hills meet huge blue mountains off in the distance, capped by a perfect, clear blue sky.

The air was just the right temperature…

Trees covered the hills, and gave way to lovely fields of grasses and wildflowers

 of purple, red, and orange.

…the air felt clean and alive, and smelled like grass, flower, and wood.”

With so many twists, turns, and secrets lurking around each corner, Intangible keeps you guessing until the very end! I look forward to reading more of Mrs. Meyers’s work and can’t wait to read the next installment in this series.

A huge thank you to the author for sending me Intangible in exchange for my honest review.




If you would like a great introduction to Luke and Sera, you can pick up Intuition, a short prequel to Intangible. Just click the book to the left to get your free copy at Amazon!

Touched by Cyn Balog

Title:  Touched
Author: Cyn Balog
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Expected Publication: August 14, 2012

Amazon |  Barnes&Noble |  The Book Depository

My Rating:

Nick Cross always listens to the voice in his head. Because if he doesn't? Things can go really, really wrong. Like the day he decided to go off script and saved a girl from being run over . . . and let another one drown. Trying to change the future doesn't work.

But this summer at the Jersey Shore, something's about to happen that Nick never could have predicted. He meets a girl named Taryn and finds out about the Book of Touch. Now the path that he thought he was on begins to shift . . . and there's no way to stop things from happening. Or is there?

In a life where there are no surprises, nothing has prepared Nick for what he's about to discover--or the choice he will be forced to make. . . .

If I could be granted one wish involving Touched, it would be to crawl into its pages so I could give Nick a big hug. I love that the male lead character is not your average bad boy, smooth talking, ladies' man. Quite the opposite. Nick Cross is an outcast. He’s been bullied and then avoided like the plague. His “talent” is no gift, but indeed a curse. A huge burden that weighs on his every waking moment. I couldn’t imagine having a script in my head that I must adhere to every second of my life. And if Nick goes off script? A painful re-shuffling of his future. To know who you marry, how you will die, even to fall in love with a future grandchild….. Only to have it all vanish in an instant, because for one tiny moment - you disobeyed the script.

What an incredible and thought-provoking concept! I love the magic of Touched. The You Wills were amazing and fascinating to read about. Nick was so endearing that he captured my heart within the first few pages. His family (especially his Nan - LOVE her), his home life, his thoughts - so extremely absorbing. I wasn’t sure about Taryn in the beginning, but the answers that she was able to give and the history provided by her grandmother’s Book of Touch were so intriguing.

My only regret is the turn the story took near the end. While I appreciated the sacrifice that was made in the end, I would have liked for it to have stayed on the path it started, but that’s just my personal preference. I still thoroughly enjoyed this book and the fact that I couldn’t stop thinking about it for days after I turned the last page. The cover is beautiful and relates to the story itself perfectly. Touched has definitely earned a spot on my bookshelves, and Nick Cross - a place in my heart. I look forward to reading Ms. Balogs’ other works.

Thank you to Delacorte Press and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

The Moving Blues Giveaway

I may have been a little down over my recent move (you can read all about it here), but I want all my bookish friends to be as happy as clams, so I’m giving away a $50.00 gift card from your choice of Barnes&Noble or Amazon.

Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below for your chance to win!  Good luck, lovelies!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Moving Blues

Ahhhhhh! It’s so good to be back! I missed you guys sooooo much!! I can hardly wait to catch up on your blogs and see what all I’ve missed! I want to know what everyone is reading!!!








Before I recount my moving woes, I want to give a huge shout-out to our dear friend, Nyssa! She flew to TX, helped us pack up necessities, load them, and then drove my Jeep with me and three pugs as her passengers. We followed my hubby, Katertot, and the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad Chihuahua in their small, rented moving truck. We went through towns where we were certain we heard banjos playing. Nyssa was a life-saver. We cannot thank her enough and are so blessed to have someone like her in our lives. Love you, girl!

Before we left TX, our upstairs central air conditioning unit quit. Exactly what you need in the scorching Texas heat and right before you’re listing your house on the market. I should have known this move wasn’t going to be easy when we had to fork over $1,000 before we even got on the road! Then there was the very painful spider bite I had to deal with - nausea and fever makes a fifteen-hour drive go by so quickly. Not. We finally made it to my sweet little hometown in Mississippi. It was so great spending time with family and being back in the house I grew up in. The visit went by too fast, though, and we were back on the road before we were ready. But we didn’t get far before the air went out in my Jeep and smoke began pouring from underneath the hood. Smack dab in the middle of Podunk, Alabama (yeah, you can tell I spent some time in the deep South), where humidity and the heat index are referred to as “fire and brimstone.” That set us back another thousand dollars and several hours behind schedule. We finally arrived on the coast and at our new home after being awake for over twenty-four hours. That’s when another realization hit: I am not as young as I used to be, and pulling all-nighters is a thing of the past. Seriously. At one point, I became delirious, and I’m pretty sure I blacked out for thirty seconds. Nyssa has stories. Funny, funny stories. It took days to recover! Oh, and did I mention the movers won’t be here with our belongings until the end of August?? Good times. I spent a quiet, not-so-happy birthday in my new, empty place and worked through some sadness over leaving TX.

Then, I looked at the birthday present that Nyssa gave me:

　

If Veronica Roth tells me to “Be Brave,” I'm going to listen.

...Well, there was that and the cupcakery that we stumbled upon the other day:

Yummy!  My spirits are lifted!!! So, enough whining. I’m shaking off the moody blues and putting on my happy face. I’m really beginning to appreciate the beauty of our new home and Katertot is loving all the different birds she has seen so far. We both watched a gray fox for an hour while it watched us! Our house is surrounded by a beautiful woodland, and there’s a trail that leads to the water. Speaking of water, I’ve definitely never had one of these in my neighborhood before:

I think we’re going to be just fine.

I want to thank everyone for all the support, words of encouragement, and birthday wishes! It means so much to me. To show my thanks, I’ll have a giveaway going up in my next post. Hope you’ll stop by and enter.
It’s great to be back!
xoxoxo