Blog Hop & Follow Friday (3)

 "Who's your all-time favorite book villain?"

Hmm.... I am usually not about the villain... I guess I would say Keenan and Donia from Melissa Marr's series. Keenan is well meaning but is the villlain in the relationship between Aislinn and Seth. He seems to be a good person aside from trying to sabotage that relationship. Donia is just looking to be loved but is stuck in the winter court.

 Share your current fav television show! Tell us a bit about it...

 

Oh this one is easy peasy GLEE!! See the Friday Five below. I plan my entire Tuesday around Glee. 

Procrastination & Deadlines

So I have been contemplating an author's life recently. I think if I wrote solely for a living I would be poor or would never sleep for weeks at a time :) I do my best work under deadlines and the closer to the deadline the easier it is for me to write. Of course this doesn't translate to fictional writing necessarily. I am a grad student and am currently working on my proposal. I have been trying to force myself to write my third chapter and did it on the day before it was due in a few hours. Not to say I hadn't spent plenty of time thinking about it before it happened. It just seems that things are always easier for me when deadlines loom near.

So what does this have to do with a book blog?? I want to convey the high level of respect that I have for these authors that write their books and for the fact that many of the ones I follow on a blog can create a schedule and stick to it. I would wind up a week before a deadline and give up all contact with the world. I seem to suffer from a case of writers block until circumstances get dire. In fact, I even have the first part of a book started but work on it only on occasion as an outlet. I can't imagine doing that on a regular basis (I also doubt it will ever be published as I am much better at writing research than fiction).

So the procrastination part of this post is my most recent venture in procrastination... The four book release week that happened this week. So far I have only finished one of the four book but I did manage to get a revision done on my first chapter of my dissertation. So thats progress RIGHT!? Next week I will buckle down and revise ch. 2... or so I will tell myself...

What are you currently procrastinating & how??

Here we go again.....

So I am starting to wonder if all the authors in the series I read got together and decided to release on the same date a few times a year... Not really but it seems every few months this phenomena happens again. Releasing on March 1 that I want to read:

How am I supposed to choose!!?? I am also still trying to get through the Latest Melissa Marr book that was just released and still stay on top of finishing up my proposal for my dissertation... Luckily we are off all next week for Mardi Gras break so hopefully I can do some relaxing and catching up on schoolwork. Because I'll be honest I am a procrastinator and these books are the perfect excuse to do so :) I think I will just blindfold myself and pick one to download tonight. Unless anyone out there has read the ARC and has an opinion??

On a Personal Note

My daughter's first birthday is this Sunday. I am soo excited to have her party and wanted to share her invitations with all of you! Her middle name came from the Looking Glass Wars series. We named her Alyssin after Alyss. Thus the theme of her first birthday is Alice in Wonderland. Our Carnival Ball (mardi gras) theme had Alice in Wonderland decorations that my mom is brining and we are doing a tea party theme. I think its going to be so adorable. My mother in law is even making a blue dress just like Alice in Wonderland with the white apron and everything. I'm curious what character you would consider/did name your child after? Check out the invitations below:

Cute Right!?

The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

I saw this title on netgalley and was intrigued since it was Greek Mythology. I have always read the Greek and Roman myths and read Percy Jackson right after I finished Harry Potter. Here’s the description I got of the galley:

"EVERY GIRL who has taken the test has DIED.

Not it's KATE'S TURN.

It’s always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate’s going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won’t live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he’ll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he’s crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she’ll become Henry’s future bride, and a goddess.

If she fails..."

I liked the aspect of trying to figure out who has been killing the previous girls that have tried the tests. Some failed during the tests and others seem to mysteriously die. It reminded me a little of Kimberly Derting’s writing as I spent a lot of my time reading trying to figure out what was going on and who was responsible for the murders. This added to the story and made it difficult to put down.

I really enjoyed the love story that evolved between Henry and Kate. I think as a couple they rank in my top 10 couples that I enjoy reading about. Their love is realistic and not a life or death devotion. It also evolves over the course of time. I think the fact that they are both somewhat broken adds to things. **Mild Spoiler** Henry is broken from his relationship with Persephone and Kate is broken from taking care of her sick mom. However, I think over the course of the series they will have many obstacles to overcome but will be able to heal one another in the process.

I have been very skeptical of the latest trend to retell stories. I really thought this was going to be a retelling of Persephone when I first picked it up but was pleasantly surprised to find it was not what I was expecting. The book releases 4/26/2011 and I highly recommend pre-ordering this one. I give it a 5/5 and think if you enjoyed Kimberly Derting’s style of plot you will enjoy this book as well.

  

Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting

I have been waiting for this book for what seems like forever! I reviewed the previous book The Body Finder and recommend reading it prior to attempting the second book in the series.  Here’s the description from Amazon:

The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found.

Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.

As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.

I have greatly missed Violet and Jay so I was really excited to download this book on release day. I spent the entire drive to the Mardi Gras ball we went to an hour and a half away reading this book.

I can tell you it was worth the wait. I like the introduction of Mike’s character into the story line. It brings a new level to the budding relationship between Jay and Violet. While Jay is utterly devoted to Violet in a way I’m sure no real guy is, he still has friends and Violet will still be jealous of anyone taking her spot as Jay’s best friend.

One of the things I enjoy the most about Kimberly’s writing is that she infuses an aspect of mystery in the story. You see some thoughts of a dangerous obsession from the perspective of the “stalker” (not really sure if that is the right term) then things begin to happen to Violet as someone is trying to get to her. I really like that I had a hard time figuring out who was causing the problems and had to keep changing my mind. It kept me interested in the story and unable to put it down.

I loved the fact that Violet comes to terms with who she is and her ability in this book. She doesn’t completely reconcile it. However, she begins to see the potential that she has to impact people and seems to accept that normal will have a different meaning for her. I think that will make her a much stronger character in the future books.

I am not sure what to think of the mysterious male agent with abilities that is introduced in this book. While it doesn’t appear that he and Violet have a romantic connection it seems possible that something might develop since they have an ability in common. I am hoping Jay is able to hang onto his girl :)

The only criticism I have for readers is that there was a “Bella” section to the story (I couldn’t stand to read most of New Moon while she was moaning over Edward). There is a period in this book where Violet experiences the same thing. If you aren’t one to want to read all the angsty parts of YA you can likely skip a lot of that and just focus on the plot.

Overall, I give this book a 5/5. It was so worth the wait. I am just sad that I now have to wait for the next book in the series. On a side note I LOVE the covers for this series they are amazing! Click the amazon link below to order your copy today!

Contest Winners!!

Congrats to Mandy Luminais of embrace your oddities for winning a copy of Meridian. You can check her blog out here

Also congrats to Caitlyn Turnbull for winning a copy of One Butt Cheek at A Time!