Gayle Forman, Nina LaCour, & Deb Caletti at University Bookstore

The lovely set-up of books. Sadly, it didn't even occur to
me that I ought to take pics of the actual authors.

Hearing authors talk about their writing styles and their books has always been fascinating to me. I've wanted to be an author for as long as I can remember. And writers, like most who aspire to go into creative professions, view authors a bit like celebrities. In a lot of ways, they've made it. We long to absorb anything they say that might help us get closer to that very same goal.

Last night, I went to University Bookstore in Seattle to see Gayle Forman, Nina LaCour, and Deb Caletti have a chat as a part of Gayle's book tour for I Was Here, the story of a girl whose best friend commits suicide and is left to deal with the aftermath, trying to piece together how something so terrible could have happened. Despite the sad beginnings of her newest book (or maybe because of how intriguing that premise is), I was thrilled to see these women, especially Nina, who has been a favorite author of mine since I stumbled upon Hold Still (a book which has a similar premise as Gayle's newest book) at the library when I was about 18 or 19.

Every one of the authors was as delightful and hilarious as I expected them to be. Granted, I haven't yet read any of Deb Caletti's work (that will be changing soon, since I purchased one of her books even though I shouldn't be spending money). All three women were absolutely wonderful.

They opened up with a "dramatic reading" from Gayle's newest book, I Was Here, where she voiced the main character, Cody; Deb voiced Ben, the love interest and best friend; and Nina voiced leather-clad "Stoner Richard." It was hilarious. Nina seemed to really enjoy pretending to throw back beers, while Deb seemed thrilled to yell the word "fuck" in the middle of a bookstore. What doesn't sound fun about that?

About half of the time was dedicated to questions, which all turned out to be pretty good. Q&A time tends to usually be hit or miss, but I thought the ones I heard were pretty good. A lot of people asked about structure. Nina LaCour talked about how she tends to jump around in the writing of the book, while Deb Caletti seems to favor starting off and seeing where the story takes you, discovering how the story unfolds as you write it. Gayle Forman talked about how she's in the middle of three different projects right now and is waiting to see if they will all pan out or take each other out "gladiator-style" (her words, not mine).

Afterward, I waited until the line died down before getting in line for the signing. I had brought two books each for Gayle and Nina to sign, then bought one for Deb because I just couldn't resist. At the last minute, I left Where She Went in my bag so I wouldn't be the one who brought all the books. I regret that a bit now, because I actually liked it better than the first book. I was fairly awkward, as per usual, in getting the books signed. Gayle complimented my typewriter necklace and it took me a good ten seconds to realize what she was talking about. I don't even want to talk about how red my face probably got while talking to Nina.

All in all it was a pretty awesome event. I have to say, though, that it's quite a different experience going to these sorts of things as someone who intends to be an author in some far off future versus someone who has three-fourths of a manuscript typed up on the laptop sitting beside her. It adds this extra level of both fear and excitement. It feels like that dream profession is finally attainable, but just out of reach at the moment.

Anyway, if you can see any of these lovely author's while they're on Gayle Forman's I Was Here tour, I highly suggest it. They keep the audience laughing and engaged from start to finish. And if you can't make it, pick up one of their books. I've read many of them and I'll be the first to tell you, they won't disappoint.

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2) by Marissa Meyer

After falling in love with Cinder and being left on something of a cliffhanger, I was eager to get my hands on the second book in the series. Thankfully, my mom had given me a $10 Barnes & Noble gift card that I had forgotten about. When I remembered it, I put it to good use.

When Scarlet's grandmother goes missing, she knows foul play was involved. Her grandmother would never leave her, never take off without telling anyone, and she certainly wouldn't have cut out her ID chip to do it. The police say there's no proof of foul play and drop the case, but Scarlet is determined to continue the search herself. Then she meets Wolf, a street fighter who is surprisingly quiet and a little awkward. Despite the fact that she's not sure she can trust him, she learns he may have a connection to the people who took her grandmother and asks for his help. While she is rushing into danger to save her grandmother, it soon becomes clear that danger might be trailing her already.

Meanwhile, Cinder has broken out of prison and hitched a ride with another prisoner she teamed up with in order to escape. They leave the Commonwealth, but it soon becomes clear that the entire planet is out to get them. Now Cinder has to make a decision. She can either go to Africa to be trained or flee elsewhere and try to learn more about herself and her past.

I was warned going into this book that it would feel "a little to Twilight-y." And though I've never actually read the Twilight books, I can see where they're coming from. (To be clear, I'm not a mindless hater of Twilight, I'm sure it has its merit, though I try to steer clear of anything that romanticizes abusive patterns in relationships.) However, I still deeply enjoyed this book. Again, this is another book that keeps you on your toes and definitely makes this aspiring author applaud at the very believable world-building.

Second books tend to be a bit duller than their predecessors, but this book doesn't fall prey to that lull. Marissa Meyer did a fantastic job in making sure Scarlet was every bit as good and exciting as Cinder. I am definitely eager to find out what happens next. I just have to wait for Cress to come out in paperback first!

Rating: ★★★★★

Saga, Vols. 1-4 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

 I don't remember where I first heard about Saga (though I'd hazard a guess that it was somewhere on Booktube), but I am so glad I did. This is easily one of the Image Comics' top series at the moment and for very good reason.

When Marko and Alana fall in love, it isn't in a very normal situation. Marko is a prisoner of war and Alana is his guard. Their two planets have been wrapped up in a bloody war and each race views the other as something to be reviled. However, Marko and Alana fall in love despite everything and it isn't long before Alana becomes pregnant. If they thought they were in trouble before, it was nothing compared to this. Hazel, their new daughter, is viewed as an abomination and considered a political danger. The new family must go on the run if they want to stay alive, but even that's iffy when the dangers that follow them are so great.

Be warned, this is one graphic series. The author has no qualms about letting you know this from the get-go. The first of the series begins with Alana giving birth and the very first line is her saying, "Am I shitting? It feels like I'm shitting!" If that doesn't sell you, I don't know what will. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it. I love how gory and graphic this series is. I think it adds that extra bit of realism to it. (More on that in a minute.) Just be warned that you're going to see a lot of nudity and a lot of gore. I mean look at the cover for Volume 2 for goodness sake. Marko's absolutely doused in blood.

I cannot say enough that I love everything about this series. The artwork is incredible, the story keeps you hooked from beginning to end, and the worlds contained within leave you begging for more. There's something about that level of world-building that takes me over the moon (and makes me intensely jealous that I couldn't create a world that detailed if I tried for the rest of my life).

However, I think one of the things that impresses me the most is how real it is. I know that sounds a little confusing, but I'm going somewhere with this. As fantastical as everything is, as captivated as the art makes me, and as thrilling as each new world is; I think it's how real the characters are that really makes this a winning series.

Every single character that steps onto the stage of this story is three dimensional. Every one has their own personality, their on flavor, that's so tangible that it's almost unbelievable. You really believe in these characters and become invested in them to a point where it's almost ridiculous.

If I keep going, I'm worried I'll spoil something in the plot, so I'll leave this review here. Just know that if you don't go pick this series up immediately, you'll really be missing out.

If You Come Softly (If You Come Softly, #1) by Jacqueline Woodson

I first heard about Jacqueline Woodson last year. One of the great things about following a ton of YA authors on Twitter is that when one of them gets an award, everyone goes crazy. In 2014, Jacqueline Woodson won the National Book Award for her most recent novel, Brown Girl Dreaming. I was eager to read the book that everyone has been talking about, but I'm trying not to buy too many books until my income gets a little more stable (something I'm still failing epically at, since I've bought nine books this month. *cringes*). It has been consistently checked out of the library for months, but I found this book of hers the last time I was there, so I decided to give it a shot.

Let me tell you, I almost closed the book as soon as I opened it. This isn't because it didn't look good. It looked great. However, this is one of those books that opens by pretty much warning you that something bad is going to happen. It tells you, "Hey, get ready. You're probably gonna cry when you read this." I wasn't sure I wanted to cry, so I almost skipped it, but the story sounded too good, so I read anyway. Just letting you know now, I definitely cried.

If You Come Softly, is a love story about a boy and girl living in New York City in the late nineties. Jeremiah (Miah), a black boy, and Elisha (Ellie), a white Jewish girl, both transfer to Percy, a prep school that neither of them are very thrilled about attending. When they meet on the first day, sparks fly and it isn't long before they are both falling head over heels for each other. However, all anyone else seems to notice is the color of their skin and it isn't long before the world starts trying to tear them apart.

This was a pretty short book, but definitely the kind that draws you in and makes the reader feel like they know the characters within the first two or three chapters. I love when books can hook you that quickly. Miah and Ellie were believable characters who felt very human. They made mistakes, they loved each other and were still embarrassed about the way people acted about the two of them being together. They were very three dimensional for such a short book and I found that extremely pleasing.
Like I said, I definitely cried in this book and I cried more than once, so keep your tissues handy.

This was an excellent novel that covered young love and romance, while still confronting racism, racial bias, and deep-seated prejudices that we like to pretend don't still exist in society today. Definitely an amazing book. I cannot wait to read more from this author.

Rating: ★★★★★

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1) by Marissa Meyer

I have heard quite a bit about The Lunar Chronicles in the past, but had never really gotten the chance to pick theme up. I'll go ahead and blame that on my taller-than-me TBR pile, because there's nothing about this that wouldn't appeal to me. A sci-fi fairytale retelling? Yes, please! A cyborg Cinderella? Count me in!

A coworker of mine who has heard me rant and rave about how much I love YA Fiction approached me about a month ago to ask if I'd read these books. She is in love with them and had learned that the author was going to be speaking at a Tacoma library at the end of January and wanted to know if I wanted to come with her. I regretfully told her I hadn't yet read them, but I would totally come with her and would do my best to read the three books in The Lunar Chronicles that had already come out.

Linh Cinder, our cyborg Cinderella, is a mechanic in New Beijing, known for being one of the bet at her craft. She works constantly to support her stepmother and stepsisters, who technically own her, since cyborgs are considered property, not people. When Prince Kai shows up in her shop one day, asking her to fix an android of his, Cinder doesn't want to admit that she likes the boy that every girl in the empire would kill to meet. Soon, it becomes clear that the information the android carries is more important than Cinder could have realized and may be the key to holding off the threat that is Queen Levana, the Lunar queen. Cinder wants to do everything in her power to help her country and the boy who has been so kind to her, but when she ends up getting pulled into the political skirmish, she can't help but wonder if she'll even be able to make it out alive.

I really loved everything about this book. Cinder is a great heroine. She struggles with her own insecurities and these insurmountable odds that rise up against her, but she's also smart, strong, and kind. I love the idea of a mechanic Cinderella. Her relationship with Prince Kai is incredibly believable and the romance almost creeps up on her. I really enjoyed that she was pretty resistant to the idea of falling in love with him and that he fell for her because she was someone he could talk to, not because she was the prettiest person who walked into the ball.

Cinder was a great opening to what looks like a pretty stellar book series. It keeps the reader on the edge of their seat from beginning to end, eager to put the pieces together and find out what is going to happen next. If this first installment is any indication, we have a pretty amazing series to look forward to, and it's going to be an interesting ride from beginning to end.

Rating: ★★★★★

The Library of Unrequited Love by Sophie Divry

I had heard about The Library of Unrequited Love from a few different people before I bought it, but even after I did, it sat on my shelf for at least a good year. I'm not sure why. It's only 91 pages, hardly anything daunting, but it somehow managed to get overlooked in those times that I was looking for something new to read. That is, until a few days ago.

It took me no time at all to read this lovely little book and I really enjoyed it. Translated from French, it is an unusual book. Instead of the usual first person or third person narrative, The Library of Unrequited Love is written in second person. The librarian, our protagonist, is talking to you, someone who fell asleep in the library and managed to get locked in overnight. I've never read a book written like this and it was incredibly delightful.

As for the story itself, I also enjoyed it much more than I realized I would. The librarian is a very opinionated woman, who is ready to tell us everything that's wrong with the library, everything that's right with it, and why exactly a patron by the name of Martin has captured her keen attention. I agreed with some things she said and disagreed with others, but I did really enjoy every second of it. Sophie Divry's writing is clean and captivating, making you turn the pages in rapt attention from beginning to end.

If you're looking for a quick, interesting read, this is a great choice.

Rating: ★★★★☆

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

I'll be the first to admit I have not read nearly enough Stephen King.   In fact, I've only read one other of his books besides this one: Misery. It was quite good and enough to convince me that all this hubbub about him and his being a great writer wasn't just talk. He knows what he's doing with a pen. Thus, I was pretty excited when my brother bought this book for me.

Part memoir and part instructional writing guide, this book is pretty much everything I wanted in a book on writing. It features a successful author being genuine about his journey to get where he is now and the ups and downs it took to get there. He talks about the technical side of writing as well as the joy it brings to those of us who love it. He talks about the merits of being a writer, as well as some of the things that end up coming around to bite us in the ass.

I absolutely adored this book. This is yet another of those books which I have attacked with tabs for things I want to remember or the things that really stuck out to me. I found a lot of his suggestions helpful, even the ones that I'm inclined to disagree with. Like I said, Stephen King knows his craft and his advice in bettering your writing is absolutely invaluable.

This is definitely a must-read for anyone thinking of going into the business of writing or anyone who is even vaguely interested in it. It is inspiring and more than a little helpful. And, if you're like me, you'll only find yourself wanting to put it down when it means picking up the pen yourself.

Rating: ★★★★★

Goodbye 2014. Hello, 2015!

Technically, I read 106, but I read The
Perks of Being a Wallflower twice, so it
only counted it once on the Goodreads
Challenge.

Well, it looks like another year is over and a new one is finally here. 2014 was a pretty good year for me: I moved across the country, starting going back to school, and even started writing a book that might actually go somewhere.
I also hit a goal that I've been working toward for the past four years. In 2010, I decided that it was a goal of mine to read 100 books in one year. I did that. In fact, I read 106!

I read some pretty awesome books this year and reread some favorites. Unfortunately, I didn't review many of them here, because I took a hiatus from Novel Attraction while I was still trying to get used to life up here in Seattle. Now I'm pretty settled in an I think I can commit to at least a few reviews each month, so you ought to be hearing from me a little more often in the new year.

If you want to see the books I read this year, here's a link to the list on Goodreads. Feel free to add me as a friend. I love to see what everyone else is reading and sometimes post smaller reviews for books that I, for one reason or another, don't review here.

Now that 2014 is over, it is time to create our goals for 2015. In addition to my other New Years Resolutions (which is posted over on my personal blog, Her Fingertips Whisper), I have set a new reading challenge for this year. In 2015, my goal is to read 120 books!

2015 Reading Challenge

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I'm a little nervous about such a high goal, especially because I foresee 2015 being a lot busier for me than last year, but it's not called a challenge for nothing. I'll do my best and that's all I can hope for.

What are your reading goals for the new year? Let me know in the comments!

Best of 2014: Young Adult Fiction

This year I read thirty-three books that fall into this category.

They are:

My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins
Vivian Versus America (Vivian Apple, #2) by Katie Coyle
Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour
Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3) by Stephanie Perkins
Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1) by Rachel Hawkins
Let it Snow by Maureen Johnson, John Green, & Lauren Myracle
Winterspell by Claire Legrand
The Summer I Became A Nerd by Leah Rae Miller
Tsarina by J. Nell Patrick (Jackson Pearce)
The Hate List by Jennifer Brown
I'm the King of the Castle by Susan Hill
Unbreakable (The Legion, #1) by Kami Garcia
Love in the Time of Global Warming (Love in the Time of Global Warming, #1) by Francesca Lia Block
Winger (Winger, #1) by Andrew Smith
Enchanter Heir (The Heir Chronicles, #4) by Cinda Williams Chima
Picture Me Gone by Meg Rosoff
The Falconer by Elizabeth May
Where She Went (If I Stay, #2) by Gayle Forman
The Madness Underneath (Shades of London, #2) by Maureen Johnson
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill
Beautiful Darkness (Beautiful Creatures, #2) by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Marcel and the Real World by Francisco X. Stork
Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama
Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
The Diviners (The Diviners, #1) by Libba Bray
The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson
Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill
Falling Hard (Roller Girls, #1) by Megan Sparks
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1) by Ransom Riggs

First place goes to . . . 

Nina LaCour has stunned me with every one of her books, but this is by far the best she's done yet. Everything Leads to You is filled to the brim with romance, beautiful writing, and a story that will make you want to come back again and again. It was everything I hoped it would be and more.







Second place goes to . . .

After falling in love with the first book in this series, I was worried that the second and final book wouldn't live up to my high expectations. I was so wrong that it's laughable. Everything about the ending to Vivian's story is so much better than I could have hoped for and I cannot wait to read even more from this awesome author.
Side note: Both books are out in the UK at the moment, but the first book is going to be released for the US on January 6, 2015 under the title "Vivian Apple at the End of the World." You need this book, random reader. You need it. So please go preorder it immediately.


And third place goes to . . .

This is a must-read for pretty much every nerd that is out there. Rainbow Rowell goes above and beyond in this lovely work about Cath, a nerdy fan fiction writer who has just gone off to college. I adored every part of this book. And Rainbow Rowell has recently announced that her next book is going to be about the very characters Cath writes about in the book, which might just be the coolest thing I've seen an author do in a very long time.





Honorable mentions . . .

Best of 2014: Middle Grade (Kid Lit)

This year, I read twelve books that generally fall in the category of Middle Grade (which I also refer to as Kid Lit, but is usually geared for 9-13 year olds). The age distinction between this and YA tends to be a little vague.

These are the ones I read this year:

Gustav Gloom and the Four Terrors (Gustav Gloom, #3) by Adam Troy-Castro
The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #5) by Rick Riordan
Out of the Woods by Lyn Gardner
Charmed Life (Chrestomanci, #1) by Diana Wynne Jones
The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge
City of Orphans by Avi
The Lives of Christopher Chant (Chrestomanci, #2) by Diana Wynne Jones
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken
The Lost Hero (Heroes of Olympus, #1) by Rick Riordan
The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus, #2) by Rick Riordan
The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus, #3) by Rick Riordan

And the winner is . . .

I have adored every book I've read by Rick Riordan, but I think this is his best I've read yet. It had me glued to the pages from beginning to end and begging for more after where he left us.








Honorable mentions:

Best of 2014: Manga / Graphic Novels

Yesterday I told my top picks for books I've read in 2014 that fall into the categories of Non-Fiction, Adult Fiction, and Rereads. Today, I'll be covering the Manga / Graphic Novels I read.

They are:

Sisters by Raina Telgemeier
Rat Queens by Kurtis J. Weibe & Roc Upchurch
Are You Alice? by Ai Ninomiya & Ikumi Katagiri
Flash: The Dastardly Death of the Rogues by Geoff Johns & Francis Manapull
The War at Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks
Spera, Volume 1 by Josh Tierney
Fruits Basket, Volumes 1-9 by Natsuki Takaya
Princessless, Volumes 1&2 by Jeremy Whitley
Red Sonja by Gail Simone & Walter Geovanni
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl, & Cassandra Jean
Black Canary/Zatanna: Bloodspell by Paul Dini & John Quinones
Hell Yeah, Volume 1: Last Day on Earths by Joe Keatinge & Andre Szymanowicz
Gunslinger Girl, Omnibus 1 by Yu Aida
Saga, Volumes 1-3 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples
Batman Beyond: Batgirl Beyond by Adam Beechen & Adam Archer
Shutter, Volume 1: Wanderlost by Joe Keatinge & Leila del Duca
Who is AC? by Hope Larson
Joker: Death of the Family by Scott Snyder, Gail Simone, etc.
Teen Titans: It's Our Right to Fight by Scott Lobdell, Brett Booth, & Norm Rapmund

And the winner is . . .


If you haven't already read this awesome graphic novel about these four badass, mythical women, you have missed one of the best releases of 2014. This graphic novel has been flying off shelves since its debut and for very good reason. Every page of this story was filled with great art, big laughs, plenty of sex, and a lot of cursing. What more could you want?

Honorable mentions . . .

Christmas Book Haul!

We finally opened presents this morning, which means I finally have a Christmas book haul to show y'all! I got some really good ones this year. They all came straight from my wish list, but I asked for them a while back, so I had totally forgotten which ones I was getting, which made it a nice surprise.

Here's a list of what I got:

Volumes 35-37 of Batman (The New 52!). It's the Endgame Arc. I'm not caught up on Batman at the moment, mostly because my ability to keep up with comics is severely hindered by my inconsistent paychecks, so I've been sticking to the graphic novels. Still, if the covers are any indication, I will be enjoying these immensely.

Flytrap by Frances Hardinge. This one was a bit of a mistake. It looks good, but turns out to be the sequel to a book I haven't read. I asked for both in the same request and I guess my parents didn't see the note that it was the second book. They realized the error, though, and are sending the first one to my apartment, which is super sweet of them.

The Sisters: The Saga of the Mitford Family by Mary S. Lovell. I heard about this book on the same YouTube video where I heard of the Frances Hardinge books. (British YA Classics with Livs.) It sounds amazing and I am very eager to tear into it.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir. I've recently read The Feminine Mystique and am therefore eager to read another of the most prominent texts in feminism. And that cover is gorgeous.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman. When is Neil Gaiman not a good idea? And it's a signed copy that was on sale as a Black Friday deal. I've heard great things about this book and I'm sure it'll be totally up to the hype.

What Christmas books did you get? Any special favorites? Let me know in the comments below.

Best of 2014: Non-Fiction, Adult Fiction, & Rereads

My original plan for the end of the year was to post a Christmas book haul here and then have that jumpstart my end of the year categories, where I would post my favorites of what I read this year in different genres. However, my Christmas has been delayed and we are celebrating it tomorrow instead of two days ago. So I'm going to start my "Best of 2014" series now and just interrupt it with a book haul when I have opened presents. 

For each category I will give a list of the books I read which fall into that category, then follow it with my top picks from within. (The ones which I have reviewed on this blog will also have links to those reviews.) There will likely be a top pick and one or two honorable mentions. For today, we have three categories that were small enough the be put together. The others will be done as one category per blog post.

Non-Fiction: 

This year, I read eight books that fall within the Non-Fiction Category.
They were:

Bossypants by Tina Fey
The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan
He's a Stud, She's a Slut, and 49 Other Double Standards Every Woman Should Know by Jessica Valenti
The Crimes of Jack the Ripper by Paul Roland
Weird Things People Say in Bookstores by Jen Campbell
More Weird Things People Say in Bookstores by Jen Campbell
How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran
Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit

And the winner is . . .

Betty Friedan's famous examination of the nameless problem plaguing American women in the fifties and today is every bit as amazing as I had heard. It blew my mind and is as entirely relevant to today's culture as it was when it was written.








Honorable mentions:

Adult Fiction:
I read eight books in the Adult Fiction category.
They were:

On the Road by Jack Kerouac
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides
A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
Going Postal by Terry Pratchett
Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
Misery by Stephen King
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

And the winner is . . . 

  This book by Kazuo Ishiguro was every bit as exceptional and interesting as I had heard it would be. I was captivated from beginning to end by Kathy's tale of her growing up at Hailsham. It really is a stunning read and one that leaves you reeling long after you've put it down.









Honorary mentions: 

Rereads:
I reread eleven books this year.
They were:

Speechless by Hannah Harrington
Lovely, Dark and Deep by Amy McNamara
Crusade in Jeans by Thea Beckman
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (2x)
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins


And the winner is . . .

 This book about a 21st century Dutch boy falling into the Children's Crusade is a story I wish every person would read. I still cannot believe it is the only one of this author's books that has been published in English. Every part of this story is captivating and wonderful.








Honorable mentions: 

Coming tomorrow: Manga/ Graphic Novels!

Christmas Reads

Pulled this off my Instagram. Feel welcome to follow me
there to see tons of book and cat pictures. :P

I'm going to my parents' house for Christmas in a few days and therefore have set aside the books I'm going to read over the six days I'll be there. I figured I would go ahead and share them here in the order that I intend to read them.

My True Love Gave to Me Edited by Stephanie Perkins
~This compilation of stories by twelve different prominent Young Adult authors just came out about a month ago and I have been dying to read it. I'm not much of a Christmas-y person. I don't like Christmas music and am partial to only a few Christmas movies, but I like Christmas stories and this should be good. And I would be remiss to ignore pointing out how stunning this version of it is. It's the UK cover and I am in love with it. It's definitely one of the most gorgeous books I own. (Rivaled only by my Drop Cap version of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass.)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone & Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

~I've been wanting to do another reread of the Harry Potter series for a few months now. What better time to kick that off than Christmas, the most nostalgic of holidays (in my humble opinion)? So I'm packing up the first two adventures that introduced us to the Wizarding World and diving back in to a story that is "always there to welcome you home".

Conrad's Fate by Diana Wynne Jones
~This is the third book in the Chrestomanci series by the incredibly talented author of Howl's Moving Castle. I've been meaning to get to this book for a while. It's filled with magic and stories that really wrap you up and pull you in, so I cannot wait to get lost in it. Again, this is another stunning UK cover (their covers beat ours almost every time). All of my Diana Wynne Jones books are in this cover and they look amazing on the shelf.

Those are the books I'm taking this year, though there is always the distinct chance I'll be throwing in a graphic novel or two for the plane ride. I tend to pack even more, but I'm trying to cut back. Plus, I asked for quite a few books for Christmas, so I'm sure I'll have plenty more to choose from after we open presents.

Do you have any Christmas reads you're planning this year? If so, leave a comment here to let me know what you're reading!

The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan

What an amazing read! 
Like most people, I had heard about The Feminine Mystique for ages before I got around to reading it, but I finally sat down with it over the course of Thanksgiving break and it simply blew me away. Anna Quindlen kind of hits the nail on the head in the introduction when she talks about having gone into it expecting to look at it like history, then realizing how much really does still apply to today. That definitely happened to me. 
Reading it was like seeing a mirror of so many women in my life (myself included at times) and having that sudden clarity like, "Holy shit, THAT'S why!" As women, we've come a long way since Betty Friedan wrote the book, but we still have a long way to go. 
My copy is now covered with sticky tabs that mark different spots that I found particularly interesting or of particular importance. There is so much that, as women, we ignore or take for granted because that's the way it's always been, but Friedan really goes the extra mile to re-analyze a lot of preconceived notions that no one seemed to question before.
Obviously there are a few things scattered throughout that I disagree with. This book was written in the fifties, so society has learned a great deal since then (ie. Her discussion of homosexuality is particularly cringe-inducing, because it was understood as an aberration or illness at the time). 
This is a must-read, especially for women. If you're even vaguely interested in Women's Studies, this books is for you. It will really make you think. It has changed the lives of millions of women and continues to do so today. After reading it, I can absolutely see why. 
Definitely check this book out ASAP!

Rating: ★★★★★

October #SpookyReads

     This year, I decided that I would try to get myself in the mood for Halloween by only reading "spooky" books during the month of October. I figured I would read some Halloween-themed reads by searching out the ones on my shelves (or in the library) that had ghosts, murderers, vampires, or witches and go from there. I tried to go for the creepy stuff. Some of the time I succeeded and some of the time I didn't.
     Anyway, I figured I would compile a list here of the books I read this month. Maybe you'll even want to pick one up to read tonight, now that Halloween is upon us. I tweeted about them all month using the hashtag #SpookyReads, but twitter only gives you so much space to give reviews and I miss doing this, so here we are.

#SpookyReads 1: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

     Beautiful Creatures was actually a reread for me and kind of what inspired me to do #SpookyReads. I read it for Halloween two (maybe three?) years ago and it had been so long that I knew I couldn't read the sequels without first reading this one. Plus, I had seen the movie adaptation since then and I knew it had strayed pretty far from the book, so I wanted to get my facts straight before continuing.
     A story about Casters (as in spell casters), true love, beating the odds, southern prejudices, superstitions, and Dark vs. Light; Beautiful Creatures was just as good the second time around. I love the story and I devoured it again, even knowing where it was going. It's a thick book, but definitely worth taking your time to read.


#SpookyReads 2: Misery by Stephen King
     Misery happens to be my very first Stephen King book. I've heard about the man and his proficiency with the horror genre since I was a kid, but wasn't allowed to read him while growing up. To be fair, I was a pretty big scaredy cat as a child, so I don't blame my parents. The downside of an overactive imagination happens to be panicking at even the slightest suggestion of danger.
     I have to say, I quite liked my first run-in with Mr. King. Misery was even better than I expected, drawing the reader in from the very get-go and holding you in suspense from beginning to end. The antagonist is terrifying enough to have given me a nightmare or two and one particularly scary scene may or may not have made me yell "No!" while reading it in a crowded airport.
     I can definitely see why Stephen King has the great writing reputation he has carried for years now and I am definitely looking forward to reading more of his work in the future.

#SpookyReads 3: Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
     Next up is Beautiful Darkness, the second book in the Caster Chronicles. This one was a bit more angsty than the first and for pretty good reason (though to tell you why would be a major spoiler, so I'll keep my lips sealed). For this reason, it was a tad harder to read than the first. Still, the adventure and the characters manage to draw you in, even through the sadness, and I definitely found myself dying to read what would happen next. This sequel keeps all the sarcasm and charm of the first book while layering it with the aftermath of everything that went down between Lena, Ethan, and their families in the last book.




#SpookyReads 4: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
     This was my least favorite "spooky read." Before that  causes you to mark it off your reading list or skip the rest of this review, though, I should clarify that I am not a fan of vampire books. Vampires have always grossed me out and I don't see the appeal at all. I can do gore, but the ingesting of any human blood or flesh makes me queasy at the first glimpse of the idea, so I tend to stay away from this kind of book.
     That being said, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown was pretty good for my one and only vampire read. I've never read a vampire book or sat through a vampire movie (besides the second-to-last Twilight movie at LeakyCon 2012, which was heavily commentated by Maureen Johnson and other various funny ladies). I always enjoy Holly Black's writing. I love that she doesn't shy away from the gritty stuff and I love that she manages to create a world in this book that romanticizes vampires while not realizing the true horror of it. And I love that she uses it to explore the human condition in a world that is both fascinated and terrified by these monsters.
     If I had to read a vampire book, I'm glad it was this one. Holly Black's world building is thoroughly believable and can pull in even the most hesitant of readers.

#SpookyReads 5: Jack the Ripper: The Whitechapel Murders Re-Examined by Paul Roland
     For my final spooky read, I decided to mix it up by throwing some non-fiction into the mix. So I chose this book about Jack the Ripper that has been sitting on my shelf for a while now. I bought it not long after I read Maureen Johnson's The Name of the Star, which had some Jack the Ripper themes and made me want to find out more about the real history of the notorious murders.
     This book wasn't an amazing overview, but it did it's job in making me familiar with the murders and common theories surrounding the myth of the Ripper. I liked that it had photos and sketches I could refer to in seeing the suspects and certain aspects of the murder, but I couldn't help being a bit disappointed by the end of it. The author has a hard time helping the reader keep the names straight, and I found the lack of a bibliography at the end particularly irritating. How am I supposed to take this man's word if he can't tell me his sources? This book got three stars from me for that. It did it's job in giving me the gist of the matter, but I certainly don't feel as informed as I had hoped to be by the end of the book.

I'm Back!

Bring on the blame. I know I suck for disappearing on y'all.

     I'm back, guys! I have returned to this lovely blog, where I once posted reviews of nearly every book I read. And one day I just dropped it. No explanation, no nothing. I know I suck, guys. But I'm not here to offer excuses or any of that shit. I honestly don't remember why I stopped, though it seemed it was around the time I moved to Seattle, so I'm guessing it just kind of fell by the wayside. I missed doing this, though. I missed writing reviews of the lovely books I came across. I missed bringing attention to the authors that truly deserve it. And though I did give Booktube a shot, I realized that I'm much better at writing my thoughts than I am at trying to look presentable in front of a camera. (Though you can see the few video reviews I did at the bottom of this post. I will embed them for your viewing pleasure . . . or displeasure.) 

     Anyway, I'm back now and ready to write some reviews. The first set of mini-reviews will be out tomorrow (I read only Halloween-themed books in October and tweeted about it under the hashtag #SpookyReads). I don't know if I'll set up a schedule for reviews or just post them as I write them or what, but I look forward to being back and weighing in on my passion (books) at every opportunity.

     Just wanted to write a short post to prepare y'all. Hopefully you'll be seeing a lot more of me on this blog soon! 

The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson (Shades of London, #2)

"You are not weird in the head," he said, more firmly. "You went through something horrible, and you survived, and you've done amazingly well. You're strong. Stop making jokes about it. There is nothing wrong with you." 
I wasn't expecting this little outburst, or the anger that edged his voice.
"Sorry," I said. 
"Don't be sorry. Just don't do it. It's important. Because of what we do, it's important to always remember that there is nothing wrong with you."

[Click here to read my review of book 1: The Name of the Star]

After reading the first book in this series and falling in love with it's creepy and intriguing storyline, I was excited to see what book 2 had in store. Still, I waited (It's fairly rare that I read an entire series in one go. I usually read other books in between those books in the series.) and only got around to reading it a few days ago.

After the conclusion of the Ripper case, Rory is removed from Wexford by her parents and is staying in Bristol with them while she recovers. Her body is nearly healed, but she's a mess otherwise. Her teachers have been sending her work that she ignores and her therapist keeps prodding at things Rory would rather she left alone. She's separated from her friends, the only people who understand her ability to see ghosts and can possibly help her deal with her newfound "ability".

Then Rory's therapist suddenly suggests she goes back to Wexford and Rory jumps at the chance. However, things just aren't the same. She doesn't quite know how to deal with what's happened to her and she's sick of lying to everyone but Callum, Stephen, and Boo. She's fairly certain she's going to fail her classes, yet can't seem to bring herself to catch up where she left off after the attack. As if that weren't enough to keep her occupied, murders with seemingly ghostly origins start popping up and Rory can't help wondering if something that happened the night the Ripper attacked her has something to do with it.

Rory is a very relatable character with a sense of humor that endears you to her almost immediately. Even after all the chaos of the first book and the considerable amount of trauma she's been through, that doesn't change. Maureen Johnson has created in her one of those characters that makes every situation that much more interesting and I really love that about her.

As for the story itself, I've heard a few complaints that it suffers from that second-book-slump, but I'm not so sure I agree. Admittedly, there isn't as much mystery, but there is just as much plot as the first installment in the series. Johnson is clearly using this book as a launchpad for the major excitement in the next book, but this one still has its fair share of nail biting, cheering, and crying.

I think the next book is going to be absolutely stunning and I can't wait to see where Maureen takes the story from here. If the first two books are any indication, the next one will be a knockout.

Rating: ★★★★★

We were sitting right on top of the graveyard of the world's most infamous mental institution, which is arguably many hundreds of times worse than being on top of the old haunted burial grounds that things are always being built on in America. Loads of mad ghosts . . . who might be disturbed by, say, a major explosion that might have, quite possibly, opened up some kind of crack that they could pass through? And they might, for instance, kill people with hammers . . .
Now I had a reason to call Stephen.

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

“Pastor McKee, do you think we really have a ghost up there in the sanctuary? I mean, does the church even believe in ghosts? Because – if there is a ghost – maybe it's related to this drowning?”

It sounded so ridiculous when she said it out loud.

“Tell me, lassie, have you paerchance heard any local tales o' sea folk?” he said out of the blue.

“Uh . . .” Hester wondered where he was going with this.

“I've haerd tell they live en the deepes' par' of our own bay.”

“Why do you ask?”

He shrugged and shifted his feet, preparing to sit in the chair again. She held his arm while he lowered himself into it. “Jus' tha' tales o' ghosts and tales o' sea folk paersist in the world. Even an educated paerson mus' wonder ef thar's a reason for et.”

“Monstrous Beauty” is another book I came across on the shelves of my local Half Price Bookstore. I hadn't ever heard of it or the author before, but the cover was stunning and the summary on the back sounded just dark and interesting enough to catch my attention. If I remember correctly, this wasn't long after I had read “Fathomless”, so I'll admit I was probably on a bit of a dark mermaid story binge at the time, though I obviously didn't read it until much later.

Hester Goodwin has pledged herself never to fall in love or marry. Most especially, she will never have children. Hester has made this decision because of her family history. After all, if all the women in the last one hundred fifty years of your family history had died within a week of giving birth to their first child, you would be concerned too. Though she definitely has feelings for her best friend, Peter, she suppresses them and pulls away. She can't fall in love. She can't be talked out of it. She doesn't want to die.

Then Hester meets Ezra, a strange and intoxicating man whom she only ever sees on the beach, and suddenly all of her resolve seems to dissipate. He claims he can help her, that her troubles sound more like a curse than a genetic fault and perhaps the two of them can solve it together.

As she begins to look into her family's past, Hester begins to uncover the pieces of a tragedy that took place long ago and may be the cause of her curse, as well as the rumored hauntings that have taken place in the church and its graveyard, where she used to play as a girl. It's up to her to uncover a terrible truth and set to rights that which was tampered with long ago, that is, if the forces that be will let her do it.

The further I sank into this book, the more surprised I was that I hadn't heard of it before. A beautifully written tale that can be dark, tragic, thrilling, and hopeful all in one excellent novel? I was smitten from the start.

I cannot get over how good this book managed to be and I will definitely be singing its praises for months. The reader is caught up along with the protagonist in the mystery that surrounds her and the terrifying adventures she must face in order to get to the bottom of things. Hester is fierce and resourceful and an all-around believable character that I enjoyed getting to know within the pages.

If you're looking for a good, dark fantasy preferably containing mermaids and other supposed myths, this is the book you need on your shelf. I suggest finding it as soon as you can manage.

Rating: ~★★★★★~

She struggled and writhed as the thing switched positions, easily hooking an arm around her neck and swimming her down – headfirst, faceup, deeper and deeper – in a death-spiral version of a lifeguard rescue. It was a distinctly humanlike arm that held her, and Hester clutched it with both ahnds, afraid of the speed, and afraid it would strangle her. The rhythmic thumping and pumping beneath her was the unmistakable action of a powerful tail, propelling them to the depths of the bay. Hester kept her eyes closed, but she knew without seeing the creature: it was a mermaid.

They were real.

McKee was right; E.A. Doyle was right.

And Hester was about to be killed.

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Piper and Edmond and Isaac and I used to watch this lunatic fringe milling around every day around sunset and then Edmond and I would slip away up to the tiny bedroom at the top of the house or the big storage closet under the eaves or the lambing barn or one of about a thousand places we'd found where we could try and try and try to get enough of each other but it was like some witch's curse where the more we tried to stop being hungry the more starving we got.

It was the first time in as long as I could remember that hunger wasn't a punishment or a crime or a weapon or a mode of self-destruction.

It was simply a way of being in love.

I picked up “How I Live Now” while I was Christmas shopping late last year. It's a pretty well known fact that I can't leave a bookstore without at least one book for myself, so I already knew shopping books for Christmas presents was going to end up with me buying some for myself. Thankfully, I was in charge of stocking stuffers this year, so I could get away with convincing myself I needed it.

I spotted this lovely volume in the Young Adult section at my local (at the time) Half Price Bookstore. I'd been trying to find this novel for a while anyway, but had only ever managed to locate movie cover copies, so you can imagine how I snatched this one up.

In “How I Live Now” we meet Daisy, a fifteen year-old who has been sent to live in England with her cousins after her father marries a particularly foul stepmother. Though she has never met her cousins until now, she immediately fall in step with them and all their endearing oddities.

When her Aunt Penn goes of to give a talk on the impending war many believe England and much of the world are about to face, the children can't help but view it as a blessing. The five of them now have the huge house to do with as they will. Even when war does break out, it certainly doesn't seem real. And with Daisy falling madly in love with Edmond, well, how can she be expected to think of anything else? That is, until the military shows up at their doorstep and Daisy is separated from nearly everyone she has grown to love.

Edmond and Daisy promised each other they would find the other. Now it's up to Daisy to make sure she and her youngest cousin, Piper, make it back to their home before they become casualties of a war they never imagined could touch them.

Forbidden love, World War III, and coming of age all in one story? You can count me in.

Written from the perspective of Daisy as she tells the story long after it has happened, I fell in love with “How I Live Now” almost immediately. The writing style, which is almost like reading the protagonist's journal, fits the material like a glove. There are no word for word quotes, only Daisy's record of what she remembers them saying and, for some reason, that works phenomenally.

This book is about war and survival, falling in love and the breaking of hearts. It captures the helplessness a young person would feel in the midst of a battle they don't know how to fight or win, and it captures the triumph of good and heartlessness of evil one must come face to face with in those circumstances.

I fell in love with Daisy and the way she tells her story. I'm sure you will too.

Rating: ★★★★★

There never were seven more silent human beings in the back of a truck, we were too stunned even to cry or speak. When we reached Reston Bridge our driver, who I knew was a close friend of the Major's, got out of the truck and stood there for a minute trying to get up the courage to go inside and tell Mrs. M what happened, but first he turned to us and said in a voice that sounded broken and full of rage, In case anyone needed reminding This is a War.

And the way he said those words made me feel like I was falling.