Hop & Follow Friday! (29)

Happy Friday, lovelies!

I hope you had a wonderful week and are looking forward to an awesome, book-filled weekend! I know I'm totally ready for the weekend! I'm headed back to my alma mater for Homecoming, so I may get a bit behind in returning follows, but I will!

"Follow My Book Blog Friday" is a weekly meme hosted by Rachel at Parajunkee's View and Allison at Allison Can Read where bloggers make new friends, including this week's featured bloggers--The Bursting Bookshelf & Book Savvy Babe!  Pop on over to Parajunkee's blog and join in the follow fun!!

This week's question: 

Q:Who's your superhero alter-ego?

Since I'm not much of a superhero person and much more of a history geek, I have to go with the Scarlet O'Neil of 1940s comic strip fame.  Her only super power--she can become invisible! Oh yeah, and then she has cool adventures. :-) She's a cool 1940s woman too. I <3 the 1940s. She unfortunately  didn't survive the 1950s (Wonder Woman became the only real female superhero with her own comic), but there is apparently going to be a history of Scarlet O'Neil with never before seen artwork coming soon. :-)

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jennifer at  Crazy for Books with a fun bookish question to hopefully promote blogger interaction!

What is your favorite candy?

I <3 Halloween candy. I'm generally a chocolate addict all the way. However, my absolute favorite Halloween candy is the little pumpkins that you get in the mixed bags with candy corn (which is probably my second favorite)!!

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today! I love your comments and try my best to return follows! 
HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

(PS ~ See that link at the top of the page? The one for my potential 2012 challenge? Would you be so kind as to take a look and leave some feedback? I'd love to get an idea of if this is something that people would be interested in.  Or just answer the poll in the sidebar. Thanks!!)

YA Book Review: Eve by Anna Carey

Release Date: 4 October 2011
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Goodreads description:

The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

My Thoughts...

I've become wary of starting new dystopian series because I always wonder "Will this book live up to the last one? Will it stand out?"  Thankfully Eve completely drew me in and delivered on its promise to be a unique and thrilling adventure.

Eve is quite the intelligent young woman.  When the novel opens, her graduation day is right around the corner and she's got the honor of graduating at the very top of her class. On almost a whim (and to prove a disparaging classmate wrong), Eve sneaks out of the dorm at night and swims across the lake to look at the "wonderful" place that she will be moving to after graduation--the magical place where she will finally be able to take up her trade.  What she discovers there is absolutely beyond  belief--a room full of young women, pregnant and strapped down.  When she returns, clearly shaken by the experience and her discovery, a sympathetic adult helps her to escape through the wall, leaving behind her friends and the only life that she's ever known.

Eve is a character that I think readers will bond with right away.  Her attachment to the memory of her mother as well as her two close friends make her likeable and realistic.  Her naivete is completely reasonable because you know from the start that she's never known anything else.  Seeing the world through Eve's eyes really drew me into the story and I could sympathize with her apprehensions as she struggled to make sense of new truths and survive in the harsh world outside of the school.

When Even is rescued by Caleb, we're introduced to a whole new cast of characters.  Caleb is awesome.  He was patient when it came to Eve's misconceptions about men and the world, but he wasn't afraid to tell her what was reality and what was a lie fed to her by the school.  It's really no surprise that Eve bonds with him so well and I enjoyed watching their sweet romance blossom over time.  While I loved watching Even and Caleb together, it was her interactions with the very young boys--teaching them to read and write--that really made my heart melt. It's so obvious that these little boys are looking for a loving maternal figure in their lives and Eve is truly the perfect fit.

So many things happen that I want to tell you about, but I refuse to ruin this one for you!  This book is a fabulous combination of action and sweet romance with an ending that will leave you speechless (and if you're like me, in tears). I can't wait to read more in this series!

(ARC) YA Book Review: On the Fringe by Courtney King Walker

Release Date: 19 October 2011
Publisher: Lands Atlantic Publishing, Inc.
Source: Around the World ARC Tours

Goodreads description:

Claire is struggling to overcome the murder of her childhood friend and secret crush, Daniel. Everyone else seems to be moving on with their lives, but she's still trying to cope. The fact that she finds herself alone and drowning on her 16th birthday isn't helping. Neither is thinking she sees Daniel's face in murky water as she mysteriously resurfaces. But something happened during those four and a half minutes that will make her realize it was not just her imagination. As Claire and Daniel try to grasp a possible reconnection, other grudge-holding beings have plans of their own. Now, the two of them have to decide if their fleeting relationship is worth the possibility of Claire being trapped on the fringe forever.

My Thoughts...

I went into On the Fringe in the best possible way: with no expectations, pre-conceived notions, or opinions of others.  What I found in this book was a heart-warming story of first love intertwined with an intensely creepy story of revenge. This was really a ghost story like no other and I fell deeply, madly in love with the characters.

Claire = awesome.  I felt an instant connection with her character. Her emotions from the beginning were very raw, very real.  Who can't relate to that first crush that you're totally way to scared to tell (or to even have them figure it out)?  Her depression after his death is very honest and real. She doesn't wallow, but she can't let it go--partially because she never had the opportunity to tell him how she felt...and even no one among the friends and family knows how she really felt/feels.

The alternating POVs in this book were brillantly executed and allow a solid connection with Daniel.  Despite his death early on, I felt very drawn to him.  I loved watching him fall deeper in love with Claire and reliving his memories as he tries to figure out exactly when that switch in his feelings happened.  Done any other way this story probably would have had a feeling of desperate insta-love, but seeing the relationship develop over time, even without the other one knowing, it gave a very real sense of growth and gradual development of feelings.  This was a pair that had been friends forever and that friendship was on the verge of developing into something more.

The storyline is absolutely brilliant, alternating between the romance and the intensely creepy haunting. Claire is in serious danger and the reader has an ever-increasing awareness of just HOW MUCH danger she's in as the story goes on.  The interweaving of these stories is, well, PERFECT.  Throughout the book, you are constantly delving deeper into the story and making intense connections between Daniel's death, his connection to Claire, and her current haunting (you know, besides Daniel).

This is truly a beautiful story of first love and loss.

Waiting on Wednesday (33)

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where book bloggers discuss the books that they are most anxiously waiting for! (And this fabulous button was designed by my dear blogger friend Lindsay at The Violet Hour)

This week I'm waiting on...

Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake
© 2012 by TorTeen

No description available yet.

Okay, so this book doesn't have a release date or a description yet, but I don't even care because I'm sure it's going to be wicked awesome! (1) Anna Dressed in Blood was superb.  The characters rocked, the story rocked--it was simply a fantastic read that I can't wait to find the time to read again.  So...I, of course, am STOKED to enter this world again and spend some more time with Cas and his friends.  (2) This COVER IS AMAZING.  I adored the cover of Anna, too, so this book had a lot to live up to in that department, but suffice it to say that whoever designs these covers has NAILED IT. Don't you want this book sitting on your shelf (right next to Anna)? I know I do! (Oh, and did I mention this is another 2012 sequel? I should just proclaim 2012 my year of great sequels.)

Also, I figured I would combine this post with W.W.W. Wednesdays...so here is some more info about my reading for this week! To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…Grab the logo...and post your link at Should Be Reading!

What are you currently reading?

(Currently listening to...)

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next? 

What are YOU waiting on this week?

Book Trailer & Giveaway: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Steifvater

I told you that I had a SUPER exciting giveaway coming up, right?! Well, here it is! Big Honcho Media has partnered with Scholastic to bring you this awesome giveaway of the fabulous Maggie Stiefvater's newest book, The Scorpio Races!

From Maggie Stiefvater, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shiver series (over 1.7 million copies in print!), comes a brand-new, heart-stopping novel. With her trademark lyricism, Maggie Stiefvater turns to a new world where a pair are swept up in a daring, dangerous race across a cliff – with more than just their lives at stake should they lose.

Be sure to check out this links for more!  

Facebook - This is Teen
Maggie's Website

Now, I'm not generally a book trailer fan, but I gotta say that this one is pretty awesome because the animations and music are done by none other than Maggie herself! Very cool, right? Let me know what you think of it in the comments!

Okay, now, I'm sure that the MAIN reason you stopped by today is, of course, the GIVEAWAY!! Right? Here's the deal: TWO of you lovely readers will be randomly chosen to receive a copy of The Scorpio Races!! That's right: TWO. How awesome is that?!

And just in case this giveaway isn't exciting enough in and of itself, the is an awesome The Scorpio Races Twitter Sweepstakes going on right now! 


Enter to win @this_is_teen’s #ScorpioRaces Twitter Sweepstakes! Prizing include limited edition custom necklaces & autographed copies of the book. Get more details http://on.fb.me/iga0vf  

YA Book Review: The Juliet Spell by Douglas Rees

Release Date: 27 September 2011
Publisher: HarlequinTeen
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Goodreads description:

I wanted the role of Juliet more than anything. I studied hard. I gave a great reading for it—even with Bobby checking me out the whole time. I deserved the part. I didn't get it. So I decided to level the playing field, though I actually might have leveled the whole play. You see, since there aren't any Success in Getting to Be Juliet in Your High School Play spells, I thought I'd cast the next best—a Fame spell. Good idea, right? Yeah. Instead of bringing me a little fame, it brought me someone a little famous. Shakespeare. Well, Edmund Shakespeare. William's younger brother. Good thing he's sweet and enthusiastic about helping me with the play...and—ahem—maybe a little bit hot. But he's from the past. Way past. Cars amaze him—cars! And cell phones? Ugh. Still, there's something about him that's making my eyes go star-crossed....

My Thoughts...

While I have to admit that this book didn't quite live up to my expectations, it was a light-hearted, quick-paced read. The premise is cute and the story is fun, but I guess I was expecting a little more pizazz. 

Miranda is a fairly typical teenager with high aspirations for her acting career. In a moment of desperation, she casts a spell, which she's not really sure will actually DO anything, and the next thing you know there is a man standing on the table in front of her, clearly from another century. He's amazed by everything in her world, from the paved streets and fast-moving cars to the tv and cell phones. Miranda (and pretty much everyone else in her life) takes Edwards appearance in stride and adapts to make him a part of their world.  Miranda even finds herself falling for him (which is unfortunate after she tells everyone he is her cousin).

While I didn't outright dislike Miranda, I had a bit of trouble connecting with her character.  She seemed a bit self-centered in my opinion.  When she casts the spell in the first place, she is really just trying to ensure through magical means that she gets the part she wants in the community play. Throughout the novel, there are few instances when she really seems to think about how her actions affect those around her. I felt like she missed a lot of what was right in front of her.

Drew was my absolute favorite character.  He was always there for Miranda, especially after she opens up to him about the Edward situation.  He takes everything in stride, but for his character, this made sense as he seems to know/study some weird stuff (yay, nerdy friends!). You could tell he had some strong feelings for Miranda almost from the beginning but the silly girl is just too blind to notice him.  Throughout the story, he is always there for her, even when he realizes that she's got it bad for Edward.  He is constantly looking for a way to help Edward return to his own time period and he's really a key player when it does come to sending Edward back home.

I truly wanted to enjoy this story and trust me, I tried.  However, there were a few things that threw me and really made it difficult to immerse myself in the world in the way that I usually can.  First, the characters were far too trusting/forgiving.  No one bats an eye when they find out that Miranda actually brought Edward from the past to the present with some crazy spell. Miranda and her mom welcome her absent father back in to their lives with open arms, despite his crazy abandonment to "find himself" without offering up any financial support or constant/continued communication. Second, the language often caught me off guard.  I expected Edward to use outdated language/phrases, but when those same words/phrases started popping up in the normal conversations of Miranda and her friends, I felt like it didn't flow quite right.  It sounded too forced. if anything, I felt like Edward was adapting his language better and often sounded more normal than anyone else.

While I might recommend checking this out from the library before buying it, I wouldn't go so far as to discourage an interested reader from checking it out. It is a fun, light-hearted read with a decent amount of humor emanating from Edward's character and his reactions to the modern world.  There's also nothing in this story that would deter me from offering it up to younger readers. Pick this one up if you're looking for something quick and fun to read.