May 31, 2012

My Conundrum

Why I Want to See This Movie:

  • Chris Hemsworth!!
  • It's a fairy tale retelling
  • And since it's a Grimm tale, it's going to be a dark seedy kind!
  • There looks like there's a lot of action!
  • And did I mention Chris Hemsworth?


Why I Cannot and Will Not See This Movie:

  • The initials are K.S.


Don't think that needs much explaining! The previews are looking freaking awesome! And it really does look like an incredible movie. Except I cannot stand Kirsten Stewart's acting. So upset that they casted her in this role. Seriously, nearly anyone else in this role and I would've seen it. Just probably 2 other cannot do actresses. But yeah. It's upsetting, but what can you do?

Okay, I'm done! Sorry, had to get that rant off my chest and what better place to do it than my blog! Feel free to agree or disagree with me, I don't begrudge anyone their opinion, so just don't begrudge me either! ;)











The Lost Prince Goodness!

More The Lost Prince goodness!! Julie just posted this on her blog! We had the front cover and now we get the back and inside flap! Sorry it's a little small.

Here's the book description from Goodreads:

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.
 

The Lost Prince releases October 23, 2012




Random Thursday

All right this time around I decided to post a music video. Awhile back I got this song in my head and the weirdest part was that it came out of nowhere. I hadn't watched the show, since it's not on anymore. So I have no clue how it go into my brain, but I wrote it down in my planner as a Random Thursday post!

I blame my friend from high school. He was always singing some song from the Disney Channel during our study hall class. At this time the whole "singing" thing was just starting. Not all the shows or movies were about young teens "finding their voice" or whatever.

So here you go, The Even Stevens Musical Episode with probably one of the best songs it had on said episode:









May 30, 2012

Cover Art--Two Titles!

Drinking from the waters of the Lethe and offering herself up as Faerie’s sacrificial Tithe …these just might be the least of Abby Sinclair’s problems.

Abby’s pact with a demon—whether or not she remembers making it—is binding, so she’d better count herself lucky that (in the words of a daemon who knows better) there’s nearly always a loophole. But her friends’ reckless attempts to free her, well intentioned though they may be, set off a disastrous chain of events. In no time at all, Abby turns her incubus lover mortal and gets herself killed, cursed, and married to an elven prince whose mother wants her dead. She might have even been able to recover from all that had she not lost the Key to the CrossRoads to her mortal enemy, who promptly uses his restored power to wreak havoc on the OtherWorld and put its very existence in jeopardy.

Only one person can make things right again, but to find her Abby must place her trust in allies of mixed loyalties, and conquer her nightmares once and for all.


A Trace of Moonlight releases October 30, 2012 


I'm not real wild about this cover! It almost looks like there's a new cover model for each book. I still might read this one though!



Aiden's novella

Aiden St. Delphi will do anything to save Alex.
Even if it means doing the one thing he will never forgive himself for.
Even if it means making war against the gods.


Elixir releases in November 2012


Love the cover for this novella! So clear and pretty!





Waiting on Wednesday

I hate waiting...
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blog post by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights releases we're eagerly awaiting.


It's a Mystery Themed WoW today! I so cannot wait for these mysteries to release!

Lily Ivory is living her dream of owning a vintage clothing store—and practicing magic on the side. But when she encounters a sinister sleeping spell, Lily comes face-to-face with a nightmarish evil…

Taking a night off from running her successful San Francisco clothing store, Lily attends a local art deco ball where vintage fashions steal the show. But when a young woman at the event falls under a mysterious sleeping sickness, Lily senses that a curse was placed on the woman’s corsage.

Before Lily can solve the woman’s magical ailment, she’s asked to assist in investigating a string of poisonings in the Bay Area witchcraft community. She’s gained the trust of the local covens by supporting women’s charities through her clothing store. But soon, Lily suspects that one of her new acquaintances might not be so well intentioned and could be dabbling in dark magic and deadly botany…


TITLE: In a Witch's Wardrobe
AUTHOR: Juliet Blackwell
PUBLISHER:
Penguin Group
GENRE:
Paranormal Mystery
RELEASE DATE:
July 3, 2012



When a mysterious client approaches Abby with a cryptic message about a young mother who has vanished, Abby is more than willing to get involved. After all, it’s the perfect distraction from dealing with the headache of her sister Cat – who has flown into town and turned Abby and Dutch’s impending nuptials into Weddingpalooza.

After Abby recruits her business partner and BFF, Candice, to assist, they meet with the parents of the missing woman. But the parents refuse to put their faith in a psychic. What’s worse, due to a grave misunderstanding, the family suspects Abby has a connection to their daughter’s husband – the man they believe to be responsible for her disappearance.

So while the family may be blind to the truth, with a potential killer in her sights, Abby is determined to keep her eyes wide open...



TITLE: Lethal Outlook
AUTHOR: Victoria Laurie
PUBLISHER:
NAL
GENRE:
Paranormal Mystery
RELEASE DATE:
July 3, 2012



May 29, 2012

Movie Review--The Avengers

I finally saw The Avengers yesterday and to sum it up: FREAKING AWESOME!

I love the comic book movies, which is odd since I've never read comic books--besides Scooby Doo ones as a kid! But this movie was incredible!!

7 Super Heros, including Nick Fury who is their sorta boss.

Loki--from Thor [which I still have on my DVR to watch in its entirety]--has returned to Earth. He plans to rule the planet, seriously. And to do that he will open a portal between worlds and bring in these alien-like monsters and basically destroy humanity.

On a side note, I don't think I would ever want to live in NYC, that city has drawn wayyy too much attention to every monster and psycho path ever, Godzilla, and several others that I cannot think of at the moment!

Moving on, Nick Fury who already has the Black Widow and Hawkeye in his employ at Segue and now has Captain America--unfrozen and alive apparently since I didn't see that movie--and needs to get the help of Bruce Banner and his other "friend" and Tony Stark as well. He is drawing in every possible resource to bring Loki down before he destroys the world.

But he is short a team member since Loki basically kidnaps and uses mind control on him. But the superheros are not all getting along. Go figure. Which I found a little interesting, they don't necessary argue who's better, but there's arguments over on how to handle things.

It's not until they have Loki in their grasp that Thor makes an appearance! I officially love Chris Hemsworth now or have since the little bits of Thor I saw! Thor wants to take care of Loki in his own way since he is still in trouble back home. And this then causes more problems amongst the group.

It's not until the sh*t really hits the fan that they start to cooperate and work together. You knew they would, so that's not a spoiler! They all use their own special abilities and powers to try to bring Loki and his alien-like buddies down and save NYC.

The movie is not without its comedy. We have Iron Man aka RDJ in it, and his character is pretty snarky I think, so there's definitely some chuckle moments. And some during the BIG fight scene that involve the Hulk! I did not expect to laugh that much! OMG, he was riot!

What I also liked was that with some of the characters, we got to see them negotiate protection for their lady loves. Although, Pepper Potts was actually there for a few moments with a few lines! So that was cool, cannot wait for Iron Man 3 next year and Thor 2 as well!

The ending was good, and as I said there was is a Thor 2 in the works, so you kind of know who some of the casualties won't be. There are casualties, one a somewhat regular that took me by surprise. Was actually a little teared up about that. Although he did go out with some style. Won't say who, for that is a spoiler!

Overall a helluva movie! I totally loved it! A good action movie is hard to come by in regards to my standards, although after seeing the preview, I do kinda want to see The Expendables 2 now!


Overall movie rating 5/5 stars




ARC Review--Arise by Tara Hudson

Amelia—still caught between life and death—must fight for every moment of her relationship with the human boy Joshua. They can hardly even kiss without Amelia accidentally dematerializing. Looking for answers, they go to visit some of Joshua’s Seer relatives in New Orleans. But even in a city so famously steeped in the supernatural, Amelia ends up with more questions than answers…and becomes increasingly convinced that she and Joshua can never have a future together.Wandering through the French Quarter, Amelia meets other in-between ghosts, and begins to seriously consider joining them. And then she meets Gabrielle. Somehow, against impossible odds, Gaby has found a way to live a sort of half-life...a half-life for which Amelia would pay any price. Torn between two worlds, Amelia must choose carefully, before the evil spirits of the netherworld choose for her.


I received this ARC at the Romantic Times Booklovers' Convention via the Goody Room for review

Tara Hudson's Arise was the perfect sequel to Hereafter! This is truly one of the greatest ghost books I've read in a loooong time! And as I said before, ghost books can be hard to write, particularly when there's a romance involved, but Tara can really make it happen!

It's nearly Christmas time, only a few months have passed since the events of Hereafter. And Amelia is still struggling with her new found ability to materialize. She can't seem to control it. At the most inopportune moments--like when she's kissing Joshua--she'll disappear to somewhere. But she is always able to come back.

New Orleans is quite the city. And when Amelia meets Joshua's family, she really does meet his cousins. They are Seers in training in way. They can't see ghosts yet, but they can hear them. Although Alex, who is a friend of the family, can see Amelia. Amelia is overwhelmed by their friendliness since her greeting from Ruth, Joshua's grandmother, had been less than warm.

Amelia also meets other ghosts in New Orleans. Everything is pretty new and exciting, yet Amelia soon learns--and I can't say how or who--that by staying with Joshua, she might be putting him in danger from the spirits of the netherworld. Amelia is forced to make a rash decision as to what to do. She wants more than anything to protect Joshua, but at what cost?

Arise was pretty intense! I didn't think it could top the danger and action that we got in Hereafter, but it totally took me by surprise! Amelia finds some surprises herself as well! And we are talking big surprises! I cannot imagine how Tara will be able to top this one next year with Elegy, but I am willing to bet she will surprise me again!

Gabrielle is a new character you will meet and I loved her! She was spunky and spontaneous! Joshua and Amelia were still their adorable selves! I truly do love their relationship! It's really not at all awkward being that he's alive and she's a ghost. I cannot wait to see where else Tara takes their relationship come the next book!

There wasn't much dwelling into Amelia's father, the little we learned about him last time is still relevant in the beginning and a tad in the middle of the book, as is another mysterious character. I think they might be more important and focused on next time. But other than that there wasn't much that disappointed me in this book. Some new mysteries pop up naturally and for the most part were resolved, except for the necessary cliffhangers. But it wasn't the killer, agonizing cliffhanger we usually know. Think of it as an unresolved plot line that will be brought back up later.

Arise was breathtakingly beautiful! This is definitely a must-read if you've already read Hereafter or plan to!


Overall rating 4.5/5 stars



Arise releases June 5, 2012





Teaser Tuesday

Here are the rules:
1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.
 
 
"His gaze narrowed on her face. A lock of her dark red hair concealed most of her cheek, some of the strands caught in her mouth. He wanted to see the scars, so he stroked the strands away. Her skin was satin until his fingertips came to the fine lines gone white with time. They ran from her temple to her jaw, a cruel trophy from a vicious attack. She's have scars on the other side of her face to match. Her survival proved she had the necessary mettle for his task. Well, maybe--she was now drooling on her pillow." p 25*

*This quote comes from my ARC copy, therefore the quote and its page number are not final



TITLE: Fire Kissed
AUTHOR: Erin Kellison
PUBLISHER:
Zebra (Kensington Books)
GENRE:
Paranormal Romance
RELEASE DATE:
July 3, 2012


May 28, 2012

ARC Review--Tempest Unleashed by Tracy Deebs

Tempest Maguire is happy with her decision to embrace her mermaid nature and live among her mother’s clan within the ocean’s depths. Even though training to one day ascend the throne for the aging mermaid queen is rigorous, she finds refuge in the arms of Kona, the selkie who first opened her up to her mermaid side. But when word comes that one of her brothers has been gravely injured on land, Tempest immediately rushes to his side—which also brings her back to her old flame, Mark. And in her absence, a deadly battle begins raging at the hands of Tempest’s old nemesis, the sea witch Tiamat. As the dangerous war erupts, Tempest’s two loves—Kona and Mark, sea and land—will collide for the first time, both to protect her and to force her to choose.

I received this e-ARC for review from the publisher via Netgalley

I recently read Tracy Deebs Tempest Rising, totally loved it! Then I saw Netgalley has Tempest Unleashed and requested it, took days, weeks to get, but I finally got it! And it was awesome!

Tracy really knows how to write a good mermaid story! This isn't anything like Ariel, like I may have mentioned before! Tempest has been gone for 8 months, living under the sea. She loves being with Kona, and seeing where her mother lived for so long is nice, but there are things she can't stand. Like the queen for one. But really that's the least of Tempest problems.

For the first half, we're under the sea and there's a war brewing. Tiamat may be down for now, but she's not out for good. She's planning something, and we slowly see what her plan is when a mer-clan is attacked to near extinction. But amidst all the chaos word gets to Tempest that her younger brother has been in an accident and is in the hospital. She rushes to his side immediately, shocking everyone with her presence.

Tempest really feels the pull of both land and sea this time. On land, there's her family and friends that she loves, yet she has Kona and other friends in the sea. And there she can learn about her mother's heritage and what it means to be a mermaid and all. But on land there is also Mark. Tempest's old boyfriend who has never forgotten her. Deebs has without a doubt wrote the best love triangle ever!

Tempest really does seem to love them both unconditionally. She doesn't want to have to choose. And that's not an issue for the moment. But it will be. She knows it. They know it. They even say stuff about them being in a triangle, which was kinda funny considering the ever popularity of love triangles!

But just because she's on land now doesn't mean that's where she stays either, there's still trouble under the sea. And Tiamat is making her move.

This was a very gripping story! I think I can say I liked it better than the first one. There's more going on. More chaos, more love, most loss. There's no telling what Deebs will brew up next! Tempest Unleashed is a fast paced sequel filled with all the same love and excitement we experienced in the first book! Although there are new emotions to experience in this as well, but I won't get into that!

Tempest never ceases to amaze me, she's not quite as annoying as some YA heroines have been in the past when it came to love triangles and hard decisions. I look forward to seeing what other choices she will make. 

If you're looking for a fresh and exhilarating new read that this series is for you! I highly recommend it! It's fantastic!

Overall rating 5/5 stars


Tempest Unleashed releases June 5, 2012





It's Monday! What are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.


HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!


Last Week I Read:

A Want so Wicked (ARC) by Suzanne Young--Review to come at a later date
Tiger Lily (ARC) by Jodi Lynn Anderson--Review to come at a later date
Shadow Play by Erin Kellsion (4.5 stars)
The Asylum Interviews: Bronx (ARC) by Jocelynn Drake--Review to come at a later date



Review that was Posted:

Dreamless (ARC) by Josephine Angelini (4.5 stars)



Currently Reading:

Fire Kissed (ARC) by Erin Kellison



What I Plan to Read this Week:

Stalking the Others (ARC) by Jess Haines



Other Posts of Interest:

May 27, 2012

Movie Review--Dark Shadows

So I finally saw Dark Shadows yesterday! And it was pretty good. Definitely a Tim Burton film, that's for sure!

I have never seen the original Dark Shadows soap opera, but I knew of it. Even saw the original Barnabas in the movie! Was able to spot him from just seeing old pictures and such!

The story goes in the beginning when Barnabas was still human, he had a little affair with a maid, Angelique. She was obsessed with him and wanted him to love her. But he didn't. Instead he fell in love with someone else.

Angelique, as it turns out, is a powerful witch. So she cursed Barnabas' love to kill herself, then she turned Barnabas into a vampire and had him outted to the town who then locked him in a coffin.

(Nearly) two hundred years later, [you'll get the joke if you see the movie ;) ] Barnabas is unearthed to find himself in the 70s. He goes back to his family home and meets the new Collins family and decides he wants to help them, since they are suffering financially.

Barnabas struggles to control his vampire self and adjust to the new time. There are some surprises however, one is that Angelique is there, for I guess in this world, witches don't age either. And there's a reincarnation of his love Josette.

The movie definitely had its drama, since it was based on a drama in the 70s (I believe) show. And like the movie poster says, Every family has its demons. The surprises never ceased to amaze me either. You could tell when a character was being devious, they just had that look.

I have to say that this movie had it all, a Tim Burton film, with Johnny Depp, vampires, and Scooby Doo! Yup, at one point Barnabas was watching Scooby Doo on TV and I knew that this would be an awesome movie!

There is some comedy every now and then so the movie isn't all about the drama. There were a few slow parts here and there that just dragged a bit. Other characters took me by surprise as well at their actions. The ending was chock full of surprises though. Some of them were a little over the top. But I guess that can just be summed up to Tim Burton!

It was a pretty good movie and I apologize for this weird review! I don't review movies too often but thought I would review this since it falls into my genre category! I also plan on seeing The Avengers tomorrow, so I might review that too! Who knows!

You don't have to have seen the Dark Shadows show from long ago to know what's going on in this, it's just a movie based on the show. I still enjoyed it though! If you like Tim Burton's films than this might be one to see! There was also a preview for another of his films, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter! Looks petty cool too!

Overall movie rating 4/5 stars




Stacking the Shelves

This weekly meme is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Stacking The Shelves is all about the books we are adding to our shelves each week, sharing with you our excitement for our newest titles and maybe have you discover a new book in the process!


Had a pretty good week! Added wayyyy too many books to the TBR pile, but oh well! 

This week I bought:

 Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent
The Girl in the Clockwork Collar by Kady Cross--my keeper copy!
 Frostbite the Graphic Novel by Richelle Mead, Emma Vieceli & Leigh Dragoon
Of Poseidon by Anna Banks 
Darkness Before Dawn by J.A. London 
Insurgent by Veronica Roth 




Then books for review from the publisher, I got:

 Sin's Dark Caress by Tracey O'Hara--received via Edelweiss
Blood and Silver by James R. Tuck 


Thanks again to the lovely publishers!


Also for review, since I will be apart of a special tour in a few weeks, I got from Jocelynn Drake:




Thanks again, Jocelynn! 



So that was my week, what did you get?



 

May 26, 2012

Top 5 Sundays

Top 5 Sundays is a weekly blog meme created by Larissa at Larissa's Bookish Life.

Every Sunday I will post a TOP 5 list on the blog. It can be about anything and every week I'll have a new theme {You can vote on next week’s theme on my left sidebar!} and I will ad the Mr.Linky bellow the post so you can do a list with the theme and add you link to it.
Rules:
1 - Write a post listing your TOP 5 choices within the theme I chose (or was chosen on a poll) for the week.
2 - Mention this Blog on the post and link back to it.
3 - Fell free to use the Feature's image (there is a smaller size version of it bellow)
4 - After you've finished your post, add you link (of the post, not your blog's main page) to the Mr.Linky at the end of that week's post.
5 – If you don’t have a blog to post, just leave your list in the comments =)


This week's topic is: Books/Series You'd Rather Didn't Become a Movie/TV Show!


*in no particular order


OLD MAGIC

 This was one of my all time fave reads! I would be afraid a movie or TV show would just ruin it for me. The special effects likely would be bad and basically I think the movie magic would take away the "magic" of the book.


DEMON IN MY VIEW

The book that started my paranormal (vampire) obsession. Once again, I would be afraid special effects would ruin the book's magic! I looooved this one! And yes it did help that heroine was named Jessica, who was a writer, of vampire novels! ;)



THE MEDIATOR SERIES

Sorry for the small pic, I wanted to use the cover picture that I own! This was why I was so attracted to the series in the beginning, because it just looked kinda mysterious! This was one of the best paranormal young adult series I have ever read! It was one of the first ones really! And while it took longer to get to books 5 & 6 with the publishing world, I adored it! That being said, I think film might ruin it for me. And besides, can Hollywood really find the hot cowboy to play Jesse? Unlikely.


INTERTWINED (SERIES)

I think this could be good in film someway, but I just don't think it could live up to my standards! I soooo love this series. Totally dying in agony right now for the fourth book--which doesn't have any info circulating yet. I don't think any actor could live up to the characters well at all. And if they ruin Riley for me by putting the wrong actor in his role, it would kill me. Riley is freaking awesome!


THE STUDY TRILOGY

I love love love love love this series! And unfortunately I think film might ruin it. I don't think it could really capture the beauty and freaking awesomeness that is the Study Trilogy! The characters are all so wonderfully built. It is just incredible! And plus with the magic that occurs, I think special effects would ruin it too.



That being said if any of these books/series did become film--movie or TV show, I would still watch it! I would have to. But most likely I would end up bashing the film for possibly ruining an epic read! ;)