a GREAT read: October 2014

Oct 31, 2014

Cover Copy Reveal--Every Breath You Take

I stumbled upon this one as I was gathering the cover details for my review of Another One Bites the Dust and I just had to share!

The author of the Vampire Babylon series and Only the Good Die Young presents another ghost story...

Ever wonder what happens after you die? Well, as a ghost, Jensen Murphy could tell you—and the truth is much stranger than anything you could imagine…

I never accomplished much when I was alive. As an average eighties California beach bum, I, Jensen Murphy, didn’t have any direction. But since I’ve joined Boo World, I’ve found a calling. Now, I’m a supernatural investigator, using my ghostly skills to spook confessions out of bad guys.

But being a paranormal PI is taking its toll. Spirits are hounding me for justice day and night, and, now, a ghost hunting TV show is digging up dirt on my unsavory demise that I’d rather keep buried. Worst of all, a seriously evil specter is making my afterlife hell by hurting the people and ghosts I care about. To stop him, I’ll need assistance from a higher power—only the price I’ll have to pay for that help could be my very soul…

I almost feel like each book has had a different cover model. But perhaps it's just the angle she's at and it's the same as the second one. Though I do feel like the first cover model was different.

That doesn't really matter to me! Just an observation! I do love this cover though! Looks awesome and sounds even more so! I cannot wait to read this one!

Every Breath You Take releases April 7, 2015

Early Review--Another One Bites the Dust by Chris Marie Green

Jensen Murphy is back in the spooky sequel to Only the Good Die Young.

Some people think that ghosts are spirits that refuse to go to the other side because they have unfinished business. Take my word—that’s true. I should know. I’m a ghost.

I was an ordinary eighties California girl, dead before my time, until psychic Amanda Lee Minter pulled me out of the time loop where I was reliving my death over and over. Now I’m Jensen Murphy, Ghost for Hire. I decided to put my spooky talents to use in helping Amanda Lee track down bad guys and killers (including my own).

It’s taken time to figure out exactly how that will work (our first case was definitely a learning experience for all involved), so when a young woman asks Amanda Lee for help convincing her best friend to leave a dangerously hot-tempered boyfriend, I’m ready and willing to use our collective powers on her behalf. But some people are dangerous not only to the living—especially when there are darker forces involved...

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.

Another One Bites the Dust continues the story of Jensen Murphy, not-so-recently deceased, but yet a budding new ghost who has taken to crime-solving! Chris Marie Green brings us yet another delightful mystery that is packed with all the juicy goodness one expects from a mystery...crime, murder, and of course a ghost or two!

I couldn't quite remember everything from the first book, but for the most part, these mysteries seem to stand on their own. We have returning characters from the first book, which kind of played a part in my memory lapse, but we do get brief recaps from Jensen as she moves us along in her story.

In this one we have a brand new "mystery" yet there's no real who-dun-it kind of crime, yet. A young woman, Heidi comes to Amanda Lee asking for help. Her best friend, Nichelle, is in a bad relationship and she believes the man, Tim, will do her serious harm. Yet Nichelle won't leave him. Jensen is to use her abilities to read people as a ghost and see if Tim is a threat or not and if so, to find a way to get Nichelle to see that and get away from him.

And naturally, Tim is quite the character. It reminded me a lot of nearly anyway movie or TV episode where you deal with a psychopath. He's logical, yet freaking scary as crap and has a past riddled with evidence to his behavior and a childhood that led to said behavior. A real scary dude who's obsessed with his girlfriend and pretty much other women too. So yeah, a real winner. All the while, Jensen and Amanda Lee still try to figure out who killed Jensen. Essentially there are two "cases" being worked.

I really enjoyed this one! It packs a good punch in the mystery genre. The mystery itself is coupled with psychological themes and naturally, paranormal ones too! The continuance of Jensen adapting to her life as a "realized" ghost instead of being stuck in a time warp, and her interactions with other ghosts is pretty enjoyable. The other ghosts all have their own personalities coming from different time periods, they're a riot when all together!

There's still the matter of the dark spirit that's lurking about and we do get answers to who and what that is! There's still a bit of mystery about it though, and I think that will get more page time in the next book! Hopefully at least!

And then there's the mystery of the Fake Dean still. Not so much mystery, but as in his character. Who he is as well. What does he really look like. What's his deal with wanting to collect Jensen? There's some sparks flying between them that totally throws the notion that a ghost can't have a romantic life out the window!

Chris brings us yet another incredible mystery packed with all the goodness of a paranormal read! It has shocks and thrills, throw in some humor and action and you have the makings of yet another great read! I can't wait to read the next one and see what else will be in store for Jensen in this series!

Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

I hope you all have a s Spooktacular day and night! However you're celebrating I hope you all have a fun and safe evening as well!

And don't forget, it's the last day to enter my Spooktacular Giveaway! It will end tonight at 11:59 PM (CST).

Oct 30, 2014

Follow Friday

This is a weekly blog meme hosted by Parajunkee's View and Alison Can Read.

Here are the general rules to Follow Friday:

1. Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts and any one else you want to follow on the list

2. Follow our Featured Bloggers
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you want to show the link list, just follow the link below the entries and copy and paste it within your post!
8. If your new to the follow Friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

This week's question is: What books would you give to newbies in your favorite genre? (Ex. I’m a newbie to high fantasy and EVERYONE said to ease into it with the Throne of Glass series!) via Take Me Away…

MY ANSWER: Ooh I like this one! I actually did this with my BFF when she said she wanted to read more Urban Fantasy (or paranormal themed books) since she only read Twilight.

I was MORE than happy to help! So for newbies to paranormal books I recommend:

Stray by Rachel Vincent (Shifters series)--one of my faves and think is a great starter read that gives you something other than vampires and werewolves, though those are great too!

Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost (Night Huntress series)--though not necessarily one of my first paranormal reads, it was one that I ended up loving! Because vampires! And BONES!!

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong (Otherworld series)--one of my first ones, though I didn't start with Bitten and I actually did find myself a tad confused, I don't think I was quite ready for it at the time. That one was Dime Store Magic, but probably a year or two later I picked up Bitten and LOVED it because werewolves!! It was soooo exciting and good! And then I was pretty much hooked on the series!

Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison (Hollows series)--one of my first adult reads and one series that I have grown to LOVE and ADORE! I still need to read the last book, but I am kind of dreading it just because it's the last book! This was a series I fell in love with because at that time the majority of paranormal books I came across were heavy on the romance and that's still not something I like. Romance in the story is fine, but HEAVY on the romance? No, no thank you.

Our example said fantasy and I cannot help but recommend one of my all time favorite series that is fantasy that I LOVE! It's not the heavy or complex fantasy that we would see in Lord of the Rings either.

Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder (Study series)!--This was my first fantasy read and it. Was. AWE. SOME! I loved it! I remember reading it my first semester in college before the second book came out and I was just soooo engrossed in the story! I was fearful that it would be confusing, because you know, sometimes fantasies can be that way! Other than the sometimes hard to pronounce name it wasn't hard to grasp at all! Maria fast became a favorite author for me and I remain a huge fan of her work! I loooooooooooove this series to death! I even re-read the first book a time or two back when I had that kind of time!

And the BEST news ever is that Yelena's story is continuing NEXT YEAR! In February, her fourth Study book will be out and I am already looking forward to it! I know some people didn't really care for her Healer or even her Glass trilogies, but I loved those both too! So if you want shining reviews on those, I have them in my archives if you just search for them in my search box thingy! I don't think I have the Study books reviews, that was preblogging years for me.

Review--Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Every touch has its price

Layla Shaw is trying to pick up the pieces of her shattered life—no easy task for a seventeen-year-old who’s pretty sure things can’t get worse. Her impossibly gorgeous best friend, Zayne, is forever off-limits thanks to the mysterious powers of her soul-stealing kiss. The Warden clan that has always protected her is suddenly keeping dangerous secrets. And she can barely think about Roth, the wickedly hot demon prince who understood her in ways no one else could.

But sometimes rock bottom is only the beginning. Because suddenly Layla’s powers begin to evolve, and she’s offered a tantalizing taste of what has always been forbidden. Then, when she least expects it, Roth returns, bringing news that could change her world forever. She’s finally getting what she always wanted, but with hell literally breaking loose and the body count adding up, the price may be higher than Layla is willing to pay…

Brace yourselves, this is going to be a long one!

Every now and then you come across that series or that author that you just become sooooo addicted to. I'm talking totally addicted! As in you would kill for ARCs, give up your firstborn for ARCs. The I can't read other people's reviews because I want to read this book completely unbiased and on my own! And Jennifer L. Armentrout is that kind of author for me! I am totally addicted to her books! Stone Cold Touch, the second book in The Dark Elements trilogy was an amazing read! This is supposed to be the read that gives us Layla and Zayne time and we definitely get that and it's also the book--I feel like--that puts you on the path to choosing your "team" for Layla. I was totally and completely Team Roth after White Hot Kiss. Now after reading Stone Cold Touch I have to say that I am Team...Roth! Yup!

It was hard too at times trying to figure out which guy to choose. Roth was disappeared on us at the end of WHK and I was wondering how long I'd have to be without him in STC, well, he shows up rather earlier than I expected. But besides there being terrible news--a Lilin is on the loose and wreaking havoc on the town which has already effected the high school and causing deaths and all other sorts of monsters and horrors--he pretty much breaks up with Layla and effectively breaking her heart in the process. It was one of those things that left me shocked! This was not the Roth I thought I knew. To make matters worse, he insists on staying at Layla's school and working together to find the Lilin.

Then there's Zayne who has suddenly entered Layla's life in the romantic sense. It totally confuses Layla at first, but then he's just there. And I will admit, their moments together were sweet, hot even! But there's just something about Zayne that doesn't do it for me. I'm not swooning over him like I do with Roth. Perhaps I was put off by him when he ate the last of her cookie dough. ;) LOL!

Pushing the romantic factors aside, let's talk about the action in this book! The action was incredible! There's a lot of mystery built up around the Lilin and what it's doing. Where will it strike next and all that jazz. It builds up a great mystery; one that leads to meeting with witches and seers, trying to figure out where it is and how to get rid of it.

There's a lot of danger to this one too. It was intense. Not only is there danger in Layla having a relationship with Zayne because of the whole suck out your soul thing, but there are other factors in play and Layla naturally is at the center of it all while trying to deal with some wonky effects on her powers. There were some shocking reveals in this one! Ones that make you rethink everything you thought you knew from the first book! One reveal I did pretty much pin down, though I can't quite understand it all yet in its detail because it's one that gets revealed literally in the last few lines of the book and then BAM! Cliffhanger. Why must you torment me Jennifer?! Wasn't Opal's ending killer enough?! And now I must wait until the END of July! That's more than half the year next year! Have I mentioned I hate waiting? That I am incredibly impatient when it comes to my books?

I really liked this one! I liked that Jas and Dez were in it again and that they sort of played a stronger role in the story. Not really huge, but I felt like they were more sympathetic to Layla this time around. Abbot has totally lost all my favor from pretty much the beginning. Due to Layla's lies and actions in WHK there's a strain in their relationship that only continues to fester as the story moves along. I can understand some of his points, but yeah, still hate the guy!

Stone Cold Touch turned into an astounding read! It's so hard choosing an adjective to describe it really! It's just so freaking amazing there are no words for it's level of awesomeness! Jennifer is a truly, truly talented author! I love her books! And though this is YA, I must say that I enjoyed some of the references from what I feel like is my teen years: Buffy, and I think even Ghostbusters (though that was before my time, but still saw as a kid) at one point, totally blanking on the one I smiled at...there aren't many, but just enough that I feel like this book is meant for me! *grins* Despite that I am not a teenager anymore. I'm not sure if that's intentional for her older readers such as myself, or if it's because they were just things she liked! And oh, yeah, I totally loved seeing the names Sam and Dean on the same page too! Wondering if that was intentional too since Dean wasn't a large secondary character...

To sum up, read Jennifer's books! She has something for everyone! Readers with paranormal tastes, contemporary ones, a thriller (with another to come next year!), YA, NA...the woman does it all and she's just so unbelievably remarkable!

Overall Rating 5/5 stars

Random Thursday

So when striving for ideas for my Thursday posts, I got an idea from Tracy at Cornerfolds! She's a Disney lover too and I always love meeting other Disney fans, because while I love my books dark and scary so to speak with all the vampires, werewolves, demons, and you know all those dark creatures of the night bwhahahaha!

I still wuv my Disney stuff too!

So yeah, I have a lot of little things. Most of them sit somewhere on my bookshelves! I have the lovely Peter Pan snowglobe, one of the last items I bought from my original Disney Store before they closed it. I LOVED this snowglobe because it reminded me of the ride at Disney World which is one of my faves. On the backside you see Nana and basically the inside of the window!

It lights up and plays You Can Fly!

Then there's squinkies, because those were soooo cool!
My Halloween Jim Shore of Mickey dressed as a ghost saying BOO!
The Jim Shore Haunted Mansion piece of the Hitchhiking Ghosts
Funko POP figures of Belle wearing glasses, Peter Pan that came with the BluRay I bought, Belle as a peasant, and mini Ariel and Aurora
Then there's the Itsy Bitsy of Tinkerbell and Vampire Mickey
And towards the end in between the miniature Pop of Aurora and Ariel is an Mickey Mouse Ear Hat ornament styled to Aurora's traits!

Second shelf there's a Goofy Vampire and Pluto Vinylmation
Jim Shore Beauty and the Beast
Belle Pez Dispenser
Belle Itsy Bitsy
Jessie Pez Dispenser
Mickey Nerd Vinylmation
Sliding boxes that have portraits from the Haunted Mansion!

Necklaces!! The first three are upcycled pins to become necklaces
A piece of Cursed Aztec Gold bwhahaha!
The Rose from Beauty and the Beast from the glass window look!

Jim Shore Ariel statue that plays Part of Your world!
The Necklaces
Pascal beanie baby I got when I bought Tangled!
Stuffed Mickey Vampire
Belle beanie baby

Jim Shore Vampire Mickey Candy Dish
Jim Shore Tinkerbell
Jim Shore Aurora
A Beauty and the Beast box that shows her dancing with the prince! In its glass window look. Got this from Disney Movie Rewards, because yes, I am a member!
Another piece I bought from my original Disney Store before it closed: Davy Jones's chest from Pirates of the Caribbean that has an oversized piece of cursed Aztec Gold ornament style!

A plaque that has a Peter Pan quote
A makeup bag with Disney Princesses in comic strip format dramatized!
The home version of the Key to open the new Disney Store at our mall!
More squinkies!
And of course, Lil Mikey!

And there might be more items I forgot about because I am so used to seeing them around my room on a daily basis! So yeah...My name is Jessica, I'm a bibliophile, book addict, paranormal lover, and Disney lover and I have a problem...err, problems! LOL!

Oct 29, 2014

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.

Okay, the book I initially planned for this one ended up being one I got early for review...which I still need to read, hopefully this week! So I'm changing it to one with very little info unfortunately. But last Friday, Rachel Vincent revealed on her blog that she will be writing a Shifters series spinoff!

Lion's Share so far doesn't have a cover or description. Or a permanent release date, but Rachel so far says she's shooting for the end of the year! So fingers crossed tightly that that will be the case!

Soooooo, in the meantime I would urge all Shifters fans to buy the new edition of HUNT! This was a short story originally in the anthology Chicks Kick Butt, but she has added an ADDITIONAL 2000 words to the story! So this in a sense is a NEW story! She's added a little story fodder to help steer us in the direction of Lion's Share AND you get a peek at chapter 1 at the end of the story! So more reason to rebuy or buy for the first time!

And I have that one waiting for ME on my Kindle! :D

Oct 28, 2014

Review--Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

The capital has fallen.

The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.

Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.

Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.

Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.

Ruin and Rising brings an end to Leigh Bardugo's Grisha trilogy and I don't know how I feel about it all yet. There are definitely some conflicting emotions going around in me and it has be pausing. It's a confusing feeling I guess.

For the bulk of the story, Alina and her friends are off to find the third amplifier, the mysterious firebird. But naturally their journey isn't easy what with the Darkling still on their tail. Alina still has her connection with him and it still presents a problem between her and Mal. Mal is even more distant with her in this one, but yet, he's still there for her constantly.

I didn't quite feel the rush of excitement in this one. There's still some, but I just wasn't as amped up as the previous books. It was just sort of there. The pacing was decent as well, but I thought it could've been better being the finale and all. It takes nearly 3/4 of the book to find the firebird and even then we learn something utterly shocking and that begins a new pursuit in a way.

Despite my conflicting feelings on pace and plot, I do have to say that I continued to love these characters! Alina is a heroine that I just adored. I don't think I was ever really put off by her. She starts off as the shy and meek sort, but by the end of the first book she's transformed into a brave young woman and I loved that about her! Mal was a puzzle at the best of times. He's hot and cold when it came to Alina and that got on my nerves at times. But I guess you could say it was more of a communication problem, you can only yell yourself hoarse at the pages so many times before you learn that the characters won't listen to you! LOL!

The Darkling is still a favorite character of mine and one I wished we could've learned more about. We did learn about some of his background and history, which was great an all. But I feel like there was more to his feelings when it came to Alina and I wished that could've been expanded upon. He was a character that could make you swoon one moment and then you want to slap him upside the head in the next! A complicated guy to say the least! Zoya was a character that took me by surprise. I pretty much hated her in the first book, felt indifferent to her in the second, but by the end of the third, I was totally a fan of her! She has a bold attitude, and can still be snarky, but there's an almost cheerful side to it all now. She and Alina have a sort of tentative friendship building, but there's still moments when you can see the fire going and one's ready to attack the other! (just not to a death match kind of thing!)

Nikolai is yet another favorite character of mine! He's so funny and pretty much says whatever he feels like! I like the banter between him and Alina! It's so enjoyable! Sadly, he wasn't around as much in this one. He pops in, then it's an in and out kind of dealio before there's a conversation with him at the end. He's definitely one of my favorite parts about the trilogy though, as I don't think we would've had nearly enough humor without him!

The ending was sort of a shocker. I didn't know what to expect really. I knew that in someway the Darkling had to be stopped because he was too power hungry. But I thought maybe Alina would be the one to change him and make him not so dark. As I said, I didn't know what to expect and there were so many conflicting feelings I had about everything, like who Alina should end up with. And the ending we got, was definitely not one I anticipated. And I can't decide if how I feel about it. I didn't love it, I didn't hate it...it was conflicting!

This is an end to the trilogy, we can say that. Are the characters all better off? Yes and no. Perhaps not everyone knows that this is for the best. I wish I could know more about the characters who aren't set in a HEA scenario. There were surprises to this ending that still leave me befuddled. It's almost like everything happened too quickly and there was a prolong wrap up. Regardless, I must say that I enjoyed this series and look forward to Bardugo's next one!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars

ARC Review--Broken by Marianne Curley

Following the revelation that Ebony is an angel, and Nathaneal’s narrow victory in battle with Prince Luca, the two are enjoying their newfound love. But Ebony’s friend Jordan is bitterly angry that he has lost the girl of his dreams. Then suddenly Prince Michael arrives to arrest Nathaneal for breaking Avena’s law when he revealed his powers on Earth in his bid to save Ebony from Luca. Nathaneal is forced to return to Avena without Ebony to stand trial.

Jordan seizes the opportunity to plant doubt in Ebony’s mind about Nathaneal and her own angelic nature. Desperate to find out what has happened to her adoptive parents, Ebony is persuaded by Jordan to believe that new teacher Mr Xavier, who claims to be her uncle, can introduce her to her real father. Disaster inevitably follows and Ebony finds herself at the centre of another epic battle in the realm of Avena itself.

I received this ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.

I've loved Marianne Curley's books since the early days of Old Magic! A read I happily discovered one day at Waldenbooks--sob, Borders affiliate! And pretty much have been hooked to her words since that day! Her newest series, is a bit different than that and The Guardians of Time, but is still a magnificent story weaved together. Broken is the second installment in this Avena trilogy and things really start to ante up!

My memory, naturally, is pretty much shot over what happened last time, as that too was read as an ARC and much time and many, many reads have passed between then and now. But as always I try to carry through as best as I can. Ebony and Jordan are living with Nathaneal in the safe house so no one can get to Ebony who is proclaimed to be very special to the angel world. It's not long before Nathaneal is called away to accept his punishment over the events of last time. Leaving Jordan and Ebony on their own. Jordan still cares for Ebony and wants to be with her and it still under Prince Luca's thumb to break Ebony and Nathaneal apart.

Things are changing fast as Jordan learns that his mother may still be alive, an old enemy returns, and Ebony learns that she may have an uncle who knows who her real family is! But how much of all that is true? What's just a part of the enemy's plan to cause chaos and eventually bring Ebony to Skade? For Prince Luca has not given up on making Ebony his queen?

This read was a rush of excitement and thrills! Still being told in Nathaneal, Ebony and Jordan's points of view, we get the story told from all angles. Except the enemy's of course. I still can't help but not be into the romance between Nathaneal and Ebony. It just comes up so sudden in the last book and remains in this second one. Because they knew each other before they knew each other and twisting fate into the mix. It's like because they are destined to be together by some unknown fate, they love one another and "know" of these memories. Ebony's memories of such knowledge are sketchy at best, though she's still head over heels in love and Nathaneal has been head over heels in love from day one. Basically it comes down to a case of insta love but trying to say it's fate that draws them together.

Which kind of makes me want Jordan to be the one Ebony ends up with. For he fell in love with her, not just saw her and loved her or whatever. Though I can't honestly say we're looking at a love triangle or even if Ebony has those kinds of feelings for Jordan. It's a mess. I think I am just going to be very unhappy about the HEA ending come the final book, but oh well. The story is still good and that's all that matters!

Overall, Broken was yet another enjoyable read and I will continue to look forward to more magical reads from one of my favorite authors!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars

Broken releases November 4, 2014

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

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

"'Are you going to make a habit of winning arguments? It's very unbecoming.'"

'Was this an argument?'

'Obviously not. I don't lose arguments.'" p 189

TITLE: Ruin and Rising
AUTHOR: Leigh Bardugo
PUBLISHER: Henry Holt and Co.
GENRE: Dystopian YA
RELEASE DATE: June 17, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

This week's topic is: Top Ten Characters Who I Would Totally Want To Be For Halloween

*in no particular order

Kind of difficult to say why I chose these ladies, mostly cause in a way I would want to actually BE them! You know because they either have some super talents or powers or they have adventures...usually with really HOT guys that would HAVE to come along with the costume! ;)

THE YA GIRLS:

1. KATE from Marianne Curley's Old Magic--a teen girl who's a witch and can time travel with the help of her grandmother's spell?! Totally in, plus hot guy!

2. JESSIE from Shannon Delany's 13 to Life--girl with awesome name and has a hot werewolf boyfriend?! With an accent?! Hell yes!

3. KATY from Jennifer L. Armentrout's Obsidian--hell, I'm practically Katy already! Alls I need is my very own Daemon purty please!

4. JESSICA from Amelia Atwater-Rhodes's Demon in My View--the heroine is named Jessica. She's a published author. And she draws the eye of an uber hot bad boy vampire, Aubrey!

5. ALICE from Gena Showalter's Alice in Zombieland--two words: Cole. Holland.

THE ADULT GALS:

6. CHARLEY from Darynda Jones's First Grave on the Right--Charley is awesome! She's got some pretty cool powers and abilities. Then there's her incredible sense of humor...and oh yes, Reyes!

7. ELENA from Kelley Armstrong's Bitten--she's a werewolf! How cool would that be! Plus she's still a great heroine; strong, brave, determined. And naturally, there's Clay! Gotta love that man! At least I do!

8. RACHEL from Kim Harrison's Dead Witch Walking--Rachel is incredibly awesome! And in the beginning she has those awesome cuffs you see on the cover with the charms! And I must say, though I am loving Trent (& still gotta read the finale!) I would have to say for my "costume" I would want Kisten by my side for old time's sake!

9. GEORGINA from Richelle Mead's Succubus Blues--she's a succubus and has her own slew of powers, but she's also kind, has great friends, dates a writer and oh yes...works in a BOOKSTORE!

Now for this one, I have to explain; it's NOT cheating per se, because the movie was adapted into a book! So you see, it's a book as well as a movie! ;)

10. SELENE from Greg Cox's Underworld--wow! Selene was a total kickass vampire! She was strong, powerful, fast, and then there's Michael...le sigh!

Oct 27, 2014

ARC Review--A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray

Every Day meets Cloud Atlas in this heart-racing, space- and time-bending, epic new trilogy from New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray.

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their radical scientific achievements. Their most astonishing invention: the Firebird, which allows users to jump into parallel universes, some vastly altered from our own. But when Marguerite’s father is murdered, the killer—her parent’s handsome and enigmatic assistant Paul—escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite can’t let the man who destroyed her family go free, and she races after Paul through different universes, where their lives entangle in increasingly familiar ways. With each encounter she begins to question Paul’s guilt—and her own heart. Soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores a reality where we witness the countless other lives we might lead in an amazingly intricate multiverse, and ask whether, amid infinite possibilities, one love can endure.

I received this ARC while at RT 2014 earlier this year, I was in no way compensated for this review.

I really had no idea what Claudia Gray's A Thousand Pieces of You was going to be about when I picked it up at RT earlier this year. I had just heard some buzz about it prior to getting it and when I saw it up for grabs, well, I grabbed! Sadly, I don't have a pretty cover on the ARC so I will definitely need to buy a final copy!

This book, starts off a tad complicated, at least for me because we deal with physics and anything science related is a no-no for me! But luckily, Marguerite--our heroine--isn't really a physics type girl either despite having parents who are. She's basically the odd duck in the family, choosing art over science, but she's still pretty smart in her own rights. After getting an idea of how the time traveling works, we are immediately launched into the story with Marguerite and Theo chasing after Paul who had just murdered Marguerite's father. They want revenge and will travel through however many dimensions it takes to get it.

I loved this idea of traveling to other dimensions. It's not time traveling, but literally going to other different worlds. Claudia best explains is like every time fate flips a coin, a new dimension is created. And you can only travel to other dimensions where your self exists, for you kind of jump into your other body. It's hard to explain, but Claudia does it marvelously! I struggled for a bit in the understanding of it all at first, but in no time at all I had it down pat!

I found the storytelling to be very interesting! We're set in the present with Marguerite, but there are multiple flashbacks in the beginning, literal "remembering when" moments that help to give us an idea of what's going on and what's happened, all that jazz, and it flowed along really easily. You knew when you were remembering something and when you were in the present.

Things get really intense when Marguerite finds Paul in the first dimension that they go to, but apparently, things aren't exactly what they seem. While it seems Paul is the definite murderer of her father, there's definitely more to the story. And let me tell you, that is as vague as I can get! But once the seed is planted, Marguerite can't let it go despite Theo wanting to exact revenge for what Paul did...or didn't do!

Yes, I did just do that! What I found to be one of the most exciting parts of this story is all the dimensions we went to. There were dimensions where the Beatles didn't exist, where we had a tPhone instead! It was just remarkable! And sometimes, the dimensions were even a bit behind on the times, like no electricity or internet! It was just amazing! I loved exploring all these different worlds. The science behind the matters even became lost, you don't have to be totally knowledgeable on the subject to grasp what's going on and how all this is possible!

I won't say much on the matter, but yes, there's romance. It's quite complicated in a lot of ways too, but at the same time it's totally real! Things happen within these romances and there's some conflicting feelings Marguerite has and they are totally real conflicts! I love how these twisted things result in something that feels totally real!

There's a bigger part of the story that I can't mention, but let's just say it's what totally sets this trilogy into motion! There's a course set ahead for Marguerite, as to what that will be now at this point is still up in air, but I must say I loved how it ended! It's an ending truly worthy of many possibilities. *grins*

A Thousand Pieces of You is an astounding and remarkable read that will take you away to new places, but not new worlds...for you're simply visiting other dimensions! Coupled with good mystery and secrets, this read just blew me away and I can't wait to go back!

Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars--a rocky start with the physics talk, but takes off beautifully after that!

A Thousand Pieces of You releases November 4, 2014

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.

Last Week I Read: