Behind the Blog is a feature I've created to allow my readers to learn more about me outside of the blogging and book world. My hope is to connect with readers outside of books, make friends beyond the blog. As far as I know, the title of this feature came from my own mind. I don't recall seeing it on a blog before, so if you have a feature with the same name, no copy intended.
For this post, I'm going to list 5 facts about me you probably didn't know.
I'm a sophomore and I'm about to attend my 6th highschool.
I'm really insecure about the eyelashes on my left eye.
I can quote parts of Titanic.
I have a creepy womancrush on Zooey Deschanel.
I could live off of Ramen Noodles.
So those are some random facts about me! Seeing as the purpose of this feature is to connect with my readers, I'd really love if you'd comment with a list of your own random facts! Or leave questions/topics for my next Behind the Blog post! :) Feel free to tweet me and start up a conversation, or add my new Facebook page and we can have conversations longer that 140 characters <3
I just thought I'd let you all know that today is my sixteenth birthday! :)
I started my blog last June and I never expected it to escalate to what it is now. Blogging has become a huge part of my life and has changed me in ways I can't even explain. I've met a lot of amazing people. I've had conversations with authors! I've discovered new, fabulous books. And most importantly, I've shared my love of books with hundreds of people! At my age, being a bookworm is looked upon as strange and it was always easy for me to feel like my love of books was a flaw. It was something I kept inside of me, even when I felt like I was going to burst from bookly love. But book blogging has showed me I'm not strange at all--I'm extremely special! As are all the other bloggers and booklovers I've connected with since becoming part of the community.
I haven't held many giveaways on my blog (there's no way I can afford them) and I've reached over 250 followers. That's such a marvelous feeling because it makes me realize that some people like and even care about what I have to say. It makes me feel like I'm doing as much as I can to support my favorite books and authors. Every time I get a comment, I feel accomplished.
Since I began blogging, I've attended four different high schools and experienced a lot of tough times, but blogging and books was something I could turn to. Times were never to tough to fall in love with words and gush about them. When I was feeling down, blogging and bloggers and books and writers could cheer me up without even realizing they were doing it.
Book blogging has opened up so many opportunities for me, unlocked so many feelings, and showed me so many personal values. All I wish for on my birthday is that bloggers and booklovers alike keep being awesome. Keep taking over the internet. Keep showing everyone that we are special and great for so many reasons. Keep showing the world that books are so much more than words on paper. I wish for authors to continue writing what's in their hearts, and that they keep making their way into ours. I wish that writers will continue to discover their story and bring fresh and original work to the plate.
And most of all, my birthday wish is for every single person in this world to realize that there is a book out there for them. And for them to find it. And for them to realize that there are more books out there for them.
So, thanks everyone. You've probably helped me in ways you could never even realize. Please just keep doing whatever you're doing, because I assure you, it's wonderful.
Series: Iron Fey #1 Genre: YA Fantasy Publication Date: February 1, 2010 Publisher: Hardcover Format: Paperback Pages: 363 Source: Borrowed from teacher
Meghan Chase has a secret destiny; one she could never have imagined.
Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home.
When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.
But she could never have guessed the truth - that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face; and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.
I tried reading this a couple years back, but I couldn't really get into it and I never finished it. But I've seen soooo much hype around this series and swooning for Ash and I had no idea why I was the only person who couldn't get through it. I'd been wanting to retry for a while so when my teacher was like, "You need to read this!" I was like "OKAY!" And I absolutely adored it!! I don't know if my head just wasn't in it last time or what, but The Iron King is a gorgeous novel interwoven with an intricate faerie world, enchanting characters, and a unique twist to your typical faery lore.
Immediately, I could tell Meghan was a character I was going to like. She wants to impress her crush, but she doesn't have anything nice to wear to school, so she decides that she is going to rock what she has, that she is just going to be herself and that she will wow him with her personality. She makes a really good first impression. She was really determined to save her little brother and she is unflinchingly loyal to the people she cares about. Sometimes her raw determination felt a little unbelievable, the way she was literally willing to sacrifice anything to save her little brother, because I didn't really get a strong feel for their relationship in the beginning. But that's just me. The other thing that I didn't like was that Meghan was not a fighter at all, and therefore throughout most of the book, she had to be rescued by Puck or Ash. It's not like she is completely helpless or anything. I mean, she does help out, and she does utilize whatever she can to save herself, but most of the time it was Ash sweeping in and saving her. I am certain that will be different in the next book due to certain events that occurred at the end if The Iron King.
As for Ash and Puck...I love them both. Puck brings humor and fun to every page that he is on, and Ash has that tortured soul thing going for him. I know the masses of Team Ash fans are going to lobotomize me for this, but I realllllly love Puck. He's always been there for Meghan. And he's totally misunderstood, just because a lot of his pranks go...wrong. I mean, I know Ash is the obvious selection for Meghan and that Puck isn't even really a romantic candidate, but I STILL CHOOSE HIM. I also loved Grimalkin. Not as a romantic option, of course. I just thought he was kinda sorta totally awesomesauce.
But my favorite part of the entire book was the world. We are sucked into an elaborate fantasy land, riddled with danger and tricks, and you just never know what to expect. It was so easy to immerse myself into Nevernever, to see all the unique creatures, to feel the tension between the courts. Julia Kagawa takes traditional faery myths and bring them to life, makes them her own. There are so many things Julie has to introduce to us, be it a creature or a concept, without overwhelming or confusing us and she does such a marvelous job! I was completely absorbed and one hundred percent convinced.
The pacing in this book is quick, but not too break-neck, always engaging. The action is literally made my breathing heavier and my heart rate quicker. And the writing absolutely screwed my mind in the best kind of way. And yet, something was missing. I can't identify what, but there is something that is preventing me from giving this a full 5 pawprint rating. I'm not sure, I mean this book obviously BLEW ME OUT OF THE FRICKIN WATER.
This is a book not to be overlooked, my fabulous readers. If you've been burned before by faery books, or you're just a faery skeptic--this is a book I'd recommend to break you out of that funk. If you think this is going to be like Tinker Bell, you got another thing coming. If you think faeries are all pixie dust and fluttering wings, PICK UP THIS DAMN BOOK SO YOU CAN REVEL IN ITS AWESOMENESS. If none of the above apply to you...well, you still want to read this. Trust me. There's a reason this series is wildly popular and I expect even greater things from the next books!
~ The Iron King by Julia Kagawa (Review coming tomorrow)
~ New Girl by Paige Harbison (Review coming soon)
Okay, I am perfectly aware that I have been slacking tremendously in the reading department. I'm not going to make excuses, I am just going to say that there are reasons. But I am trying to kick my butt in gear!
TO READ THIS WEEK:
~ Partials by Dan Wells (ebook) ~ Between by Jessica Warman (physical)
I'm just going to start back small. If I read more than those two, fantastic!
Boy, do I have A LOT of covers to gush about today! : )So sit back and enjoy the pretty pictures.
A Midsummer's Nightmare Kody Keplinger
Other works by this author: Shut Out, The Duff
I haven't read anything by Kody Keplinger, though I want to. This is my favorite cover of hers so far. I love the mysterious aspect it has and the angst radiating from that girls face. This book sounds and looks absolutely fantabulous and I cannot wait to read it!
Blind Spot
Laura Ellen
I'm pretty sure this is a debut novel. I don't know why I love this cover so much. The eye is really pretty and dark and the tagline is mysterious. It's got a gritty feel to it.
City of Lost Souls The Mortal Instruments #5 Cassandra Clare
Other works by this author: The other Mortal Instruments books and The Infernal Devices books.
OMG OMG OMG OMG. Fabulous. I cannot wait. It looks romantic and epic and OMG.
Darkest Knight
Knight's Curse #2
Karen Duvall
Other works by this author: Knight's Curse
I read the first book in this series, and though I wasn't absolutely in love with it, I am still looking forward to this sequel. I love this cover so much, it is absolutely stunning. Chalice, the girl on the cover, looks much more like a girl on this ne, though she is still really tough. I can totally sense the chaos that is going to be in this book with the dark colors and eerie tree branch in the corner. This is the type of cover I expect to be about gargoyles -- and what do you know? IT IS!
Deadly Hemlock Hemlock #1 Kathleen Peacock
This is the UK cover to Kathleen's debut novel. I think that she was truly blessed with two gorgeous covers. Though I like the US cover better, this is still top notch. I love the wolf face in the trees and how the title just seems to jump out at you. This cover is kind of spooky and totally wonderful, and I really hope that the content inside is as great.
The Space Between Us
Jessica Martinez
Other works by this author: Virtuosity
OMG OMG OMG I absolutely adored Virtuosity, and I am so excited to see that Jessica Martinex has another book coming out. Honestly, I would have adored this cover even if it was nothing but a plain black rectangle, but it's actually really gorgeous. I can feel the tension seeping from both of them, along with regret and uncertainty, and I know that I will feel all of the same things from the characters.
Yesterday
C.K. Kelly Martin
Other works by this author: My Teenage Beating Heart, The Lighter Side of Life and Death, One Lonely Degree, I Know It's Over
I haven't read anything by this author, and I had never even heard of this book, but when I saw the cover I knew it was a book I have to read! This cover is my favorite of all of the ones I posted today. It's got a dark, eerie feeling to it, and it is just so frickin epic. It's very rare that books with all of these different details and sci-fi aspects is photoshopped really well, but this is absolutely fantastic!
So what do you think of these covers? Which one is your favorite, and which covers make you want the book NOW!?
Series: Afterlife #1 Genre: YA Paranormal Publication Date: September 9, 2011 Publisher: Self-published Format: Paperback Pages: 265 Source: From author for review
Have you ever wondered where you go when you die?
Meghan is 16 when it happens to her. She wakes up on a flying steamboat on her way to a school run by Angels in a white marble castle. It is a school everybody has to go to before they are let into Heaven. On the boat she meets Mick who has been dead for more than a hundred years but still looks like a teenager. He helps her past the difficult beginning at the new school in a new world. One day some of Meghan's roommates find a mirror in the cellar of the school and they persuade her to go through it with them - well knowing it is strictly against the rules of the school. Meghan ends up back on earth where she meets Jason. But Jason is in danger and Meghan know something important. Something that is a matter of life and death. Soon she is forced to choose between the two worlds. The one she belongs to now and the one she left.
Beyond is the first novel in T. P. Boje's Afterlife series and is great for children and teenagers ages 9 and up. (Goodreads.com)
There's the age-old question "What makes a book, the writing or the story?" Most of the time, I say that both components are essential to creating a book worth reading, but sometimes elaborate prose that flow off the page and twist your mind are overwhelming and you just want to be told a good story. That's what it was my experence reading Beyond. The writing was not bad, please do not misunderstand me, but it wasn't particularly stunning. Some of the dialogue was stilted and there could have been a lot more details, but the book was quick and refreshing and told a story that was interesting.
The world was set up very decently. I still have some questions, but there are more books in the series and I can't expect (or even want, really) all the worldbuilding in the first book. There were a few things I found slightly unbelievable or inconsistent, but in the end, those things didn't matter. I also found a few things to be slightly similar to the world set up in Harry Potter. Not exactly the same, but just similar. That's not a bad thing, persay, but it subtracts from the originality, obviously.
Now the plot and main storyline were what I really adored. I loved reading about this whole new life after death and I liked how the characters in this novel didn't just turn into all-knowing being when they died. Instead they have to attend an academy, no matter how old, where they learn special things like how to fly or walk through walls. The religious aspects in this book are there, but not preachy or overwhelming. There are good spirits and there are bad, and the good must continuously fight the bad spirits' influence. There are hints and talk about an ancient war and Heaven and I'm hoping there are more of those things in the next books--in the same nonpreachy way, of course. Then here was the climax, which was my FAVORITE part. There were a lot of parts in this book that seemed sort of convienant or easy, but the climax was epic! There was a ton of anticipation that had my heart literally pounding and my mind frantically devouring each word! And then the ending! Oh my, it absolutely broke my heart! I did not see parts of it coming, and yet it didn't necessarily come out of nowhere. I wasn't crazy about the beginning because it directly addressed the readers and that's a feat that I believe to be difficult to pull off, but it only happens in the beginning, so it wasn't too bad.
This is a nice read if you're looking for something quick and creative and not too heavy. This book had many flaws, but I still enjoyed it. I definitely want to read the sequel. Also, this book is suitable for all ages and would be a good read for younger kids that are beginning to read YA and MG books!
Series: The Infernal Devices #2
Genre: YA Steampunk
Publication Date: December 6, 2011
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 498
Source: Purchased
In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa's powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister's war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will; the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart. (goodreads.com)
HOLY FRAGGLEZNIPF. Why am I so surprised that Cassandra Clare has completely wowed me once again? But, uh, WOW! Three dimensional characters, stunning prose, and a swoon-worthy love triangle--Clare brings it BIG in the newest installment of The Infernal Devices.
So much happens in this book. A LOT. The Shadowhunters are trying to save the Institute, find the Magister and unveil why exactly he wants Tessa, and Will deals with some issues of his own. Seriously, guys, there are so many twists in this book. I could never figure out who to trust. The one little tiny quibble I have about the plot is that this book does not contain as much action as the predecessor. Instead, it focuses more on the romance. Not that the romance isn't fabulous, but I would have loved more of Clare's famous heart-pounding action.
Speaking of the romance, OH MY OH MY OH MY OH MY. Clare pulled my heart in, like, ten trillion and two different directions. My mental tug-of-war went a little something like this:
AHHH WILLLL!!!
OH MY GOD, JEM!
HOLY DAMN WILL!
AWH JEM.
AWWWHHHHH WILL.
OH MY GOD THEY ARE BOTH SO GREAT.
This is not your typical love triangle. Okay, it kind of is. I mean, you got the bad boy and the tender boy. BUT IT IS SO MUCH MORE THAN THAT. There is legit depth in the character's feelings for one another.
AND MY GOD, THE CHARACTERS. They are what make this book for me.
You can tell that Tessa has really changed since the first book. Her skin has grown thicker. I liked how it wasn't as much about her powers and accepting the world around her as it was about helping the world she has come to love, and those in it. Then there is Will and Jem, and well, I can't even get into them. I love them both and I hate how there is an expiration date on Jem. I could feel his time ticking away, but this book also wasn't about Tessa coming to terms with his illness, it was about her realizing that there was ten times more to Jem than his illness. Will deals with a lot in this book, and we learn a lot about him and I have a feeling your opinion about him will be irrevocably altered. I always loved him, but now I see him in a whole new light.
I was so so so so so so happy for Henry and Charlotte. I love them and I am so happy to see that their relationship is more than everyone thought. I love that we get to see the Lightwoods, and we learn what their problem is. Some things happen with Jessamine that really surprise me, and as horrible as he is, I loved Nate.
This book was simply made of win. It's amazeballs to see the characters from the ID start to relate to the MI series. If you love the Mortal Instruments but aren't sure about starting this series, do it. I promise you, you won't regret it. My excessive capitalized words should indicate just how mind-blowing this book is!
