Tea and Books reading challenge

I have decided to sign-up to the Tea and Books reading challenge, hosted by The Book Garden. The book has to be over 650 pages to count in the challenge, with books being over 1200 being counted as two. As I have a few large books that I plan to read, I thought that this would be good motivation to read them. I signed up for the Chamomile Lover level, which means I have to read two books. To sign up click the button below.

Mel.

Update and a New Challenge!

So yesterday I was meant to put up a review for Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes. I have been in a bit of a reading slump and I haven't finished reading it yet. That means that I won't get the review for it up this week. Sorry guys. I will try and get my review for City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare up, but it will be on Friday. I do think I will get this finished because I am over halfway through and have a three and a half hour drive on Friday where I will listen to it.

On a different note I have signed up or another challenge. This is the 2013 Sequel Challenge hosted by Auntie Spinelli Reads. My goal is to read 10 sequels! Click the button to sign up!

Mel.

Up next - Review: [Audiobook] City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Review: Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Sorry for the late review, I somehow managed to get my days confused. As a result of this late review, I will be posting my next review on Friday instead of Thursday.

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

Beautiful Darkness is the follow up to Beautiful Creatures, which I reviewed a little while ago. I didn’t necessarily enjoy this story. I did get caught up in it and I wanted to know what happened, but the majority of the book I was just feeling sorry for most of the characters. Also for the majority of the book I was in agony due to the feelings created by where Ethan and Lena’s relationship stood.

I particularly felt sorry for Lena. I don’t want to give too much away but after the ending of Beautiful Creatures, Lena is lost and she only really went downhill from there.  It was hard to witness Lena’s downward spiral, especially as we were seeing it through Ethan’s eyes. I also felt sorry for Ethan because every time you thought that things couldn’t get worse for him, it did.

I really enjoyed getting to know the characters a little better, particularly Macon and Lila. I enjoyed learning about the history of both of them. I also liked getting to know Marian a little more, but there wasn’t enough of her in the book as I would like. It was great to see the characters develop particularly in their responses to certain events. I also liked the addition of new characters. I loved Liv, with her stubbornness, persistence and bravery. I loved Twyla and Arelia, with their sassiness and power. I didn’t know what to make of John Breed but I loved the idea of Abraham, even if I didn’t like him one bit.

The plot was great. I spent half the time confused at what was going on, but it was a good confused. I was confused because, like Ethan, I didn’t have all the information, so each time some other fact popped up I was able to make a theory and get a bit better idea of what was happening. There was only one plot line that I was able to guess and that was because the Beautiful Creatures movie gave away some of the story for me. I didn’t see the ending coming, but I was really happy with part of it and rather sad about another part.

I did get a bit annoyed at the length of some of the descriptions. There were parts in the book where I didn’t want to know what the shore looked like, I wanted know how everything was going to be solved. I just felt that some of the descriptions messed up the flow of the story and slowed it down.

I did like the book, it was an addictive read which I didn’t want to put down because I wanted to know the answers. I give it 3.5-4/5 stars because I didn’t exactly enjoy it and I felt that some of the descriptions were not necessary.

I read this book for the 2013 Witches and Witchcraft reading challenge hosted by Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf.

Mel.

Up next: Review - Frost Bite by Richelle Mead

Review: Rowan of Rin (Rowan of Rin #1) by Emily Rodda

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Bravest heart will carry on when sleep is death, and hope is gone.Rowan doesn't believe he has a brave heart. But when the river that supports his village of Rin runs dry, he must join a dangerous journey to its source in the forbidden Mountain. To save Rin, Rowan and his companions must conquer not only the Mountain's many tricks, but also the fierce dragon that lives at its peak.

  

This was a sweet, easy read. I would definitely class it as a children’s story, but it was still a really enjoyable read. I loved the world that Rodda created. Despite it being a rather small book, the world still had depth and we learnt some of the history. I loved how compressed the story was. It was fast paced and yet it was still descriptive and detailed. Rodda did a great job of keeping the story flowing and being very concise with the descriptions. I particularly liked the little riddles in the book, that weren’t only warnings and instructions for the explorers, but clues for the readers in what was to come.

I particularly enjoyed the messages that were carried through this book. I really enjoyed the exploration that to be brave you also need to have fear. It looked at how you can only be brave if you face your fears. The village of Rin praise strong people who are not afraid, yet when the strongest and fiercest of them all were tested they failed and the weakest and most afraid of them all succeeded. It also looked at how humans treat people who we think are different to us, that we may think someone is inferior because they were brought up differently or act differently to us, and it showed how often we are wrong.

I really enjoyed the plot. It was at times a little bit predictable, but I think if was in the age group that it targeted I wouldn’t have found it so. I enjoyed the quest and idea that each person was tested and forced to confront their fears. I loved each test and how they differed, and I have to admit I know where I would have failed. I liked that the solution to the main problem of the book wasn’t through violence but through healing.

I really enjoyed this book, the ending was really touching and I will definitely check out the other books of this series. I give this book 4/5 stars.

I read this book for the Take Control March 2013, 2013 TBR Pile and Australian Women Writers 2013 reading challenges. Click the pictures to find out more!

Mel.

Up next: Review – The Silver Door by Emily Rodda 

Review: Metro Winds by Isobelle Carmody

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

An engrossing collection of stories from one of Australia's most loved fantasy writers, and creator of the acclaimed Obernewtyn Chronicles.

A girl is sent across the world to discover her destiny in the dark tunnels of the Metro. Another seeks a lost sister in a park where winter lasts forever. A young man fulfils a dying wish. A mother works magic to summon a true princess for her son. A man seeks an ending to his story. An old man goes in search of his shadow.

This is a world of desire and transformation, the real and the not real, from the queen of modern fantasy

First, I again apologise for another late review. The reason that this review is late is because I had so much trouble trying to finish this book. It was not that I didn’t enjoy the book, I did, it is just that I found the last two stories really long winded, with not much happening in them. I really enjoyed this first four stories. All the stories were unique and interesting. They mostly dealt with otherworldly things such as unicorns, faeries and vampires and they were all definitely eye opening.

Each story was complex in their own different ways, at times maybe a little too complex. With some of the stories I had trouble keeping up with what was happening, particularly in The Girl Who Could See the Wind and The Wolf Prince. In the case of those two stories I think that the problem was the constant flashbacks, without much warning that the time of the story had changed.

The Wolf Prince almost felt like there were two stories occurring in the one, because we would get flashbacks of the Queen’s journey as well as the hunt her son was on. This was one of the reasons that I found it a bit complex. However I still had managed to guess roughly how the story was going to end, so I was a little disappointed about that. It was also one of the reasons why I had trouble finishing that story, because I felt like the Queen’s flashbacks were a little unnecessary.

I really enjoyed The Dove Game and The Stranger. Both stories where about travellers who were both looking for the answer to a question. I enjoyed the mystery that surrounded the story of The Dove Game, and I also really liked the main character in that. I loved mystique of The Stranger, with the feeling that there was something otherworldly involved from the beginning and then the ending was perfect for the story.

I did enjoy most of this book, but at times it was too complicated and a little slow. I give this book 3/5 stars.

I read this book for the Australian Women Writers Challenge and the Short Story Summer reading challenge.

Mel.

Up next: Review – The Merlin Chronicles edited by Mark Ashley. 

Review: Eternal: More Love Stories with Bite edited by P.C. Cast

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Eternal: More Love Stories With Bite presents all-new YA stories featuring vampires, the romantic heroes and heroines that still hold the reading public enraptured. A mix of writers from the first anthology and new contributors makes for a fresh new collection with all of the dark romance of its predecessor, and a book that’s sure to thrill vampire romance fans old and new. 

Eternal is a collection of short stories that involve vampires. The stories are all different and interesting in their own right and there is plenty for everyone who likes vampires. I have reviewed each story separately.

Bloodshed by Claudia Gray

This is a story that belongs in the Evernight universe. Set in World War II, Bloodshed is a story about a vampire, Patrice, who is in love with a human, Charlie, who is about to be shipped off to fight in the war. The story deals with interesting themes such as free will, loving an illusion of someone instead of loving the actual person and whether we really know someone or not. The story also took an interesting look on how war can change people. I really enjoyed the plot of the story. It was fairly original and not at all predictable. I also enjoyed the characters, particularly Ivan, but I did find Patrice to be a little vain and annoying and at times I found Charlie had little depth. I give this story 4/5 stars.

Say Yes by Lili St. Crow

Straight out I need to say that this is not my type of story and I didn’t like it at all. It is about a girl who last sees her friend at a party in the company of a vampire before she is found dead. It then follows the girl as she tries to deal with it and face the killer. I did not like the writing style of the story, most of it seemed like a train of thought, with unnecessary events put in. This resulted in there being little depth to the story. I also felt very little emotion throughout reading the story, even though the plot demanded it, because it was all actions and very little thoughts. The only thing that I liked about was that the plot was interesting and there was a nice twist at the end. I also liked how the vampire was kind of shady and creepy. I give this story 2/5 stars.

The Other Side – Heather Brewer

This was a very interesting and original story. It started with Tarrah and her boyfriend, Corey, being trapped in a basement, and because I knew that there were vampires in this story, I thought I knew where this was going. When the monster came in and was just how you imagined a vampire to be and then takes Corey out and drains most of his blood, it cemented what I thought was going to happen. Boy was I wrong. When the monster came and collected Tarrah the biggest, most unexpected twist jumps out. I really enjoyed the plot, but I felt like the story was lacking something. I didn’t really feel anything. It should have been a terrifying story, but I didn’t feel it. I should have been sad at one point, but I wasn’t, and I felt that it might have been because I didn’t really connect with Tarrah. I found her to be annoying and whiny and she had little emotion. I was also annoyed by the romance, which I felt the story would have been better off without. It was one brilliant twist though, so I give this story 3/5 stars.

Letters to Romeo – Nancy Holder

I found that the plot and the setting to this story really interesting. The story follows Romeo, who was unknowingly turned into a vampire when he committed suicide, in his search for Juliet after seven hundred years. When Romeo was turned he was promised that Juliet would be brought back to him by a Friar, who just so happened to be a magician. It was definitely an interesting story. It compared how much Romeo had changed, in his bitterness of losing the love of his life to the boy who first fell in love with Juliet. It also asked some questions about how strong love is, if it is just beauty deep or does it go all the way to the heart. I really enjoyed the twist. I also really enjoyed seeing Romeo’s rage as a vampire, which made the story, and Romeo, more believable. I also liked the flash backs that were in the story that covered how Romeo was changed. It was interesting to see Romeo compare modern day lifestyle, with all its technology, to the lifestyle that he had come from. I give this story 4.5/5 stars!

Drama Queen’s Last Dance – Rachel Caine

This story was not what I was expecting. I expected to not like the main character and I expected that there would be a fair bit of death and destruction in this story, but there wasn’t. The story is a Morganville Vampire story and followed Eve while she dealt with a new vampire in town, who happened to be attracting every male, including Eve’s boyfriend Michael. It was a really funny story and despite what I thought I actually found myself liking Eve. She was funny and we didn’t see much of her Drama Queen side. It was good to see her mature to face the problem. I also really loved Michael and Eve’s relationship. It was so sweet and real. The only thing bad that I have to say about this story was that there was no twist, what happened was what you expected to happen. I still really enjoyed the story and found myself laughing along to it. I give it 4.5/5 stars!

Thief – Jeri Smith-Ready

Thief is a story set in South Carolina and follows an Irish Traveller named Mary Cassidy, or Cass. It was a really interesting setting for a story, where I learnt about a culture that I didn’t know much about. That aspect of the story really fascinated me. The story went into a little detail about the marriage customs, in particular marriage being arranged by the parents for the benefit of the family. Cass was originally betrothed to Liam, who she loves, but then circumstances changed and she was then betrothed to someone else. We then see what lengths both Cass and Liam would go for love. I really enjoyed the vampire aspect of this story, which came in late and was a little unexpected. I loved how it then caused some extra problems that had to be overcome. I really loved Cass and Liam’s romance. It was sweet and beautiful. I loved that she loved him no matter what, and that they would both do anything to be together. I give this story 4.5/5 stars.

Although the ratings of the stories where from one end of the scale to the other, I really enjoyed reading this book. It was better than what I expected it to be, and I found some of the stories really interesting and amusing. Overall, I give this book a 4/5 stars!

I read this book for the Short Story Summer challenge hosted by Book Lover Book Reviews. Click the picture to see the details.

Mel.

Up next: Seven on Saturday

Books to come!

So I didn't manage to get a post up last week because it was my 21st birthday and I was busy preparing for my party! I apologise for not posting. This week is the second last week before we go back to normal post scheduling. I will do a short post next week as to what I have planned and I will also do a post about what books I am looking forward to in February, as well as a review or two.

Today I am going to do a post about what books I will be likely to review in the next couple of weeks. Some of the books I will be reading for challenges so I will tell you what challenges that they are being read for. Don't forget that if you would like to sign up for any of the challenges, visit my Challenges page!

I have borrowed a bunch of books from my local library over the holidays, that I am starting to make my way through. These are:

• Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta which I am currently reading and is being read for the Australian Women Writers challenge.
• Little Fur by Isobelle Carmody which is also being read for the Australian Women Writers challenge.
• Metro Winds by Isobelle Carmody which I am reading for the Short Story Summer hallenge and the Australian Women Writers challenge.
• Green Monkey Dreams by Isobelle Carmody which I am also reading for both the Short Story Summer and the Australian Women Writers challenge.
• Eternal edited by P. C. Cast which I am reading for the Short Story Summer Challenge. 

I did borrow some other books that looked interesting, but I may not review them, or actually get them read.

I also got some money for Christmas and bought 4 enovellas, among other books, that I have read and plan to review soon. These are all Throne of Glass novellas and are:

• The Assassin and the Pirate Lord by Sarah J. Maas
• The Assassin and the Desert by Sarah J. Maas
• The Assassin and the Underworld by Sarah J. Maas
• The Assassin and the Empire by Sarah J. Maas

I also bought two paperbacks which are The Poison Diaries: Nightshade by Maryrose Wood and The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke.

I have another book that I will be reading for two challenges, the Short Story Summer challenge and the 2013 TBR Pile challenge. This book is a collection of short stories titled Merlin and is edited by Mike Ashley.

So these are the books that you can look forward to receiving a review for! If any of you have read these I would like to know your thoughts down in the comments. 

Mel.

2013 Challenges

So here is a list of Reading Challenges that I am undertaking for 2013. For some of the Challenges I have figured out what books that I will read for them so I will list them up to. If you would like to sign up for any of the challenges then click the picture to take you to the page.

Short Story Summer Reading Challenge

The goal is to read 4 published collections of short stories.
I have decide which books that I will read for this challenge and they are:

1. Eternal – edited by P.C. Cast

2. Green Monkey Dreams – Isobelle Carmody

3. Metro Winds – Isobelle Carmody

4. Merlin – edited by Mike Ashley

Take Control March 2013

The goal is to read at least 5 of my TBR pile. As of yet I don't know what books I will read for this.

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

I have signed up for the Friendly Hug Level where the goal is to read 11-20 books. Again as of yet I don't know what books I will read for this, but I am aiming to read one a month and will let you know when I post a review if it is part of a challenge.

Australian Women Writers Challenge 2013

I signed up for the Franklin Level where the goal is to Read 10 and review at least 6 of those 10. I have currently planned 5 of the 10 books that I will read. 

1. Green Monkey Dreams – Isobelle Carmody

2. Metro Winds – Isobelle Carmody

3. Finnikin of the Rock – Melina Marchetta

4. Froi of the Exiles – Melina Marchetta

5. Quintana of Charyn – Melina Marchetta

2013 New Adult Reading Challenge

I signed up for the Just Graduated where the goal is to read a minimum of 5 New Adult books. Again, I haven't planned any of the books that I will read for this yet.

2013 Witches and Witchcraft Reading Challenge

I signed up for the Initiate level, where the goal is to read 1-5 books. Again, I haven't planned any of the books that I will read for this yet.

I may still sign up for some challenges yet, but as of now these are the ones that I will do. If you have any suggestions for any of these challenges please leave a comment, or if you have read any of the books that I am planning to read feel free to tell me your thoughts on it.

Mel.

2013 Witches and Witchcraft Reading Challenge

This challenge is being hosted by Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf. I am signing up for the Initiate level, where I need to read 1-5 books that have a witch as a major character or major witchcraft elements throughout the book. If you also want to sign up then click the picture below! :)

Mel.

2013 New Adult Reading Challenge

So this week I will probably join quite a few reading challenges. The first one that I am joining is the New Adult Reading Challenge. I am currently signing up for the Just Graduated level where I will need to read a minimum of 5 New Adult books.

As always click the picture to sign up and read the rules.

Mel.

Wrap-up of this week and What is to come next week

What happened this week?

Good question. I decided to really get this blog up and running and I am excited for the time ahead. So what I brought you this week was a review of possibly my favourite book of 2012. I gave you my first ever entry of Throwback Thursday, where I looked at two favourite series of mine. I then gave you an outline of what you can expect from me over the coming weeks and, hopefully, months. Saturday saw the start of Seven on Saturday, where you got to see my taste in Book Couples. And then of course there were the challenges that I signed up for. These are the 2013 TBR Pile reading challenge, Short Story Summer challenge, Take Control March 2013 challenge and the Australian Women Writers challenge 2013. Click on the pictures of the challenges to sign up! I will be bringing you the progress of these challenges in this wrap-up post across the weeks. 

What will happen next week?

Monday: Review of The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus 3) by Rick Riordan

Tuesday: December releases that I am looking forward to

Wednesday: Review of The Golden Door by Emily Rodda

Thursday: Throwback Thursday - Harry Potter

Friday: Review of The Fault in our Stars by John Green

Saturday: Seven on Saturday - Summer Reads

Sunday: Wrap-up/Preview and Challenge updates

I hope you enjoyed this week and I am looking forward to sharing with you next week.

Mel.

Up next: Review of The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus 3) by Rick Riordan

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

Guess what? I have decided to participate in another challenge again! :)

This time it is the 2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge, and with my TBR being rather large this is really the challenge for me. I am signing up for the Friendly Hug Level (11-20 books) for now. I may end up moving up for now.

For detail of the challenge and to sign up, click the picture! :)

Short Story Summer Challenge

Ok another reading challenge that I have decided to do. This is a mini challenge hosted on Booklover Book Reviews called Short Story Summer (because it is summer down here in the Southern Hemisphere). It is held from the 1st December to the 28th February and the goal is to read four published collection of short stories.

If you want to join up, click the picture! :)

Take Control Challenge - March 2013

I have decided to do the Take Control challenge in March 2013 because my TBR pile is huge and this provides a great opportunity for me to, well, take control of it. Here's hoping that I actually do make inroads on my pile! :)

Australian Women Writers Challenge - 2013

I have decided to do the Australian Women Writers challenge in 2013. As I am Australian, I think that this is a great opportunity to support Australian female writers. It also gives me an excuse to read the books of authors that I love and that I haven't got around to reading the rest of their books. I signed up for the Franklin level of the challenge, which is to read 10 books and review at least six of those books. I will put up a list of the books that I plan to read at a later date. 

If any of you want to sign up for the challenge, click the picture!