Review: I Am Number Four

Title: I Am Number Four
Author: Pittaucs Lore
Pages: 440
Hardcover, HaperCollins publishing

Goodreads Summary:
In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now.

The Nine had to separate and go into hiding. The Mogadorian caught Number One in Malaysia, Number Two in England, and Number Three in Kenya. All of them were killed. John Smith, of Paradise, Ohio, is Number Four. He knows that he is next.

I AM NUMBER FOUR is the thrilling launch of a series about an exceptional group of teens as they struggle to outrun their past, discover their future—and live a normal life on Earth.

I AM NUMBER FOUR.
I AM NEXT.

My Review:

Wow. Considering I tend to stay away from books on aliens, this is amazing!

I will admit, I only started reading it because it was being made into a movie with my all time favorite actor, Alex Pettyfer. But once I started reading it, it didnt' really matter.

The story lines begins basic, new boy falls in love with popular girl and befriends a nerd/loser. But the twists the story line is what makes it so great. I will admit though, the character's seem to have sort of dull personalites, and the relationship is ofcourse fluffy, yet somehow unrealistic due to their ages. (Lets just say that normal teenagers tend to get more hormonal than these two did through out the entire series book.)

I'm not sure how Lore will go on writing this, as John or as another number, but as of finishing the book, I could go with either one. I'm not say the writing was bad, it wasn't, but it wasn't something amazing. I think the thing that really makes this book shine is its plot. The plot is amazing!

But even so, this book is totally worth reading, and trust me, the ending is nothing but simply the begining.

-Karina

Goodreads Giveaways

So, for those of you who have goodreads accounts let me fill you in on something you may or may not already know:

Goodreads is constantly in book giveaway!

yup! you can win anything from ARCs (advanced readers copies) to currently out but signed copies of books.

you can post giveaways as well!

so if you have, go! go my little blog readers and enter those contests:

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway

not only is this for US residents, but a lot of giveaways also include international shipping! Just make sure you see your country's initials next to countries available.

Now, for those of you who don't have Goodreads, I really think you should! It's a great site, where not only can you keep track of the books you've read, wanted to read, and are currently reading but you also get a chance to connect with other users who have the same book interests. There's always something to do on Goodreads if you look for it. From trivia, to voting, to simple Q&A with authors, Goodreads is the place to go for books.

On a separate note:

You may have noticed, those of you who have followed or simple passed by since the beginning, that our blog looks different.

Why, it actually looks like a blog! It has widgets, a nice background and not to mention a more noticeable follow button.

Well this is all thanks to my newest member, April.

She has come to revive this blog with me! April has come in taught me the was of technology.

She's a genius! And I love her sooo much for it!

So this is the shout out to her.

And if anyone ever feels like they want to come and be apart of this blog family, like a reviewer for anything, sent me a message and we'll talk.

-Karina

My Soul to Steal Release

Guess what?! As of... yesterday you can buy My Soul to Steal in bookstores all over the U.S. :D  My Soul to Steal is the 4th book in the Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent! I've only read the first one so far but this series is awesome!  And one of these characters just happen to be on my fictional boyfriend list. :)

Here's the official blurb!

YOU WANT MY SOUL AND MY BOYFRIEND?

Trying to work things out with
Nash—her maybe boyfriend—is hard enough for Kaylee Cavanaugh. She can’t just
pretend nothing happened. But “complicated” doesn’t even begin to describe their
relationship when his ex-girlfriend transfers to their school, determined to
take Nash back.

See, Sabine isn’t just an ordinary girl. She’s a mara,
the living personification of a nightmare. She can read people’s fears—and craft
them into nightmares while her victims sleep. Feeding from human fear is how she
survives.

And Sabine isn’t above scaring Kaylee and the entire school to
death to get whatever—and whoever—she wants.

I DON'T THINK SO.

And here's the book trailer!

You can buy it from Barnes and Noble HERE 

Or Amazon HERE :D

And there may even be a contest on Rachel Vincent's blog right now...

Review: Falling Under

Title: Falling Under
Author: Gwen Hayes

ARC book-to be released March 2011
paperback, 336 pages

Goodreads summary:

Theia Alderson has always led a sheltered life, not allowed the same
freedom as the rest of the teenagers in the small California town of Serendipity
Falls. But when a devastatingly handsome boy appears in the halls of her school,
she feels every urge she's ever denied burning through her at the slightest
glance from Haden Black. Theia knows she's seen Haden before-not around town,
but in her dreams.

Theia doesn't understand how she dreamed of Haden before they ever met,
but every night has them joined in a haunting world of eerie fantasy. And as the
Haden of both the night and the day beckons her forward one moment and pushes
her away the next, the only thing Teia knows for sure is that the incredible
pull she feels towards him is stronger than her fear. And as she slowly
discovers what Haden truly is, Theia's not sure if she wants to resist him, even
if the cost is her soul.

My review:

This book was actually pretty good, and yeah, I'm completely in love with it! (And the main guy :P)

In some ways, it was original. Yes it has your basic average girl likes above average boy who she's not supposed to like. For a moment I was afraid this was going to turn out like a certain vampire quartet (*coughtwilightcough*), but it did not and I was nothing but glad.

There are some parts that were not well written. Like when Theia figures out Haden's name. There really was not a clue that made us think that Theia somehow knew his name. I believe it was a sentence before that went something like: I had no idea what his name was. Yet, this could just be a part of the mystery of the book. Also, in a part of the book, Theia was one place in Under, and within the next paragraph she was some where else entirely in Under.

Though, this being an ARC book (which I recieved from Goodreads First Reads), I have to remember that there is still time to fix this, or maybe that's just how its supposed to be and I missed it.

But besides that, Falling Under was actually a really good book. Somehow it seemed more real than some books. I don't know if Serendipity Falls is real, but somehow it felt like all that happened in the book could actually happen. It made references to actual books, and to my enjoyment, a subtle reference (or made fun of) the teen book sensation about shiny vampires.

Would I recommend this book to anyone?

Why yes I would. I would love to have anyone who is slightly romantic, enjoys twists and spins or just needs a good read, to read Falling Under by Gwen Hayes, which officially comes out in March 2011.

Lucky for you, because now I have an extra 3 months of waiting to see what more Gwen Hayes comes up with for her book.

Karina

Big Event!

The big book giveaway starts soon, soo be prepared to fill out sooo many entry forms!

Get your twitters up, your blogs ready and prepare for

The Midwinter Eve's Hop!!

Go and check it out guys:

http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/p/midwinters-eve-giveaway-hop.html

I'll be there, will you?

-A

New Giveaway

Kay, here's a new one for you guys:

It's by a blog named I Am A Reader, Not A Writer

the link
http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/2010/12/bir2010-grand-prize-giveaways-us.html

don't forget to check it out!

-A

Review: Last Sacrifice

Title: Last Sacrifice

Author: Richelle Mead

Pages: 594

Hardcover, Penguin Group

Goodreads summary:
Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules.
She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir’s Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir Princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardian to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose- for a crime she didn’t even commit. She’s in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She’ll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.

But the clock on Rose’s life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back… and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your life is about saving others, who will save you?

My review:

**spoiler alert**
It was exactly what I had expected of the Last Book and sometimes even more.

First of all, did anyone else see that big plan to blow things up coming? I mean, yes, Rose is in jail, but I never thought that the group would destroy precious statues to acheive the goal. Yet they did.

I'm glad that Sydney was brought back, and that she played a bigger part and we got to know her better. I'm glad we got to see many more characters.

What I did not like, personally, was how the ending happened. It's great! I mean, there are enough secrets still left in the unanswered for Richelle Mead to continue her spin-off series. I just don't like how I must wait so much more to find out the answers to what happens!

At times I wish Rose would have matured a little more after what had happened. I know she's only 18, but she's gone through so many more things that a normal 18 year old does. Some how, I would have thought it would have made her...humble? But no, and Adrian tells her so. She doesn't really care what happens to others as long as she get what she wants. I mean, look at Eddie, Jill and Sydney. They're exactly in the situations Adrian said they were.

And the way that she used Adrian! We all knew all along that she loved Dimitri, and that she always would. She knew it too, but she kept strining Adrian along, making herself believe that she did love him. I think she did, in a diffrent way, but in the end she seemed to see the benefit in having him around more. Like as a messanger, to get her ideas implamented where she wasn't. For money in her trip to Russia. Basically, he was meant to replace Dimitri until her Dimka fully returned. She at least owed him as much as waiting to tell him they were through before cheating on him with Dimitri!

The only sane one is Christian. He knew what had to be done and he worked for it, while trying to watch out for other people's toes. He was there for Lisa, rallying her up, keeping her safe, loving her. He did everything Rose is supposed to do, without hurting anyone like she did. Now, she doesn't even have the bond over him.

The bond thing, did that bother anyone else? I mean, she died, shadow-kissed, almost died and that made her un-shadow kissed? I feel like that was too easy. The bond was the one thing that made her such a great guardian to Lisa too. Now she's just normal, she doesn't have that sixth-sense that connects her to Lisa anymore. She not going to feel the danger, which is much more improtant now than before since Lisa is now the Queen.

I saw that coming, Lisa becoming Queen. I was really happy with it too. She knew how to handle the politics of the Moroi and the Dhampir. I am afraid for Jill though, Lisa doesn't seem to keen about her.

I love this book because it was unpredicatable, with new twists and turns that kept me reading, and also predicatable enough that I had to keep reading to make sure I was right. That's the thing with Richelle's Vampire Academy series, you think you've solved it, and she just throws in another person, another clue.

What I didn't see coming was the Tasha thing. I mean wow! Can you say twist? I mean, yeah, I could see Daniella doing somehting like that through out the book, but it isn't until you stopped and looked at everything before you that you went no way, it can't be her.

Now I can't wait to see how this story continues. 4/5 stars

-A

Review: James Potter books 1 and 2

Double review or else I'll forget later:

James Potter and the Hall of Elders' Crossing by G. Norman Lippert
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Goodreads summary:
Based upon the characters and worlds of J. K. Rowling, this book tells the story of Harry Potter's son James, and his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

As far as fanfictions go, this one is ultimately one of the best I have ever read.

G. Norman Lippert has done something only a rare few can do, he has written a story based on characters/events/stories that already exist (a fan-fiction) and has made it seem like just another continuation of the story.

Lippert has taken the tales of Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling and made a story that Harry Potter lovers will enjoy.

The downside:

This book is deffiantly not for the nity-grity or picky fans of Potter. As any human, Lippert gets things wrong. No fear, the details aren't huge like dates or places, but they're big enough for the hard-core-knows every line by heart fan- to notice.

For some time, I myself couldn't see what the big trouble was in Hogwarts. Was it just me, or did the introduction of the Progressive Elements confuse anyone else? For a while, I couldn't really understand what their problem was. It may have been just me.

Of course, during the reading, as much as you enjoyed it, you knew it wasn't real. Lippert is a good writer, but as he must hear often and once more, he is not J.K. Rowling.

the ups:

Lippert is a good writer. He knew he wasn't Rowling, and he didn't try to be. He adds his own little mix to the bowl by adding things we wouldn't dream would happen if Rowling wrote it. He tried his best to stay true to the plot and Rowling's inital characters, and he did a splendid job.

Another thing I loved was how he introduced the Americans so well. Trust me, I've read enough fanfics to see that idea go south. I'm not going to say it's 100% original, holding an exchange program, but the way he did it and introduced it was so well written and incorporated that it really did not matter.

So would I reccomend this book to people? Why yes I would.

Am I going to read the series? Why yes! I'll read whatever Lippert writes of James.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars. (Goodreads really needs to add a .5 system)


James Potter and the Curse of the Gate Keeper by G. Norman Lippert

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Goodreads summary:

A continuation of Lippert's previous novel, James Potter and the Hall of Elder's Crossing. This takes place where the epilogue of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows leaves off. It follows Harry's two sons, James and Albus in their adventures in Hogwarts.

My review:

I have to admit, the first book was so much better than this one.

James Potter goes off once more Hogwarts, exactly during the time which the epilouge in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling.

In Lippert's story, he incorporates many of the basic idea and concepts of the epilogue into the beginning of his story, and the best part is that it makes sense!

Yes, it is a fan-fiction and for those of you who don't know, a fan fiction is basically a writing done by a fan using the characters/plots/ideas of the original author. Of course, all fanfiction should be credited if characters from the original books are being used.

As said in the review of the first book, Lippert has managed to recreat the wizarding world for us, continuing on with the stories and adventures that happen in Hogwarts. He frequently revisits many of the books and the characters we love will adding in his own spins and turns to the story and new characters.

In this book, Zane has unfortunately returned to the States, but it is not the last we hear of him! New characters are introduced and you learn to love them just as well. With the characters of the last book, you learn new things that make you bond with them more and either love/hate them.

Some mysteries begin to arise and once more James is set a task worthy of a Potter. With unexpected events happening all around him, James needs his friends more than ever to keep him on his path, and not the one his father led.

The book actually deserves 3.5 stars, but goodreads does not award .5. It may also not be one of my best reviews, because after all it is three in the morning.

-A

View all my reviews

Lost Generation

Hey guys. I know this book related, but it basically sums up everything we read. There is always hope, even in the darkest of places. If hope is lost, then you might as well have surrendured. As long as there is hope, this is something to fight for.

-A

Facebook Crescendo Giveaway!~

HEY GUYS!

I know this maybe a lot of giveaways to handle, but let me just post up one more!

For those of you who have facebook, head over to the link at the bottom of the page for a chance to win Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/event.php?eid=148854498486747&ref=ts

-A.

Good Choice Reading

Leaves aren't the only thing that fall in the Fall! Good Choice Reading is a part of the Fall Giveaway! Go check them out! This is a great chance to win some great books!

http://goodchoicereading.blogspot.com/p/our-contestgiveaways.html

Don't forget to check out their Blog too!

-A.

The Lost Hero Giveaway!

Hey All You Book Fans! Stand up and Clap Your Hands!

Giveaway contest, hosted by An Abundance of Books! Go check it out!

Unfortunatley, this one is only avaliable to US residence!

http://anabundanceofbooks.blogspot.com/2010/08/lost-hero-giveaway.html

A.

Review: Blood Promise

Title: Blood Promise

Author: Richelle Mead

Pages: 503

Hardcover, Razorbill

Goodreads summary:
After the massacre at Vampire Academy, Rose Hathaway faces the most task of her life and she knows that she must do it alone. With Mason departed for the other world, Rose must hunt down and kill Dimitri Belikov, the man she most loves. The fourth nail-biting episode of Richelle Mead's popular vampire series dramatically shows the fatal power of a promise.

My review:

**spoiler alert**

Two words. HE'S ALIVE?!

The book is interesting from the beginning, having Rose in Russia and up to her old ways. I thought the Alchemists where a bit odd to have in this book, but I guess it explained some of the things relating from the Human world to the Mori world.

One of the things I like about Richelle Mead's books is that she takes the time to go into the background of some of the main characters while making it exciting to read. It never occured to me that Rose would have met the Belikov family, let alone live with them. I was sad to see how Viktoria's relationship with Rose ended though, that was sad since they could have been good friends.

I knew Dimitri had turned, but I never knew he would act like one of them. I knew he would, but it still came as a shock when that happened. The way he thought. I was amazed at how he really believed that he was right and that the rest of the world was wrong about the Stigori. I have to admit though that I did get mad at Rose for acting the way she did. I mean, she could have escaped earlier!!!!

I really didn't expect to see much of Lissa in this book, so I was really happy how Richelle made a mini story for her and the rest of the Academy. I love how the two tied together in the end. I didn't expect Avery to be a spirit user either, but then again I knew there was something fishy about her...she just seemed out of place somehow.

I'm sooo glad there's going to be a next one, and now Dimitri's words are going to be haunting Rose for the next two and a half months she has left at the Academy. I can't believe he survived the stake and that he's coming after her. I can't believe Richelle made a way for him to be 'normal' again. I can't believe THAT HE'S ALIVE!!! To an extent.

So here's to waiting for the next, and hoping it's also 4/5 stars!

-A