tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82005430729344015592024-03-19T15:54:01.689-04:00Book Brats ReviewsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger148125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-7907293923082092452012-01-11T19:52:00.000-05:002012-01-11T19:52:05.607-05:00We've Moved!<b>Dear Book Brats Friends,</b><br />
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<b>Due in part to Blogger's recent antics, and due in another part to my desire to be like the cool kids (DAMN YOU PEER PRESSURE!), I have decided that it is time for Book Brats to move on to bigger, greener pastures. And trust me - this new pasture is AMAZING. And you should come and join me.</b><br />
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<b> Starting from today on, Book Brats Reviews will be located at...</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>http://book-brats.com </b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Be sure to update your bookmarks and start following me via Feedburner or email! Believe me, this only takes a few seconds and will make my day. And you can find all your favorite posts and new ones at the new site. So stop by, say hello, and help me break in my new home!</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Thanks again for all your support! I LOVE YOU ALL!</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>---Megan</b></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-73213296088587056852012-01-10T00:01:00.000-05:002012-01-10T00:01:02.475-05:00The Book Brats Most Anticipated Books of 2012 - PART ONE<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Book Brats Most Anticipated Books of 2012</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">January-April Edition</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">There comes a time in every reviewers life when they look at Goodreads and see the </span></span>lists of books to come out in the coming months and they squee a little. For me, that was January 8th, when this post was constructed. But if you are reading this, it's at least the 10th because that's when this post goes up. But enough with the rambles! I have decided that I need to feature my TOP TEN anticipated books of January through April, including some books I already have on my shelves yet to read. Please bear with me as I argue with myself and try to explain why I am not insane. This ramble should prove that I am indeed off my rocker. Also, this is mostly YA. I think somehow I am becoming a YA blogger, LOL.</div><a name='more'></a><b>NUMBER TEN</b><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309184055l/11595072.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309184055l/11595072.jpg" width="131" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">ARCADIA AWAKENS (Arkadien #1) by Kai Meyer</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes February 14th, 2012 by Balzer + Bray</div><div style="text-align: center;">464 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: COVER LUST. That and a plot involving the mafia, Italy, a plot full of fantastical creatures (tigers anyone?). I cannot wait to get my hands on this book. It's a translation from the original Germany, but it sounds deliciously awesome.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER NINE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321559562l/11443325.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321559562l/11443325.jpg" width="131" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">IMMORTAL CITY by Scott Speer</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes April 3rd, 2012 by Razorbill</div><div style="text-align: center;">336 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: While I have heard mixed reviews about this one, the cover is amazing, and I am a sucker for plots involving angels. Not so much fallen angels, but this story about guardian angels as celebrities makes me go OOH! </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER EIGHT</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1318379878l/11388429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1318379878l/11388429.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b>WHEN THE SEA IS RISING RED by Cat Hellisen</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes February 28th, 2012 by Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux (BYR)</div><div style="text-align: center;">288 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: I loved the idea for this one so much that I sent a review request to the publisher. Sadly, never heard anything back, but I still cannot wait for this one. Vampires and magic and a dystopian future. Sounds so frickin cool.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER SEVEN</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1308926197l/9413044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1308926197l/9413044.jpg" width="131" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">EVERNEATH (Everneath #1) by Brodi Ashton</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes January 24th, 2012 by Balzer + Bray</div><div style="text-align: center;">384 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: Requested this and was denied 3 times on Netgalley for this one. That's how awesome I think this one sounds, and the reviews have made me go gaga for this one. I love a good underworld story, and this one promises to fulfill the drama I so crave.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER SIX</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51sYtxiaxYL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51sYtxiaxYL.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">THE CHAOS by Nalo Hopkinson</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes April 12th, 2012 by Margaret K. McElderry</div><div style="text-align: center;">320 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: I am definitely the type of reader who loves a good Caribbean tale, or at least one with a dialect involved. THE CHAOS brings fantasy and folklore and adventure, and it sounds super good. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER FIVE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61LoFUt-DKL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61LoFUt-DKL.jpg" width="126" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b>EXOGENE (The Subterrene War #2) by T.C. McCarthy</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes March 1st, 2012 by Orbit</div><div style="text-align: center;">352 Pages // Mass Market Paperback</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: This is book two in a series with different characters, but I don't care. The plot drew me in. It sounds kind of like a new adult version of the movie SOLDER with Kirk Russell meets BLADE RUNNER. And I am a sucker for science fiction.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER FOUR</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1322355523l/12967753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1322355523l/12967753.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b>172 HOURS ON THE MOON by Johan Harstad</div><div style="text-align: center;">Publishes April 17th, 2012 by Little, Brown and Company</div><div style="text-align: center;">368 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rationale: Didn't I just say I was a sucker for science fiction? I did indeed. This one earned a distinct honor for the catalog referencing the movie ALIEN, so I can't help but want this book, and I want it NOW.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER THREE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1308653253l/11715276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1308653253l/11715276.jpg" width="131" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">BORN WICKED (The Cahill Witch Chronicles #1) by Jessica Spotswood</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Publishes February 7th, 2012 by Putnam Juvenile</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">326 Pages // Hardcover</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Rationale: Besides the author being freaking awesome on Twitter, I love the plot. And this is one I actually have an ARC of, waiting for me patiently. Witches, historic romance, books - it has everything I want in a book. Can't wait to read this one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER TWO</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1314216364l/11724900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1314216364l/11724900.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b> </b>WHEN YOU OPEN YOUR EYES by Celeste Conway</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Publishes March 201th, 2012 by Simon Pulse</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">304 Pages // Hardcover</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Rationale: Yes, yes, I know I have a vendetta against abusive relationships in YA being portrayed positively. Well, this one makes sure to portray it as abusive. And that is why this book is so high up on my to read list. I CANNOT wait for this one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And a drum roll please...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>NUMBER ONE</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320269319l/9565548.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320269319l/9565548.jpg" width="134" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b> </b>GRAVE MERCY (His Fair Assassin #1) by Robin LaFevers</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Publishes April 3rd, 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">560 Pages // Hardcover</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Rationale: I cannot stop talking about this one and how amazingly bad ass it sounds. Assassins, nuns kicking ass, the devil. This one is sitting on my shelf waiting for me and trust me when I say I cannot wait to discover Ismae's world.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Of course, there are dozens of others books I can't wait to crack into. This is just a sample of what I'm anticipating for the first four months of this year. This is going to be a great year!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-5827626428120317022012-01-09T10:25:00.000-05:002012-01-09T10:26:08.313-05:00Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">
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<b>UNDER THE NEVER SKY</b> (Under the Never Sky #1) by Veronica Rossi</div>
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Published January 3rd, 2012 by HarperCollins</div>
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384 Pages // Hardcover<br />
Received From NetGalley For Honest Review</div>
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My Rating: ♥♥♥♥</div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11594257-under-the-never-sky" target="_blank">View on Goodreads</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/1?book_id=11594257&source=dropdown" target="_blank">Buy on Amazon</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.veronicarossi.com/" target="_blank">Author's Website</a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Aria is a teenager in the enclosed city of Reverie. Like all Dwellers, she spends her time with friends in virtual environments, called Realms, accessed through an eyepiece called a Smarteye. Aria enjoys the Realms and the easy life in Reverie. When she is forced out of the pod for a crime she did not commit, she believes her death is imminent. The outside world is known as The Death Shop, with danger in every direction.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">As an Outsider, Perry has always known hunger, vicious predators, and violent energy storms from the swirling electrified atmosphere called the Aether. A bit of an outcast even among his hunting tribe, Perry withstands these daily tests with his exceptional abilities, as he is gifted with powerful senses that enable him to scent danger, food and even human emotions.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">They come together reluctantly, for Aria must depend on Perry, whom she considers a barbarian, to help her get back to Reverie, while Perry needs Aria to help unravel the mystery of his beloved nephew’s abduction by the Dwellers. Together they embark on a journey challenged as much by their prejudices as by encounters with cannibals and wolves. But to their surprise, Aria and Perry forge an unlikely love - one that will forever change the fate of all who live UNDER THE NEVER SKY.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">With all the hype surrounding it, UNDER THE NEVER SKY is not a book you can avoid – for long. After some wariness, I got myself a copy and dove in. Let’s just say that the hype on this one isn’t wrong, at least when it comes to me, a girl notoriously frightened by hype and more often than not surprisingly disappointed. With a strong mix of post-apocalyptic drama (not really fully dystopian in my opinion), awesome science fiction attributes, and mesmerizing adventures, UNDER THE NEVER SKY is a strong debut from an author who will definitely become one to watch for me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">UNDER THE NEVER SKY is the story of Aria and Peregrine (aka Perry), two teens from different worlds told in third person past tense. Aria has spent her entire life in a Pod, ensconced from the world outside that has fallen victim to the Aether storms, which are like hyperactive lightning storms that destroy everything in their paths. Perry, meanwhile, is a member of a tribe on the outside, gifted with the ability to smell and see a lot better than normal. Fate crosses their paths when Aria follows a boy she likes into a forbidden dome, right as Perry sneaks inside against the orders of his brother.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">After Aria is expelled from the Pod for her role in subterfuge (thanks to the boy she followed inside), she is discovered again by Perry, who has been kicked out of his own tribe by his brother for his actions, and for getting his nephew kidnapped. This is where the action really takes off – as Aria and Perry try to find little Talon and Aria’s mother, lost in a far off pod where she was doing research. With cannibals, aether storms that threaten to destroy them (and entrance the reader at the sheer brilliance of these storms), and long hikes into danger, UNDER THE NEVER SKY mixes themes brilliantly.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The main issue I had with this story was my inability to really connect with the main characters. With third person, you risk having your readers feel at arm’s length from the characters, never closer. For me, connecting with Aria was especially difficult. She just seemed like someone I was watching, never feeling, never really getting to know. Paired with naivety and half the book spent whining, it wasn’t until the very end (like…last 10%) where she came into her own as a person. Perry was somewhat better. I found him a much more tolerable character with a story and believability, but that brings me to my other issue…</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The romance. Yeah, I’ll admit it, I didn’t find there to be any chemistry. It was like Aria and Perry just up and decided “Let’s get together!” There was little in common between them besides the randomness of their meetings and their shared trip. Was that really enough to throw these two complete opposites together? Well, in the end, I liked them together, but the process of getting there was a bit annoying and unbelievable.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Besides some minor faults, UNDER THE NEVER SKY is a wild ride and great opening chapter. I can’t wait to explore more of Aria and Perry’s story, especially with the threads created with the awesome not-so-cliffhanger-y ending. Veronica Rossi’s debut is great, mesmerizing, and definitely one you need to check out.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">VERDICT: With a strong, original plot grounded in the fantastical and solid characters (with just a few faults), UNDER THE NEVER SKY mixes genres into a great blend of can’t miss awesome.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>♥♥♥♥ - FOUR HEARTS </b></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-64821523310105124272012-01-08T16:28:00.000-05:002012-01-08T16:28:45.539-05:00In My Mailbox (19)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" /></a></div>In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren, where you get to show off all your fun new purchases/gifts/received books of various sorts for the week! And no, still not doing a vlog, LOL. Maybe one day while I wear a ski mask and use a voice synthesizer, or hide in the shadows, or force my cat to present it to you.<br />
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This week was pretty good for books, especially thanks to the AMAZING Michelle at <a href="http://michellesramblins.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Michelle's Book Blog</a> for her wonderful RAK package and the people at Macmillan and its various imprints! You guys seriously rock my world. Also, quick note, but expect my review of UNDER THE NEVER SKY tomorrow. Just a heads up so you can plan now to come back by and see. Anyway, check out what I got in my mailbox this week!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>RECEIVED FOR REVIEW</b></span></div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">MELODY BURNING by Whitley Strieber</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published December 6th, 2011 by Henry Holt and Company (BYR)</div><div style="text-align: center;">224 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">I received this randomly on Monday. I've actually been interested in it for awhile, but I've seen some iffy reviews. I guess I will be checking it out soon and seeing for myself!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316739559l/10635725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316739559l/10635725.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">12 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU CRASH AND BURN by James Proimos</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published November 8th, 2011 by Roaring Brook Press</div><div style="text-align: center;">128 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Once again, a randomly received book, but it seems fun and short so I'll be reading this one soon! At least it sounds fun in a weird way, LOL.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kjBCGm47L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kjBCGm47L.jpg" width="124" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">IMMORTAL HOPE: THE CURSE OF THE TEMPLARS by Claire Ashgrove</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published January 3rd, 2012 by Tor Books</div><div style="text-align: center;">368 Pages // Mass Market Paperback</div><div style="text-align: center;">Another randomly received goody from my friends at Tor (LOVE YOU GUYS!). I think I saw the man's abs and went "Mama like!" So yeah, I do love me a cover model half naked when he looks like that.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">All three of these books came from the amazing and wonderful Michelle. Thank you so much!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51f-a-Fmm4L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51f-a-Fmm4L.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> </b></div><div style="text-align: center;">WITHER (The Chemical Garden #1) by Lauren DeStefano</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published May 22nd, 2011 by Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing</div><div style="text-align: center;">358 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;">This book has been on my wishlist for awhile because of what all my friends tell me. "It's a must read, Megan!" Now that I have it, I'll have to see, I guess!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">INFINITE DAYS (Vampire Queen #1) by Rebecca Maizel</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published August 3rd, 2010 by St. Martin's Griffin</div><div style="text-align: center;">325 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">I thought I needed a good vampire romance in my life, and when I saw this - and the fact that it's reviews aren't horrendous - I knew I had to get a copy for myself.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">ROSEMARY AND RUE (October Daye #1) by Seanan McGuire</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published September 1st, 2009 by DAW Books</div><div style="text-align: center;">346 Pages // Mass Market Paperback</div><div style="text-align: center;">I love a good urban fantasy, and this one has come heavily recommended from my urban fantasy-loving friends. Also, I do love me a good faerie novel. This one should be fun!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">And that's what I got this week! Link me to your IMMs and I'll try and stop by and gush with you about your fun new books!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-69785672464547424742012-01-07T11:00:00.000-05:002012-01-07T11:25:49.691-05:00January Saturday Swap!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT_nk6G1fGog7g5wnDlbGNGU0vREUAXWoHfTOq7GbCh_F-yprViYpkC7Lbf-8n2O8RN4fTuMvsgeme9Lm3zG0-p5GGrPZF3JWh5Rz_R1ygW5gMz2WTu156Ew-HYL3yxa-UVmNAWGoJUzIj/s320/Saturday+Swap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT_nk6G1fGog7g5wnDlbGNGU0vREUAXWoHfTOq7GbCh_F-yprViYpkC7Lbf-8n2O8RN4fTuMvsgeme9Lm3zG0-p5GGrPZF3JWh5Rz_R1ygW5gMz2WTu156Ew-HYL3yxa-UVmNAWGoJUzIj/s320/Saturday+Swap.jpg" /></a></div>
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Hosted by Ruby at <a href="http://rubysreads.com/" target="_blank">Ruby's Reads</a>, Saturday Swap is a chance for you to post what you have available to swap - and what you are looking for. I don't have much to be honest, but I would love to put them up here and see if anyone is interested in swapping.<br />
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I have two wishlists - one on <a href="http://cdn3.droidmill.com/media/market-media/net.asplode.amazon_icon.png" target="_blank">Amazon</a> and one on <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3388215-megan-book-brats?shelf=wishlist" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>. I don't mind the format - ARC, hardcover, paperback, but I will trade two paperbacks for one hardcover on my wishlist. I will also take any offers you might have as long as it's YA, adult urban fantasy or paranormal romance, or something along the lines of Confessions of a Shopaholic or Devil Wears Prada.<br />
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The top five books on my wishlist, though, are - Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, Delirium by Lauren Oliver, Blood Red Road by Moira Young, and Everneath by Brodi Ashton. You can find my offerings behind the cut!<br />
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You can email me at bookbrats at gmail dot com with any proposals! US only, please!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmjBuoQnzQa-lUfi3XtGodDUNgHMVCeNTsT-7_N083riu_21KdcJ99tmAI7YLA71kF7P2onT3k4yWIW0nHlmKO0X4LUkAMX6XXw1XlNLwa-OmlUDQO5ECtE_alXBqfuxfrv-Wp3y0fyhe/s1600/IMAG0505.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmjBuoQnzQa-lUfi3XtGodDUNgHMVCeNTsT-7_N083riu_21KdcJ99tmAI7YLA71kF7P2onT3k4yWIW0nHlmKO0X4LUkAMX6XXw1XlNLwa-OmlUDQO5ECtE_alXBqfuxfrv-Wp3y0fyhe/s400/IMAG0505.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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<b>HARDCOVER</b></div>
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EYES TO SEE by Joseph Nassise (adult urban fantasy)</div>
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<b>PAPERBACK</b></div>
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PARADOX by Patti Roberts (YA paranormal)</div>
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THAT SUMMER by Sarah Dessen (YA contemporary)</div>
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JUST LISTEN by Sarah Dessen (YA contemporary)</div>
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<b>ARCS</b></div>
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BLOOD SUN by David Gilman (YA action/adventure)</div>
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TRIANGLES by Ellen Hopkins (adult contemporary/verse)</div>
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NIGHTWOODS by Charles Frazier (adult literary)</div>
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BOND GIRL by Erin Duffy (adult contemporary)</div>
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MERCY by Rebecca Lim (YA paranormal)</div>
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DREAMLAND SOCIAL CLUB by Tara Altebrando (YA contemporary)</div>
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DARK PARTIES by Sara Grant (YA dystopian)</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-12544650688901229542012-01-06T21:47:00.002-05:002012-01-06T21:47:18.174-05:00Book Brats On... The Author/Reviewer Relationship<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or… Megan’s Thoughts on being a blogger and aspiring writer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am sure many of you have seen the recent author versus blogger fiascos going around the interwebs. If you’re a blogger, it’s not hard to miss. Authors mocking reviewers, authors sending nasty emails about reviewers that then leak, authors posting angry rants on their websites and then deleting them after the damage has been done. It’s really nothing new, but somehow these specific events have blown up in the last four or five days. And it’s clear that damage can and has been done to reputations and opinions.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am not going to name names, but if you browse Goodreads or Twitter, you can find exactly who did what. And I know many people have blogged about this and the relationship between authors and reviewers, specifically those of us who have blogs and post to Goodreads and Amazon and LibraryThing and the like. But I wanted to approach this from a different angle. As you probably know, I am a reviewer and an aspiring author. In fact, I plan on querying a project with agents within the coming months.</span></div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">As you might notice, I do go to some lengths to make sure that I keep my identity rather anonymous. Yes, Megan is my real name, but I share my name with thousands and thousands of other women and girl. My last name, though, is strange and pretty much marks me as me. Yes, there are ways of finding my name out. On this website, in fact, you can pretty much find a way to find out who I am and where I live. But why do I do this? Because I know there is a stigma from authors, agents, and publishers against bloggers, particularly bloggers who post negative reviews. I’ve seen it with my own two eyes, and I know it exists in some form.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I post negative reviews. One star, two stars, and I have been flamed on Goodreads once for a three star review. An author told me I had “no taste in literature”. He deleted it once my friends struck back and told him off. But I try with all my might to be constructive and never bashing. I only get mad when religion and girl power are manhandled, such as non-Christians being flamed unreasonably or girls being abused by their love interests. When I see that, I get PISSED. I don’t deny this. But never have I ever flamed an author or done anything that I thought warranted flaming. So far, no author (besides the Goodreads self-pub guy) has gone off on me.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, I know that a negative review can be stressful. When my beta readers give me complaints, I get hurt. I want to think that what I’ve created is amazing and precious and untouchable. At the same time, I know how it is to be a reader and a reviewer. Not everyone is going to like my work. Maybe in a sense being a reviewer has helped me learn about taking negative criticism in stride. I know authors have probably seen my negative opinion of their books, but it was never directed at them. What they wrote, sure, but I know better than to attack an author. I love what I do – I love to interact with authors to an extent, I love to read what they write.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Negative reviews hurt, but they’re not for authors. I mean, I’m pretty sure an author might be able to learn something if there were bunches of people saying the same thing, like “unrelateable characters” or “horrible world building”. Reviews are for readers, though. They are places to share thoughts and opinions, and even a bad review can sell a book. I know there are some bloggers out there that I am the complete opposite of – everything they hate, I LOVE.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When an author crosses a line and starts mocking or bashing a reviewer, that is unthinkable. It’s almost like a chef walking out to a paying customer who tells a friend that they didn’t like the appetizer that they have no taste buds and aren’t worth anything. Or going to twitter and mocking how unrefined their customers are. Or posting on their official restaurant website that anyone who didn’t like their food is out to get them. I could go on.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I post negative reviews. I don’t like everything I read. In fact, I am quite critical sometimes. And I am snarky. That’s just how I am. But if an author ever posted about me on their blog or Twitter, mocked me and my reviews, said I was ungrateful and spiteful, then that would piss me off. And I know how it feels from the reviewer point. It’s a great instructor for being on the other side, and this week has taught me lessons I know I will use well if I am ever an author – successful, unsuccessful, loved, hated, ambivalent.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Let me sum this up. Authors, this is a career where you will see negative reviews against you, and where your public persona will dictate whether you thrive or die. Mocking people or bashing them will only earn you a place as a hated person. You will lose fans, you will lose sales, you will lose respect. Even with us reviewers, who make up only a small portion of readers in the world, you don’t want this. Reviewers, don’t bash authors, and don’t take it personally if they bash you. Sometimes people just have inflated egos. You have a way of fighting back – don’t support their work.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">And that’s the end of my rant. I would love to discuss this topic with you, if you are an author, reviewer, aspiring writer, anything in between. Just let me know what you think!</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-7503526693680074332012-01-05T22:17:00.000-05:002012-01-05T22:17:27.024-05:00When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (REVIEW)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1306504418l/11045709.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1306504418l/11045709.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>WHEN SHE WOKE by Hillary Jordan<br />
Published October 4th, 2011 by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill<br />
341 Pages // Hardcover<br />
Borrowed from Library<br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11045709-when-she-woke" target="_blank">Goodreads</a><br />
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/1?book_id=11045709&source=dropdown" target="_blank">Purchase from Amazon</a><br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq"><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline ! important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Hannah Payne’s life has been devoted to church and family. But after she’s convicted of murder, she awakens to a nightmarish new life. She finds herself lying on a table in a bare room, covered only by a paper gown, with cameras broadcasting her every move to millions at home, for whom observing new Chromes—criminals whose skin color has been genetically altered to match the class of their crime—is a sinister form of entertainment. Hannah is a Red for the crime of murder. The victim, says the State of Texas, was her unborn child, and Hannah is determined to protect the identity of the father, a public figure with whom she shared a fierce and forbidden love.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline ! important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">A powerful reimagining of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><em style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">The Scarlet Letter</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline ! important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><em style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">When She Woke</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline ! important; float: none; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>is a timely fable about a stigmatized woman struggling to navigate an America of the not-too-distant future, where the line between church and state has been eradicated, and convicted felons are no longer imprisoned but chromed and released back into the population to survive as best they can. In seeking a path to safety in an alien and hostile world, Hannah unknowingly embarks on a journey of self-discovery that forces her to question the values she once held true and the righteousness of a country that politicizes faith and love.</span></div></blockquote><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I had heard about WHEN SHE WOKE for months before it came out. Even my mother had heard about the book through her book clubs and sources for information. And then what did I do? Well, I might have put off reading it… And put it off… And checked it out from the library… And put it off. Then I picked it up as my due date grew closer and closer. Once I started reading it, there was no stopping. By the end, this book flew onto my favorites shelf and I was desperate to tell the world about the amazingness I had just read.</span></div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">WHEN SHE WOKE chronicles the story of a young woman in a dystopian near future that seems all too plausible – the rise of an extreme religious state that, instead of jailing offenders as we know it, colors their skin in a process called Melachroming. Our protagonist Hannah is a Red, convicted of the murder of the child she aborted after having an affair with a very powerful preacher. WHEN SHE WOKE is a powerful story about self exploration, emotional pain, physical suffering, and the pursuit of justice and understanding.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The story is powerful, with evocative prose and a gripping narrative that wraps you around its finger and refuses to let you go. As we move from Hannah’s time as a public attraction in a cell for 30 days after her chroming to the halfway house run by sadistic evangelicals and beyond, there is not a dull moment. Hannah is a strong woman who has to come to grips with her faith and her reality. She is very naïve, raised to be an obedient wife, not a woman who thinks for herself and acts. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In addition to the emotional trials Hannah suffers, we are taken on a trip through this dystopian world that is chilling. From the political environment created by Jordan to the new reality of America’s almost-police state built around fundamentalist Protestantism, it feels all too possible. I think this is one of the strongest parts of the book – Hillary Jordan constructed a world that, while being a dystopic future, feels like it is real and possible. It’s a world like ours, except the flaw is that religion consumed everything. There is even a Secretary of Faith in the government and the Trinity Party.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">To sum up WHEN SHE WOKE on one word, I would pick heartbreaking. This book will break you into a thousand little pieces and then slowly knit you back – but not completely. I will be recommending this book to everyone I know, and definitely to you. Even if you just read YA, this book is worth a read. It’s emotional, it’s realistic, and it’s powerful. Trust me. This book is amazing.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">VERDICT: With a powerful premise that feels all too real and a narrator who forces you to feel pain, WHEN SHE WOKE is a book not to miss.</span></b></div><b> </b><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><b> </b><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">♥♥♥♥♥ - FIVE HEARTS</span></b></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-29048693983302641512012-01-04T13:46:00.006-05:002012-01-04T13:48:29.426-05:00Waiting on Wednesday (21)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316731347l/11873007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316731347l/11873007.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="background-color: #ffffe5; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking The Spine!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #ffffe5; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"> </span> <br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">This week I am waiting on...</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">THE VANISHING GAME by Kate Kae Myers</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Publishes February 14, 2012 by Bloomsbury USA</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia,Utopia,'Palatino Linotype',Palatino,serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">368 Pages</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Jocelyn's twin brother Jack was the only family she had growing up in a world of foster homes-and now he's dead, and she has nothing. Then she gets a cryptic letter from "Jason December"-the code name her brother used to use when they were children at Seale House, a terrifying foster home that they believed had dark powers. Only one other person knows about Jason December: Noah, Jocelyn's childhood crush and their only real friend among the troubled children at Seale House.</span><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">But when Jocelyn returns to Seale House and the city where she last saw Noah, she gets more than she bargained for. Turns out the house's powers weren't just a figment of a childish imagination. And someone is following Jocelyn. Is Jack still alive? And if he is, what kind of trouble is he in? The answer is revealed in a shocking twist that turns this story on its head and will send readers straight back to page 1 to read the book in a whole new light.</span></blockquote><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; text-align: left;">If you know me, you might know I am a big fan of horror. I haven't read ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD yet, but I am going to, so YA horror is rather new to me. But trust me, I love horror. And mystery. Stephen King, for example, is one of my heroes in life. So I cannot wait for this one to drop. IT SOUNDS SO GOOD.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px; text-align: left;">What are YOU waiting on this Wednesday?</span>Megan at Book Bratshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02834800499293769376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-49127007330520091282012-01-02T14:10:00.000-05:002012-01-02T14:10:32.548-05:00Kiss of Frost by Jennifer Estep (REVIEW)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1310420615l/10421530.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1310420615l/10421530.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">KISS OF FROST (Mythos Academy #2) by Jennifer Estep</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">354 Pages // Paperback</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Published November 29, 2011 by Kensington Teen</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Received for Review from Publisher</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Rating: 4 Hearts</span></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline ! important; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">I’m Gwen Frost, a second-year warrior-in-training at Mythos Academy, and I have no idea how I’m going to survive the rest of the semester. One day, I’m getting schooled in swordplay by the guy who broke my heart—the drop-dead gorgeous Logan who slays me every time. Then, an invisible archer in the Library of Antiquities decides to use me for target practice. And now, I find out that someone at the academy is really a Reaper bad guy who wants me dead. I’m afraid if I don’t learn how to live by the sword—with Logan’s help—I just might die by the sword...</span></span></div></blockquote><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">KISS OF FROST is the sequel to the fun and exciting TOUCH OF FROST by Jennifer Estep, which probably was one of my favorite young adult books of 2011. I’m a sucker for fun and exciting and girl power, and while KISS OF FROST wasn’t quite as good as its predecessor, it was still a great YA novel that I wholeheartedly recommend. This series is full of action, excitement, romance, and great characters that will make you laugh and cry and fear for. Estep has a winning combination of a fun twist on the old “boarding school for superpowered teens” plot and great characters, which is why I will tell you this. YOU MUST READ THIS SERIES. And spoilers might be mentioned within.</span></div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In KISS OF FROST, we’re back to Mythos Academy a few weeks after the events of TOUCH OF FROST. The<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>way the story begins is helpful to people who have not read the first book – in fact, you can actually jump into book two without having read book one due to the amount of rehashing involved – but somewhat off putting if you have read book one. The first 150 pages are chock full of plot recaps, reminders, and basically a retelling of every event from book one. Multiple times. Even as we hit the climax, we are still being told about the events of book one. It slows down the pacing a bit, but as I said, if you haven’t read book one, you can still read book two.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">That was really my main issue with KISS OF FROST. We meet a new potential love interest, new enemies, new denizens of Mythos Academy (particularly Logan’s Spartan friends Oliver and Kenzie, who become critical players in the story arc), and new world building that brings a lot of new details to this already well-created world. At the end, we even have a slight guide to the world which brings a lot of the details together, and I can only assume that book three (DARK FROST, out June 2012) will bring more details, especially considering that AWESOME chapter one preview.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">As Gwen’s powers develop, so does the enormity of the situation resting on her shoulders. The character development in KISS OF FROST is great – not like some stories where the main character never grows as a person. She’s learning to fight back and stand up for herself, which is what I love to see in young adult fiction – girls that take things into their own hands. Yes, she has a boy that drives her, but Gwen is a great heroine. And Logan is still a great, mysterious bad boy – and not the kind of bad boy that is actually BAD. He cares about Gwen and will do anything to help her. He’s almost like a sweet bad boy, which is the type of bad boy that I love. But don’t expect constant sparks of love and gooey and kissing here.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">If you haven’t picked up TOUCH OF FROST, what are you waiting for? Go to Amazon or Barnes and Noble or your local Indie and PICK IT UP NOW. This is a series that you cannot miss. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">VERDICT: KISS OF FROST might not be as good as TOUCH OF FROST, but it is still a great sequel to one of my favorite current young adult series. A definite must read.</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">♥♥♥♥ - FOUR HEARTS</span></b></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-39794517209149062142012-01-01T13:31:00.000-05:002012-01-01T13:31:44.441-05:00In My Mailbox (18)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" /></a></div><br />
This week was EXCELLENT for books - buying books and borrowing books in particular. I didn't receive much in the mail for review, but I did receive quite a lot from Amazon or from the used book store or from my best friend's book shelf at her house before she left for her second-to-last semester-ish of grad school.<br />
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So click the cut and see what I have acquired this week!<br />
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When I say I didn't receive much from publishers for review, I meant I received nothing. Sad week, LOL. And since I am busy today, I am just going to post covers and names. Next week I'll do the full write up again, I promise.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b>PURCHASED</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1299237884l/6001758.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1299237884l/6001758.jpg" width="131" /></a><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51dMAcCmpdL._SL500_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51dMAcCmpdL._SL500_.jpg" width="136" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301587189l/6574102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301587189l/6574102.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">FIRE by Kristin Cashore</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">AUDREY, WAIT! by Robin Benway</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">HEIST SOCIETY (Heist Society #1) by Ally Carter</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51WG9E4EG3L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51WG9E4EG3L.jpg" width="118" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312006031l/405999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312006031l/405999.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312025571l/6449926.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312025571l/6449926.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">LYON'S PRIDE (Tower and the Hive #4) by Anne McCaffrey (LOVE THIS SERIES)</div><div style="text-align: center;">CONFESSIONS OF A SOCIOPATHIC SOCIAL CLIMBER by Adele Lang</div><div style="text-align: center;">PASTWORLD by Ian Beck </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312008155l/8704448.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312008155l/8704448.jpg" width="133" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1317791208l/9520858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1317791208l/9520858.jpg" width="134" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">THE DEMON TRAPPER'S DAUGHTER (The Demon Trappers #1) by Jana Oliver</div><div style="text-align: center;">SAVING ZOE by Alyson Noel</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>RECEIVED FROM RANDOM BUZZERS</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320394083l/10423097.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320394083l/10423097.jpg" width="131" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">BLOOD SUN (Danger Zone #3) by David Gilman</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>BORROWED FROM FRIEND</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312460470l/71366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312460470l/71366.jpg" width="151" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312460421l/28195.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312460421l/28195.jpg" width="152" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">INKHEART by Cornelia Funke</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172542154l/187812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172542154l/187812.jpg" width="131" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255703090l/952769.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255703090l/952769.jpg" /></a><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255703100l/13139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255703100l/13139.jpg" width="125" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">AVALON HIGH by Meg Cabot</div><div style="text-align: center;">THE ANGEL EXPERIMENT (Maximum Ride #1) by James Patterson</div><div style="text-align: center;">SCHOOL'S OUT FOREVER (Maximum Ride #2) by James Patterson</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Let me know what you got this week! I can't wait to see!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-14718925537576158042011-12-31T18:51:00.000-05:002012-01-01T17:15:32.518-05:00Random Acts of Kindness December Wrap-Up!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My first month doing RAK was AMAZING! I met a great new blogging friend and was able to send some great stuff to a great person. I hope next month will be EVEN BETTER - especially if I get a job, LOL. Keep your fingers crossed for me or else I might go completely broke and be very sad. Anyway, back to happy fun times!<br />
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From the AMAZING RJ at <a href="http://rjdoesbooks.com/" target="_blank">RJ Does Books.</a> </div>
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Both to RJ at RJ Does Books! <strike>I sent a third book but I can't remember for the life of me what it was. If you see this, RJ, reply and remind me! I'm very scatterbrained today. </strike>Added the third book, LOL.</div>
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So thanks to RJ for making my very first RAK month so wonderful. Here is to a great 2012 and all the best for EVERYONE!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-32698387597478257992011-12-28T21:03:00.003-05:002011-12-28T21:03:35.779-05:00Book Brats Is On Vacation!<div style="text-align: left;">
Hi guys! I am currently dealing with some real life stress and coming up tomorrow I am off on a three day vacation to visit a friend. Book Brats will return from a short hiatus on Sunday! Sorry about the delay!</div>Megan at Book Bratshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02834800499293769376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-46717464325042592522011-12-28T11:42:00.000-05:002011-12-28T11:42:12.036-05:00Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop Giveaway WINNER<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee448/toobusyreading/midwinterseve-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="http://i1228.photobucket.com/albums/ee448/toobusyreading/midwinterseve-1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Thank you to everyone who made the Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop Giveaway at Book Brats a SMASHING success! We had almost 200 entries for the copy of Laurie Halse Andersen's CATALYST. Sadly, there can only be one winner.<br />
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Congratulations to...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b>DONNA LAWRENCE!</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Donna will be receiving an email in a few minutes. Thank you to everyone who entered the contest and I look forward to seeing you again soon in a few weeks for another awesome giveaway!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-14622706891210243902011-12-25T18:02:00.000-05:002011-12-25T18:03:30.784-05:00In My Mailbox (17)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Welcome to a Very Merry Christmas edition of the Book Brats In My Mailbox! This week I got some amazing stuff from some amazing publishers, amazing authors, and amazing parents. I'm quite partial to my Christmas gift book that I picked out and had them buy, LOL. This week was an amazing week for books.<br />
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Check behind the cut to see more about what I got, to leave comments and links to your IMM, and to squee with me at the random goodies the mail brought me this week!<br />
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CINDER (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer</div>
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Publishes January 3rd, 2012 by Feiwel and Friends</div>
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387 Pages // ARC</div>
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This one was a total random surprise since I already have the Netgalley version. I can't wait to dig in and find out what all my friends are squeeing about, even though I must admit I am not a big fan of the Cinderella story unless it's EVER AFTER, which I strangely love. We'll see!</div>
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THE PROBABILITY OF MIRACLES by Wendy Wunder</div>
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Published December 8, 2011 by Razorbill</div>
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336 Pages // ARC</div>
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Another random mail surprise, I was totally not expecting this! I hadn't actually given this one much of a look until it arrived in my mail, but now that I have it, I can't wait to find a chance to read it.</div>
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WAYWARD SAINTS by Suzzy Roche</div>
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Publishes January 17th, 2012 by Voice</div>
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272 Pages // ARC (Shelf Awareness)</div>
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I will admit I have browsed through this for a chapter or two and I couldn't find myself getting into it, which is sad because I love a good book about former hellraisers turned domestic Stepford Wives. The writing style was very off to me, so it might just get passed to my mother. Disappointing :(</div>
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THE THIRTEEN by Susie Moloney</div>
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Publishes April 10th, 2012 by William Morrow</div>
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336 Pages // ARC (LibraryThing)</div>
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My second LibraryThing win, I plan on reading this soon. I read a few pages and I don't know what to think yet. Stay tuned for some more coherent thoughts but the plot sounds really good. AND THAT COVER. That's why I entered to win!</div>
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<b>RECEIVED FROM AUTHOR:</b></div>
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SURVIVAL (The Guardians of Vesturon Series #1) by AM Hargrove</div>
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Published November 14th, 2011</div>
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Kindle Edition</div>
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I actually got this a few weeks back and forgot to share it with you! I have had the pleasure of chatting with the author, who is supremely awesome. She had me sold on this book with the fact it takes place near where I went to college. I will be reading this next, so stay tuned for a review!</div>
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<b>RECEIVED FROM RANDOM BUZZERS: </b></div>
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THE SPECTACULAR NOW by Tim Tharp</div>
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Published October 20th, 2008 by Knopf Books for Young Readers</div>
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294 Pages // Hardcover</div>
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If you're not a member of Random Buzzers, you should be! I bought this as they were clearing out the store for the holidays with my buzz bucks and got it this week. It's a boy book, but all girls need boy books occasionally. It helps us see that the opposite sex really is as weird as we suspect.</div>
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<b>MEGAN'S AWESOME SPECTACULAR CHRISTMAS GIFT:</b></div>
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ALEXANDER MCQUEEN: SAVAGE BEAUTY</div>
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Published May 31st, 2011 by Metropolitan Museum of Art</div>
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224 Pages // Hardcover</div>
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When I was living in New York City, I took my dad to see this show about a week after it opened. And yes, it was as amazing as you might have heard if you are into art. I coveted this but couldn't afford it when I saw it at the Museum gift shop, but my dad bought it for me on Amazon. It's GORGEOUS. And yes, I am an art nut and former member of the Museum of Modern Art. I went there too many times to count when I lived in New York.</div>
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Let me know what you got in the mail this week! Leave links and I will be sure to pop by your blog and check out what you got!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-81676653253241091372011-12-25T01:01:00.001-05:002011-12-25T01:29:31.140-05:002011 YA Story Scavenger Hunt - December 25th Stop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444;">I'm today's hunt stop for the <a href="http://mostimportantletter.wordpress.com/features/ya-story-scavenger-hunt/">2011 YA Story Scavenger Hunt!</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;">Follow the hunt every day during the month of December! Answer the daily trivia questions from MG and YA books published during 2011 to be entered into the YA book giveaway.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444;">Today's question is from <i>The Night Circus</i> by Erin Morgenstern.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 17px;">Question #49: </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 17px;">Celia only wears gowns of what colors?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Remember to fill out your answer in the form at Most Important Letter </span><a href="http://mostimportantletter.wordpress.com/2011/12/25/2011yassh-day-twenty-five/" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">!</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">PS MERRY CHRISTMAS! Good luck!</span></div>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-6716218235365259422011-12-23T00:09:00.000-05:002011-12-23T01:26:34.738-05:00Happy Festivus - The Bookish Airing of Grievances<a href="http://www.cbrsd.org/nessacus/festivus/festivuslogo.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="http://www.cbrsd.org/nessacus/festivus/festivuslogo.gif" width="320" /></a>Welcome to the Book Brats Festivus Airing of Bookish Grievances. If you do not know what Festivus is, then screw you! Just kidding. After the cut there will be a link to a video you must watch. It's a secular religion devoted to celebrating the holidays without participating in consumerism and the pressures of pleasing everyone. Well, I'll be doing that, too, but just not today.<br />
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I've put up my Festivus pole, told my dad to expect my challenge for the feats of strength, and am all ready for some awesome Festivus miracles tomorrow. But first, I have a few grievances to air about books in 2011 - but note, before you get offended, most of these will be in good fun. Book Brats isn't a mean-spirited site, but it is a snarky one. Click the cut to find out more about what I found to be bookishly wrong in 2011, and HAPPY FESTIVUS!<br />
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<b> 1.) Pretty Girl in Prom Dress Syndrome</b></div>
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Does your book have a pretty model wearing a prom or wedding dress? Then I probably am sitting here rolling my eyes at the marketing department. I don't know why this trend started. 95% of the time it has nothing to do with the book. If your book is about some poor chick who never wears a pretty dress, and especially if she is described as not being pretty, then why the hell is there a pretty girl in a prom dress? What does this have to do with anything? As a 24 year old female reader of YA fiction, I am finding myself increasing turned off by these covers, and chances are young male teenage readers are going to have no interest in a book with this type of cover. They don't want kissy and feely, they want ACTION. Pretty girls in prom dresses more often than not aren't going to be badass.</div>
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<b>2.) Love Triangles</b></div>
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This is nothing new, but seriously. I have trouble getting one boyfriend that isn't a complete idiot or slob or idiot slob. Boring 16 year old girls suddenly at the center of a testosterone war between hot, sweaty teenage man meat? Gurl...</div>
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<b>3.) Physical Book and E-book Pricing (from my friend Bethany)</b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Now, I’m not the brightest candle in the Menorah, but even I know there’s something fishy going on when even e-books go up in price. (Not to mention the fact that I’m just a little ticked about it as well.) I’ll admit that it’s like a drug addict griping about the cost of his crack, since he’ll just go ahead and pay up anyway, but the matter still stands. How are people supposed to be enlightened and/or entertained when they’re having to pay more?!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black; font-size: small;">I understand that the wants and needs of the user groups have changed. I understand that this is a bad economy. Heck, I even understand that the price of paper is probably going up (as well as everything else). Is that a reason to take it out on the books? Remember that books are one of many forms that entertain the populace. Does “bread and circuses” ring a bell? Because with pricey books, you’re going to have a bunch of unhappy <i>hoi polloi</i></span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"> on your hands.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">4.) Bethany's....Other Rant</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">My second gripe is this. Please, for the love of all that is holy, stop with what you publishers think to be paranormal or dystopian fiction. First of all, it’s a little awkward going to the bookstore only to be faced with a shirtless (underaged) teenager who’s supposed to be some sort of sexy creature. I have to avoid that section altogether now, so that I won’t look like a creepy twenty-something stalking the jailbait. Thanks. But the fact is that they’re way overdone and mislabeled to begin with.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">5.) Barnes and Noble's YA Section</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"> Dear Barnes and Noble,</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">By separating YA books into "Teen Paranormal" (mostly paranormal romances and other kissy books) and "Teen Action and Adventure" (dystopians and other stuff, often times with kissy elements), you are basically saying "Girl Books" and "Boy Books That Mostly Cater to Girls". And to be honest, half the books in either section fit into the other just as easily. Lots of paranormal romances have action. Lots of action and adventure books have paranormal. Can't we go back to just a big "Young Adult" section like we had in my teenage years?</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Signed, </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Megan</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">6.) Book Trailers</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Yeah, I've complained about this before. If you want to read why, go find the Book Brats View where I discuss it. It's rather funny.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><b>7.) NO MORE ABUSIVE LOVE INTERESTS</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">YA heroines, listen up. If your love interest in controlling, stalkerish, trying to kill you, or all of the above, please, run away. That isn't sexy. He doesn't love you. That's just creepy.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><b>I want to hear YOUR bookish grievances for 2011, or just overall. This is meant to be a fun discussion post about things you want to see more of, less of, things to love, things to hate, and things to be confused over.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><b>And remember to make your donation to The Human Fund. It's money for people.</b></span></div>
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</span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-46706365142419704742011-12-21T20:26:00.000-05:002011-12-21T21:06:31.500-05:00Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (REVIEW)<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51b1+X+PdpL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51b1+X+PdpL.jpg" width="211" /></a><b>EVERY OTHER DAY by Jennifer Lynn Barnes</b><br />
<b>Published December 27, 2011 by Egmont</b><br />
<b>336 Pages // Netgalley eARC</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Every-Other-Jennifer-Lynn-Barnes/dp/1606841696/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324516986&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Preorder from Amazon </a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11750412-every-other-day" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.jenniferlynnbarnes.com/" target="_blank">Author's Website </a></b><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Every other day, Kali D'Angelo is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to public high school. She attends pep rallies. She's human.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">And then every day in between . . .She's something else entirely.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Though she still looks like herself, every twenty-four hours predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon-hunter with the undeniable urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other supernatural creatures. Kali has no idea why she is the way she is, but she gives in to instinct anyway. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">When Kali notices a mark on the lower back of a popular girl at school, she knows instantly that the girl is marked for death by one of these creatures. Kali has twenty-four hours to save her and, unfortunately, she'll have to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk that her human body might not survive. . .and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition in the process.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">EVERY OTHER DAY is the type of book I love – well, at least love the synopsis and the general idea. Action-oriented, kickass protagonists, girl power. For the most part, Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ latest book did not disappoint. Although I have not read any of her previous books, I found myself enjoying this one with a few minor issues. This is, at the heart of the matter, a story about a girl trying to come to terms with herself with the aid of new friends, new powers, new inhabitants in her body, and lots of new, fun weapons.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some days, the heroine of the story is human. Every other day, Kali becomes a hunter who instinctively has to hunt down paranormal critters. In her world, things like hellhounds and chupacabras and manticores are perfectly normal. You can see them in zoos. For years, she has lived with her distant science professor father hiding an ugly truth about herself. And then a classmate is infected with a chupacabra and she’s forced to intervene. The story is fun, unique, and intriguing, combining the paranormal with a world of science. As the story progresses, we learn more about Kali and her world. At times, it’s rather convoluted, strange, and confusing, giving the story one of its faults.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The other key fault I noted was choppy writing and several boring parts due to pacing issues. In such a fast-paced book, hitting slow parts immediately caused me to start skimming, which at the same time lead me to miss key points. Barnes’ writing style is also strange, using short, choppy paragraphs way too often. In moderation, these create drama and intensity, but used several times a page was overkill.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The middle 50% of the book for me was somewhat of a letdown. If this had been the entire story, the novel would have gotten 3 hearts (or less). Luckily, a fantastic conclusion is what saves this. Although I am not quite fond of one of the twists the author took, I have to give it to Barnes – the book was for the most part awesomely fast-paced and highlighted just how badass girls can be. Girl power is one of the bases of Book Brats – strong, female role models, both teenage and adult – and I think Kali D’Angelo is a great heroine. She was strong, she was smart, and she tried to do what was best for those around her instead of what was best for her. Along for the ride were a number of other fleshed out, rounded characters who had their own goals, own motivations, and personalities. It was a rag-tag gang, but one I quickly fell in love with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">If you are into slower books, EVERY OTHER DAY might not be for you. If you are like me and LOVE action, though, you MUST check out this book. Barnes’ writing might have flaws, along with the pacing and a few point where I scratched my head in confusion or bewilderment, but I really liked this book. Check it out!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">VERDICT: Although it is not without its faults, EVERY OTHER DAY is fast-paced, exciting, and full of girl power. This book is kickass and full of bite that lovers of action-oriented reading will love.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">♥♥♥♥ - FOUR HEARTS</span></b></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-34203649734837640622011-12-21T00:01:00.002-05:002011-12-21T00:07:48.338-05:00Waiting on Wednesday (20)<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1322355523l/12967753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1322355523l/12967753.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: #ffffe5; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking The Spine!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #ffffe5; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">This week I have gone all science fiction geek. Wait, you didn't know I'm a sci-fi geek? Well, I am. Hardcore. I love science fiction. If you are looking for recommendations for great science fiction - TV, books, movies, etc - just ask. I have a long list that I would LOVE to share with you.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">I have picked 172 HOURS ON THE MOON, the English translation of Johan Harstad's Norwegian book whose name is...hard. The Little, Brown catalog sold me on this one with an Alien reference - "In space, no one can hear you scream." GIVE ME NOW.</span></span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><b>Three teenagers are going on the trip of a lifetime. Only one is coming back. It's been more than forty years since NASA sent the first men to the moon, and to grab some much-needed funding and attention, they decide to launch an historic international lottery in which three lucky teenagers can win a week-long trip to moon base DARLAH 2-a place that no one but top government officials even knew existed until now. The three winners, Antoine, Midori, and Mia, come from all over the world. But just before the scheduled launch, the teenagers each experience strange, inexplicable events. Little do they know that there was a reason NASA never sent anyone back there until now-a sinister reason. But the countdown has already begun. . .</b></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">172 HOURS ON THE MOON by Johan Harstad comes out April 17, 2012 from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.</span></span>Megan at Book Bratshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02834800499293769376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-58478582350671285412011-12-20T18:00:00.000-05:002011-12-20T22:42:29.452-05:00Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop GIVEAWAY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvgPtFnKF3U9YpQDtFGa4m0WcyWBzBTeEFU6LegDjTGHcfsTPSNPg4ajgwgx8lknASBNrjkK6vgMKMYCnAhEpLGMXhmWTyWBZsAqXxmdhU6csZPQy2ydOgYmuL-4wKKtMSbT5RU-L7U_q/s400/midwinters+eve.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvgPtFnKF3U9YpQDtFGa4m0WcyWBzBTeEFU6LegDjTGHcfsTPSNPg4ajgwgx8lknASBNrjkK6vgMKMYCnAhEpLGMXhmWTyWBZsAqXxmdhU6csZPQy2ydOgYmuL-4wKKtMSbT5RU-L7U_q/s320/midwinters+eve.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
For the first time, Book Brats is participating in a Blog Hop giveaway. The Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop is hosted by <a href="http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">I Am a Reader, Not a Writer</a> and <a href="http://oasisforya.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Oasis for YA</a>.<br />
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I am giving away a hardcover of Laurie Halse Anderson's 2002 contemporary YA drama <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1101255.Catalyst" target="_blank">CATALYST</a>. This is a great book that I am excited to share with one lucky winner. Click behind the cut to find out how to enter this contest and more than 250 other contests celebrating Mid-Winters Eve!<br />
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PS - if the rafflecopter does not work, please leave your entry WITH email address in the comments. Please leave separate comments for each additional entry.<br />
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Entries are:<br />
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1.) Follow via GFC (mandatory)<br />
2.) Follow @bookbrats on Twitter<br />
3.) Tweet about contest<br />
4.) Comment on a review<br />
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-27526336990171817312011-12-20T00:03:00.000-05:002011-12-20T00:03:54.910-05:00Teaser Tuesday (14)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1317629193l/10445208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1317629193l/10445208.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>Teaser Tuesday (hosted by Breaking the Spine) is a chance to explore small snippets from novels that bloggers are currently reading. Take two lines from your story, leave the title and author name, and make sure not to spoil anything!<br />
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I have not actually started Maria V. Snyder's TOUCH OF POWER, the first book in the Avry of Khazan series. It's sitting on my Kindle waiting for me to finish EVERY OTHER DAY, but I can still tease page one, can't I? And an entire paragraph! This is from the ARC.<br />
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TOUCH OF POWER releases December 27th, 2011 from Mira.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq"><i>The little girl wouldn't stop crying. I didn't blame her. She was dying after all. Her lungs were so full of fluid she'd drown in another few hours. Tossing and turning on the thin mattress, I listened to her cries as they sawed through the floor boards and through my heart, cutting it in two.</i></blockquote><br />
Can't wait to actually start this once I finish up EVERY OTHER DAY.<br />
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What are YOU teasing this Tuesday?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-48601850996566883332011-12-17T23:47:00.000-05:002011-12-17T23:47:55.879-05:00In My Mailbox (16)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" /></a></div>After our brief hiatus while my computer decided to die on me, Book Brats is (mostly) back! Coming soon - more reviews, more weirdness, more...something. Oh, and I will be participating in a giveaway hop starting on Tuesday. Be warned.<br />
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Anyway, this week was a WONDERFUL week for my mailbox - another great one! And I somehow managed to not buy anything. Gasp! Well, I bought myself a coffee table book for Christmas, but that doesn't count. Pop inside and see what came this week! It's very YA heavy this week!<br />
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SLIDE by Jill Hathaway</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases March 27, 2012 from Balzer + Bray</div><div style="text-align: center;">246 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received from Publisher</div><div style="text-align: center;">I love a good speculative fiction murder mystery, so this sounds like it will be up my alley. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing this! Look for a review in March.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">PARTIALS (Partials #1) by Dan Wells</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases February 28th, 2012 from Balzer + Bray</div><div style="text-align: center;">472 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received from Publisher</div><div style="text-align: center;">Another book received from HarperCollins, PARTIALS is the type of book I die for - post-apocalyptic, genetic engineering, end of humanity. I kill for that type of book, so I can't wait to dive into this one. Look for my review in February!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">ARTICLE 5 (Article 5 #1) by Kristen Simmons</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases January 31, 2012 from Tor Teen</div><div style="text-align: center;">384 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received from Author</div><div style="text-align: center;">Thanks so much to Kristen for the contest that let me win this! As you might remember, it was one of my WoW books a few weeks ago, and now I have my very own signed ARC. Cannot wait to dive into this!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">DANCERGIRL (WiHi #1) by Carol Tanzman</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published November 15, 2011 by Harlequin TEEN</div><div style="text-align: center;">248 Pages // Paperback</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received via contest/publisher</div><div style="text-align: center;">I believe I won this as part of the DANCERGIRL blog tour. I think. If anyone has actually seen my name as a winner, or if I won it via your blog, let me know! I want to thank you! And thanks to Harlequin TEEN :D</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>RECEIVED VIA TRADE</b>:</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">BORN WICKED (Cahill Witch Chronicles #1) by Jessica Spotswood</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases February 7th, 2012 by Putnam Juvenile</div><div style="text-align: center;">326 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received via trade</div><div style="text-align: center;">So I sent my ARCs of COLD KISS and TEMPEST to the darling <a href="http://rywn.net/" target="_blank">Andi of Rywn </a>(one of my fave bloggers) and in return I got this. Cannot. Wait.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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DRAGONSWOOD by Janet Lee Carey</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases January 5, 2012 by Penguin Young Readers Group</div><div style="text-align: center;">416 Pages // ARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received via trade</div><div style="text-align: center;">With BORN WICKED was this. I love a good fantasy story, and dragons? DRAGONS?! Of course I wanted this. Hopefully I will get a chance to read it soon.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>RECEIVED VIA NETGALLEY:</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">UNDER THE NEVER SKY (Under the Never Sky #1) by Veronica Rossi</div><div style="text-align: center;">Releases January 3rd, 2012 from HarperCollins</div><div style="text-align: center;">384 Pages // eARC</div><div style="text-align: center;">Received via NetGalley</div><div style="text-align: center;">After I was declined a second time for Everneath, I was surprised to get approved for UNDER THE NEVER SKY. Although I'm wary of the hype surrounding this one (hype and me are like a cat versus a bucket of water - imagine the consequences), I am looking forward to reading it. Especially if it's as much like Final Fantasy as someone told me, LOL.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">So that's it. Let me know what you got this week and I will try and comment on as many blogs as possible. In writing news, I have started edits on my Camp NaNoWriMo manuscript again. Hopefully another draft will be done with the correct ending and we can get this baby all sparkly and polished and full of hot men. Well, teenage boys. They're all 28 in my head, haha.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-73719026094389886402011-12-17T00:54:00.001-05:002011-12-17T00:57:50.305-05:00Blood of Eden by Tami Dane (REVIEW)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41T3bYQL2cL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" height="320" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41T3bYQL2cL.jpg" width="198" /></b></a></div><b>BLOOD OF EDEN (Sloan Skye #1) by Tami Dane</b><br />
<b>Published December 6, 2011 by Kensington</b><br />
<b>342 Pages // Paperback</b><br />
<b><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9884419-blood-of-eden" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">Sloan has a sky-high IQ, a chaotic personal life, and a dream: to work for the FBI. Her goal is within reach until an error lands her with the FBI's ugly stepchild: the new Paranormal Behavioral Analysis Unit. She'll get to profile criminals, but the pool of suspects is a little more...diverse. Yet even as Sloan tackles her first case--a string of victims, all with puncture wounds to the neck--she can't silence her inner para-skeptic.</span><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" /><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #181818; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">To catch the killer she'll have to think like one. That means casting aside her doubts, and dealing with the bizarre nightmares that started with the job. But the strangeness is only beginning, as Sloan pieces together the shocking truth about a case that's more personal than she ever would have guessed.</span></blockquote><br />
When I was offered the chance to review BLOOD OF EDEN, I jumped on the opportunity. I love urban fantasy, forensic psychology, the FBI, vampires - and this start to a new series promises just that. We are introduced to our narrator, Sloan Skye, as she begins her internship with the FBI - or so she thinks. A strange series of events ensues, after which Sloan is shoved into the new (and somewhat kooky) Paranormal Behavioral Analysis Unit, or the PBAU. Their first case appears to be a serial killer who injects its prey with a tropical illness through bite marks on the neck. Sloan is thrown into the action almost immediately, and secrets begin to unravel from this point. <br />
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Let me just come out with my main problem. This book's plausibility level was basically non-existent. What plausibility? Sloan is suddenly going to murder scenes, visiting morgues, and at one point is shoved undercover - less than two weeks after her internship begins. I was a government intern (twice) and the only time I ever left the office was to go to a meeting at another office within sight of the main office or to go across the street to buy a newspaper for my boss. It wasn't an FBI internship, but I cannot fathom that it's allowable for an intern to do stuff like that. That was my main issue with this book. This book could have had a lot more going for it if Sloan wasn't an intern. If she was new to the unit, it's believable. As an intern? No. Not all all. <br />
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The characters overall seemed rather flat. Outside of Sloan, her mother, the two guys fighting over her, and her roommate, the characters faded into the woodwork. We were introduced a multitude of characters, from a brainy female techie at the FBI to a number of witnesses, doctors, and victims, but picking out names or personality traits was pretty difficult. Even the chief of the department was just a one-dimensional character with no discernable personality. Sloan at times ranged from fun and relatable to rather dumb. The ending of the book was obvious from the first few chapters, but with every new clue bonking her on her precocious little head, she doubts the obvious. This is the PARANORMAL Behavioral Analysis Unit, but every time something paranormal happens, like bite marks or a woman jumping a six foot fence in one leap, Sloan's immediate reaction is to doubt the obvious and claim the witness was seeing things or crazed or blind or senile. It isn't until the very end and a familial revelation that was clear from the beginning that she begins to realize everything. <br />
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As we reach the end, the story comes into its own and develops an interesting new direction. By this point, though, it's too late - the story has already become implausible, outlandish, and full of predictable turns. It leaves me with hope that maybe book two would be better, but based on what I have read so far, I highly doubt that I will read it. <br />
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By the ending, Sloan was still the only character with real depth, but over the course of the novel, this depth became watered down and diluted by the lack of plausibility in the story. The plot of this book sucked me in. I was desperate to love this book, I wanted to love it, I wanted to be able to recommend this to my friends and my readers and everyone I knew. Instead, I can only recommend that you try this at your own risk. It will not be for everyone, and it wasn't for me. The ending reveals the openings for an intriguing urban fantasy series, but I am not sure if I want to continue based on a heavily flawed book one. <br />
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<b>VERDICT: With plausibility and predictability issues, BLOOD OF EDEN is unable to fulfill the interesting premise it sets forth. Would not recommend this one.</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">♥♥ - TWO HEARTS</span> </b></div>Megan at Book Bratshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02834800499293769376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-67915354331226932272011-12-14T00:01:00.000-05:002011-12-14T00:01:06.585-05:00Waiting on Wednesday (19)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1319591576l/12814519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1319591576l/12814519.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking The Spine!<br />
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This week I am going to leave you with the cover, the information, and two words.<br />
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<b>North Carolina.</b><br />
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A book that takes place in North Carolina? I'm down. Let's do this.<br />
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Note that this video has nothing to do with the book, but it has everything to do with North Carolina. That and this guy lives down the road from me so might as well promote local artists, even if they are convicted felons.<br />
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BELLES by Jen Calonia<br />
Releases April 10, 2012 from Poppy<br />
368 Pages<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Belles-Jen-Calonita/dp/0316091138/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323752326&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Preorder from Amazon</a><br />
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Fifteen-year-old Isabelle Scott loves her life by the boardwalk on the supposed wrong side of the tracks in North Carolina. But when tragedy strikes, a social worker sends her to live with a long-lost uncle and his preppy privileged family. Isabelle is taken away from everything she's ever known, and, unfortunately, inserting her into the glamorous lifestyle of Emerald Cove doesn't go so well. Her cousin Mirabelle Monroe isn't thrilled to share her life with an outsider, and, in addition to dealing with all the rumors and backstabbing that lurk beneath their classmates' Southern charm, a secret is unfolding that will change both girls' lives forever.</blockquote>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-32599628837378091732011-12-12T13:49:00.000-05:002011-12-12T13:49:22.366-05:00In My Mailbox (15)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiesfzsCjoxR-Z0juoDiJcjY9VGL2SRjsab0aX_wocNf7I07vCzSXmUzwn6LiZiTa65J2s2a0qGxXkGhdd5hLP90wQUqlFSl_Oxgm33w85bT1SK98KPJZKVFtFQLvwJHqGRpmYoGulOOMaf/s200/mailbox1.jpg" /></a></div>Welcome to another installment of In My Mailbox, a meme hosted by The Story Siren where you can show off what you've gotten in your mailbox this week!<br />
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I must be a little absent-minded this week because I swear I am going to forget to name a few things I received. Please bare with me and I am going to try to name everything! But this week was excellent because of bloggers - namely my Secret Santa (no longer a secret to me) and an RAK buddy that brightened my week so much! Step inside and see what I got!<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">Even though I was dumb and missed all the hints until she discretely urged me to look again, I have revealed the identity of my AMAZING Secret Santa from The Broke and Bookish Secret Santa event. Thank you to <a href="http://sim-sational-books.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">April of Sim~Sational~Books</a> (this is a link and you should click it and follow her) who made my Christmas an already amazing one and sent me two books I should have read by now!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD (Anna #1) by Kendare Blake</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published August 30, 2011 by Tor Teen</div><div style="text-align: center;">316 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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DIVERGENT (Divergent #1) by Veronica Roth</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published May 3rd, 2011 by Katherine Tegen Books</div><div style="text-align: center;">489 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>RECEIVED VIA RAK:</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Thanks to the lovely <a href="http://rjdoesbooks.com/" target="_blank">RJ of RJ Does Books</a> (once again, this is a link that you should click and follow) I received my first RAK ever. Well, as part of Book Soulmates' RAK program. Thanks to RJ, I received another fabulous book off my wishlist!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published December 2, 2010 by Dutton</div><div style="text-align: center;">372 Pages // Hardcover</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>PURCHASED: </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312077796l/9972323.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1312077796l/9972323.jpg" width="130" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">A ROYAL MATCH (Calypso Chronicles #1 and #2) by Tyne O'Connell</div><div style="text-align: center;">Published February 15, 2011 by Bloomsbury</div><div style="text-align: center;">512 Pages // Paperback</div><div style="text-align: center;">This is on sale at Amazon for $1.30 for a bound edition of the first two books. I couldn't pass up such a great deal!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">I'm pretty sure that was it for this week. Now I am going to post this a day late and disappear again, LOL.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8200543072934401559.post-29723122513306213102011-12-08T10:32:00.000-05:002011-12-08T10:32:54.321-05:00200 Followers Giveaway WINNERS POST!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i44.tinypic.com/jaapo3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i44.tinypic.com/jaapo3.png" /></a></div>Thank you to everyone who entered my 200 Followers Giveaway. As you can see, we are now over 375 followers so I can safely say the giveaway was a huge success. Sadly, there could only be 2 winners - one who won the book of their choice, and one winner of the BOND GIRL ARC. And they are...<br />
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Book of Choice - <a href="http://www.midnytereader.com/" target="_blank">Midnyte Reader </a><br />
BOND GIRL ARC - <a href="http://bookcasesiren.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Ashley H</a><br />
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Congratulations to both winners, but more importantly a big THANK YOU to everyone who has made Book Brats successful by commenting on reviews or memes, entering in contests, following me on Twitter, and doing anything that makes Book Brats the awesome place that it is. You guys make the site a joy to run. Thank you all and here is to 200 more followers!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0