Scarlet

Title: Scarlet

Author: A.C. Gaughen

Series: Scarlet #1

Genres: Adventure, Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Romance

Publisher: Walker Childrens

Released: February 14, 2012

Pages: 292

Summary: courtesy of goodreads.com Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.
Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in.
It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

For Fans Of: The Wicked and the Just, Guilt, A Breath of Eyre, Finnikin of the Rock

My Review: I absolutely loved this book. I love the Robin Hood retelling and this was one of the best. I'm a huge fan of the BBC's version of Robin Hood, (which everyone should go and watch) which focuses on heroines rather than just the heroes. So that is why I really loved Scarlet; it focuses on Will Scarlet who is a girl posing as a boy and her dealings with Robin Hood and his band of thieves, Little John, Much and Friar Tuck. Through out the whole story, we are left wondering about Scarlet's elusive past, which comes back to haunt her when Guy of Gisbourne suddenly enters her life...again.
I liked this book because it focuses on Scarlet and she is a strong, kick ass heroine who doesn't need men to take care of her. She knows how to fight with knives and is quite skilled with a bow (but not as skilled as Robin) fast and quick on her feet. She is stealthy, has ears for useful information and is the best thief in the county. Besides being a strong heroine, I like that she stays true with her feminine side. Rather than cutting her hair to take on the whole persona of a boy, she keeps her hair long and dresses as a girl to go to church in secret.

One thing I didn't like was the love triangle among Robin, John and Scarlet. I wouldn't call it a love triangle; however, it was just awkward and I felt like it got in the way of the story. I felt like there should have been either romance between Scarlet and one of the lads or no romance at all. I highly recommend this book and I am currently reading the sequel Lady Thief. 

 

Reached

Title: Reached

Author: Ally Condie

Series: Matched #3

Genres: Distopian, Adventure, Young Adult, Romance

Publisher: Penguin

Released: November 13, 2012

Summary: courtesy of goodreads.com After leaving Society to desperately seek The Rising, and each other, Cassia and Ky have found what they were looking for, but at the cost of losing each other yet again. Cassia is assigned undercover in Central city, Ky outside the borders, an airship pilot with Indie. Xander is a medic, with a secret. All too soon, everything shifts again.

For Fans Of: Requiem, Hunger Games, Insurgent.

My Review: I wasn't at all thrilled with this book. It was a bit too choppy for my taste and I ended up just skimming the rest of the book looking for key ideas in the plot. Only I didn't find much. And I guess I must have missed a lot while reading "Crossed" because I don't remember half of the stuff that is mentioned in "Reached".
I'm not a huge fan of this writing style. It leaves me wanting more...conversations out loud rather than internal monologue all the time. I actually prefer her LDS adult books she's written to these. It almost seemed like she was trying too hard to finish this series off with a bang. Only it was more of a fizzle. Matched  was promising and then the series just went down from there when the sequel came out. I guess I'm just not a fan of this series.

After Hello

Author: Lisa Mangum

Series: N/A

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult.

Publisher: Shadow Mountain

Released: September 4, 2012

Summary: courtesy of goodreads.com What if the first day of your relationship was the only day you had?

Seventeen-year-old Sara is a seeker. She’s always on the lookout for the perfect moment to capture with her ever-present, point-and-shoot camera, especially on her first trip to New York City.

Sam is a finder. He has a knack for finding what other people can’t—a first-edition book or the last two tickets to a sold-out Broadway show. In New York, there is always something interesting to find.

When Sam and Sara’s paths cross, neither one of them is prepared for what they will find out about each other—and about themselves when they form an unlikely partnership in search of a seemingly elusive work of art. They have one day to find the impossible. Fate brought their talents together, but what happens when time runs out? Will love be able to overcome fate? This new novel from award-winning author Lisa Mangum explores what happens after hello.

For Fans Of: The Truth About Forever, Who I Kissed, Yearbook, As Always Dave.

My Review: I was super excited to read this book. And I was so glad I did. I loved the whole adventure around New York with a random boy, getting into trouble with a celebrity and learning more about your (Sara’s) personality. It was just a cute, fun, realizing who you are and what you mean to others kinda story.

I loved the setting. After reading this I went on a New York obsession. I was trying to find some way of going there. It was just neat to read about a place I usually don’t come across. Or a place that was described very well.

I really liked Sam’s character. He had depth about him. The internal struggle, the struggle to be good and better, his awareness to everything and everyone, and just how thoughtful he was. As a literary character, I found him very attractive.

Sara was also a deep character, but she came across as whiny and complained a lot. And she was too stubborn.

I’m not used to reading any contemporary young adult novels so it wasn’t as faced paced as I would have liked it. But when I read the last page, I wanted more! I Facebooked Lisa and asked her for a sequel! I think there is definitely potential for a good comeback!

I highly recommend this book if you want a cute little love story.

I'm Back!

I am back from a 4 month hiatus!

 You know those times where you pick up a book or in my case many books and none of them are very appealing? Yes that is what had happened. Every book I picked up to read just didn't hit the spot. So I decided to have a reading rest. It however took much longer than I would have liked. But in between then and now I've caught up on some of my favorite TV shows including Big Bang Theory season 5, Vampire Diaries season 3, Doctor Who seasons 2, 5, and 6, and BBC's Robin Hood. 

Then you start to get sick of watching TV and you wish for a really good book.

So I picked up a book at random and started to read. 

Guess what?! I've read 4 books in the last week in a half! 

Talk about starving for some good literature!

So please bear with me, I will get more reviews up here. 

I'm back to stay!

xoxo

New Romantic

Happy Birthday JK Rowling and Harry Potter!

Happy Birthday!

We Love you Both!

 

What Kills Me

Author: Wynne Channing

Series: Stand Alone (for now??)

Genres: Paranormal, Romance, Action

Publisher: Jet & Jack Press

Released: June 6, 2012

Summary: courtesy of goodreads.com An ancient prophecy warns of a girl destined to cause the extinction of the vampire race.

So when 17-year-old Axelia falls into a sacred well filled with blood and emerges a vampire, the immortal empire believes she is this legendary destroyer. Hunted by soldiers and mercenaries, Axelia and her reluctant ally, the vampire blade smith Lucas, must battle to survive.

How will she convince the empire that she is just an innocent teenager-turned bloodsucker and not a creature of destruction? And if she cannot, can a vampire who is afraid of bugs summon the courage to fight a nation of immortals?

For Fans Of: Hush, Hush, Forbidden, Angelfire, Crave, Graceling.

My Review: I acquired this eBook from Wynne Channing about a month ago (I geeked out after reading a text from Hopeless Wonderer while camping that we got a free copy--Thank you!). It saddens me that it has taken me this long to read it. Not that it was boring; it was far from being dull! I’ve read my fair share of vampire books and this one was far different from all the others I have read. Zee (Axelia) isn’t the torn between staying human and trying to stay with her vampire lover. It is the exact opposite. Zee kicks butt! You all know that I love a strong heroine and Zee definitely delivers! She’s the reluctant vampire who thrills in finding out her superhuman powers are unmatched by any other vampire. I love how Channing has written Zee’s character. She is like the innocent, carefree girl who suddenly finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time but is very good at adapting to any of the circumstances that stand in her way. Zee’s wit was fantastic and I loved how light hearted she was and loved her even more when situations got dirty and serious.

The love story between her and Lucas seemed rushed. I’m a hopeless romantic (part of the reason for my pen name) and I love to read budding and blossoming romances that tend to bloom and grow throughout the entire book, not the last 4 chapters. I feel that Channing could have made more subtle hints about Lucas and Zee liking each other. It seemed too much like Lucas was constantly annoyed with Zee and mad that he had to honor his father’s wish to watch over her. I am happy they ended up together though, don’t get me wrong!

Sometimes the transition between chapters and scenes were too choppy for my taste. There were a few where I thought I had a bad copy and that somehow my Kindle left out a chapter or two. However, it did make the book flow very fast. It almost had a ‘movie’ feeling to it, like how you can suddenly jump from one minute to 2 days later and you knew exactly what was going on. I got that feeling after a few times of encountering this little irk.

Oh yes! I absolutely loved the fight scenes. They were very detailed and I could almost see them happening! Through all the fights, I thought, “gee this would make an excellent action/martial arts movie!”

All in all I found What Kills Me a really fun, fast paced, original read. Definitely worth a few hours of your time!

Cover Loving Saturday

Enchanted - Alethea Kontis

Not only is this cover gorgeous, and completely represents what the book is about to me (a fairytale told to perfection) which this cover plays on, I also felt like it captured Sunday's dreaminess.  And having Grumble on the cover also adds to the magic that is this read.  The interior of the book is also incredible lovely.  All of the chapter titles, etc. are set up to mimic old fairytale layouts.  There is so much about this book that I could rant and rave about, but I'm a cover lover, and I can honestly say I probably wouldn't have added it to my "to read" list if I hadn't first been captured by the cover.  To read my review of Enchanted, which is one that I highly recommend for the fairytale lover in all of us (and definitely fun for all ages!) click here.

Unraveling Isobel - Eileen Cook

Unraveling Isobel was another book that I really enjoyed, and this cover (which from what I understand is the paperback and e-book cover) is GORGEOUS and completely embodies what the story is for me.  Not only does the lake play a massive role in the story, but this story is also really fun and sweet and romantic which I feel like the cover embodies.  Although I like the hardback cover, because it high lights that Isobel is an artist, which drives her mother crazy, what I love about this one is that through what she is wearing you can tell that she is more of a hipster/artist and it also shows the relationship that Isobel and Nate have.  I'm not a massive fan of books with kissing covers, but I feel like this one still gives you that romantic aspect without being overly gross.  And the font! So lovely and perfectly placed.  This cover is just so - lovely and minimalistic that I completely adore it!  I also feel like it's geared more towards an older YA audience, which I felt that book embodied.  Ah, so lovely.  For my review on Unraveling Isobel click here.

As always, thank you for this incredible idea imlovingbooks.com.  Everyone check out her site! She is such a fun reviewer! (her link is in our sidebar!)