#025 Third Sentence Thursday

Third Sentence Thursday is a nifty little weekly meme hosted by Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books.

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence here or if you don't have a blog, just post it in the comments!

Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions
By Kelley Armstrong & Various Authors
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publish Date: , 2011
Format: Paperback, pp 464
Age Demographic: Young Adult
b&n // amazon

"Until we were four years old, neither of us spoke; we each understood the other without words, and nobody else was as important. There were mom and dad, of course, but they always recognized our bond." (pp ;; 01)

| Giovanni's Farewell ;; Claudia Gray|

A journey may take hundreds of miles, or it may cover the distance between duty and desire.

Sixteen of today’s hottest writers of paranormal tales weave stories on a common theme of journeying. Authors such as Kelley Armstrong, Rachel Caine, and Melissa Marr return to the beloved worlds of their bestselling series, while others, like Claudia Gray, Kami Garcia, and Margaret Stohl, create new land-scapes and characters. But whether they’re writing about vampires, faeries, angels, or other magical beings, each author explores the strength and resilience of the human heart.

Suspenseful, funny, or romantic, the stories in Enthralled will leave you moved.

*Summary taken from Goodreads.

#007 Third Sentence Thursday + #001 Booking Through Thursday

Third Sentence Thursday is a nifty little weekly meme hosted by Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books.

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence here or if you don't have a blog, just post it in the comments!

Radiant Shadows
By Melissa Marr
b&n // amazon
Published Date: April 20, 2010
Publisher: HarperCollins
Book Format: Hardcover, pp 368

"The air did not touch her; consequently, he was unsure if he could." (pp 1)

Hunger for nourishment.
Hunger for touch.
Hunger to belong.

Half-human and half-faery, Ani is driven by her hungers.

Those same appetites also attract powerful enemies and uncertain allies, including Devlin. He was created as an assassin and is brother to the faeries' coolly logical High Queen and to her chaotic twin, the embodiment of War. Devlin wants to keep Ani safe from his sisters, knowing that if he fails, he will be the instrument of Ani's death.

Ani isn't one to be guarded while others fight battles for her, though. She has the courage to protect herself and the ability to alter Devlin's plans—and his life. The two are drawn together, each with reason to fear the other and to fear for one another. But as they grow closer, a larger threat imperils the whole of Faerie. Will saving the faery realm mean losing each other?

Alluring romance, heart-stopping danger, and sinister intrigue combine in the penultimate volume of Melissa Marr's New York Times bestselling Wicked Lovely series.

*Summary taken from Goodreads.

Lock and Key
By Sarah Dessen
b&n // amazon
Published Date: April 22, 2088
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Book Format: Hardcover, pp 432

"Which was probably unfair, but then again, I didn't know my sister anymore, much less her decorating style." (pp 01)

After her mom vanished in a stench of drugs and alcohol, Ruby continued to live in the family house alone. Finally found out, the introspective teenager is sent to the luxurious home of her older sister, Cora, whom she hadn't seen in ten years.

Everything there seems unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and supremely weird: her fancy new room; her lavish new wardrobe; the exclusive private school where she never quite fits in. Most mysterious of all is Nate, the friendly boy next door who seems to have a deep secret of his own.

Another subtle character-driven teen novel by Sarah Dessen, the author of Just Listen and That Summer.

Couple of things, I have enjoyed all of the posts that have been in the various blogs participating in Sarah Dessen Week, and I can't wait to see what else is to be posted. There have been some awesome reviews, teaser's, giveaways, and other things posted that has just been way too entirely fun. I'm currently enjoying Lock and Key and definitely plan on reading Along For The Ride, even if I don't get to start it during this week, at least I got one started.

Also, I'm starting the four book in the Wicked Lovely series, Radiant Shadows and I'm half-worried and just a tad bit ambivalent going into it, since I've seen so many people saying that it was hard for them to get into it. I'm definitely not going to let that deter me, though, because I always want to read it for myself and find out. I've been really enjoying the series from the second book on - not that the first book wasn't any good - it's just I didn't really start connecting with the series until I read Ink Exchange.

Booking Through Thursday is a weekly event hosted HERE, where fellow book-dorks get together and discuss books and bookish type things. Each week there is a theme or a different subject and all you have to do is make a post about it in your blog and then link to the post in the comments section. Easy-peasy.

Do you read books “meant” for other age groups? Adult books when you were a child; Young-Adult books now that you’re grown; Picture books just for kicks … You know … books not “meant” for you. Or do you pretty much stick to what’s written for people your age?

Of course I do, but honestly I don't think that reading young adult books when you're adult is a bad thing, more than I think that reading adult fiction (within reason on content matter) when you're a young adult is either. Actually, to tell the truth, I flip-flopped quite a bit. I remember discovering the world of V.C. Andrews when I was fifteen years old and I absolutely fell in love with not only the books, but that character's that she herself created, the world in which they came from as controversial as her stories were, she told them in such a bold and exciting way that had the power to draw you in and actually make you think about what you were reading, but also held the power to literally dare you to walk a wide ten foot radias around your comfort zone. There I was in my local library holding Flowers In The Attic in one hand and My Sweet Audrina in the other and I've not looked back since and the important thing: I don't regret not one bit.

She took my "like" of reading and literally turned into a "love" of reading. Not that I didn't already enjoy reading to begin with, but she certainly helped to elevate it, it was a bit of a change going from Sweet Valley High and The Baby-sitter's Club to V.C. Andrews. For the most part, I read a great deal more young adult fiction, than I do anything else. But, I also read a fair amount of adult fiction, too. Like, I cannot live without Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse novels and I've been dying to get into Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter series and J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series as well.

#006 Teaser Tuesday + Sarah Dessen Week: Day #02

Since I'm participating in Sarah Dessen Week hosted by the lovely The Reading Housewives and YA Bibliophile, today's Tuesday Teaser's come from two different Sarah Dessen books and also, Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr.

This meme is brought to you weekly by MizB over at Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along, just do the following:

01. Grab your current read and open to a random page
02. Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page, but BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
03. Share the title and the author, too, so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR List if they like your teaser!

Lock and Key
By Sarah Dessen
b&n // amazon

"It was only then that I began to realize what would later seem obvious. That it didn't matter what I said, how carefully I crafted my arguments, even if I used every tool of evasion and persuasion I'd mastered over the years. There was only one thing that really counted, now and always, and this was it. "I don't know," I said. "She's just gone." (pp 15)

Summary: After her mom vanished in a stench of drugs and alcohol, Ruby continued to live in the family house alone. Finally found out, the introspective teenager is sent to the luxurious home of her older sister, Cora, whom she hadn't seen in ten years.

Everything there seems unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and supremely weird: her fancy new room; her lavish new wardrobe; the exclusive private school where she never quite fits in.

Most mysterious of all is Nate, the friendly boy next door who seems to have a deep secret of his own. Another subtle character-driven teen novel by Sarah Dessen, the author of Just Listen and That Summer.

*Summary taken from Goodreads.

Along For The Ride
By Sarah Dessen
b&n // amazon

"Hearing this, I wasn't sure what I'd felt. Not relief, not crushing disappointment, and again, it wasn't a surprise. What struck me, as we sat there, the three of us, in that room, was how little I felt. Small, like a child. Which was the weirdest thing. Like it took this huge moment for a sudden wave of childhood to wash over me, long overdue." (pp 7)

Summary: It’s been so long since Auden slept at night. Ever since her parents’ divorce—or since the fighting started. Now she has the chance to spend a carefree summer with her dad and his new family in the charming beach town where they live.

A job in a clothes boutique introduces Auden to the world of girls: their talk, their friendship, their crushes. She missed out on all that, too busy being the perfect daughter to her demanding mother. Then she meets Eli, an intriguing loner and a fellow insomniac who becomes her guide to the nocturnal world of the town. Together they embark on parallel quests: for Auden, to experience the carefree teenage life she’s been denied; for Eli, to come to terms with the guilt he feels for the death of a friend.

In her signature pitch-perfect style, Sarah Dessen explores the hearts of two lonely people learning to connect.

*Summary taken from Goodreads.

Fragile Eternity
By Melissa Marr
b&n // amazon

"Always in the middle...because of him. And he'd walk away from me for Ash if she'd say the word..." (pp 29)

Summary: Seth never expected he would want to settle down with anyone--but that was before Aislinn. She is everything he'd ever dreamed of, and he wants to be with her forever. Forever takes on new meaning, though, when your girlfriend is an immortal faery queen.

Aislinn never expected to rule the very creatures who'd always terrified her--but that was before Keenan. He stole her mortality to make her a monarch, and now she faces challenges and enticements beyond any she'd ever imagined.

#001 Friday Reads

Friday Reads is another one of those geeky bookish memes, that a lot of my fellow book-nerds and other bookish people support every week. You pretty much just tell everyone what you're reading and maybe if you're feeling froggy, why. If not, it's cool.

So, this week I'm pretty much reading three books at the same time, just in different formats. One is an audio, which I almost never do and have recently decided I'd try out, the other is an e-book ARC that I received through Simon&Schuster's GalleyGrab, and another is a book that I recently purchased Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr. It's the second book in her Wicked Lovely series.

The Host
By Stephenie Meyer
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Publish Date: May 2008
Format: Audio Book
b&n // amazon

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining "wild" humans, is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too-vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Wanderer probes Melanie's thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer's mind with visions of the man Melanie loves - Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body's desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love.

Wrapped
By Jennifer Bradbury
Publisher: Atheneum
Publish Date: May 24, 2011
Format: Digital ARC from Simon&Schuster's GalleyGrab
b&n // amazon

Agnes Wilkins is standing in front of an Egyptian mummy, about to make the first cut into the wrappings, about to unlock ancient (and not-so-ancient) history.
Maybe you think this girl is wearing a pith helmet with antique dust swirling around her.

Maybe you think she is a young Egyptologist who has arrived in Cairo on camelback.

Maybe she would like to think that too. Agnes Wilkins dreams of adventures that reach beyond the garden walls, but reality for a seventeen-year-old debutante in 1815 London does not allow for camels—or dust, even. No, Agnes can only see a mummy when she is wearing a new silk gown and standing on the verdant lawns of Lord Showalter’s estate, with chaperones fussing about and strolling sitar players straining to create an exotic “atmosphere” for the first party of the season. An unwrapping.

This is the start of it all, Agnes’s debut season, the pretty girl parade that offers only ever-shrinking options: home, husband, and high society. It’s also the start of something else, because the mummy Agnes unwraps isn’t just a mummy. It’s a host for a secret that could unravel a new destiny—unleashing mystery, an international intrigue, and possibly a curse in the bargain.

Get wrapped up in the adventure . . . but keep your wits about you, dear Agnes.

Ink Exchange
By Melissa Marr
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publish Date: Reprint (March 31, 2009)
Format: Paperback, pp 325
b&n // amazon

Unbeknownst to mortals, a power struggle is unfolding in a world of shadows and danger. After centuries of stability, the balance among the Faery Courts has altered, and Irial, ruler of the Dark Court, is battling to hold his rebellious and newly vulnerable fey together. If he fails, bloodshed and brutality will follow.

Seventeen-year-old Leslie knows nothing of faeries or their intrigues. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo of eyes and wings, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life.

The tattoo does bring changes not the kind Leslie has dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that are more than symbolic. Those changes will bind Leslie and Irial together, drawing Leslie deeper and deeper into the faery world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils.

#005 Teaser Tuesday

This meme is brought to you weekly by MizB over at Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along, just do the following:

01. Grab your current read and open to a random page
02. Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page, but BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
03. Share the title and the author, too, so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR List if they like your teaser!

Ink Exchange
By Melissa Marr
b&n // amazon

I need to find Leslie. My Leslie, my mercy, my strength, my Shadow Girl...mine. (pp 208)

Seventeen-year-old Leslie knows nothing of feaeries or their shadowy power struggles. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life.

The tattoo does bring changes--not the kind that Leslie has dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that bind Leslie to Irial, a dark and dangerous faery king fighting for the soul of his court. Slowly, Leslie is drawn deeper and deeper into the faery world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils...

Melissa Marr continues her tales of Faerie in the dark, ravishing story of temptation and consequences, and of heriosm least expected.

I'm almost halfway through this book and already I am addicted to this series, which is surprising since it took me so long to read the first book Wicked Lovely. I am seriously drawn to Irial, he's this dark mysterious complicated character with so much depth and layers. I love his drunken addiction, his strange and compelling, dangerously alluring connection with Leslie. My head knows that Leslie and Nial are the two that we, as the reader's, are supposed to be rooting for. My heart, that's another matter all together, for it lies with Irial and Leslie and their connection. It lies with the darker fey king that is trying to feed its Court's soul, so they can sustain life and continue to live whilst not fading and dying and becoming weak. He's some humanity, which he would scoff at himself, left inside of him. There's some strange love that he has for Leslie and it's pure and I have this feeling that they will be spectacularly achey all over and I cannot wait to see what comes next.

Book Review: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Book Review
Wicked Lovely
By Melissa Marr
b&n // amazon

Publish Date: April 29, 2008
Publisher: Harper Collins
Book Format: Paperback, pp 352
Age Demographic: Young Adult

Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in mortal world. Aislinn fears their cruelty—especially if they learn of her Sight—and wishes she were as blind to their presence as other teens.

Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries.

Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer.

Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention.

But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost—regardless of her plans or desires.

Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Faerie intrigue, mortal love, and the clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in Melissa Marr's stunning 21st century faery tale.

About a year and a half ago, I picked up a copy of Wicked Lovely because it was recommended by one of the girls who work at my local bookstore. She reads a lot of the same type of books that I like and enjoy and most of the time her recommendations are always pretty amazing. So, why wouldn't I trust her with this one, right?

The cover of this book is absolutely beautiful, I love the girl with frozen fingers holding a pretty flower with ice crystals all over it. It seemed to signify the overall feel of what the book might encompass. The blueish-purple tint seemed to draw me in, so I took a chance on this not really knowing what I was getting myself into. Even the font of on the cover, was pretty. I kind of like how there were what seemed like vines and leaves sort of coming off the words in the title and it was even that way on the spine.

The extra's, were just an added bonus. Seriously, the playlist that was included was awesome and provided a new reading experience for me, along with the author's reading list, six intriguingly different facts about her that sort of gave you a glimpse into who she is (since this was her debut novel), and a couple of other things including a glimpse of the next book in the series, Ink Exchange.

So, why then, did it take a year and a half to read this book? It's simple, really. The pacing of this book was a bit slow for me and it stagnated in some parts, plus I found it hard to connect with the main character in the series, Aislynn. I liked her, don't get me wrong, but it just seemed hard to identify with her at times. Though, in the end, I was pleased with how she was strong enough to be able to save herself, knew exactly what she wanted, and made the decision that this is how it would be.

Of course, the more that I read, I found myself becoming interested or drawn to other characters such as, Seth who was amazingly loyal and would risk anything for Aislynn, Donia who I sympathized with as far as her love and loyalty to Keenan goes, the Winter Queen who was that villian that you were supposed to hate and I ended up loving because she was so very well developed and written as far as her purpose for being there, and Niall Keenan's sort of advisor and sometimes confidante.

The imagery and prose in which this book was written, introduced me to another world that was completely original and magnificently beautiful. For that, I can be grateful even if it was a hard book for me to get through. It wasn't until around the last 70+ pages or so, that I found myself fully immersed and finally absorbed into the story. I think, maybe I was afraid that it was going to be your basic cookie-cutter standard love story triangle where Aislynn would bow to Keenan and be at his side choosing him over Seth and both Seth and Donia would be literally and figuratively left out in the cold. I'm very pleased to see that the novel didn't turn out like that at all and that Aislynn, after searching herself and realizing exactly what she had to do (that there really wasn't any other choice for her), would end up making the best decision that would fuel a little hope for all of them in general.

I didn't want to be team anything as far as this series goes, because I wanted to be able to enjoy all of the character's for whatever reasons or flaws they may have. But, I can't help but be inspired by and drawn to Donia, as I felt like she was the most realistic, relatable character in the book aside from Seth. I was truly able to feel with and for her, at the same time. Her sadness was my sadness, her burden was my own, and it was easy to see how she could arrive at the decisions she made.

There were good things about this book definitely and of course, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy stories involving faeries and otherworldly realms. I have to say that I did find myself enjoying the melding of the modern expectations and the clash of the ancient rules that seemed to be in constant conflict of one another a great deal. With that being said, there were also a couple of drawbacks when reading the book for me personally.

What I am saying, is read it for yourself and figure out how you feel about it, where you stand as far as certain aspects and elements of the book goes for yourself. I certainly can't speak for anyone else, but at the end of the day when it's all said and done, I did enjoy the book. It just took me a really long time to get to that point. Much longer than I would have liked, honestly. So, for that reason I struggle with how to rate this book.

There were more good qualities that I felt the book possessed than drawbacks and I did enjoy Melissa Marr's unique writing style, beautiful prose and imagery the book presented, so I can be okay with giving it a three star rating easily.

I will be reading and reviewing the next book in the series, so obviously there is something about this world that has me intrigued to find out what happens next.

#004 Third Sentence Thursday + Awesome Blog Design Giveaway

Third Sentence Thursday is a nifty little weekly meme hosted by Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books.

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence here or if you don't have a blog, just post it in the comments!

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
b&n // amazon

For a sighted mortal, it was a truly corageous thing. page 247

Summary: All teenagers have problems, but few of them can match those of Aislinn, who has the power to see faeries. Quite understandably, she wishes that she could share her friends' obliviousness and tries hard to avoid these invisible intruders. But one faery in particular refuses to leave her alone. Keenan the Summer King is convinced beyond all reasoning that Aislinn is the queen he has been seeking for nine centuries. What's a 21st-century girl to do when she's stalked by a suitor nobody else can see? A debut fantasy romance for the ages; superlative summer read.

*Summary taken from Goodreads.

It feels like it's taking me forever to read this book, but it's still really good and I'm committed to finishing it. I just wish it would go a little quicker, though. My only hope is that the series picks up after this book and the pace gets a little better, because the pacing of this book is what's sort of getting to me at the moment or maybe my interests are waning a bit, I'm not exactly sure. In any case, I'm ready to start Angelfire or City of Fallen Angels.

SUPER AWESOME GIVEAWAY SPOTLIGHT

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#003 Third Sentence Thursday + Mini-Rant

Third Sentence Thursday is a nifty little weekly meme hosted by Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books.

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence here or if you don't have a blog, just post it in the comments!

Stolen by Lucy Christopher
barnes&noble // amazon

"No one had ever looked at me like that before, with that kind of intensity." pp 01

Summary: Sixteen year old Gemma is kidnapped from Bangkok airport and taken to the Australian Outback. This wild and desolate landscape becomes almost a character in the book, so vividly is it described. Ty, her captor, is no stereotype. He is young, fit and completely gorgeous. This new life in the wilderness has been years in the planning. He loves only her, wants only her. Under the hot glare of the Australian sun, cut off from the world outside, can the force of his love make Gemma love him back? The story takes the form of a letter, written by Gemma to Ty, reflecting on those strange and disturbing months in the outback. Months when the lines between love and obsession, and love and dependency, blur until they don't exist - almost.

Taken from Goodreads.

I just happened to return some books to the library today, while in town running the gran around for earrands and before heading over to Wal-Mart and noticed this book was sitting all nice and comfy cozy on the shelf just waiting for me to pick it up. They must have just gotten it in, because it doesn't look like they've checked it out. So, yay for me stalking the shelves and whatnot.

So far, I've only read the first page or well scanned, is more like it. I can't wait to tuck in with it tonight and really get started. I was originally going to check out Ink Exchange and try to finish up Wicked Lovely tonight or tomorrow at the latest, but for some reason they couldn't find it on the shelves even though it said that it was available to be checked out. It's kind of odd to me, because I nearly checked it out a couple weeks ago when I was in there picking up some other books. Maybe I should have, they said they'd call me after they'd gone through their shelves and hopefully maybe found it.

I also couldn't find a couple of Holly Black books that I was interested in reading either, which is a bit annoying. The online catalog said they were available, but when we went to find them on the shelves they were not to be found either. I get super annoyed when people steal books from the library or just keep them/deliberately don't return something they've borrowed. It's just really incredibly rude to the other patrons who are honest and turn things in on time and who really would like to read those books as well.

Oi! Anyway, and that concludes this book rant of the day. lol.

Oh, and I'm putting off my IMM (In My Mailbox) post for a few more days, because I know that I have some books coming to me and I want to make sure they get here before I make the post and I have some awesome goodies to talk about. ;)