DISSAPEARED! D:

So about 2 weeks ago, my laptop decided it no longer loved me and needed a fresh start. </3
In other words my hard drive CRASHED D:
SO I had to take into the Mac store to have it fixed :/ They say I did nothing wrong, and that the hard drive crashes have been pretty common in laptops recently :( 
As luck would have it, they did finish my laptop about 4, maybe 5 days after I turned it in. 
However, as stupidity would have it, they didn't bother to CALL and TELL me that it had been fixed!
So it took about 2 weeks for me to say "Wow, this is taking WAY too long" and go check up on it, and sure enough, there it is, LAPTOP FIXED. 
Thanks Mac. 
I appreciate that. 
 Well not only was my laptop out of commission, so were my band and World Geography grades, so as per expected, there was some groundings and no blogging happened to be one of them. :/
I also managed to get myself into some family problems I didn't need to get into, so way to go me!
Not.

I'm so sorry about my little vanishing act, and I promise I will definetly try harder to avoid these things in the future!!!

One little exciting tidbit though, I have decided to write my own book!!! 
Of course I've said this to myself quite a few times...
But It's different this time!!
I've been working pretty hard on my first draft and trying to get my ideas straight, and while I'm no where near finished with it, I am SO excited at how far I have gotten!! 
Even though it makes me want to bang my head into a brick walls and become an arsinist.
 :P

ANYWAYS. 

That's really all I have today :) I'll be trying to do a review tomorrow afternoon over one of my recent lovelies, and here soon I'll be trying to add some cool little things to my blog like, Swoon worthy Thursday, Stacking the shelves Saterday, and Waiting on wedensday and trying to get my baby blog of the floor and into the big, blogging world!!! :D

-Courtney

Review: Die For Me by Amy Plum

Before I start this review, I just want to apologize for my absences!! School has been really crazy these past couple weeks! I promise to post when I can though!

Die for Me by Amy Plum

Publisher: HarperTeen

 Publication Date: April 3, 2012

 Rating: 4 stars

Summary:

My life had always been blissfully, wonderfully normal. But it only took one moment to change everything.
Suddenly, my sister, Georgia, and I were moving to Paris to live with my grandparents. And I knew my life would never feel normal again. Then I met Vincent.
Mysterious, sexy, and unnervingly charming, he put me in danger of losing my heart all over again. But I was ready to let it happen . . . until I realized that Vincent Delacroix is no normal human--that he has a terrifying destiny and enemies who are determined to destroy him and all of his kind.
Can I risk everything for love?

What I liked:

I really enjoyed Kate's character in this book! I loved how perfectly Amy Plum captures the feeling of losing yourself in art! 

All the characters were pretty well developed! They were funny and quirky, they were serious and reasonable, I can not tell you how hard that is to find in a YA book these days! Most of the characters are hotheaded and immature and under-react over the big things and then lose their minds over the small things! It's insane!

NO LOVE TRIANGLE! Granted there is some attention thrown Kate's way by another guy but, so far anyways, she sticks with only Vincent and ignores the other guy!

And finally, I LOVE the fact that Kate didn't just dive head first into her relationship with Vincent! She considered the Pros and Cons of being with him, she thought about how her relationship might effect her and her family!

What I didn't Like:

I feel like Kate and Vincents relationship didn't really grow into what it became. It felt like the same old Love at first Sight with a slightly reasonable twist. It was the same thing with Jules's feelings for her. One minute he's all hostile and rude, and the next he's all flirty and friendly, and your left thinking What... the...?

I really would have liked to have seen more of Georgia's character! Or known more about her. I liked the supportive sister relationship that Plum described to us, but I feel like I didn't see it. 

Other than that though, I really enjoyed this book and would definately reccomend it! 

Rating: 4 stars 

Cover Reveal!

Made of Stars by Kelley York

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Publication Date: October 2013

Blurb:

When eighteen-year-old Hunter Jackson and his half sister, Ashlin, return to their dad’s for the first winter in years, they expect everything to be just like the warmer months they’d spent there as kids. And it is—at first. But Chance, the charismatic and adventurous boy who made their summers epic, is harboring deep secrets. Secrets that are quickly spiraling into something else entirely.

The reason they’ve never met Chance’s parents or seen his home is becoming clearer. And what the siblings used to think of as Chance's quirks—the outrageous stories, his clinginess, his dangerous impulsiveness—are now warning signs that something is seriously off.

Then Chance's mom turns up with a bullet to the head, and all eyes shift to Chance and his dad. Hunter and Ashlin know Chance is innocent...they just have to prove it. But how can they protect the boy they both love when they can’t trust a word Chance says?


*     *     *

About the Author!

(Image and author info from Goodreads

 

Once upon a time, Kelley York was born in central California. And it's there she she still resides with her lovely wife, step-daughter, and an abundance of cats, while fantasizing about moving to England or Ireland. She has a fascination with bells and animals, is a lover of video games, Doctor Who, manga and anime, and likes to pretend she’s a decent photographer. Her life goal is to find a real unicorn. Or at least write about them.

Kelley is a sucker for dark fiction. She loves writing twisted characters, tragic happenings, and bittersweet endings that leave you wondering and crying. Character development takes center stage in her books because the bounds of a person's character and the workings of their mind are limitless.

Visit Kelley York's Website!/  Kelley on Facebook/ . Follow Kelley on Twitter. / Kelley on Goodreads./ Kelley on Pinterest.

Preorder Made of Stars on Amazon or Barnes&Noble.

Review: Flirting with Maybe by Wendy Higgins

Flirting With Maybe By Wendy Higgins 

Publication Date: March 5, 2013

Publisher: HarperTeenImpulse

Rating: 4 stars

 When sophomore Ryan "The Kid" McPhearson makes the Varsity baseball team, he finds himself submersed into the life of upperclassmen, and falling in love with senior Brooke Bennet. To Ryan she's his dream girl, perfect. Maybe to the outside world a two-year age difference doesn't matter, but this is high school. Everything matters.

Ryan soon realizes Brooke's life is not so perfect. He becomes her closest friend, her safe place to fall when she needs to escape. Ryan seems to be benched in the friend zone with no chance to bat.

Time is both a curse and a blessing. It ushers Brooke away to college, and Ryan into the arms of his first girlfriend. It alters Ryan from a kid to a high school graduate, ready to venture to college himself. But when Ryan sees Brooke again he realizes there are some things even time can't touch.

Though much has changed, one question still remains. Will the things that mattered in high school always stand between them?

What I liked:

I originally got this novella for the first chapter of Sweet Peril, but I got so much more! This book was so cute!  

The story is written in 3rd person and is told mostly written from Ryan's perspective, which I thought was absolutely perfect! I fell in love with his character almost immediately, his love for Brooke was so unconditional and true, loved it!

Wendy Higgins did an excellent job in creating the characters of Ryan and Brooke and showing their love/connection. 

I really don't know what to say about this one! It was cute and short, I loved it!

What I didn't like:

The ending was somewhat abrupt (Though she did post an epilogue that really ties things up!) You get a decent idea of what happens next, but there's still a lot of uncertainty. Other than that, I loved everything!

Would I Recommend this Book to Someone Else?

Yes!

Review: Elemental Shining by Maddy Edwards

Elemental Shining by Maddy Edwards

Book 3 in the Paranormal Public series

Publication date: December 6, 2012

Rating:3.5 stars

 

Summary:

 sophomore year at Paranormal Public is anything but relaxing for Charlotte and her friends as they return from the summer break to face new challenges.

Battles come from every direction, and as the demons swarm Public it becomes clear that they want more than just the last elemental dead: they want to wipe out every paranormal, and they are within reach of a way of doing it.

Charlotte is the only thing that stands between the paranormals and destruction.

 What I liked:

First, I just want to say that I  really LOVE this series and the story. I enjoy reading about Charlette and all her friends (Especially Keller) and all of their adventures and I'm really disappointed I couldn't give this book a higher rating.

I love the characters in this book! They are so well developed and so awesome! I love Lisabelle and Sips constant bickering and sarcastic comments, they really help to brighten up the overall tone of the book. And Keller, well Keller's just awesome, lets leave it at that. 

This book was action packed and I loved that! 

Maddy Edwards scars you a couple times into thinking that there is going to be some sort of love triangle, but don't worry, there isn't! Keller and Charolette remain true to each other the entire book! :)

What I didn't Like: 

There are WAYYYY too many problems in this book. So many that you arn't entirely sure what the main conflict of the book is supposed to be! And a lot of the problems were completely UNnessasary (yes I'm aware that this word is spelled wrong. Deal with it.) Such as another girl after Keller, really? Did that need to be there? And Keller's family, mostly his aunt, trying to keep them from being together? REALLY unneeded.

This book was supposed to be about the Map of Silver, but I feel like it really wasn't. In fact, in the end, you really don't know much about the map of silver or it's safety.

This whole book just felt like it was stuffed with unrelative information and problems.   

Second off, I am SICK of hearing about the damn pixies. Seriously Maddy, just kill them all off or something, because I'm done reading about how Camilla has lost her mind or how disappointed Charolette is about Cale always listening to her. This is another unneeded problem.

I was really confused about the details in this book. It was really simple things like, one paragraph Charolette is standing up, and then in the next Keller and Sip are helping her up. What? 

There's a whole lot of telling and not enough showing. 

Keller keeps telling Charolette that he would be "lost without her" (no seriously, he says this like 50 times.) But, honestly I don't see it. In fact, you really don't see that much of Keller in this book. Like he present in a lot of the scenes, but, he never truly contributed to any conversations, he's supposed to be this badass paranormal, but he doesn't do much in they way of coming up with plans or helping Charolette. I hate to say it but, his character was pretty useless in this book, as though he was only there to look sexy and love Charolette and nothing else.

And finally, a lot of things were repeated or reexplained through out the book. Such as to what the Map of Silver does and what it could mean if it fell into the wrong hands. This was explained to Charolette at least 3 times in this book and every time she acted like it was something new. It wasn't.

This book was really confusing in a lot of ways, but most of the time you really have no idea what Edwards is trying to explain or reexplain, and there is some confusion about who one character is, because Charolette keeps calling him different names. 

Overall this book was just more build up to the final showdown that should be showing up any book now.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes, if you have read the first 2 books, read this one! It's still a really good book despite all of it's flaws. 

Rating: 3.5 stars

   

Cover Reveal: Violet Dawn by Lynn Rush

Violet Dawn is the second book in the Violet Night trilogy.
A very suiting name as you can see :)

Anyways, the cover!:

Violet Dawn by Lynn Rush

Book Two of the Violet Night series

Publisher: Crescent Moon Press

Publication Date: April 1, 2013

 

Summary (from Goodreads):

 

In the darkest place, the Light shines brightest.

Emma’s love saved Jake from life as a vampire. But their happily ever after is threatened by a savage Vamp seeking retribution for destroying the Avenos Trinity of Evil.

A mysterious stranger enters the mix, coinciding with the first Vamp attack in months. Emma’s new friendship, and the suspicion and deceit surrounding it, further drives a wedge between her and Jake.

To complicate things, Emma is bitten by a Vamp with abilities no one has ever seen before, and that bite has left its mark.

A mark that might tear Jake and Emma apart forever…

 

Add to Goodreads

 

 About the author:

Driven to write, Lynn Rush often sees her characters by closing her eyes watching their story unfold in her mind. Lynn Rush is a pen name that is a combination of two sources – Lynn, the first name of her mother-in-law, who passed away and Rush –since the author is a former inline speed skater and mountain biker. All of Rush’s books are dedicated to Lynn, her namesake, and a portion of the proceeds benefits cancer research and awareness.

 

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Pinterest | Amazon | Newsletter



 
 

Wait For You by Jennifer L. Armentrout

 

Wait For You By Jennifer L. Armentrout

(Writing as J. Lynn)

Published by: J. Lynn

Publication Date: February 26, 2013

Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary:

Somethings are worth waiting for....

Avery Morgansten has traveled thousands of miles away from her home town in hope of out running her past. 

But somethings you just can't escape. 

Avery can't forget what happened at the Halloween party 5 years ago- an event that changed her life. But as long as she is on time to her classes and her bracelet hides her wrist, she;'s just fine.

That is until all 6 feet and 3 inches and blue eyes of the swoon- worthy hottie Cam Hamilton rocks her world, making her want things she never thought she would. She knows she should stay away from him, but he's everywhere. As it becomes clear that avoiding the simmering tension that sparks when their around each other is impossible, Cam brings out a side of Avery she didn't know she had.

Somethings should never be kept quiet...

But when Avery begins to receiving threatening e-mails and phone calls forcing her to face her past, keeping silent isn't so easy. When the devastating truth comes out, can she resurface this time with 1 less scar? And can Cam be there to help her, or will he be dragged down with her? 

Somethings are worth fighting for...

What I liked:

This book is a WINNER. As in, forget to feed your pets and children, let the plant die, call in sick at work and avoid church just so you don't have to but this beautiful piece of work down, and then you'll do it all again next week so you can re-read it too!

 This is my face the whole time I read this book:

(Though not QUIET as cute, it was pretty dang close.)

HOLY SNAPKINS. This book is sexy, funny and down right touching.  

it made me want to laugh, cry, yell, and jump with joy all at the same time. I'm so taken with this one! 

Straight from the beginning you have a pretty decent idea of what happened to Avery at that Halloween party that changed her life so much, but the author drops just enough hints and creates enough air of mystery to make you wonder if you're on the right track or not. It draws you in and holds you there until you finally know all the big secrets in this book. (and trust me, there are PLENTY.)

There were enough twists in the book to keep the plot going, but not so drastic as to change the whole story, keeping it interesting and not in the least bit confusing (though some things could be elaberated on)

I really don't want to say to much about Avery and her story, but I will say it is heart-wrentching and will stick with you for a long time after you finish it and have you wanting to strangle some fictional characters while you're reading it.

This book is mostly centered around Cam and Avery's relationship, and I am so glad it was. I could not, and probably never will, get enough of those 2 (especially Cam). Their relationship was so witty and cute, it was just perfect, and at some points, realistic. Another few people I will never get over are Jacob, Ollie<3, and Brit. These 3 are SO funny and I really hope I get to hear more of them later. 

What I didn't Like:

Honestly, there isn't much I didn't like in this book. It was every thing a true romantic could ask for in a book. I was witty, fun, touching, SEXY, and total awesome sauce. 

Though, I will admit that the book was a tad bit drawn out, and boring at times. While the air of mystery was thrilling, it also grew a tad bit annoying to be reading about some great big secret 70% of the way through the book that you still don't know.

Overall though, Wait For You is a thrilling, heart-wrenching, tale and I will most definetly be reading this one again soon.

Would I recommend this book to someone?

Yes! This is a type of story I believe everyone needs to hear at least once in their lifetime. Though, due to sexual situations, I would only recommend this book to a mature young adult.

Rating: 4.5 stars: This book is going to stick with me like glue for a long time! Definetly on my favorites list!

Review Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

Sweet Evil By Wendy Higgins

Book 1 of the Sweet trilogy

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publication date: May1, 2012

Rating: 5 stars

I actually read this book in 2012 a couple of months after it came out while I was on a summer vacation, and absolutely could NOT put it down, and by the end of 2012, it was still my favorite book of the year! Wendy Higgins is a genius with this one!

Summary(from Amazon): 

Embrace the Forbidden
What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?  

This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.
Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She's aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn't until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He's the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.
Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

What I Liked:

   What DIDN'T I love about this book? This book was SO good on SO many different levels. For one it is a very plot-driven book, a rare find in YA fiction these days. 

I very much enjoyed the balence between the main charector and the love interest, Kaiden, and the actual conflict of the book (Anna finding who and what she is)

      Another part of this book I enjoyed, was getting to see Kaiden and Anna's relationship grow. In so many YA books, the love interest and the main charecter, just fall into Lust and Love and all of the above within the first 5 days of meeting each other, and you never get a true understanding of WHY the 2 charecters love each other oh so much. But in Sweet Evil you get to know ALL the charecters and why they were loved so much.

        The idea in this book is a deep, cleansing, breath of fresh air in YA paranormal. This idea is so original and so new, that you really can't help but to be sucked in!

   And finally, the humer. This book was just straight up funny sometimes. But it was also serious where it needed to be.

This book in total, is just absolutely amazing. There is no doubt about it. I'm nearly speechless when it comes to this one.

What I Did Not Like:

Really theres only TWO things I did not lke about this book:

#1.   One of my only problems with this book was Anna's father. Anticipating the 2nd book, I'm not wntirely sure whos side he is on. I never really got understand why Anna loved him so much, other than the fact that he's her dad. I really would have liked to get to know his character better in this book, and am disappointed I didn't. I hope to see more of him and his story in the next book.

#2.   I did not likethe time wasted on Anna pinning over Kaiden. While I didn't exactly NOT like this part of the book, I do feel it could have and probably should have, been shorter.

Over all, this was my mind when I read this book: 
 
  

 Would I Recommend this book to someone?

OH YES. Go buy this book RIGHT NOW. Or borrow it from your library and ask for it for your birthday. I don't care, just get this book. It's SO totally worth it.

 Rating:

5 stars. one of my favorite books of all time.