Feature and Follow Friday: New York New York

Parajunkee / Alison Can Read

FEATURE & FOLLOW FRIDAY

Once you answer be sure to leave me your link so I can follow you back

Chelsea Handler

Q: We are about to see a lot of posts and tweets about reader conventions, RT, BEA, ALA, and many more are starting soon. Which one would you love to attend? Where and why?

BEA in New York!! I saw pictures of last year's convention, and fell in a trance. I can even tell you what I would wear. Not to mention that this year's convention will be attended by Chelsea Handler and Veronica Roth.

Who's with me??

Review: Fate's Fables

Imagine getting thrown into another world where your only means of survival is using your creativity. Both challenging and fun, T. Rae Mitchell created a wonderland that will delight many. 

The opening of the book was slightly confusing. In fact, it felt more like a prologue since we are introduced to someone other than the main character in a complete different setting. But the story quickly picked up when Fate took over. She is very direct and humorous, rewriting unexpected endings to the fables. 

One of the things that impressed me more about this book is the countless types of characters Fate encounters: Goblins, Trolls, Sorcerers, Fae ... the list is long. And if like me, you cannot live without romance, you will not be disappointed. His name is Finn and he has a Scottish accent. Prepare to be swooned.

Top Ten Tuesday: Pre-Blogger Days

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Pre-Blogger Days

BookCupid was started in December 2012 -- not so long ago -- which gives me an ample choice of books to pick from. So to make things interesting, I chose books that I read before I became a blogger that were out of my regular reading genre.

1. If I stay: Sad, depressing books always made me look the other way. But I received this one as a gift and was hooked from the first sentence. Since then, I am less selective.

2. Heist Society: Honestly, I thought this book would be more middle-grade, with a Nancy Drew raised by Robert De Niro type of character. Again, I was very wrong. This book couldn't be more exciting.

3. Going too far: I loved this book. It steered away from Mary-Sue clichés and gave us a character that was sarcastic and strong.

4. Clockwork Angel: I read this one before City of Bones and fell in love with Cassandra Clare's writing. The book is pretty lengthy, but the pages turn themselves.

5. Lockdown: I couldn't put this book down; a teen locked in an underground jail for a crime he never committed.  Oh, what a plot.

6. Shark Girl: The very first poetry book I've read. Heartwrenching and poignant.

7. Midnight Sun: Okay, so I cheated by including a manuscript. But believe it or not, this is how I found Goodreads. There is a long petition in the discussion section for Stephenie Meyer to finish this book.


Can't wait to read your top ten.

Review: Level 2

What happens after we die? There are so many possibilities and Lenore Appelhaus gives us plenty. The idea of a second level, a sort of limbo between life and death, intrigued me and I was rooting for Felicia to get through the next level at any cost. 

But all she wanted was to find her boyfriend Neil. How could she have been certain that he was dead? And why did she refuse to view the memory of how she died knowing he was with her that day? Wouldn't you want to know how you died?  

I couldn't help feeling that the second part lacked depth. It was rushed. A lot of characters were introduced (Victoria was completely forgotten toward the end). And somethings like Felicia's hacking skills left me puzzled. 

Having said that, I would read book two and search for the answers this book did not offer.

Feature & Follow Friday: Gobsmacked

                                         

FEATURE & FOLLOW FRIDAY

How lucky to be featured this week. I'm excited, and hyped, so let's get this show on the road. Once you comment be sure to leave me your link so I can follow you back.

Q: Have you ever read a book that you thought you would hate --? Did you end up hating it? Did you end up loving it? Or would you never do that? 

Oh, I judge -- and unlike Judge Judy I don't get paid for it. It's the cover or the length that sometimes gets me doubtful.

Last year, I helped a friend teacher organize a science fair, and to thank me a fifth grader gave me a copy of Stargirl. Neither the cover or the premise gave me an idea of what I was about to read. Had the student actually read it? I don't know. What I do know is that I loved it.

It's about loving yourself, not caring what others think. Something not easy to do in high school. I'm happy the student passed the book along and plan to do the same.

Review: Wild Children

Does a ten-year-old know right from wrong? The idea isn't that far-fetched. Children do need guidance but by then parents should've been able to provide them with some values. The problem is that as we start getting older, we will test many of them.

Wild Children is divided into acts, all staring a different character while rotating familiar faces. We experience what it feels to become wild -- half/human half/animal -- depending on the fault the child commited. And sometimes, like in the case of  Coo and Jinx, we see how they can make up for their mistakes.

I felt a strong connection with the characters, particularly Bray, as they are all well written and don't deserve what is happening to them. Although, I found the narrative too long, forcing me to put the book down at times, and wish more dialogue had been included instead. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Crushes

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Book Crushes, my favorite subject. This was a no-brainer. Here is my top guys that make me wish I was fictional. Each of them shares a very important quality I look for in a man.

Athletic: Dimitri Belikov from Vampire Academy. Imagine learning how to fight from a pro.

Respectful: Daniel Bianchi from The Gathering: He is the kind of friend you want to have by your side.

Funny: Fred and George Weasley from the Harry Potter series: A sense of humor in a man is always an important asset.  

Leader: Elder from Across the Universe. As the series progresses, so does his ability to lead a whole spaceship filled with people. Remarkable.

Protective: Four from Divergent.  What I like about him is that he is ready to help Tris but at the same time he doesn't try to control her. 

 Assertive: Jace Wayland from The Mortal Instruments series. He is not afraid to speak his mind and stand up for himself.

Reliable: Peeta Mellark from The Hunger Games. The way he is always there for Katniss makes me swoon. He has principles. 

Caught my Arrow # 11

Caught my Arrow is a meme similar to In my mailbox and  Stalking the Shelves featuring books that were purchased, borrowed or received that week.

Had a crazy week, filled with egg hunts, painting, and baking. Oh, yeah!! Sadly, I didn't get to purchase any books. But I did receive a surprise in the mail.

I received for review a copy of Altered by Shawnda Currie.

And borrowed Demonglass from the library.

What are you reading this week?

Review: The Friday Society

Charlie's Angels meet steampunk -- at least it tries. The one thing I love about Charlie's Angels is the bond the girls share but in this book, Michiko, who didn't speak English was left out which was odd because if anyone really had a reason to go after the bad guy it was her.

Adrienne Kress

The action scenes were suspenseful for a reader needing an adrenaline rush. And the chapters cleverly marked as 9 1/2 or 9 3/4. Adrienne Kress appears to be a very sophisticated writer in this picture and her magic rubs off on the trio of girls. I enjoyed reading about their gowns and fashion taste. But unfortunately the romance lacked depth with several gratuitous kisses that turned this BookCupid off.

Will there be a sequel? The ending seems to hint at it.

Hello Bloglovin'

Spring is here, time to clean and spruce up the blog.

With Google Reader getting shut down this summer, I decided to add bloglovin' to make sure I could keep in contact with all my fellow bloggers. Also wanted to wish you all a Happy Easter!!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Feature and Follow Friday: Caught in the Middle

Parajunkee / Alison Can Read

FEATURE & FOLLOW FRIDAY

Once you answer be sure to leave me your link so I can follow you back

Q: Tell us about the most emotional scene you've ever read in a book -- and how did you react?


The book is called The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. And there is a scene where Susie Salmon (a ghost) holds her father's hand in the hospital and her brother holds the other while the father lingers between life and dead. Both children want to claim the father on their side. Please Live -- Please Die --

I was crying the whole time!!! Which is strange for me since I usually laugh whenever I encounter something emotionally uncomfortable.

Review: Wicked Lovely

Fairies are both wicked and lovely. 

Personally, I've never seen one, unless I mistook it for a butterfly. But the ones in this book couldn't be mistaken for anything: they are human size. They feel love, hate, regret ... very much like we do. And at this moment, they are feeling pain. There is a savage battle between Winter and Summer Fey that for some reason puts, Ash, a regular high school girl in the middle. 

To be honest the Fey were given such a bad rep in the story, that I couldn't see them as anything other than an enemy. Even Donia, a sad and tortured Fey, couldn't get my sympathy. She was too passive. Instead, I concentrated on the on/off relationship between Ash and Seth, which sadly lacked depth as well.

Hopefully, the Fey are given better attention in the second book, Ink Exchange.