REVIEW: Falling To Ash by Karen Mahoney

I've only read one book by Karen Mahoney before reading Falling to Ash, but I will definitely be picking up her other books, as I've enjoyed both books I've read by her very much. 

I was really intrigued when I heard Karen Mahoney was writing another YA series alongside The Iron Witch series.  I was even more intrigued after seeing the gorgeous cover for Falling To Ash!  And while I am feeling a teensy bit weary of books involving vampires, I found Falling to Ash very readable and slightly addictive. 

Moth is a teenager who recently dropped out of university and has had to try to separate herself from her friends and family ... because she's been turned into a vampire!  Things become even more complicated for Moth as dead bodies start appearing linking the dead to Moth.  Who is killing these teenagers that Moth used to know?  And why are they not staying dead?! 

One thing that I enjoyed  a lot about the book is how Moth's story of how she was turned into a vampire by her Maker, Theo is told in bits throughout the main narrative which is focused on the mystery of local murders that seemed to be tied to Moth's previous life as a human.  I really desperately wanted to know more about this strange relationship between Theo and Moth and I really wanted to know what led up to Theo losing control and turning her. 

Alongside these mysteries of murder and vampire-turnings, there are some really fascinating relationships in this book.  This is definitely what I loved most about the book.  First there's Moth and her relationship with her younger sister.  I love sisterly relationships, and you can tell how much Moth cares about her baby sister and while Moth knows that she should keep as much distance between her human family as possible, it's still really hard for her to turn her back completely on her family just yet. 

There's also Moth and Theo which is just briefly touched on in this book and one that I hope is explored more in further books.  But what is briefly touched on is Moth's insecurity over Theo's behaviours and feelings.  This area of the story both creeped me out a little bit and also fascinated me.  I definitely want to know more. 

Then there is a big one - the beginnings of a friendship between Moth and Jason Murdoch, the young vampire-hunter who is following in the footsteps of his vampire hunter father.  I really liked the very tenuous relationship at the start of the book as both Moth and Jason are wary of each other but know that they both need each other in order to get to the bottom of things.  I found myself also really caring about Jason and his difficult relationship with his father as well.

 I found Falling to Ash a really great start to an interesting series.  There's a real strength here in characters and relationships and mystery.  I want to know more about this story and about Moth and Jason and Theo.  I'm excited!

Top Ten Kick-Ass Heroines

So another Tuesday, another Top Ten list, this time my favourite 'kick-ass' heroines.  And before I go any further, a big thank you to The Broke and the Bookish for hosting such a fab feature.

So, kick-ass heroines.  I was all set to write this list and include all of the female characters I'd normally include if I were thinking of 'kick-ass' girls.  You know the ones - Katniss Everdeen, Rose Hathaway, Tally Youngblood, Katsa from Graceling. Maybe Hermione Granger or Tris from the Divergent series.  And then I decided that I didn't want to do a list of these girls.  I'm sure plenty of other people will be writing about these girls and I think that will be enough.

It was actually in The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead, which I was reading recently, where I read something that made me stop and think.  In it, one of the characters was talking about Sydney and said something along the lines of there are other ways to be kick-ass besides being a bad-ass dhampir like Rose.  So in the same vein, I wanted to create a list of normal girls for the kick-ass category.  Girls from contemporary YA novels, in which none of them have any special powers or weapons training.  None of them are part-vampire and none of them have magical abilities to help them along.  And yet they are some truly awesome women nonetheless.

Here is my list of kick-ass heroines from contemporary YA, and just to make things simpler, they are all from books that I've read in 2012.  Enjoy.

Ruby Oliver from Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart

I want a real life Ruby Oliver to come and be my best friend.  For reals. I think she is super awesome with her sassy ways and her weird fashion sense.  Ruby Oliver is definitely kick-ass to me, she's one of my favourite characters ever written and I am utterly sad to have read the final book in the series about her! 

A lot of struggles in the series were about the boys that have circled around her, but she also deals with a fair dose of what else is important - friends, family, herself, music, sticking up for what's right, having the self-confidence in order to go after what you want, the realisation of knowing what will make you happy and not cowering in the face of not so nice people.  Nothing but love for Ruby Oliver!

Echo from Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

Echo is definitely my kind of kick-ass heroine.  She's going through some rough stuff.  She used to be one of the popular girls in the in-crowd with everything going for her.  And then she's attacked by somebody close to her and afterwards she's left with no memory of the event and nobody giving her any answers either.

But Echo refuses to give up.  So she doesn't have the charmed life she has before.  But with the help of a certain bad boy, Echo continues asking the hard questions, searching for the answers she so desperately needs.  It was very painful at times, reading Echo's story.  I wanted to give her a big hug throughout most of it, but Echo is tougher than she looks and I give her plenty of credit for opening up her heart again after the hurt and betrayal she has faced.

Jeane Smith from Adorkable by Sarra Manning

Ah, Jeane Smith.  She's not everyone's cup of tea, that's for sure.  I've read plenty of reviews along the lines of how unlikeable she is as a character.  Me? I thought she was pretty realistic - moody and emotional and a right cow sometimes. But she's also pretty lonely and dealing with too much stuff for her young age.

I love that she's got this weird fashion sense and that she speaks her mind and that she's incredibly successful and independent.  But that isn't to say that she isn't quite vulnerable at times too and that she doesn't need other people in her life. She quite clearly does.  Asking for help and needing other people? Is pretty kick-ass to me.

Daisy from Saving Daisy by Phil Earle

With Daisy we have yet another broken heroine on my list.  Daisy has gone through some pretty rotten times during the course of this book.  She's lost her father, she's dealing with the guilt of killing her mother.  People in her life that should have had her back have used her terribly.  She has no one left and she's carrying these dark, guilty thoughts.

What I love most about Daisy's story is that bad stuff happens, but things can always get better.  Luckily Daisy has a kick-ass mentor of her own that helps Daisy back to a better place.  But characters like Daisy show us all that we all have the ability to be kick-ass in our own way.  Even if that way is just by not giving up hope.

Cass from A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend by Emily Horner

I really wish that more people knew about Cass and this story.  I haven't seen very many reviews of this book and that is a shame.  I really loved this story and I love the journey, but physically and mentally, that Cass takes.

This book is told in different parts.  On the one hand, we have Cass as she's travelling across country on her bicycle.  Her and her best friend were supposed to take a road trip over the summer but she dies suddenly and her death changes everything!  So on this road trip, we see flashes of Cass and her best friend before dies and we have Cass on this cycling trip trying to deal with her grief and also her confusing feelings about how she felt about her friend.

And in another part, we see Cass as she has come back home after her trip and together she helps this play that her best friend wrote about ninjas and cool stuff. And Cass has to deal with this circle of friends and also Cass' arch-nemesis, the girl who 'outed' Cass years ago. I love how much this book is about friendship and fitting in as well as it is about love and also of confusion about sexuality.  This is definitely one of my favourite books that I've read all year. I really recommend it!

Hazel from The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

I never reviewed The Fault in Our Stars because I didn't think that anything that I have to say about the book would be different enough to warrant yet another gushing review of the book.  It's a beautiful book though, and I love Hazel as a character.  She's brave and funny and interesting and I would love to be best friends with a character like her.

It's really quite emotional, this story.  The idea that this girl is facing her own death from cancer, not once but twice in her short life.  She worries about how her family will cope with her loss by focusing on the characters of her favourite novel.  I love Hazel's observations on life and the other people she knows.  Her relationship with fellow-cancer-survivor, Augustus is unbearably sweet.  I honestly can't think of this story or of Hazel and Augustus with tears coming to my eyes.

Carly from Raw Blue by Kirsty Eagar

It seems that a lot of the girls I've chosen from this list are people who have gone through some bad stuff and have then picked themselves up and moved on.  I really, really believe that doing this is worthy of the term 'kick-ass.'  And Carly is no exception.  At the beginning of Raw Blue she is resigned herself to dropping out of school, working a dead-end job and surfing.  Because surfing is the only thing that allows her to be happy and not obsess over what happened to her two years ago.  Then Carly meets Ryan, another surfer fresh out of jail, and Carly has to decide whether she can do the scary thing and move forward, away from her past. 

When I first started to read this book I really felt like it was going to be a straight forward love story about two sort of broken people, one with terrible memories of the past and the other with the baggage of being in jail.  What I loved about this book is that while Raw Blue does contain that love story, it is more about Carly herself - how Carly is able to take one step at a time to get past the trauma that she suffered.  I love that focus on just her.  

Verity Gallant from Heart of Stone by ML Welsh

It's been awhile since I've said it, but this magical middle-grade series by ML Welsh is one of my absolutely favourite series of recent years!  I LOVE Verity Gallant.  In this sequel to Mistress of the Storm, we see Verity in her seaside town with her friends standing up to more evil.  I love how in both Mistress of the Storm and Heart of Stone, Verity and her friends are up against really powerful, magical and evil beings and they're just regular.  They have goodness and intelligence on their side.  Plus, Verity is tough.  But in her toughness, she still knows that she needs her friends around her.  And I love the friendships that Verity has with Martha and Henry.  I wish I had friendships like these when I was younger and who am I kidding? I wish I had them now. 

One of the things that I love so much about these books are the importance placed on words and books and these Original Stories.  I love that librarians are the biggest force against evil! That made my heart sing.  This book is utterly sweet with a hint of the old-fashioned about it, with strong friendships and adventure and a hint of first love.  Verity and her friends are strong, smart and independent with a strong sense of what's right.  And that definitely makes her kick-ass in my eyes.

Lola from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

I really loved Lola.  Despite having no fashion-sense myself, I really love characters like Lola with a bit of flair about them.  I'm far too shy and uncomfortable in my own skin to make much of a statement and the idea of everyone staring at my outlandish costumes would make my heart pound wildly and my breathing would go all erratic.  But not so Lola, who lives for fashion and for these cool outfits.

But I think what I loved most about Lola is despite the weird clothes, she's very normal.  She's struggling through what we're all struggling through.  Relationship issues, friendships both old and new, what our parents want for us versus what we want for ourselves, wondering who 'ourselves' really are.  Normal girls are still kick-ass!

Anna from Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone 

I almost didn't include Anna in this list because of the element of time travel within Time Between Us, but I figured Anna isn't the one with the magical ability, so she counts as a contemporary YA kick-ass heroine!  And I did so love Anna. 

Anna has been almost nowhere in her entire life.  She's focused on her running and her dreams of travelling the world.  And then she meets Bennett, who is a time traveller from the future.  He has this ability to take Anna anywhere in the world at any time and they fall in love and it's wonderful...

But what I love most about Anna is that she decides not to become that girl who relies on her boyfriend to take her to the places she dreams of, she's capable of doing that all on her own.  She decides not to become that girl who waits around for him in order to be happy.

So there are my top ten choices of kick-ass heroines in contemporary YA.  I'd love to hear who you would choose?

My Big, Fat, Slightly Obsessive American Halloween by Rusty Fischer (Blog Tour for Zombies Don't Cry)

I have the great pleasure today of being part of the blog tour for Zombies Don't Cry by Rusty Fischer.  Zombies Don't Cry is a hugely fun take on zombis.  I love zombies so I was very excited to read this one.  My review will be up soon!

Before I hand you over to Rusty, who is here today talking about Halloween, here is the description of Zombies Don't Cry from GoodReads:

Maddy Swift is just an ordinary girl, until the fateful night when she is struck by lightning and wakes up face down in a puddle. Then it's goodbye to all things Normal – such as breathing and having a heartbeat – and hello to yellow vision and a whole new Afterlife.

Turns out there’s a lot more to being a zombie than shuffling and groaning, but surviving school as one of the living dead requires a totally different set of skills. And things don’t get any easier when Maddy realises that she’s not the reanimated student at Barracuda Bay High . . .

To find out more about Zombies Don't Cry or Rusty Fischer, please visit the following websites:

Zombies Don't Blog ... Rusty on Twitter ... Rusty on Facebook

 

My Big, Fat, Slightly Obsessive American Halloween

By Rusty Fischer, author of Zombies Don’t Cry

When the folks at Electric Monkey asked me to compare Halloween in American with October 31st in the UK, my first thought was… I’m not exactly the right American to ask.

Don’t get me wrong; I love Halloween, but maybe just a little…too… much. I mean, I’m pretty sure most US citizens don’t start listening to scary movie soundtracks in mid-September, or Google “Help! I’ve finally run out of candy corn” in late August.

In fact, my Halloween pretty much starts the minute kids go back to school in the States, which is generally mid-August. That’s when they start replacing the big wall of backpacks and school supplies in the back of Wal-Mart and Target with plug-in jack ‘o lanterns (yes, I own two, don’t judge) and blinking witch’s hats (nope, don’t own any).

I’m not a big Halloween decorator, but a lot of folks here are. People go all out by turning their homes into haunted houses, complete with big, gassy fog machines that you can buy, complete with refillable fog juice, whatever that is, pretty much in any drug store in town from September on.

They have Halloween megastores, too, that open for a few months just to sell giant coffins with pop-up vampires or life-size zombies for hundreds of dollars.

And costumes. Tons of costumes. People go all out with their costumes, particularly the sexy nurse, sexy candy striper, sexy maid variety. Adults have costume parties. I’ve never actually been to one, but I hear they’re cool.

Kids get dressed up, too, and go trick or treating, which is basically where they knock on doors, shout “Trick or Treat” real loud and people give them candy to make them go away.

Folks spend a ton of money on candy here. Fancy trick or treat bags are huge, too. We used to just get them for free at the grocery store when I was a kid a hundred or so years ago, but now they blink and are shaped like ghosts and pumpkins and some even have straps like backpacks with drawstrings at the top to hold more loot than ever.

We live on a street with very few kids and the last few years I’ve bought twenty bucks worth of good candy, we’re talking like Snickers and Milky Way bars and Baby Ruths. And every year, the same three thugs show up – they’re about 15, which is WAY old to trick or treat anyway – around 9 o’clock which is also pretty late for trick or treaters.

Their costumes are lame and my wife is convinced they just get bored and say, “Hey, let’s go con those two suckers out of a Milky Way bar or two.” Which is exactly what happens; they show up just as I’m about to dig into my fourth scary movie of the night and I just want them to go so I hand them the bowl and say, “Play nice and split it amongst yourselves.” Then a feeding frenzy begins but I don’t care because by then I’ve shut the door and turned out the porch light.

My wife isn’t big into Halloween, and none of my friends really are, either, so for me the holiday has always been a mostly solitary affair that mainly revolves around food and scary movies. Most years I’ll make a double batch of popcorn, open a fresh bottle of diet root beer, snag a bag of candy corn (do you have this, candy corn? It’s awesomely gross, FYI) and put on the scariest movies I can find.

Other years I’ll head out to a movie theater and watch whatever is playing, usually one of the Saw movies or, lately, the Paranormal Properties. I generally wear a Halloween T-shirt, one of the five-dollar ones from Old Navy.

I’m lame, I know, but this is my Halloween and that’s how I roll. So, again, I know I’m not typical of most Americans when it comes to this holiday, but I’ve tried to hit on the highlights for you. I hope this helps and, if you’re ever in the neighborhood, don’t be shy. We could go trick or treating together. That is, if I remember how and can afford one of those newfangled trick or treat bags, that is!

Yours in YA,

Rusty


About the Author

Rusty Fischer is the author of Zombies Don’t Cry, as well as several other popular zombie books, including Panty Raid at Zombie High, Detention of the Living Dead and the Reanimated Readz series of 99-cent living dead shorts.

Rusty runs the popular website Zombies Don’t Blog @ www.zombiesdontblog.blogspot.com. At Zombies Don’t Blog you can read more about Rusty’s work, view his upcoming book covers and read – or download – completely FREE books & stories about… zombies!

REVIEW: The Dark Heroine by Abigail Gibbs

The thing about The Dark Heroine by Abigail Gibbs, is that once I started reading it, I just couldn't stop.  I had issues with the characters and the relationships at times but even when these things annoyed me, I still couldn't bear to put the book down.  I really think that that says something important about this book, but it doesn't completely erase all of my misgivings either.

I was really impressed to hear of Abigail Gibbs' writing journey with this book.  Writing the majority of The Dark Heroine at the age of 15 is astounding!  I hope that inspires many more young writers.  

I can tell you, I wasn't convinced by the romance element of the book right from the beginning.  This book begins with our main character, Violet, who on a night out in London with a friend witnesses this horrific mass murder.  A small group of people kills a much larger group of people and it's violent and bloody and I was horrified reading it, let alone witnessing it like Violet does.  When the leader of the winning group notices that Violet is a witness to this whole spectacle, he kidnaps her takes her back to his home in Kent.  There Violet learns that she's just been kidnapped by a prince of vampires and will remain hostage indefinitely. 

That right there?  That whole description and scenario of the beginning of the book does not scream romance to me.  I felt a little bit uncomfortable regarding the whole premise of the book.  I didn't much care for Kasper in the beginning.  There isn't a great deal likeable about him.  He is constantly unpleasant towards Violet, threatening her and biting her against her will and his actions really made my skin crawl at times.  Towards the end of the book, I found myself changing my mind about Kasper at times and as long as I tried to view him in the way Violet does, I found myself not loathing him as much as at the beginning. 

I came to realise my biggest problem with this book isn't so much the romance or the way in which Violet ends up in the position that she does.  My biggest problem with the book is that Violet has no other options aside from Kaspar.  She has no friends throughout the book, she has no family members besides a father and sister that are barely spoken of, she has no support other than that of the strange quasi-relationship she has with Kaspar.  And I really think that these sort of relationships, with friends and family, would have made Violet more human in my eyes.  Because as it is, Violet in this book is a bit empty.  She has occasional bursts of rebellion and can come out with some funny and sarcastic comments and things, but I had very little sympathy for her as a character.  What is a shame, and this is a slight spoiler, is that there was scope to give Violet a friend and a sister-like figure, but they are instead turned into yet another thing that leaves Violet completely alone. 

Towards the end, as we learn a little more about the vampire world-building and of this strange prophecy of the dark heroine, I found my interest returning.  I was definitely more intrigued by this added layer to the vampire/supernatural creatures world than I was with the romantic goings-on and other character relationships. 

I found this entire book to very strange.  Because as I mentioned at the beginning, even though I had numerous issues with this book, at no point did I consider giving up on it.  There is definitely something about this story or the way in which it is written that grabbed me.    Problems or not, it is still a 500 page novel, and I read the entire book in a short amount of time. 

Fi from Midnight Fantasy Book Reviews (Celebrating British Bloggers)

It's Saturday, which means it's time to meet another brilliant British blogger! This week I have the pleasure to introduce you to Fi from Midnight Fantasy Book Reviews... Fi and her lovely blog are recent discoveries of mine, so it's possible that you haven't found her yet either!

If this is the case, please go and rectify that now!  Other ways to connect with Fi are below...

Midnight Fantasy Book Reviews ... Fi on Twitter ... Fi on GoodReads

First, can you tell me something about yourself and your blog?

My Name is Fiona Hadfield but I usually go by Fi in real life and on my blogs I have a cat obsession and am a book horder. My book review blog is actually the second blog I started. My first was a photography blog. I was already hooked on blogging before my book blog was born.

How did you begin being a book blogger?

I started working in a bookstore in August 2011 and I started to research on the internet more for other people who liked books and reviews. This is where I started to find other book bloggers. I thought to myself, 'Doing that might also help with my job' and it really has. It's pushed me to think more, to read different books and try to talk to others more.

When you're not reading or blogging, what do you do with yourself?

I work part-time in a bookstore but I also work part-time with an Animation and Story Concept Studio that is run by some old university friends of mine. I love to draw and I love to do photography when I have the time. I also spend a lot of my non-blogging time travelling to see my fiancée (but not my non-book time. I spend more of my time reading on trains)

What was the first book you reviewed on your blog?

Wow, that's going back a little bit. My first Review was Inheritance by Christopher Paolini. It was a short review because I got so frustrated with the book (took me a month and a half to read! Which is crazy) and I hadn't yet learnt how to arrange my reviews to make them look nice.

What has been the best experience of being a book blogger so far?

Meeting other bloggers and finding out what others are reading and just mainly getting involved more with books. It has opened up a whole new world to me.

You can do it, what is your absolute favourite book?

I have a few that I really love. If I had to pick my all time favourite book it would be Northern Lights by Philip Pullman. I have read it a few times over the years. I first read it when I was sort of 12-ish and my older sister had just finished it. Every time I re-read it I pick up something new from the book I can take away from it. It's just amazing.

If you could be best friends with any fictional character, who would you choose?

These questions are hard! I think I would like to be best friends with someone like Avry from A Touch of Power by Maria V. Synder. Just because she is a brilliant character and the world she lives in sounds so amazing. I love anything fantasy. Plus with Avry being a healer, that might come in handy too!

Name your top 5 UK book bloggers!

I only have found a couple of UK bloggers so far butI do love seeing what they are reading:

Jessica and Donna from Book Passion for Life are great bloggers and reviewers. I'm always seeing what they are reading and they always have interesting things to say. 

Amy from TeenyReader. I think Amy was the first book blogger I actually started talking to. We read similar books so it's always nice to read her reviews and compare with my own thoughts! 

Anstice (aka Tizzy)  from Creative Therapy. She is a lovely blogger who not only likes books but also other creative things which I love too!

Sam from Realm of Fiction. I honestly don't know how Sam finds time to do anything but read! She does great reviews though and I love reading them 

I wish I knew more UK bloggers but these are the only ones I follow! I do plan on hunting down some more!

If you could meet your favourite author, who would you like to meet?

Maggie Stiefvater. Ever since I started reading her books back in 2008/2009 I've wanted to meet her. She is such a funny author who just seems to be loved by people.

What would you like to see more of or less of in YA?

Less Vampires personally. I think they have been pretty much done from every angle. I want to see more thriller's for boys. This is partly for myself but also partly for the people I talk to at work. There is still a big gap in the YA/Teen market for boys books. They simply don't have the same amount of choice girls have and tend to struggle to find more books they life after reading the obvious authors (Grant, Muchamore etc) I'd also like to see more Paranormal books that aren't just a book about falling in love. I want thriller, I want action and adventure. As well as a little bit of romance.

And finally, who is your ultimate book crush? 

OOooo That's REALLY hard. I think it would be Sam from Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. He just breaks my heart and his emotions are so real. I just want to cuddle him all the time. I love him so.


Thank you so much Fiona!  I really loved having you.  I love that you've listed some UK blogs that I wasn't aware of and that makes me happy! Off to discover some new bloggers... I had the pleasure of meeting Maggie Stiefvater once and she is a delight! If you ever meet her, I'm sure you won't be disappointed! :) 

Now for the rest of you! Would you like to meet Maggie Stiefvater? Are you crushing on Sam? Have you read and loved Northern Lights? Let Fiona know in comments, we want to hear from YOU.

At This Point In My Life by Tracy Chapman

Do you ever listen to a song, you might have heard it a million times before, but you hear it again and the song seems to just symbolise your life at the time so perfectly?  That's happened to me recently.

I walk to E's school in the afternoons on my own as the Littlest is at nursery.  And so there I go walking, with my headphones on and my music blaring.  And At This Point In My Life by Tracy Chapman keeps playing while I'm in shuffle mode.  It's as if my iPod knows exactly what I needed to hear when I needed to hear it.  Because At This Point In My Life is a beautiful, beautiful song.  But it also feels incredibly personal to me right now.




And that feeling starts right from the beginning of the song. Lyrics are in italics. My thoughts are interspersed amongst them.


Done so many things wrong I don't know if I can do right
Oh I, Oh I've
Done so many things wrong I don't know if I can do right 

I can definitely relate to that.  Done so many things wrong, I don't know if I can do right.  The first time I heard that recently, I nearly cried.  Because that sort of doubt has always been inside my head.



You see it's been a hard road the road I'm traveling on
And if I take your hand I might lead you down the path to ruin
I've had a hard life I'm just saying it so you'll understand
That right now, right now, I'm doing the best I can
At this point in my life

Right now, right now, I'm doing the best I can.  Yes, yes, yes!



At this point in my life
Although I've mostly walked in the shadows
I'm still searching for the light
Won't you put your faith in me
We both know that's what matters
If you give me a chance I'll try

You see I've been climbing stairs but mostly stumbling down
I've been reaching high always losing ground
You see I've been reaching high but always losing ground
You see I've conquered hills but I still have mountains to climb
And right now right now I'm doing the best I can
At this point in my life  

I sometimes feel as though Tracy Chapman is plucking thoughts and feelings directly out of my head.  I've conquered hills but I still have mountains to climb.  Isn't that the truth?

Before we take a step
Before we walk down that path
Before I make any promises
Before you have regrets
Before we talk commitment
Let me tell you of my past
All I've seen and all I've done
The things I'd like to forget
At this point in my life

This song is feeling, at this point, very much about a relationship.  Be very clear - I don't have any doubts in my own relationship.  But that isn't to say that this song doesn't speak to me in a very important way. About my own development as a person, with my own doubts about my abilities and my thoughts and my experiences.


At this point in my life
I'd like to live as if only love mattered
As if redemption was in sight
As if the search to live honestly
Is all that anyone needs
No matter if you find it

You see when I've touched the sky
The earth's gravity has pulled me down
But now I've reconciled that in this world
Birds and angels get the wings to fly
If you can believe in this heart of mine
If you can give it a try
Then I'll reach inside and find and give you
All the sweetness that I have
At this point in my life

At this point in my life 

I love that it ends hopefully.  I love that she's saying she's been through hard times, and that she's trying.  With a little love and support  and belief, things might just be okay.

Do you ever feel like a single song sums up all of your feelings in a particular time? 

REVIEW: Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake

I feel a little bit late to this party!  I've only just read Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake and the reason that I sought out this book is based on the positive reviews of so many bloggers whose taste I trust.

Despite the amount of reviews around, I still managed to come to this story without much of an idea of the basic storyline. I love when that happens.  And with Anna Dressed In Blood, I was interested right from the start.  I find it really wonderful to read a YA novel from a male perspective as it isn't something I read very often so that was a point in its favour right from the start.

But aside from that, I really found the ghost killing element of the story to be fascinating.  Cas Lowood has followed in his father's footsteps by travelling the world searching for ghosts that he can eliminate using his father's magic-infused knife.  With the help of witchy mother, it's pretty much just Cas and his knife against the murderous ghosts out there who are all set on this loop of death and destruction.  I was absolutely gripped by each and every word of this section of the book, I really wanted to read more.  I could read book after book detailing Cas' experiences hunting ghosts!

But when Cas hears of a ghost nicknamed 'Anna Dressed In Blood' he feels immediately drawn to her story.  There isn't much known about Anna before she became a ghost, only rumours.  But she is fierce and deadly.  She kills every person who enters her old house ... that is, until Cas shows up.  And so Cas sets about finding answers about Anna's life before her death, and in doing so manages to unlock some secrets and mystery that has surrounded his father's death many years ago.

What I loved most about this story, besides the ghost and the scary bits?  Are the characters.  I really felt for both Cas and Anna.  Cas is this horribly lonely teenage boy who has the weight of the world on his shoulders.  He really believes it is up to him to rid the world of murdering ghosts and that is a lot of responsibility on one so young.  He's also being haunted by the death of his father and there's just so little that he understands - about ghosts and voodoo and dark magic.  I really just wanted to give him a big hug throughout this book!  I was incredibly glad that Cas begins to realise, albeit slowly, that he doesn't need to walk this path alone and starts leaning on the friends he has made in this new town.

And Anna.  I never thought that I would feel such sympathy for a ghost who tore a character limb from limb.  But I do.  As much as Anna scared throughout much of this book, I also felt really sorry her and for the circumstances in which she has become this ghost that has done these things.

I'm really intrigued to know that there is now a sequel to Anna Dressed In Blood available! I shall certainly be looking out for it and for more books by Kendare Blake.  I found myself really emotionally attached to the characters in this story.  And there's just enough gore and ghosty creepiness to get your heart racing this Halloween or at any time of the year! I'm very glad that I read this book!

Guest Post: The Locations of Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Earlier this year, I read an amazing book, Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone (read my review here).  I raved about it then and I still rave about it now.  Time Between Us is a beautiful story about two people that never should have met or fell in love, but did. 

I have the great pleasure today of having the author of Time Between Us, Tamara Ireland Stone, here talking about her own travels to the amazing places that Bennett takes Anna.

Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone will be available from tomorrow (the 25th of October) so please look out for it in bookstores!

And if you'd like to know more about Tamara or Time Between Us, I urge you to use the following links:

Tamara Ireland Stone
Tamara on Twitter
Tamara on Facebook



In Time Between Us, Bennett takes Anna to some lovely locations around the world. But frankly, when I began writing this story, I wasn’t sure if I had the expertise to pull it off. Would I remember the details from my own travels? Had I seen enough of the world to write about it?
Until I was 28, I’d barely left California let alone the country. And I was okay with that. My world was small and safe. I knew how much each coin in my wallet was worth. I spoke the language. But then a cute guy told me about trains and hostels and unexpected adventures, and that’s when I started to feel like I might just be missing out on something. Eventually, we took sabbaticals from our jobs, scraped our pennies together, and took off for our first big adventure: Five weeks in Southeast Asia to celebrate our engagement.

 


We started in Borneo. You know, the place from Survivor Season 1. The one with the bugs as big as house cats and monkeys that steal your lunch. We saw a monitor lizard that could have swallowed me in one bite if I hadn’t run screaming. When we snorkeled, I swam away from the fish (in my defense, they had teeth). Even though Borneo was my idea (I wanted to go somewhere that wasn’t “touristy”), I spent most of that week wondering why I wasn’t sprawled out on a sandy beach, drinking a sweet beverage out of a hollowed-out pineapple.





Then we arrived in Thailand. We fed elephants in Chaing Rai. We visited Buddhist Temples built into jungle valleys of Krabi. On Ko Pha Ngan, we read books from hammocks overlooking the sea by day and danced barefoot on the beach during the island’s now-famous Full Moon parties by night. We ate delicious food, drove a rickety jeep in an insane rainstorm, and we remarked to each other how everyone—and I mean everyone—seemed to be smiling. All the time. It was magical. I was bitten by a lot of mosquitoes but I was also bitten by the travel bug.



 

We saw a lot more of Southeast Asia during that five-week trip, and I only have one regret. I wish I could go back to that first week in Borneo and woman-up. They’re monkeys, for goodness sake.
Since then, my travel adventures have been much less daring, but equally memorable. I fell in love with Italy one summer, and specifically with Sienna and the Cinque Terre region.  Over two weeks, we visited castles, saw Il Palio, and met locals whose smiles rivaled those that greeted us in Thailand. Every day, I want to go back.




When I first began writing Time Between Us, I knew I wanted to mix time travel with world travel. After all, if a cute guy showed up at your front door, held your hands, and told you that if you closed your eyes, he could take you to any place on earth, wouldn’t you have plenty of wish-list destinations to keep the two of you busy for a while? It’s a big world.

Quickly, all those fears about remembering Ko Tao or the Cinque Terre or any of the other places that Anna and Bennett visit were quickly put to rest. I remembered everything. Far more details than I had room for on paper.

And I made another important discovery: I learned that writing about the places I’ve been is almost as fulfilling as going back there. Unlike my characters, I don’t possess any supernatural talents, but writing this story has given me a superpower I never expected: I can close my eyes and let my imagination take me anywhere in the world that I want to go.

Where do your travels take you?

Top 10 Books to get You Into the Halloween Spirit

I've decided that I shall take part in Top Ten Tuesday for the near future, it always looks like such fun.  Huge thanks to The Broke and the Bookish for hosting such an interesting feature every week!

This week's theme is books to get you into the Halloween spirit.  And it's a topic that I had been thinking about for awhile.  Last year I only reviewed books that I thought were appropriate for Halloween - spooky, ghosty books or books involving monsters and the like.  This year I thought I would try to do the same.

But it didn't work out.  Turns out that I wasn't really feeling the darker reads for very long.  I did read and enjoy some Halloween type books - Falling to Ash by Karen Mahoney, Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter, Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake amongst others. But I'm still hoping to review those books in the coming weeks, so instead of talking about THOSE books, instead this is the list of books I was *hoping* to read.  Which I still haven't.  I'm hoping that by writing about them today, I shall find my excitement for these books and maybe squeeze in one or two by the end of the month... Keep your fingers crossed for me!

And of course, I hope YOU are inspired as well, obviously. On with the show:

Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr - I have kind of a hit and miss relationship with Melissa Marr.  I really loved the first two books in her Wicked Lovely series and then after that, I couldn't really find my feet with the other books.  I was hoping this book about demons would be just what I needed for Halloween this year, but I still haven't quite gotten to the end of it despite starting it last month!

The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson - I recently downloaded this book onto my Kindle from NetGalley.  I really, really enjoyed the first book in the series, The Name of the Star, so I'm hoping that this book does not disappoint.  I'm not entirely sure what the premise of this book is, now that I think about it.  Ghosts, though, right?  I usually quite enjoy Maureen Johnson's books, so I'm not too worried.  Plus, I'm quite curious to see how the different characters' relationships will pan out in this series.  I have my theories!

The Diviners by Libba Bray - Oh god. This book makes me feel incredibly guilty.  I really feel bad because I was so looking forward to this book.  It's Libba Bray, I love Libba Bray!  And it's set in the 1920s and I love that time period.  And the book was trailer is quite creepy and I do look a bit of creepy.  Unfortunately, this book is like 10,000 pages along and what can I say? I am easily intimidated by chunky books!

The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan - I was really surprised by the first book in this series about zombies by Carrie Ryan.  I really enjoyed The Forest of Hands and Teeth (and I didn't find Mary to be irritating at all) but it wasn't until the second book, The Dead-Tossed Waves that I really fell in love.  After reading that book, I immediately went out and bought The Dark and Hollow Places (in hardback!) because I just knew I'd love it.  I still sort of think that, but I have this problem that I can't get past. And it isn't just this series that I have this problem with ... but I find it very difficult to start in a book in a series that I love in which there is a change of narrator. Is that just me?! It really is just one of those things I need to just get over and I can't do it for the longest time! :(

The Dead by Charlie Higson - Yes, those of you who are aware of this series about zombies by Charlie Higson - this is book 2 in the series, and already published are books 3 and 4, The Fear and The Sacrifice.  I am so behind with absolutely everything.  But I thought the first book in the series, The Enemy was fantastic and I do want to carry on with the series, even though I've been taking my sweet time getting there!

Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts - Ages ago, this book was kindly given to me by one of my favourite bloggers (Sarah from Feeling Fictional) after I commented on her review that this book sounds interesting and that I'd love to read a copy.  Wasn't that nice of her?  I still think it sounds interesting.  And I do feel a little bit under pressure to read it fairly soonish, especially as there is already a sequel out.

Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel - Am I starting to sound like a broken record yet?  Yes, there is already a sequel to this book as well! I bought Infinite Days ages ago, just at the time when I started to feel a little weary of vampire stories.  I knew I was feeling that way, and yet I still managed to buy this book in HARDBACK. And then left it on my shelves unread for such a long time. Must read it.

The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan - I am a bit late to the party with this series!  I only read The Demon's Lexicon last year (I believe?) but I was really interested in the story and with the characters.  I loved the emphasis on the relationship between the two brothers and the importance of language and love.  As I mentioned earlier in the post, my problem with same series-different narrators is my only issue with continuing to read this series.

Shadows by Ilsa J. Bick - I have this book on my Kindle as I downloaded it from NetGalley.  But it's already out in paperback and I nearly bought a physical copy of this book from my local Sainsburys because I much prefer reading physical books rather than e-books.  I didn't though.  I really enjoyed the first book in the series, Ashes, about a girl stranded in the wilderness trying to survive after people all around are transformed into zombies! It was fun and I look forward to this, the sequel. 

Broken by A E Rought - Doesn't this one sounds interesting?  A modern retelling of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein!  I just missed out on physical copies of this book, so have downloaded the e-book onto my Kindle.  I'm really intrigued to see how A E Rought manages to tell this story in a new way.  I am intrigued.

So those are the books I have on my shelves unread that I think will put me (and you!) in the Halloween spirit! Have you read any of these books?  Would you agree?

Review by Kulsuma: Now Is Good by Jenny Downham

Review by Kulsuma from sunshine and stardust

Now Is Good by Jenny Downham is a remarkably emotional story. The story is told from the point of view of Tessa, a sixteen year old girl that has leukaemia. She has been battling with it for the last three years and by the time the novel starts, she knows that her time is running out. Tessa embarks on completing items on her list-ranging having sex to riding on a motorcycle-before she dies. With help from her problematic friend Zoey, her surprising neighbour Adam and her family, Tessa slowly ticks off her wishes and more importantly, learns who she is and what life really means.

I really enjoyed reading Now Is Good. Whilst its major theme is death, it is an uplifting book. It’s a book which makes you appreciate life and realise that we take our lives for granted too often. In essence, Tessa fulfils as many of her dreams as she can in the short time available to her. Narrated in first person, I felt emotionally attached to Tessa and there were a few moments in the book where I cried.

What I loved the most was the brilliant writing. Now Is Good is written in an almost poetic style. Throughout the book, Tessa focuses on the simple, small, everyday things that she will miss; from flowers to Easter eggs. Tessa isn’t perfect and I wouldn’t have wanted her to be. Tessa is real. She is just like any other teenager. However, she is dying so she has more of a reason to lash out and be angry. There was such a complex mix of emotions in Now Is Good.

Furthermore, the relationships in the story were what kept me reading. I wanted to know whether Tessa’s friend Zoey would continue to be there for her. Much like all the other characters in the novel, Zoey has her own issues. Tessa isn’t sure she should pursue a relationship with Adam, not when time is against her. And lastly, can she make her mother take more of an interest in her hospital appointments and so on?

Overall, I really enjoyed Now is Good by Jenny Downham. I felt sympathetic towards Tessa and was interested in whether she would be able to complete everything on her list. I can’t wait to watch the movie adaptation of Now Is Good. I look forward to reading more from Jenny Downham.

I sobbed like a baby reading this book! Thanks for the review, Kulsuma!

REVIEW: Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter

I wasn't entirely sure what to make of Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter at first.  I think, based on the title, and the strapline ('Off with their heads') I was expecting this book to be a straight retelling of Alice in Wonderland but with zombies.  And while there are some similarities which were very fun to read - for instance the white rabbit clouds that signify something important - I think this book stands pretty well on its own.  This being the first book by Gena Showalter that I've read, I think I'll be interested to look out for her other books. 

Alice in Zombieland starts off with this sad and emotional prologue giving little hints about what will happen to Alice and her family during the course of this book and that instantly drew me into the story.  Already I felt a bit connected to the characters.  Having said that, I didn't rush through the first few chapters.  It took awhile for me to fall into the story.

Alice's father is hugely paranoid, not letting Alice and her sister out after dark.  On Alice's birthday, however, she manages to persuade her entire family to go out to see Alice's little sister's ballet performance.  Alice is incredibly happy, to be able to see her little sister do something so well and also that her family are finally doing something normal.  But it isn't to be a happy ending, as Alice's entire family are killed outside of the cemetary and Alice's life becomes something very different.

She moves in with her grandparents and starts a new school.  It is here in the story where things really start to pick up.  As sad as the events are in Alice's life, my one real niggle with the book is that I don't really believe in Alice's grief, at least not at the beginning of this book.  Plus, I just wanted to get to some zombie action or at least romantic action.  And that's when Cole Holland, resident bad boy comes in to solve both of these problems.  I really loved the tension and sizzle between Ali and Cole.  There's something a bit mysterious going on between the two of them and I definitely want to see more. 

Plus, the zombies!  Having watched her parents and little sister die, Ali Bell is pretty determined to get involved and do something.  She wants to know about zombies, she wants to learn to be bad-ass and kill zombies.  In order to do this, she has to trust some rather shady characters and get involved in things she'd never really paid attention to when it was her crazy dad talking. 

There are lots of things that I enjoyed about this book.  First, Ali and Cole.  Their relationship makes this book work for me.  Second, I love the twists that Gena Showalter gives to the zombies.  It's nice to see something familiar like zombies but for the world-building around the zombies be something a bit different to discover.  I liked discovering more about these zombies, including another agency involved besides Cole's zombie-hunting army.  And finally, what I liked most about this book are the secondary characters.  It's always interesting for me when an author manages to change my mind about certain characters.  I loved that there are characters in Alice in Zombieland that I hated on sight at the beginning and by the end, these same characters are some of my favourites!

Alice In Zombieland is a very fun and very loose retelling of a classic children's story.  There's plenty of swoon, heartbreak and zombie carnage in its pages.  I really recommend this book. 

Rosy from The Review Diaries (Celebrating British Bloggers)

It's that time again! Another interview with a British Book Blogger and this week I have the absolute pleasure of introducing you to the lovely Rosy from The Review Diaries!

I met Rosy at an event with Random House and she is a joy to speak with. On the basis of that conversation, I went out and immediately bought a copy of The Night Circus! And Rosy's blog is filled with thoughtful reviews and I really trust her judgement. If you don't follow The Review Diaries, I urge you to do so now.


Follow Rosy:

The Review Diaries ... Rosy on Twitter

 First, can you tell me something about yourself and your blog?

My blog is an eclectic mix of all sorts. It's mostly young adult books reviewed on there, but it's a forum for me to talk about whatever I'm excited about, so there are a lot of tv show reviews and a film review and a soundtrack review thrown in for good measure. Which I guess sums up me as well in a way. I love reading, I love watching (and inevitably getting addicted to) TV shows, and you can guarantee that I will end up obsessively talking about them to/at other people.

How did you begin being a book blogger?

I was working a soul destroying job at an estate agency and was desperate to try and incorporate something more creative into life outside work. I read so many books and then want to talk about them incessantly to other people, so the idea of book reviewing fitted in pretty perfectly with that. I applied to be a book reviewer on another site, and was turned down, at which point my reflex 'fine I'll do it myself' kicked in... But  I'm so glad they did turn me down, I've met so many wonderful people and been involved in so many awesome things that I never would have access to if I hadn't started reviewing this way!

When you're not reading or blogging, what do you do with yourself?

At the moment not a lot else... I'm confined to my bed at the moment so reading, reviewing, writing and watching tv shows pretty much sum it up. Also full time cat pillow should probably be added to my list of talents these days.

What was the first book you reviewed on your blog?

That would be 'Matched' by Ally Condie. I enjoyed the book, but my reviewing skills weren't up to much... I really hope I've improved since then...

What has been the best experience of being a book blogger so far?

Can I pick two moments? The first was when I had my first ARC come through the door, because that was something I never expected at all. I started blogging because I love reading and like talking and sharing opinions of books with others, so for someone to send me a book to read and review was just so incredible and unexpected and I feel so incredibly lucky any time I'm sent a book to review.

The second would be the first Random House book blogger brunch I went to last January. That completely blew me away. It was so great to meet other UK book bloggers and to be talked through some of their upcoming releases, I kept pinching myself because again, that was something I never could have hoped for or anticipated when I started blogging.

You can do it, what is your absolute favourite book?

Oh, oh it hurts, don't make me pick one! There are just too many... Can I do two? I can just about get it down to two at a push...
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Are you sure I can't just take a picture of my book shelves and say 'That one?'


If you could be best friends with any fictional character, who would you choose?

I'm having a bit of an 'Unspoken' fest at the moment, so I'm going to go with Kami from 'Unspoken' by Sarah Rees Brennan. She's intrepid, sarcastic, incredibly funny, and all round awesome.

Name your top 5 UK book bloggers!

Definitely Fluttering Butterflies!
I also love Carly from Writing from the Tub

Lynsey from Narratively Speaking

Sarah from Feeling Fictional

and Viv from Serendipity Reviews

If you could meet your favourite author, who would you like to meet?

I'd love to meet Sarah Rees Brennan. Technically I've met her already at a signing, but she's such a fantastically funny and interesting person I could quite happily site and talk to her for hours. (Or watch TV. Given her tweets, I imagine the live and more than 140 character versions of The Vampire Diaries, Revenge and Teen Wolf would be even more entertaining.)

What would you like to see more of or less of in YA?

If we could have fewer love triangles I would be a very happy bunny. You can't seem to read anything without tripping over one these days and it does get a little bit wearing. If it's done well I love it - take The Infernal Devices, Jem and Will and Tessa is done brilliantly and I love reading it. But then you get others that aren't as good, or it feels like they've just been thrown in there because every books *has* to have one. Less is more guys.

And finally, who is your ultimate book crush? 

I can't seem to read a book these days without finding someone to crush on... Notable mentions would have to go to Jared Lynburn from Unspoken, Nicholas Brisbane from The Lady Julia Grey series, Valek from Poison Study and Sean from The Scorpio Races. But if it came down to a fight it would have to be between Jem from The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare and Brigan from Fire by Kristin Cashore. Although that doesn't seem entirely fair because Jem is sickly and Brigan is bad ass with a sword... But still, one of those two!


Oh, Rosy, I actually burst out laughing reading that final paragraph!  I haven't read Fire, but I still reckon Jem could hold his own in a fight...

Thank you so much, Rosy, for answering these questions so wonderfully!  I do hope everyone comes along to visit you at The Review Diaries!  But for now...

Let Rosy know what you thought of her answers!  Do you agree with her book crushes?  Do you want to see less love triangles in YA? Do you have problems choosing your favourite book? Discuss in comments!