In My Mailbox

[In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren]

Bought:

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare

For Review:

Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

What did you get in your mailbox?

just sayin,

-Kare

Pure by Julianna Baggot

Description: We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . . Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.

Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . . There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her. 

When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again...


Epic Wins:

• The world- Post-detination, the setting is scary. A bomb that somehow caused things to fuse together. People fused to people, animals fused to people, and even people fused to people. There are unimaginable horrors in this world making it an intense setting, perfect for a story. 
• Pressia- Describing Pressia is hard. She's grown up in a world, in a time where everything is different. She's smart, quick on her feet, and strong. She owns who she is. 
• Partridge- Sheltered, brave, and clueless (to Pressia and Bradwell's world anyway). His story is about opening your eyes and a taking a chance even though it might be dangerous.
• Bradwell- Knowledgeable, fierce, and opinionated. He isn't afraid to speak his mind. 
• Fusing- This was odd to me at first but as I read it became clear just how utterly weird it was. Yes weird but slightly awesome. A bomb that caused object/people/animals to fuse together in such a way that they became a part of one another. Genius, but weird.  
• Pures VS Wretches- This society (or should I say these societies) is in a unique position. One is protected beneath the dome while the other fights for survival in a desolate land but both have issues with in there society and are stuck on the same planet. 
• Message 1: Our scars are our trophies. They scream "I SURVIVED" (not to be confused with "I WILL SURVIVE!") In a way they are like those t-shirts you get at Disneyland that say "I survived (insert ride name)". 
• Message 2: Sometimes out assumptions about life, the world, or people can be DEAD wrong. Question everything. 
• Message 3: Memories are our most prized possessions, spend them well. 

Overall: A painfully real look into one of many possible futures. This book offers courageous characters, a desolate world, and a slight hope for the future. 

just sayin, 
-Kare

Characters Worth Reading About

hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

 Top Ten All Time Favorite Characters In Books

1. Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter Series- Luna is one of those characters who KNOWS who she is and doesn't care if everyone thinks of her as crazy. She's okay with being alone and has this airy way of saying things that make you think. 
2. Kate Grable from Bad Taste in Boys- I can't help but love this nerdy girl. She is smart, a little dorky, and most of all hilarious. 
3. Vera Dietz from Please Ignore Vera Dietz- She's smart and sarcastic and really hard not to be a fan of. 
4. Amber Appleton from Sorta Like a Rock Star- This girl doesn't let much get her down and because of that she is my idol. True? True. 
5. Evie from The Paranormalcy Series- 
6. Sam Border from I'll Be There- There is just something about Sam that I loved. He was humble, which is a nice change of pace in YA books. 
7. Grim from The Iron Fey Series- Grim is just plain awesome. He was never clear about things and he'd pop up randomly through out the series but only when Megan needed him. I remember reading the second one and feeling like I trudging through but when Grim showed up it was like, now the story can begin!
8. Rudy Steiner from The Book Thief- Rudy was an adventure all his own. He was an oddball with a sense of humor. 
9. Natalie Rowan from Babe in Boyland- The situations this girl gets in are so ridiculous,  on top of that the way the she thinks ensures hilarity on like every other page. Aside from those Natalie shows you inside of a boy's mind and how it works.
10. Chloe Camden from Welcome, Caller, this is Chloe- Chloe was such a bright, positive character! 

just sayin,

Kare

Nerd Girl Problems

Daily dose is a meme hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly 

(as always the pictures were found at We Heart It) 

What inspires you?

just sayin,

-Kare

In My Mailbox

[In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren]

So I am getting all settled in Idaho and working my butt off not fall behind in classes yet and I get an email from my head resident saying I got a package. DO YOU KNOW HOW EXCITING THAT IS??? Obviously by the all caps you can deduct that it was way too exciting, or I am just a nerd. Either is fine with me. Anyway I got this book...

For Review:

Shackled by Angela Carling

Description: After shy, quiet Lucy and her family move from their small hometown in Minnesota to Seattle, Washington, she is surprised when Ryan, the most popular boy at school, asks her out. Soon, she is swept up in a whirlwind romance and her naive and trusting nature allows her to fall head over heels in love with her too-good-to-be-true suitor. Suddenly, Lucy finds herself enraptured by the excitement of her new relationship, leaving her blinded to the warning signs of danger ahead. Can her fairy tale romance last, or will she find that her prince charming is more like a wolf in sheep's clothing?

Doesn't that sound that sound amazing?? I think it does and I can't wait to read it! I couldn't find it on Goodreads otherwise I would link you to it but here is an excerpt of it. Shackled Excerpt

What did you get in your mailbox?

just sayin,

-Kare

Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin

Description: Kelsey Finkelstein is fourteen and FRUSTRATED. Every time she tries to live up to her awesome potential, her plans are foiled – by her impossible parents, her annoying little sister, and life in general. But with her first day of high school coming up, Kelsey is positive that things are going to change. Enlisting the help of her three best friends — sweet and quiet Em, theatrical Cass, and wild JoJo — Kelsey gets ready to rebrand herself and make the kind of mark she knows is her destiny. 

Things start out great - her arch-nemesis has moved across the country, giving Kelsey the perfect opportunity to stand out on the soccer team and finally catch the eye of her long-time crush. But soon enough, an evil junior’s thirst for revenge, a mysterious photographer, and a series of other catastrophes make it clear that just because KELSEY has a plan for greatness… it doesn't mean the rest of the world is in on it. 

Kelsey’s hilarious commentary throughout her disastrous freshman year will have you laughing out loud—while being thankful that you’re not in her shoes, of course…

Epic Wins:

• Kelsey- She had an annoyingly positive attitude despite all of the challenges or disasters presented to her. She was headstrong and determined not to have an awful year. 
• The voice was perfect. I kept thinking Kelsey sounded too young but she's starting her freshman year so immaturity, as I recall, is to be expected. I also found after the initial annoyance Kelsey's voice was funny. 
• The 'Unnatural Disasters'- as I said Kelsey faced a ton of challenges through the story, things that twisted her this way and that. Fights with her best friends, trying to figure out guys in general, bad pictures of her in the newspaper, and mean girls with a bone to pick.
• The newspaper photographer- Unintentionally this person continually puts awkward photos of her (weird face, missing teeth, etc.) into the newspaper. I'll let you figure out who this person is. :)
• Her friends- They all had such different personalities but somehow they all got along (for the part). She could always lean on them when needed.
• Message 1- This bug is one, huge metaphor of life. We picture this perfect situation, how we think it should be when reality is usually totally different. We are thrown trial upon trial, right on top of each other, one right after another until we realize nothing went as planned. 
• Message 2- Keep your head up. I mentioned Kelsey's positiveness right? Nothing could seem to get this girl down and mainly because she wouldn't let it. 
• Message 3- Don't over stress things. When you over stress the importance of the little things it can only end in disaster as Kelsey's whole freshman year proves. Breath, relax, and then think. 

Overall: A very funny novel about one girl's disaster of a freshman year. Never said it was a bad disaster...

just sayin, 

-Kare

Been There, Done That

hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Top Ten Tips For New Book Bloggers

1. Don't stress about your followers- Yes followers are important but what matters more is the friendship you gain from those followers, not the number of followers. I remember refreshing the page thirteen times just to see if I had more followers, now I wish I had put more effort into actually blogging. 

2. Remember that your blog is about you- It's not for your followers, it isn't for the publishers, and isn't for the books. It's about you and your love of books. It's your opinion and no one should be able to change that. 

3. Don't always go for hyped books- Some of my favorite books are little-known but spankin' awesome books. Yes I just said spankin', it was really the only word that could fit. (like The Riddles of Epsilon) 

4. Go outside of your reading comfort zone- I've done this numerous times and have been pleasantly surprised at how much I could enjoy a book that I had written off.

5. Experiment with your design- I've had lots of different designs since I started my blog. You are always changing so changing your blog to go with that is not a bad idea. However don't change it every week or even monthly just once in a while. Like after a break (see tip #7), or for a blogoversry, or even, ya know, if some big change is happening in your life (moving for instance). 

6. Find your voice, your groove- *cues music from An Extremely Goofy Movie* It took me a while to find my style but I realized that writing in a list form went with the way my brain works. Everyone is different so you have to experiment, figure out what review style works best for YOU. If you figure that out blogging becomes a tad bit easier, just a tad. 

7. If you feel overwhelmed, take a break- This feeling creeps into us all. We feel like we have too much to do either outside of blogging or with blogging itself. If it ever becomes too much announce to your followers that you are taking a short break. This way you don't have to quit forever and you have time to remember why you started blogging and that it was actually fun at one point.

8. Don't, I repeat, DON'T let blogging take precedent over the rest of your life- I've done this before and I got some pretty bad grades as a result. Remember at the end of the day that it's just a hobby. 

9. Don't just do memes- Memes are great, don't get me wrong, but make sure you have reviews ALONG with those memes. Also find memes that are fun to you. One of my favorite memes is Daily Dose even though it has nothing to do with books. Go find your favorites! 

10. One order of book blogging: hold the drama, extra fun- If you don't insert some sort of fun into the process you'll end up hating it. Also: try to avoid tiffs with other bloggers. My greatest advice is simply, agree to disagree. 

You can totally ignore or embrace these tips but these are things that helped me out along the way. They are  also purely my opinion. 

just sayin,

Kare

Oh Hello Mr. Blue Sky

Daily dose is a meme hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly 

(as always the pictures were found at We Heart It) 

What inspires you?

just sayin,

-Kare

In My Mailbox

[In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren]

For Review:

Revived by Cat Patrick

What did you get in your mailbox?

just sayin,

-Kare

Transcendent: Tales of the Paranormal

Description: Discover the secrets of a siren, fly with a hawk girl over the mountains of Montana, and flee supernatural party-crashers as the décor comes to life in this magical journey through paranormal stories. Along the way, watch for ghosts in a haunted house, or ride through the moonlight with a stranger. Save a comatose boy who has lost his soul, and don’t forget to bring your garlic and wolfsbane—you never know when the shadows will snag you. Transcendent includes eight stories of magic, love, death, and choice by some of the newest names in young adult fiction.

**This book is an anthology so I'll be reviewing it a little differently. For each of the short stories I'll write a bullet point about why I loved it.**

Epic Wins:

• Seduction of a Siren- Love me some Greek mythology plus it has one of those look-deeper-that-the-skin messages. When Trevor sees Ann for the first time after the whole ordeal, that's my favorite part. His mind can't even wrap his head around how pretty she is and what a jerk her was. 
• Feather- I loved watching Feather change, mentally and physically. She went from not really caring about her culture or family history to being swept up in the awesomeness of it. I may have really loved Talon too. 
• Spectre- I loved the creepy feel to this one. It was like the stuff of nightmares brought to life. 
• Shadows of Promise- I liked how you didn't see what was coming until it hit you. Plus ghost stories are always a favorite of mine. Sean was British and sweet and *swoon*. 
• Pumpkin Thief- Ditch a lame party to travel by horse with a pumpkin headed gentleman? Sounds legit. I really enjoyed this one and it's twist on the legend of the headless horseman.
• Strike- I loved the concept of this one; a boy struck by lightning only to be stuck in an MP3 player and one girl's race to get him to his body. Love to see this one expanded upon. 
• Ryan's Wish- The message in this one was cool. If someone you love dies you have to focus on what makes you happy instead of uselessly wish for them to come back. 
• The Kiss of Death- This was a totally new sort of story at least for YA. It brought up not only life after death but life BEFORE birth. It also gave cancer a noble cause and I can't imagine that is easy. 

Overall: These stories were all one of two things A) Amazing in a creepy way or B) Amazing in an adorable way. I totally suggest checking this anthology out, so many good stories packed into a lovely book!

just sayin,

-Kare

Through the Ears of Angela Carling

Today let's welcome Angela Carling!

Me and music we go way back.  The story is kind of interesting actually.  I was raised by my dad for a large chunk of my life, including my teenage years.  He had two teenage daughters to manage all by himself and it was no small feat that we all survived.  Once my sister made him so angry that he actually grounded me for being related to her.  I digress.  I do that sometimes.

Anyway, I grew up on good old fashion rock and roll.  More often than not, it wasn’t the TV blaring at our house, it was stereo.  The rolling stones, Abba, Olivia Newton John, Cool and the Gang, you name it we listened to it.  We watched music countdown TV shows and listened to the top forty count down every week on the radio. I remember closing the blinds as a teenager because my dad was dancing(in my opinion, badly) and I was embarrassed in front of the neighbors.  Music was like air in my house and like air, I didn’t see its affect on me until I was a lot older.  

Now we have to go back even a little farther.  My biological mom was young when she got pregnant with me.  She struggled to decide what was best for me, even tried to keep me for several week.  In the end, she wanted me to have both a mother and father, and she had me adopted.  Ironically, my adopted mother was diagnosed with cancer less than a year after my legal adoption and died within two years.  Do I digress again?  Actually no,  I have a point this time.  When I was fourteen, I tried out for concert choir at my school.  By the next year, I was involved in both choir and Madrigals (a small specialized music group) and music, not just listening to, but also singing and performing, became a huge part of my teenage life. I performed all the way through college.

Now as for writing, I’m absolutely useless if the TV or radio is on when I am actually producing new ideas.  Partly because the music just draws me in, but that does not mean music doesn’t profoundly affect my writing.  Now I have teenage sons and I’m always siphoning off their music and as I listen, my mind come alight with ideas and my heart fills with emotion that gives those ideas depth and makes them powerful enough that my writing can reach your senses and your heart.  The most ironic thing of all is that when I was about sixteen, I was washing the car with my dad and he told me that my biological mother had been a young music major in college when she got unexpectedly pregnant.  

Clearly, music is in my blood and carves who I am, which in turn powerfully affects what I write. Want to hear me sing….I’ll have to think about that.


Thank you so much for stopping by Angela!!

Angela's Book:

Jennie Townsend is unlucky in love, so she is immediately suspicious when a mysterious new student named Nate tries to gain her friendship. But there is something special about Nate, and in spite of her best efforts Jennie finds her feelings for the boy growing deeper every day.

In fact, Nate is more special than Jennie can even imagine. He is a guardian angel, sent to protect Jennie during a most dangerous time in her life. To do so, he must first become close to her - but not too close. The rules for Protectors warn against physical contact and strictly forbid falling in love. But the more time Nate spends with Jennie, the harder the rules are to follow. Will Nate be able to save Jennie from a premature end, or will his own emotions - and Jennie's - get in the way of completing the task for which he was specifically chosen?

With Unbreakable Love, Angela Carling has created a captivating story for young adult readers, with a refreshing twist on relationship issues. It is an ode to the magical power of true love, a tribute to belief in a benevolent higher power that watches over us and surrounds us every day of our lives.

To find out more about Angela and her books check out these links: Website- Blog - Goodreads: Book  -Author - Twitter - Facebook


just sayin,
-Kare

Before: Huh? After: Ooh I get it now

hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Top Ten Books That Were Totally Deceiving

This one was hard for me because I can relate most covers back to their story. So instead I am doing covers that I thought had nothing to do with the story UNTIL I read it.

just sayin,

Kare

Fresh From The Orchard

Daily dose is a meme hosted by Good Golly Miss Holly 

(as always the pictures were found at We Heart It) 

What inspires you?

just sayin,

-Kare