Review - Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Page Number: 308 Pages
Overall Rating: 5 Stars

The Hematoi descend from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi pure-bloods have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pures.
Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, but especially rule #1:
Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.
Unfortunately, she's crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn't her biggest problem--staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

    I'm going to start of by warning you: DO NOT bring this to places where other book nerds are. They will hurt you and you will probably get locked out of a room (*cough, cough* RILEY. *cough*) Not that it totally isn't worth stealing, because, in the opposite place, I would be locking people out of rooms, too.
    It's an awesome book. The entire story is deep and thought-out and amazing. It's a book full of jokes, don't get me wrong, but it was emotional, too. Honestly, that's probably the best quality of this book. It's balanced.
    Alex is hilarious and extremely relatable. I re-read things that she said a couple of times, because I say those things and didn't think anyone else did. Which was creepy, but very cool. And Alex is brave beyond belief. She says things, does things, even thinks things I would never have the heart to do. But that doesn't always mean that she doesn't regret her actions. She's a good person. That's more than I can say about a lot of people I know in real life. She isn't self-absorbed or spoiled. Ultimately, she's real. It wouldn't be the same book without her personality.
    Caleb might've been one of my favorite characters in the book. He was loyal and made me laugh. And, in the end, I think he really proved himself a good friend to Alex. Even though Alex is an only child, I kept picturing her and Caleb as siblings.
    Aiden. My gosh, Aiden. Talk about a swoon worthy character. And that may or may not have happened several times. That is for me to know and for Alex to not find out. Because, you know, I don't want to find out what titanium tastes like any time soon. But really, really swoon worthy. Did I mention that I'm Team Aiden? That is all.
    Seth had his moments. He was mainly annoying, in a sibling rivalry sort of way, which is why, as of now, Team Seth scares me. Maybe in Pure, but I hope not. Once again, Team Aiden. *coughs awkwardly* Nobody try to kill me. (Tiffany...)
    I fell in love with the entire world. That may have something to do with my love for Greek Mythology, but maybe not. Either way, I really, really love the setting of the novel.
    Also, please excuse me while I go sob over Alex's mom. I won't go into detail, since it's fairly spoilery, but oh my gosh. Alex has gained tons of respect from me there, because that would be SUCH a hard thing to go through.
 
    Also, Jen, I'm starting a fanclub. You've found your first intense fangirl. Just saying. But seriously, I have a feeling that Half-Blood is gonna be HUGE. And I know other people do, too. If it wasn't, would you have people locking other people out of rooms so they could read it? Exactly. You see my point, right? So, continue writing kickbutt stuff and people will continue spazzing in cars and scaring their aunts. :)

Songs I listened to while reading:

Review - Bumped by Megan McCafferty

Bumped by Megan McCafferty


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Amazon
Page Count: 323 pages
Overall Rating: 5 stars

When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Up to now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend, Zen, who is way too short for the job.
Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.
When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.

 
    When I heard what this book was about, I was a bit squeamish. Laugh at me if you will, but it was a book about pregnancy and sex, and well, I didn't know how far the book would go. I can handle the idea, but I don't want any descriptions. I'm just not comfortable with that.
     However, after seeing positive review upon positive review, I opened my mind to it a little bit. I thought about it for a while, honestly. I wasn't sure about what I was getting myself into. I didn't want any bit of the awkwardness that I knew would come if the contents weren't what I hoped for. I placed my order on Amazon and waited. I read the first bit of it, carefully.
    I'm pleased to say that, after about three chapters, I devoured the rest of it.
    It was interesting and disturbing at times. It wasn't disturbing because of anything that was dirty, really. It's just, in this world, there are nine year-olds strapping on fake bellies and gushing about how fertilicious they look. It's disturbing because those things are considered normal in this world. For the same reason, it was interesting.
    I'm not going to grin and bear it and say that this novel was squeaky clean, because, obviously, it wasn't. There was a lot of language in it, mainly (fairly harmless) semi-dirty phrases. They are, of course, referring to sex, but in this novel, a lot of that is used as compliments and joking taunts from friends. There was one scene that did make me feel a bit uncomfortable, but it really wasn't that bad. I'm sure a lot of people could handle it with no discomfort. I'm just a five year-old. 
    I really enjoyed the alternating POVs. I think if the story would've just been told from Melody's point of view, or Harmony's, it wouldn't have been as strong. I am one to believe that we end up taking the side of the character who narrates the story. If you had taken sides with either twin, it would've made them out to be the bad guy and that's not what the story is about at all.
    All of the characters were lovely, even the ones who were the bad guys. They all seemed to have deep roots and history and reasons. Gosh, I adore it when characters have reasons for what they do, especially if they are doing something wrong or bad. I really hate it when villains are evil just because. That's not the case here. All of the characters have some sort of history, whether it be that they have a mysterious religious past, they were raised to be a surrogate, or they were married at a young age.
    Something else that I enjoyed seeing, though it may sound dark and strange, is that the main characters had guilt. I know a lot of books today are fine with having their characters react accordingly, but it was somehow refreshing in this novel. I sincerely believed what they were feeling and thinking. I could see myself thinking and feeling those things, if I were in that scenario.
    Something that did annoy me, not enough to lower the rating, obviously, was that occasionally there were words that had been changed for some reason. I assume it either to exaggerate how the word is being said, or how the written word changes as time passes. For example, I noticed that instead of "really" there was "rilly." This didn't happen often, and it wasn't a total replacement. I believe it happened about five times.

   I really do hope that you give this book a try. I did and I was quite happy with the results. It's an awesome book. I recommend it one-hundred percent.

Songs I listened to while reading:

Review - Meant to Be by Tiffany King

Meant to Be by Tiffany King

Goodreads Link
Amazon Link

169 pages
Overall Rating: 5 Stars











  I really enjoyed this book. There's something about it that just sucked me in and made me want to curl up and read at supersonic speed. It one of those books. You know, the one where you pick it up, read the first couple of chapters and have to be dragged into bed? You know, the book you can't possibly tear yourself away from; the one where you need to go get something to eat or drink and you just keep thinking "I'll finish this page and then go do it."
  Tiffany is a total sweetheart. She emailed me a copy after I tweeted about wanting to order it soon, but my mom said I'd have to wait because I had too many on their way and that I would drive the mailman insane. Silly mother, I give the mailman a challenge. I think he enjoys those. :)
  I read most of this in a day, and I do mean most of it. I read two chapters then was told to go to be because it was getting late. The next morning I woke up, ate breakfast, and read all but 3-4 chapters and then had to leave or I would be late to a friend's party. I came home, dead tired, and my brain was divided; one half, the one I like to call "Thinky Brain" wanted me to sleep. The other half, the one I like better(hehe) and call my "Reader Lobe", kept screaming "FINISH IT! FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENSSS!"
  I listened to my Reader Lobe (and payed for it the next day. Still yawning. Well worth it, though.) and finished Meant to Be. And, omigosh, I loved it. I haven't read a book that fast since I first got into YA novels(I'm a total junkie for them, now.)
  For those of you who follow me on Twitter, you probably noticed that I was yelling at some guy named James on there. That pertains to this story. I will say nothing else. Just read it.
  And for anyone who thinks I'm being full of it; Yuh, not so much. I'm ordering a signed paperback copy of it soon.
  This book throws a lot of cool stuff into the mix; suspense, repeating dreams, teen angst, true love, and lots of other awesomesauce.
  I adore the love elements in this novel. It's all very intense and devoted. Mark's a total dreamboat up here in my Reader Lobe(Shh, don't tell Krista!) and he's such a sweet guy. That's how their entire relationship is: Sweet. It does, of course, has it's struggles.
  There were some grammatical errors, mainly just typos, but I'm quite impressed with it seeing as how it's a self published novel. It's definitely opened my eyes to the world of self-published authors. Note: I love you guys! You don't take no for an answer and you make your own dreams come true! Self-published author lovee! :)
  There's not much else I can say. I really loved it. I definitely recommend it.
  I cannot wait for the sequel!

Review - Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

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Goodreads Link

Page Number: 398 pages
Overall Rating: 5/5
  
"More than the sound of my own beating heart, I miss the sound of a ticking clock. Time passes. It must pass." 


  I have one thing to say: I LOVED IT! L-O-V-E-D I-T! I ell-oh-vee-ee-dee it.
  I just loved it.
  There was something about this novel, the idea of it, that became very close to me. I have no clue why, because I obviously have not been frozen for multiple centuries and then re-awakened on a ship where everything is strange and calm.
  Perhaps it was all the emotion in the novel that sort of...sunk into me while I was reading. That's how this novel is. You don't just read the words, you feel them.
  Beth Revis is also amazing at descriptions. Her writing gives me so many mental images of miraculous things, such as grav tubes and floppies. You know a novel is good when after you read it, you can tell someone what something (as far as I know..) original to the novel looks like in your head.
  The plot is wonderful, twisting and bending until you see some light. Although, apparently someone is holding a lamp up, because you may see some light, but it could be wrong. Correction - it will be wrong. And when I say this, I mean it.
  While I was reading, I had a suspect list(not unlike Amy's.) and I was scribbling in it for the duration of this novel. I thought I had it figured it out, too. I didn't.
  And that's the craziest part; I had the suspect and why they did it, how they got away with it, and everything. I have to admit, I felt proud of myself. I felt like I was in a crime drama, but in space where everything was unusual.
  I think it was about thirty-forty pages before the end(Not the actual end. The part where the whole 'whodunit' was solved.) that I realized what had actually happened. And it was there all along, hinting.
  If I was forced to complain about something, I guess it would have to be the entire 'love-factor'. There wasn't that much going on here with that. Don't get me wrong, it was there. I just would've liked to see a bit more of all of that. It isn't a romance novel; it's a mystery. 
  I loved how everything was so incredibly deep and never-ending. There was always something new to discover. Beth Revis is a genius for making this work so well. I think in another's hands it would be disastrous.
  Beth Revis, you deserve a medal. I think I would've lost my mind trying to write all of this and have it make sense.
  I can't rant about this any longer, I suppose.
  All in all, I hope you'll read it. I loved it and it was a very interesting and wonderful thing for me to read.

Review: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

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Goodreads Link

Page Number: 470 pages
Overall Rating: 4/5

"You just don't know.

But I think that's a good thing, really, because if you did know it would be almost impossible to let go. When you do know, it's like being asked to step off the edge of a cliff: all you want to do is get down on your hands and knees and kiss the solid ground, smell it, hold on to it." 






  Yes, this novel came out a year ago. Yes, I just read it. Yes, I live under a rock. I hate to admit it, but it was one of those books I saw, heard people talking about it, but I wanted to be stubborn and not read it. I was missing out.
  I think this novel has taught me to read a book before I ever judge the character. I thought Sam was going to be annoying and snobby, which she was at first, but this novel isn't the sort of thing where it's focused on defeating a villain. This novel was about change.
  I'm not sure what it was, but this novel was new to me, refreshing. I read so much paranormal romance, the kind of books that are sprinkled with vampires and werewolves and pixies. Reading something new, something I hadn't read in a long time, was good for me.
   I guess my point here was, Sam was obnoxious and mean at first, but throughout the novel, she undergoes this amazing change. She learns from everything and grows, flourishes.
   I don't know what to say about this novel. It left me breathless and a little watery-eyed, but it's one of those things you have to read to understand if you'll like it or not. You can't just rely on someone's review over the internet with this one, because it involves some thinking on your part.
  I don't what it is with Lauren Oliver's writing, but she has this way of seeing into your soul with her writing. The emotions her characters experience are familiar, even though I've obviously never been in their shoes. I think that's what makes me enjoy her novels so much. The characters are so realistic and normal, and what makes them different from yourself is what they're going through. It's very easy to put yourself in their places and really step into the store.
  This novel is one of those in which you inevitably step back and take a look at yourself while you read. You think about something you've said to hurt someone, whether you meant to or not. You remember all the times someone did something to someone and instead of speaking up, you let your own laughter mix into the chorus of taunts. You feel your cheeks go red as you recall being bullied by someone else, wishing that someone had spoke up for you. Then you feel guilty for realizing you had never done the same for them, so why shouldn't they stand and point and laugh at you? You realize that you've forgiven someone too many times, and that you've given out second (and third, and fourth, and fifth) chances that weren't deserved.
  This is a book that will make you get to know yourself again.
  I recommended this book to anyone who likes emotion and thought. If you're the sort of person who just hopes for hour long make out scenes, this isn't for you. This novel doesn't focus on any guy. Its about Samantha Emily Kingston and herself. If you want a girl who's life revolves around some guy and how much she's in "love" with him, this isn't the novel for you.



                                                                 

 

Review: Premonitions by Jude Watson

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Goodreads Link 

Overall Rating: 3/5

"This time I am certain."

  This wasn't the sort of novel I usually read, but I'm glad that I picked it up, regardless of whether I liked it or not. It helped me understand which genres. I like best and which I should avoid.
  It's a mystery, one that reminds me vaguely of CSI. I would point my finger at someone, absolutely positive that I was correct, but the story would bend into a new lead. At the end, it all snaps into place, causing you to slap your forehead for not being able to to get it right earlier.
  Gracie is completely perfect for the book. She's somewhat cynical and mean, but when you think about her life, you would be too. Gracie is clever, determined, and gifted.

  Diego was good, although he got on my nerves sometimes. The author made him just a bit too perfect, but perhaps that was the idea. He was important to the story, however.

  Shay was pretty awesome, as well. A bit overly protective, sort of paranoid, and food obsessed were some of her little quirks that made her interesting. And though Gracie would disagree with me, she's definitely the mother figure of this novel.

   The storyline is one that you must sit down and read, or else you lose the depth of it all. It's difficult to get into if you don't pay attention.

  Overall, it was a good book, but not my typical cup of tea. Perhaps someone who likes mystery novels would enjoy it more.

The Wide Awake Princess - Review

 The Wide-Awake Princess by E.D. Baker

WARNING: Things highlighted in Black, like so example  are spoilers. You'll have to highlight them(such as if you were going to copy and paste it) to see what they say. This is so that people who dislike spoilers won't have to see them if they don't want to.

  This was a very cute book, but it also had tinges of maturity and action in it. Some parts you had to think about, while others were sweet and lighthearted. I don't remember finding any plot holes, but some parts were sort of...airy.

  I did enjoy reading this book, although at first glance it looked like a book for a nine year old. I suppose it was all the pink on the cover, mixed with the swirly scrawling of the word "Princess." It isn't much anything like I expected it to be. I half expected Annie to be very whiny, the princes to be arrogant,(Which some of them are, but in an entertaining way, I guess.) and the witches and beasts to be thrown into a horrible stereotype and not taken anywhere.

  Annie, however, was not whiny, not in my opinion at least. She had a very pure heart, never thinking of herself as better than anyone else, and was brave. Her main concern was always helping someone else, whether it be her sister or lost children. 

  Not all of the princes were narcissistic, in fact two of them were very nice, and one wasn't too horrible. Another wasn't vain at all, in fact, he was quite self conscious and a little bit dark, but his past was sad and his behavior was reasonable. Two princes in particular, though, got on my nerves a lot. Both were horribly full of themselves, one even going as far to pinch Gwendolyn when he kissed her in hopes it would wake her.

  The love story in this was quite sweet, to the point where I giggled slightly at certain points and did mental "Aw's." 

  Liam was charming and quite protective. I very much liked his character. 

  Overall, I was happy with the ending. Everyone found happiness and the kingdom was at peace.

Bad Girls Don't Die - review

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender





  First off, I'd like to recommend this book to you if you like ghost stories. I loved this book so much, and I think it may be in my top five favorite books of all time.

 "I crept down the hall to Kaysey's room. Inside, the only light was a faint slant of yellow spilling in from the hall, illuminating a little display of threadbare rag dolls on the other side of the room. When my eyes had adjusted and the lumps of blackness had taken on furniture shapes, I began searching for her bookbag."  

  Warning: There may be some spoilers in here, but I'll keep it to a minimum. 

  This book is fantastic. I couldn't put it down, not for anything. 
Dinner's ready? Be there in a minute. 
Brielle, come with me to the store? Lemme finish this chapter. 
There's a flaming cat outside my door? That's nice.
   Personally, my favorite chapter was probably everybody's least favorite. It's the chapter where the doll is trying to get Shara to kill herself and and her daughter. Shara pushes Megan out of the door, overpowering the doll and saving her daughter.
     Alexis, the MC is humorous, memorable also. I love her thought process and her obsession with photography. She isn't a girl you'll easily forget, and it isn't just because she has pink hair.
  Kaysey, Lexi's sister, is the perfect mix of creepiness, charming little girl, obsessive freak, and bittersweet sibling. She's your average little sister, except for the fact that she's been possessed by an evil spirt, who's hell-bent on revenge, even if it means murder. Kaysey seems very real, so much that while reading the book, I wanted to save her. I wanted to smack her when I found she did something stupid.
  The only thing I disliked was her relationship with Carter Blume. It does take a very long time to get anywhere. Sorry, hopeless romantic. *Cheesy grin*


 So go out, grab yourself a copy of this book, and curl up on the couch and read it. When you get finished, tell me what you thought of it.