Book:Changeling

Philippa Gregory. Almost any fan of Historical fiction is familiar with her name. Most famous among teens for the film based off of her novel of the same title The Other Boleyn Girl that stared Natalie Portman.
After seeing the movie Other Boleyn Girl, I was very interested in Philippa Gregory's writing. While the Other Boleyn Girl wasn't my kinda book I found Changeling to be more up my alley.
However much I did enjoy this it did little to thrill me.

The stand feature of the book for me was the way it dealt with the  religion. Religion is always a tough subject to tackle due to its highly personal nature. Which is why it is important to note that I am not a religion person however I did really enjoy the story. I found it very interesting and was handled very well. I think that anyone of any religion would find the book interesting and insightful.
Another part of the book that I did enjoy was the historical aspects of the book. While I can not vouch for how actuate it is to history.
There was only two stand out issues for me in the book. One was the love story. While I'm pleased with the way it was handled through out the book at points I found my eyes rolling skyward.
By the love story aside I was pretty pleased with the characters. I understand that this is the first book in a series so I will go easier on the characters than I would if this was a stand alone.
Over all an enjoyable read if you can look past it's blemishes. Fans of historical fiction however will not be let down.

( YA- 13 and up)
Stars: * * * 3.4

Book: Elusion

I wanted to read this book right as soon as I saw the cover. But when I heard that it had already been picked up by I believe Warner Brothers for a film adaptation; I knew I had to read it!
When I first started the book I was totally drawn in! One thing that I loved the most about this book was the pace. Before I knew it I was almost done with the book.
However there was a hand full of things that I displeased.  First was while I Regan alright I found her to  very 2D. And was quite let down by that.  The world around Regan was so well built and went much deeper than I thought it would, I was hoping for the same from Regan. I wanted to see the differences in her that were caused by the world around her and the events that took place within the book itself.
Now that's not to say that was wasn't a good character - she was just very standard- but I felt like the author played it very safe with her and all the other characters.  The character I liked best was Patrick or Regan's Mother. Something about the two characters even though they were small characters something about them was just so interesting, and makes them stand out.
However what I found the most interesting about the whole book was the world of course Elusion ( Elusion i the book is like a this virtual reality).  While it all really reminded me of Into The Still Blue.
So over all I found the book to be good it's biggest plus was the pacing but everything else seemed to be very standard and pretty much your normal  YA Sci-Fi.
I think that many of my readers will adore this book and find it to be a favorite. But I think that other will be sadly let down with it.
I can't wait to read the next book and am interested to see if/when things move forward with the film.

(YA-13 and up)
Stars: * * * 3.2                                   LEVEL: WAIT FOR PAPER BACK




I was given a copy of the book by the publisher for an honest review. 

Book:The Elite

I loved and adored The Selection. It was one of the most enjoyable  YA books I have read over all.
THis book was not like that. I was so let down with this book on the whole.
I felt like nothing really happened.  Two much of the book was spent on things that didn't matter. What would have been much better is if more of the  book had been on the been spent on the politics of the book. I would have liked to have learned more about the world. Or more about the the other girls. That would have been awesome. I would have liked it much more than america trying to find out who she loved and how she felt about things.
But stil there was something too the book that I liked. I did like how we learned more about some of the characters and how points in the plot got deeper. I did like the things that we learned about some of the characters. The added details about them really helped bring the world alive.
 But still I would loved so much more from the author. After being blown away by The Selection I was let down with this book.
Over all it could not live up to the selection but still was a good read and left me very excited for The One.

( YA - 13 and UP)
Stars: * * * 3.4                                   LEVEL: Reality TV

Book: Sapphire Blue

I was so happy to get my hands on this book! I loved the first one so much! If you have not read this first book stop reading this review and get it! Ruby Red is the first book that have truly loved since harry potter and The Narnia series. It was everything a book should be.
With this book I was very hopeful that it would be as good as the first. But I was also very worried that this book would be a huge let down. As I said this is the first book I have really felt that MAGIC spark.
 And I am proud to say that this book was just as good. Some how it is just the right mix of everything. Something that I love in this book is how that is not all about the love story. The love story is just kinda there. Which was nice because I have a guy friend ( who also blogs here from time to time) also read this book and liked that about it. It is so nice to read a book about that is about the story and not just the love story. Is it to much to ask of YA to be about the story and to have a good hero at the same time? Most of the time yes it is to much. But this book gives me just what I am missing. And believe me it is such a nice feeling. I like the love stories and all. But there is nothing quite so good as a book with a good story and flow to it. And that is something that this book has. I feel like anyone would read these books and like them. There is a reason that these are international best sellers.
Reading the book I have to say I really like Gwen. There is a very fine line to walk in YA when it comes to the main character. And though Gwen might not be the most original I still really liked her. She has a very normal way of looking at things. And she is very funny too.
And I love how with this book I never see what is going to happen next. The flow to it was so different from the other books I read.
There is just something so magical about the book.  If you have not read this series it is the only series that I think all my readers should good a chance.

( YA-  13 and up )

Stars: * * * *  4. 4                                                   LEVEL: Almost - not quite Harry Potter magic

Book: Timepiece

So for those of you who read the  Hourglass review know how much I loved that book. And while this book was good it did not have the same spark to it that Hourglass did. 

One high light of this book was that it was not from Em's point of view but from Kaleb's. Now while I did not like Kaleb all the time and I found that his character  flawed.  I liked how he was broken and because of that he spent a lot of time feeling for other people. I know it was part of his power but he spend much of his time thinking about other people. When things were hard for him he focused on the people around him rather than himself.  Did he lack something that makes him stand out from the other boys in YA.But what I liked was seeing Em from someone else's point of view and getting to know Lily better.  And I also really like to read books from the male point of view.

I liked how Kaleb's and Lily's story. Though it felt that things were a little weird with how Lily did not pick up on Kaleb having a crush on Em.  Being a girl and knowing what good friends Lily is with Em, I'm pretty sure that Em would have told Lily, that Kaleb was crushing on her. 

I had very mixed feelings on the rest of book over all. I liked the story of this book but found the pacing  to slow and to fast at the same time. It moved to slow for 3/4 of the book. Then at the very end right when I was getting in to it everything moved way to fast giving me way to little of what I really cared about. Without giving anything way I found the end twist, and then the finale scene/part with Kaleb's family moved way to fast. There are so  many things that I cared about and wanted to know from Kaleb's point of view! But the author did not give them to me! 

Over all the book was a bit of a let down but I'm still keeping my hopes up for the book.

( YA- 13 and up ) 

Stars: * * * 3.4                          Level: TIME RIP. 

Book: Contaminated

I try my best to write honest reviews that are fair. I do my best to try to find the book in a book and not to go hating on it because a lot of work was put into it. Doing that with this book is going to be very hard but I will try to do my best.

First off the book was made up of mostly back story. About 3/4 of the book was back story. Backstory is okay a lot of writers could use more of it. But having backstory over power your whole book to the point where I can no longer see the plot is a major problem.
The next problem was Velvet. While I did like how strong she was, there was just so much to her that was missing. And I found the love story in the book to be just like everything else. Nothing new was brought to the table. And with a book like the this you need strong, well crafted characters to bring it up, and make it readable.
At times the way that the book did not follow the norm of most zombie books there were many points while reading it that I wish it did. A zombie book needs acton and horror. This book had none of it. It just kept going endlessly. I found that I had to talk myself in to picking up the book to read it. I really don't want to be a rude and nasty reviewer but had I not been reading this book to review it, I would not have finished it.
One thing that was good was the author's writing. I have a feeling that is why the book got published because the story and the characters fell very flat. I hope that in the future the writer of the book can keep up the points  of her writing and fix the problems with the characters, story, plot, and setting.
Over all I can not recommend this book when there are so many other great ones out there to be read.

( YA 13 and up)

Stars: * 1.3                      Level: Rather Be ZOMBIE 


I was given a copy of the book by the publisher. This did not in anyway effect my review or thoughts on the book

Book: The Dark Unwinding

This book is yet again one of the those books that I just had to pick up because of the cover. I feel in love with the clockwork,Downton Abbey like house and beautiful blue dress.

Though the book had it's bumps and little problems over all I think that it had lots of good points and was worth reading.  Some of the bumps was the way things at times that I felt should have been made more clear were not. And thing about them being made clear was it felt like either Katie was not smart or that we had to read between the lines on everything. And I myself found that to tiresome very fast. At other points the passing of the book was a little off. To fast then to slow. And up until the end those were the only problems - I will go over the end of the book in minute - that I had. 

The characters were over all pretty realistic for the time. I really liked Katie and found that for the most part she kept a good blance in the book of being smart without pushing it. And there were little things here and there about her that were different from so many of the girls in YA. She was more level headed and pulled together. In someways it made me think of Nancy Drew - in the way that she was so pulled together and thought things through. 

Also one of the biggest pluses of the book ( which I sadly did not know until the end) was how much of it was based/inspired by a real life duke! Which just adds to the coolness of it all. 

The thing that has me still a little mixed on the book really is the end. It's hard for me because some parts of it I liked and others I would really have liked to seen done differently.  But over all I think that the book was pretty good and that fans of The Sweetest Dark and Downton Abbey as well if that makes any sense.

( YA 13 and up)
Stars: * * *  3.4

Book: Magic Under Stone

I could not wait to read this book! Finally there came a small break in my reviews for me to read this. 

At first I could not wait to jump right back in to the story and I had some pretty high hopes set up for this. 

This book started off really well and went on they way for a while. I found myself yet again lost in the magic of the world. But then as I was reading somewhere in the middle the story just seemed to have hit a wall.  It stopped moving along and the whole feel of the story changed. It lost its wonderful fairy tale epic feel and just became a little old fairy tale. And I found myself over all let down with the book. 

It seemed that everything I had loved about the first was not here. The ending to the book was the biggest let down of all. I read both books leading up to something that was rapped up all nice and pretty in 15 pages.It was rushed and half put together. Trying so hard to be a happy -ever- after that it was just a flop of an ending. And  I was very hurt with that. I wanted more.  I had been very in to the book and it just ended! Leaving me with nothing really to think about or hold on to. It had me feeling pretty glum about the book.

So all the characters from the first book were wonderful and really stayed true to who they were while still growing and changing in believable ways. As for the new characters that were added ? I did not care for them much at all. They felt half made. Like something was missing.  I could honestly not have cared what had happened to them. Violet I felt should have been rewritten or pretty much cut from the book. Her character was just a pill to read about and I did not care what happened to her at all.

Over all only read this if you want to see how the story ends.  What could have been done to make this book better? Epilogue! I would have added another 15 -30 pages to clean up the end give us some action and show us how all the characters had changed from when we had started the book. 

( YA - 13 and up ) 

Stars: * * 2.9

Book: Hush ( Mini review)

This book sounded right up my alley. I mean I'm a huge fan of these kinds of stories. Princess. That one word gets me every time.  But I have to say that this book was mixed feelings for me. Though I liked it a lot and found it to be a really fun read I did not fall in love with it. It was good but it never went past that for me. I did not love the story here but I found the rest of the story to be pretty good. I liked the characters in the book. My only problem with them was that they felt and sounded like everyone else in YA. That is something that is really starting to bother me with YA. if you want us to like the book give us something different not just in story but in characters as well.
None the less I liked this book. I think its really cool that its was written for Ms.Campbell's daughter.  I think that many fans of fairy tales or stories of lost princess will want to read this book. As for everyone else I think that you will want to pass on this for something else that is more up your alley.

( YA 13 and Up )

Stars: * * * 3.0

I was given a copy of the book by the publisher. This did not in anyway effect my review or thoughts on the book

Book: Save The Enemy

The cover and title of this book caught my eye and I thought it would be a good idea to give it a try.
This book was on the so so side from the start. The plot was pretty unbelievable and I did not really like Zoey. I felt like there was something missing about her. She just fell flat for me. I really wanted to like this book and tried to be opened minded but the more I read the more out of hand it got. I don't mean to be mean but if the bad guys wanted info they would not take the father they would take one of the children. That being said I did like Ben. He was just the right sidekick. and he really carried the book.I just could not get in to it. And I did not really like the ending which for me is a little bit of a big deal. A good ending makes or breaks a book.
I am not going write along review because I do not want to trash the book. I think that many people will like this book and it has a place. Just not with me.

( YA - 13 and up )
Stars: * * 2.6

I was given a copy of the book by the publisher. This did not in anyway effect my review or thoughts on the book

Books: My Most Excellent Year

This book would not have been my first  pick. But the Mary Popins thing  got me. First off the book is good. It is not great it is just your bite of life book. Sweet,insightful  and all.  Just life. Nothing out of this world. No Magic. No space ships. Nothing that does not happen.Nothing that could never happen to the rest of us. I did not like every thing in the book.But I did in no way hate it. 

The writing was odd.And I could not see it being written any other way. odd or not it worked. I also like all the odd movie stuff.It add to the books realness in a lot of ways.I also liked the way the you could just see the plays in your head. And feel what it was like to be up there with them. So that was very fun for me to read about. I think it was fun to have all the baseball stuff. even if I did not know what I was reading.I know nothing about baseball.

And the best part of the book was by far the end.I love the end of this book.I love it! In a lot of ways it made the book well worth reading. it was the kind of ending that almost made you forget everything that you did not like. So  over all this book really rocked once you read the end.

! I think that a lot of you will like it ( and a lot of you will not like it so much those of you who do not like these real kind of books). Its a sweet story of high school. and how we do not know it but we can change lives in so many great ways. I think that any young teenager who wants to see life the way other people live it  will love this book. Really a good book when you take the time for it.and take it for what it is.

( YA-13 and up)

Stars:  * * * * 3.7

Book: Manifest

I have wanted to read this book since it first came out in 2010. I feel in love with the cover and when i saw it at the library I just had to give it a try.
The book was very pretty good. I think the best way to put it is that younger YA readers will like it better even though its got a dark storyline ( for more info on that see bottom of post). As I am 16 and reading it I do not think that I liked it as much I would have if I was younger.
There was not to much about this book that I have not read before in books. It made me think of the The Gifted Books a little. I think that fans of those books will also like this one.
I also think that a lot of us will see eye to eye Krystal.She is going through a rough time and though she has some paranormal problems she also is going through a lot of the same things we are. Trying to find her place in the world and feeling powerless to do anything to change the problems in her life.
Over all a pretty good book. I think that if I get the chance I will give the next one a try.


( YA-12 and Up. Note that the story is about a guy who is killed and there is some internet stalking and underage porn in the book but not by the main characters. Its a good book to read and then talk  about internet safety and so on. I do think that some 12 year olds can handle this book over all but it might be a good idea to talk to them about while and even after they are done reading it)

Stars:  * * * 3.0

Book: The Selection ( #1)

I have wanted to read this book since it came out. But I first of all never found the time until now and was worried that it would not be as good as everyone said it would be. it all seemed to good to be true. But it was wonderful. It had everything I could have wanted from it. The pacing of the book was right on not to fast and not to slow. We learned about the lifestyle and world that this is set in at a good pace. Learning only what we needed to when we needed to. It felt like we were really in America's head. It was natural. America was the kinda girl that YA should be full of. She was strong but she had her soft caring side. She thought things through or acted normal. I also loved how the book did not get caught up in things that were not needed. Like lots of fights between the girls to keep people reading. When I read the reviews for this I became very fearful that this book would be like City of Bones  or Clockwork Angel and that it would be full of nasty twists and tricks. But it was not the book did not try to trick you in to wanting to read more in a lot of ways it made me think of Entwined ( which I loved).
I also really liked the love story in this ( team Maxon).I found it refreshing. It felt very really.The whole book really was what I think good YA books should be. It was the right mix of everything. I would highly recommend this book. And can not wait to read the next one which I hope will hold up to this one.

( YA -13 and up)
Stars: * * * 3.8 
( why only 3.8 because I would have liked this to be one stand alone book rather than another series)

Fun Links! List of Girls in the book!

Book: The Island

I was really excited to read this book the cover was cool and the story sounded great. I had hopes that it would be good.
But by page 3 I was already way let down. It felt like the story was trying so hard to be edgy. And there did not seem to be anything new or fresh to it.It was just another YA dystopa. I know it says it on the cover. But I was hoping for something more. Something really one of a kind about it.Now the book was good. I mean its a novella you so there is not a lot of time to really build up a world and characters. Its just that the first 20 pages could have used some cleaning up.And I feel that in a Novella that is a little bit more of big deal than it would be in a say five hundred page book.This book did keep me reading and wondering and it was nice to read something quick and to the point.But it did not thrill me.I feel this is a book that I did not find my self going back to and thinking about what happened. I just was like " so thats it".
I was interested to see how the Star wars thing was mixed in here and over all I have to say at times it was a little bit of pain but at others it worked really well i felt.Over all for me it was just another part of the story.  Would I read another book about these characters? Yes, I would like to see were the writer would take it if she wrote more.Would I read another book by this author? Yes, I think she is a pretty good writer just that this might not be her best work and I would like to give her other books a chance.

( YA - 13 and up)
Stars: * * * 3.2

I was given a copy of the book by the publisher. This did not in anyway effect my review or thoughts on the book. 

Book: The Boy Book

This is the next book in the ruby oliver series. and I have to say I was very happy when i saw that the library had this book, I thought it would be great to read and that it would be something that I would like. after the end of the last book I found my self wanting to see what happened next. Im not a fan of series because they get long and boring. but with these I found my self thinking that ruby is not like every other girl she is going to get her self in to much more fights and she is always going to be giving play -by-her-play updates that is just who she is.
so with that being said. I liked this book it was a lot like the first which I do not normally like but for once I really liked this one. and found my self laughing just as much as the first one.
Ruby is the same silly girl but I feel at points you can see how she has grown up a bit since the last book. which is good work on the authors part might I say. it is not easy to really do that and she did a good job of it.but one thing about these books is that they do not play out like all other books or movies. the guy does not get the girl. they do not kiss and make up. they friends aren't really good friends and have one anthers back. and the parents are never ever help full. never.
and in a way that is how some people find the books realistic. is because it plays out more like real life then some ones story. and to a point I like that. but I can not read her books back to back because of it.She is an author that writes her books so much like life that when you need a break her books are not the ones to go to. They are great books though done get me wrong. Just very life like.
Over i liked this book and look forward to reading more of her books soon.

(YA -13 and up)
Stars:* * * 3.4

Book:Ruby Red

I have wanted to read this book for a long time but have never had a chance to. So after one of my fellow bloggers  ( who is co-reviewing it with me) read it and really liked it i knew I had to give it a try. And truth be told it was a breath of fresh air to the both of us. For my Co-reviewer it was a good young adult book that boys could read as well.He has a very hard time finding non-girlie books to read and review. And it was something  I liked about it too. it was not all about finding true love. for once the book was about what it should be. which was time travel and Gwen. And I loved it. Gwen was just the right mix of funny,witty and normal teen with a little weird running through her. The book made me think of Harry Potter in some ways. Like that it was very enjoyable. I felt good reading it and I did not want to put it down. Both of us felt that way about the book. It was so different from these dark hard to read YA books that are everywhere. It was a book that I feel like almost anyone would like. It is something boys and girls will like. Its pretty clear so some of the younger readers can read it but I think that the older ( 15 and up) will like it just as much. Its clear why its an international best seller.
And I loved the time travel in this book. It was like the classic time travel stuff.And the time travel was the story. the writer did her job. I have not read it in german but I have to say that yes its not beautiful writing that melts your heart but does it really need to be? You are reading this book for fun.To get away.
It really was a very fun book to read full of everything a young adult book should be. And the best part was that after reading it you feel great ( and that you really should have the next book in your hands).I would say that this is a must read for just about everyone.

( YA-13 and up)
Stars: * * * * 4.5

Book:Underworld ( Abandon #2)

Its sad how long it has taken me to read this book. I am a huge (- ok maybe just a big fan since it took me so long to read it ) of Meg Cabot ( just look at the Airhead review).
I loved the first book in the Abandon series and was hoping that yet again Meg would out do her self. Which she did. This book was different from her other books because the short took place in so little time. It was only a few days. Which blows me away. I think that a lot of writers have a very hard time with writing stories that take place in a few days. I mean harry potter happened over one year.Yet Meg does a great job of keeping it moving without rushing it.
But Meg also keeps things just like always funny and light. Its something that makes picking up her books a lot like running in to an old friend sure its different and it takes a little time to fall back in to the swing of things but the fun and laugher is there right from the get go. I really love Meg's timing she knows just when to do all the right things. And things that would normally bother me with most YA books. I think that it is a true sign of what a great writer she is. I don't think that  have read a really bad Meg Cabot book - or one I that I did not like. Which for me is very hard to do. I have to say if you want to read this book go for it. It is well worth it.
Though yes, Meg might not be the worlds greatest writer as far as YA goes she is one of the top out there.

(YA-13 and up)

Stars:* * * 4.0

Book:Revolution

I have wanted to tea d this book since it first came out but never felt the real call to read it.
So when I saw it at the library a few weeks ago I thought what the hell I have nothing to lose at this point.
And I have to say this is one of the best books I have ever read. no its not a great classic but it really touches the heart. and for me the story of these two girls and how strong they are moves me. I just feel in love with both of them. yes at points it was hard to read because I did not always like what was going on ( I really love the big hollywood ends - so sue me). but the words and how they talk about music moved me so much. I want to go through the book again just to listen to all the music they talk about.
At times I felt like I could reach out and touch them. I could feel what they felt in my heart and soul. very few YA books really do that. something else I loved about this book was that it was not about another love sick teenager ( I know we all love them but it can get a little old). the love in this book was a different kind of true love.
there are so many things we can learn from this. That we are all going through are own hell but we have to find away to work through it. I think this is a book that anyone will learn something from. even if you don't like this kind of book. it is one that will move you. so if you can really read it. it is something that you should try. I my self can not wait to reread it- which means its very good because I never reread.


YA-13 and up
Stars:* * * * 4.5

Book:The Boyfriend List

I have heard many good things about this book and have read other books by the author and liked them a lot. so I thought it would be great to finely read this.
this was a very fun book. I liked the humor. and I loved the way it was written. I found my self seeing eye to eye with Ruby. I liked a lot of what she had to say. and I felt that she was just as lost in the middle of life as most teen girls are when it comes to boys and friends. and I love the way she goes around in circles, thats how a teenage mind works.  But as always with this writer. I found my self wishing that the girls in the story would not let people walk all over them. I wish they would stand up for them selfs and not let people be mean and push them around. and as always I did not like the ending. but hey maybe it was just me.but Im happy to know with this one that there was a follow up book. and I can't wait to read it.
I think I might just have fallen in love with roo.


(YA-13 and up)
Stars: * * * 3.4

Book: Shut Out

I wanted to read this book after reading the duff to see if it got any better. most writers get better or worse with every book. this one was pretty much the same over all. I do not think  there was as much going as in the duff this one was more about the feelings of the main girl and else of the noise around her. and I liked it. I think I would like to see the writer have longer books. i think with time they could get better and met half way on the feeling and story level.
This book was much the to the duff in that both the girls have the weird things they do daily. just like little things that make them more really which I like. I think its little  things like that add to a book a lot.it gives me hope that one day this author will read something really and truly great. She won't have to mess around with the sex and the boys and the people in the story will get deeper over time.
can't wait to see what she writes next!

(YA-13 and up)

Stars: * * * 3.4