Waiting on Wednesday #15

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

The Selection- Kiera Cass

 For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.

 But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

 Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

This looks so good! I love the plot that things like competitions create, so I know this one will be great. What are you looking forward to?

Re-reading

 I don't often re-read books. I know some people who say they can't re-read books, at all. When I re-read, it's always a book that I found particularly wonderful and whose world I can't wait to return to. Heck, sometimes I don't even know why I pick books back up. Below is a list compiled of the books I have re-read most often.

  To Kill A Mockingbird  by Harper Lee

 I love everything about this book. It is one of my all-time favorites. I love Scout's voice, still a kid. Atticus is one of my favorite characters. I like the fact that the main plot is sewn through the book, while most of the book focuses on Scout's life, just as it would be if a child was telling you this story. While that would bug the crap out of me in any other book, it fits seamlessly into this wonderful piece of literature.

 This book isn't for everyone. Most kids my age complain that it's boring, or that they don't get the meaning. However, I think this book perfectly portrays human nature and what comes with it.

Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

 I adore all of Rick Riordan's books, but this is definitely my favorite, probably because this is the book where it all began.I love Greek mythology and I love boys who wield swords, so naturally, I love this book. It's also kind of refreshing to read middle grade books every once in a while.

 I can't really describe to you why I love this book. It's just one of those books that draws you into it, with it's wonderful characters and entertaining world.

Distant Waves by Suzanne Weyn

 I have always found the event of the Titanic a heart breaking yet captivating one. When I first saw this book, I knew immediately that I wanted to read it. Since then, I've read it multiple times and enjoyed every second of the re-reading. It takes place in my favorite time era, I learned about a billion things that I hadn't known before, and the characters are absolutely swoon worthy.

 I love Jane's (the main character) voice, and, of course, the love interest, Thad. Romance has a lot to do with this book, and it's beautifully done. The rest of the characters are all wonderfully diverse and interesting.

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

 *sigh* This book is so stunningly elegant and beautiful. It's like nothing else I've ever read before in the way that it makes me feel like the world is absolutely real. The story is electric, with labyrinth like turns and twists. I fell in love with this book the first time I read it, and even more so the second, and third. This will be a book that I know I will enjoy for years and years to come.

 The supporting character's found in this book are all wonderfully wrought. There is no black and white in your feelings for them. You find yourself both loving and despising Cecily, the young and overeager sister wife to Rhine. Loving Linden and sort of hating yourself for it. And you find yourself absolutely disgusted with Housemaster Vaughn, the twisted doctor who will stop at nothing.

So, do you re-read books? If so, what calls you to them? The world, the characters, or even the writing style? Let me know!

5 Excuses

 So. I've been slacking.
 I know, I know. I could schedule posts in advance. But I'm not a planner. I'm the person who realizes they needed to be somewhere two hours ago and is still sitting on their bed, cruising tumblr. Anyway, I'm slacking off right now, mainly because it's February, I'm sick, and I just really, really need a break.
 Don't get me wrong, I adore blogging, but I feel like I've been plowing through my work so fast that I;m not enjoying it. So I'm slowing down a bit. Posting will be back at a steady pace very soon, but I need a few more days to be a useless human being.
 So, the five out of many excuses I have been telling myself and others include:

 1. I'M BUSY. No, not really. I'm actually just really good at procrastinating, so the work keeps piling up and up, but I'm really only busy thinking about how busy I am.

 2. I HAVE A LOT ON MY MIND. Read number one. I have a lot on my mind because I' thinking a lot about how I don't want to do anything.

 3. I JUST NEED A BREAK. This one is actually true. I've worked really hard all year, and now I just need some time to return to my room and lay on my bed all day without thinking about anything.

 4. THE INTERNET IS SHINY AND I WANT TO TOUCH IT. Once again, very true. I've recently discovered the majesty that is tumbr and can't seem to not be on tumblr. Now every time I see something funny, I immediately scream that it should be a GIF.

 5. MY BRAIN IS REALLY SCARED AND NEEDS TO SLEEP. Obviously, I'm going crazy. I need a vacation, or possibly a cloak of invisibility so that I can hide in my basement peacefully.

 So. I promise to return to blogging soon. Don't expect anything big for the next few days. In the meantime, you can look at this picture I drew for you.

My current train of thought, apparently.

Waiting on Wednesday #14

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

 Thumped by Megan McCafferty

  It's been thirty-five weeks since twin sisters Harmony and Melody went their separate ways. Since then, their story has become irresistible to legions of girls: twins separated at birth and living different lives, each due to deliver sets of twins . . . on the same day! In a future where only teens can "bump," or give birth, babies mean money, status, and freedom.
  Married to Ram and living in religious Goodside, Harmony spends her time trying to fit back into the community she once loved and believed in. But she can't seem to forget about Jondoe, the guy she fell in love with under the strangest of circumstances.
  To her adoring fans, Melody has achieved everything she always wanted: a big, fat contract and a coupling with Jondoe, the hottest bump prospect around. But this image is costing her the one guy she really wants.
  Cursed by their own popularity, the girls are obsessively tracked by their millions of fans, who have been eagerly counting down the days to their "Double Double Due Date." Without a doubt, they are two of the most powerful teen girls on the planet, and there's only one thing they could do that would make them more famous than they already are:
Tell the truth.

Review: An Abundance of Katherines

An Abundance of Katherines

Book: ★★★★☆
Cover: ★★★★☆
 (I'm aware that this isn't the new cover. I just like this one better.)

Reading level: Ages 12 and up 
Paperback: 272 pages 
Publisher: Speak; Reprint edition (October 16, 2008)

 When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton’s type is girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy–loving best friend riding shotgun—but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself.

  This book was written by John Green.


  Oh, what? You mean you need more initiative to read it? After reading The Fault in Our Stars, a book that I found myself at a complete loss, (Let me leave it at this: I believe that if you do not read TFiOS, you are truly missing one of the best works of literature of this time.) I knew I wanted to read all of John Green's books. I picked up An Abundance of Katherines at the library, and I'm SO glad I did.

First of all, the writing is wonderful, hilarious, and so, unbeliveably real. There is no sugar-coating, or over-dramatizations. I can;t really describe to you how very realistic this book is, mainly because I cannot comprehend how life was so flawlessly converted into words, printed on pages, and trapped between a cover.

  Reading this book was just so enjoyable. It's like reading summer. While it was definitely a quick read, I enjoyed every second of it, and the sentence to laugh ratio was about 1:1. Not to mention, I actually learned a lot while reading this book, including my new favorite vocabulary word, sitzpinkler. (Sitzpinkler: German for a man who sits to pee.) Actually, my teacher took this book away from me in class because I kept laughing obnoxiously loud. One of the funniest books I've read in a long while.

  The characters in this book have to be some of my all-time favorites. But I must say, Hassan (Colin's best friend) is just amazing. Most of the reason this book was so funny was because of Hassan. Colin is hilarious in a different way, when he wants to be. All the characters in this book have become real to me. Honestly, out of all the books I've read (excluding TFiOS), this book has the realest characters. Ever. I was left completely in awe in the character department.

  My only complaint is that the plot is a teeny, tiny, tiny bit slow. However, the writing is so good that you hardly notice. I was so in love with the characters, setting and writing that the plot was sort of less important. While I do wish it had been a bit more driven, this doesn't really affect my love of this book.

Overall, a really good book. I totally recommend it. DFTBA!

Waiting on Wednesday #13

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

 

  One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.
  Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.
  New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

 Honestly, after reading Divergent, I don't know who couldn't be dying to read this book! I am so ridiculously excited.

Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Book: ★★★★☆
Cover: ★★☆☆☆

Reading level: Ages 15 and up 
Hardcover: 432 pages 
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (September 27, 2011)

 Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.

When one of the strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

 The pure imagination in this book took my breath away. This is the most original story I've read in a while. The story started off a little slow, but once you get into this book, it won't let you go. While reading this book, I felt like I was being sucked into an epic fairytale world, which is what I've been longing for in a paranormal. I'm happy to say this this book completely lived up to the hype.

 I absolutely adore Karou. She fits the story so well. I can't really describe how wonderfully crafted she is, along with all of the other characters. The only word I can think of to almost-adequately describe them is vivid. So vivid it seems that they're really out there, living and breathing as you read. My favorite character has to be Akiva, and for reasons other than him being gorgeous. He's haunted and supernatural but also so real. For once, an angel with flaws. To be frank, I'm pretty tired of the perfect heroes, because that is just so terrible unrealistic. I know it's fiction, but it is also a story of emotion. This book has emotion packed into every word, some of it vibrant and fast-paced, others slow and foreboding.

  Truth be told, this book just felt like something whispered over campfires or found in an attic, leather bound and falling to pieces. This book brings storytelling back to life. While you can sort of see how it is going to end, through out the entire book you are entranced. Every aspect about it holds something mystical and beautiful. I think that the true story-like way in which this book is told is something really special.

  The plot of this book was addictive. You find yourself asking over and over again, What? But it's such a delightful confusion. Throughout the book, Karou struggles with who she is. She thinks she is flawed, scared by the things she has done. When really, she is one of the most innocent people in the entire book. I like that about her. I don;t mean that I like that she's down on herself, but rather, she doesn't think she's perfect. Anyway, when she finds out who she really is (which I will not tell you), she becomes happier. She discovers the truth about her and her past, something that has always felt hollow inside her. I loved to see that growth in her. But before she discovers herself, the idea that she could be something bad is so ver daunting, keeping you on the edge of your seat.

 Overall, a fantastic book. I loved every second of it. I completely recommend it for those of you who liked The Iron Fey series.